By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team kicks off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain St. Olaf in a 3 p.m. contest at the Saint Mary's Gym.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0 MIAC, 0-2 Overall) vs. St. Olaf Oles (0-0 MIAC, 3-2 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's­­—November 18, 2019 * Winona, Minn.: Saint Mary's put three players in double figures — including Brooklyn Paulson's (Holmen, Wis.) game-high 17-point effort — as the Cardinals rolled to a 98-64 exhibition win over Western Technical College at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
• St. Olaf—November 19, 2019 * St. Bonifacius, Minn.: The Oles put four players in double figures — led by Britta Koenen with 14 points — as they rolled to a 76-46 nonconference win over Crown | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. St. Olaf — A Year Ago:
• January 31, 2019 * Winona, Minn.: St. Olaf used a 33-point fourth quarter in dealing Saint Mary's a 78-71 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at the Saint Mary's Gym | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are back in action on Tuesday, heading to Saint Benedict's Claire Lynch Hall in St. Joseph, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference matchup against the Bennies.
• St. Olaf: The Oles return home to Skoglund Center in Northfield, Minn., on Tuesday, playing host to Bethel in a 7 p.m. MIAC showdown.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• After back-to-back road games to open the season, Saturday's conference-opener against St. Olaf is the second of two straight home games for the Cardinals, who finished 8-5 on their home court last season. … Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.) scored a game-high 17 points, and Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Wis.) and Ashley Streveler (Colby, Wis.) each added 11 points in Monday's exhibition win over Western Technical College. … Saint Mary's made 16 3-pointers against WTC, and had seven players recorded at least one trey in the exhibition win. … Shayley Vesel (Austin, Minn.) scored a team-high 18 points in the Cardinals' 68-54 loss to nationally ranked UW-Oshkosh on Nov. 11. … Vesel's 18-point effort was five points shy of her collegiate best, a 23-point showing against Bethel on Feb. 3, 2018. … Vesel, who netted 10 points in Saint Mary's season-opening loss to Winona State on Nov. 9, has scored in double figures in each of the Cardinals' two games this season — and seven times in her collegiate career. … Paulson scored a team-best 15 points in the Cardinals' season-opener against Winona State on Nov. 9. … Paulson — last season's MIAC Co-Rookie of the Year, as well as an honorable-mention All-MIAC selection — has scored 10 or more points 14 times in her first two years as a Cardinal. … Paulson has eclipsed the 20-point barrier three times in her collegiate career, putting together games of 20, 20, and a career-high 23 points. … Paulson knocked down a single-game career-high seven 3-pointers en route to her season- and career-high 23-point showing against Augsburg on Jan. 5, 2019. … Paulson's seven 3-pointers were one shy of the school record, set by Ashley Luehmann on Jan. 22, 2005. … Vesel heads into Saturday's conference-opening game against St. Olaf averaging a team-leading 14.0 ppg, while Paulson is also averaging in double figures at 12.0 ppg. … Biermeier has hauled in a team-leading 15 rebounds through two games — including 13 on the defensive end. Vesel is second to Biermeier with 11 boards. … Paulson owns the team lead in assists with three, one more than Vesel, Biermeier, and Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn.). … The Cardinals are 37-for-115 (32 percent) from the field — including 9 of 36 from behind the 3-point line — through the season's first two games, while going 24-for-32 (75 percent) from the free throw line. … The Cardinals made their seventh  MIAC Tournament appearance in the last eight years a year ago, falling to Bethel 66-52 in the quarterfinals. … The Cardinals picked up their first win under head coach David Foley with their 87-76 triumph over Nebraska Wesleyan on Nov. 17, 2018.
 
Scouting The St. Olaf Oles:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's conference-opener against Saint Mary's is the second of back-to-back road games for the Oles, who play four of their first six contests away from Skoglund Center. … Tuesday's 76-46 win over Crown was St. Olaf third win of the season — and the second by 30 or more points. The Oles beat North Central (87-53) and Crown (76-46), while adding a nine-point, 82-73 win over Buena Vista. On the flip side, St. Olaf has dropped a seven-point decision to UM-Morris (79-72) and fallen to Bethany Lutheran 73-56. … St. Olaf boasted four double-figure scorers in Tuesday's 76-46 win over Crown, led by Britta Koenen with 14 points. Keegan Mulvihill (12) and Camryn Scott (10) also finished in double figures vs. the Storm. … K'Lynn Lewis enters Saturday's conference-opener against Saint Mary's leading the team in scoring with a 16.4 ppg scoring average, with Rachel Kelly (11.3 ppg) and Koenen (10.3 ppg) also averaging in double figures. … Scott owns a team-high 36 rebounds (7.2 rpg), with Koenen (24, 8.0 rpg), Lewis (23, 4.6 rpg), and Ella Skrien (21, 4.2 rpg) also hauling in 20 or more boards through five games. … Lewis is the team's assist leader with 26, while sharing the team lead in steals (15) with Skrien. … As a team, St. Olaf is shooting 41.7 percent from the field (144-for-345) and are hitting on 62.6 percent of its free throws (57-for-91). … St. Olaf has connected on 28 3-pointers, led by Lewis with 16. … St. Olaf is averaging 74.6 ppg, while limiting its opponents to just 64.8 ppg through five games. … The Oles have outscored their opponents in each of the first three quarters — 90-85 in the first, 101-79 in the second, and 111-70 in the third — but have been outscored 90-71 in the game's final 10 minutes.