By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
RIVER FALLS, Wis.. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team is back in action on Saturday, facing its third nationally ranked team in as many games, as the Cardinals head to W.H. Hunt Arena for a 2:05 p.m. nonconference showdown against #5 UW-River Falls.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-2-0 Overall) at #5 UW-River Falls Falcons (2-0-0 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—Saturday-Sunday, November 2-3, 2019 * Adrian, Mich.: The Cardinals dropped a pair of nonconference games against third-ranked Adrian last weekend, falling 3-2 to the Bulldogs last Saturday, while suffering a 4-2 setback the following afternoon | AC Recap 1 * AC Recap 2
• UW-River Falls—Friday-Saturday, November 1-2, 2019 * River Falls, Wis.: The Falcons kicked off their season with a pair of lopsided home wins over Lake Forest, dropping the Foresters 6-1 last Friday, before adding a 4-1 victory the following afternoon | LFC Recap 1 * LFC Recap 2
 
Saint Mary's vs. UW-River Falls — Their Last Meeting:
• January 8, 2019 * Winona, Minn.: UW-River Falls erupted for six goals — while limiting Saint Mary's to single goals in all three periods — as the sixth-ranked Falcons dealt the Cardinals a 6-3 nonconference setback at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals kick off Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play next weekend, hosting Concordia for a pair of games at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena. The Cardinals and Cobbers will square off at 7 p.m. on Friday, with Saturday's rematch slated for 2 p.m.
• UW-River Falls: The Falcons open WIAC play next weekend, hosting UW-Stevens Point in a 7:05 p.m. contests Friday evening at W.H. Hunt Arena in River Falls, Wis., before heading to Ashland, Wis., for a 7 p.m. conference showdown against Northland.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's game against fifth-ranked UW-River Falls is the third straight road game to start the season for the Cardinals — and the third straight game against a team ranked in the Top 5 of the USCHO.com Poll. Saint Mary's opened the season with back-to-back games against then-No. 3 — and now No. 2   Adrian last weekend. … The Cardinals scored two goals in each game against third-ranked Adrian last weekend — with four different players doing the scoring. Amber Miller (Kasson, Minn.) and Anya Hafiz (Woodbury, Minn.) netted Saint Mary's two goals in last Saturday's 3-2 loss, while Kayla Henning (Burnsville, Minn.) and Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill.) scored the Cardinals' two goals in last Sunday's 4-2 setback. … Miller's goal against Adrian last Saturday was her first collegiate goal. … Courtney Moser (Blaine, Minn.) and Avrey Simonson (Waupaca, Wis.) earned the Cardinals' two assists last weekend against Adrian. … Two of Saint Mary's four goals against Adrian last weekend came on the power play. … Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Minn.) stopped 27 of Adrian's 30 shots in her first start of the season last Saturday, while Jordan Keeley (St. Peter, Minn.) finished with a career-high 43 saves in last Sunday's rematch against the Bulldogs. … Keeley's 43-save effort bettered her previous career-high by 12 saves. … Saint Mary's 3-2 loss to Adrian last Saturday snapped their four-year, season-opening winning streak. … The Cardinals, who made their first MIAC Tournament appearance since the 2015-16 season a year ago — and their 11th in program history — were picked to finish sixth in the MIAC Preseason Coaches Poll. … The Cardinals' six ties last season equaled the single-season school record, last accomplished during the 2011-12 season, when Saint Mary's finished the year 7-12-6.
 
Scouting The UW-River Falls Falcons:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the third of four straight home games for the Falcons, who play five of their first six contests on their home ice. UW-River Falls finished 12-4-0 at W.H. Hunt Arena a year ago. … The Falcons erupted for a 10 goals in their season-opening sweep of Lake Forest last weekend, netting six goals in the opener, while adding four more in the nightcap. … Abigail Stow accounted for four of the Falcons' 10 goals in their season-opening sweep of Lake Forest last weekend, scoring twice in each game. … Bella Wagner chipped in three goals — including a two-goal effort in UWRF's season-opening 6-1 win, while Erica Schramel and Madi Nolan added the Falcons' other two goals vs. the Foresters. … Stow and Nolan recorded the Falcons' two game-winning goals vs. Lake Forest last weekend. … Brooke Walters picked up a team-high three assists vs. Lake Forest, with Schramel, Nolan, Hailey Herdine, and Callie Hoff all chipping in two helpers. … Sami Miller started both games in goal against Lake Forest, stopping 27 of the 28 shots she faced, before giving way to Sarah Varga, who stopped all 18 shots in the final two periods of last Saturday's 4-0 win. … UW-River Falls outscored Lake Forest 9-0 through the first two periods — 6-0 in the first and 3-0 in the second. … The Falcons, the six-time defending regular-season champion, was picked to finish No. 1 in the WIAC Preseason Poll. … The Falcons made their 11th NCAA appearance a year ago — falling to Hamline 5-1 in their first NCAA tournament game. … UW-River Falls closed out the season with a 23-6-0 overall record — recording at least 20 wins for the 10th time in the last 11 seasons.