By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota women's hockey team kicks off its two-game conference series against Hamline on Friday, as the Cardinals travel to TRIA Rink for a 7 p.m. showdown with the nationally Pipers.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (4-6-4 MIAC, 7-8-6 Overall) at #5/6 Hamline Pipers (11-1-2 MIAC, 17-1-3 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats | Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's—February 1-2, 2019 * Blaine, Minn./Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals earned three of a possible four conference points in its two-game series against Bethel last weekend, as Saint Mary's and BU battled to a 2-2 tie last Friday at the Schwan's Super Rink, with SMU picking up a 2-1 win in the rematch at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena | BU Recap 1 * BU Recap 2
• Hamline—February 1-2, 2019 * St. Paul, Minn.: The Pipers picked up a pair of conference wins over Concordia last weekend at TRIA Rink — in very different ways. HU erupted for 10 goals in a 10-0 rout of the Cobbers last Friday, before edging CC 2-1 in the rematch the following afternoon | CC Recap 1 * CC Recap 2
 
Saint Mary's vs. Hamline — A Year Ago:
• February 9, 2018 * Winona, Minn.: HU entered Game 1 of its two-game series against Saint Mary's on the heels of a 13-4 rout of Concordia in their last outing. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Pipers' offensive firepower did not end with that shelling of the Cobbers, as Hamline erupted for four goals — including three in the second period — in dealing the Cardinals a 4-2 setback at Saint Mary's Ice Arena | Recap
• February 10, 2018 * St. Paul, Minn.: For the second straight game, the Pipers' offense came to life in a big way, erupting for four second-period goals and adding another in the third in rolling to a 6-0 conference win over the Cardinals at TRIA Rink | Recap
 
Up Next:
• The Cardinals and Pipers on back on the ice on Saturday, heading to the Saint Mary's Ice Arena for the second game of their two-game conference series. Game time is slated for 4 p.m.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals: 
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Friday's game against Hamline is the seventh road game in the last 11 contests for the Cardinals, who are 3-4-5 away from the Saint Mary's Ice Arena this season. … Last Saturday's 2-1 win over Bethel was the seventh time in the last eight contests that the end result was decided by one goal or less. … The Cardinals have now gone into overtime in seven of their last 11 games — including six that have ended in ties. … The Cardinals' six ties this season tie the single-season school record, last accomplished during the 2011-12 season, when Saint Mary's finished the year 7-12-6. … Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill.) scored once and assisted on the other in the Cardinals' 2-2 tie against Bethel last Friday. Bailey Wendt (Coon Rapids, Minn.), meanwhile, recorded goals in both games and Kourtney Jancze (Stillwater, Minn.) accounted for Saint Mary's other tally in the weekend. … With her goal against Bethel last Friday, Ryan moved into the team lead with seven goals — one more than Sophia Zebro (Oak Grove, Minn.) and two in front of Wendt. … Courtney Moser (Blaine, Minn.) picked up her team-leading 10th assist of the season against Bethel last Saturday. … Ryan, Wendt, and Moser all share the team lead in points with 12 each. … Zebro recorded her second collegiate two-goal game on Jan. 8 against nationally ranked UW-River Falls, scoring the first two of the Cardinals' three goals vs. the Falcons. Zebro also had a two-goal game against Marian on Oct. 27. … Saint Mary's 36 goals this season have come from 11 different players, while 15 Cardinals have recorded at least one point. … Saint Mary's seven game-winning goals this season have come from five different players — Ryan (2), Moser, Zebro, Chrastka, Jancze, and Wolf. … The Cardinals boast six players who have scored their first collegiate goals this season — Jancze, Zebro, Lexie Budensiek (Farmington, Minn.), Carolyn Chrastka (Franklin Park, Ill.), Carson Sheridan (Waunakee, Wis.), and Lauren Folker (Cody, Wyo.). … Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Ill.) — who made a season-high 37 saves against Gustavus on Jan. 26 — finished with 33 saves against Bethel last Friday and added a 20-save effort vs. the Royals the following afternoon. … Ziakas' 37-save effort was just four shy of her career high. … Ziakas heads into this weekend's matchup against Hamline boasting a 1.56 goals-against-average and a .941 save percentage in 10 appearances, while Ashley Corcoran (Red Wing, Minn.) owns a 2.02 GAA and .935 save percentage in three games and Jordan Keeley (St. Peter, Minn.) has compiled a 2.68 GAA and .907 save percentage in a team-leading nine starts. … Ziakas leads the goalie corps with 253 saves, with Keeley second with 194. … All three Cardinal goalies have posted at least one shutout this season. Keeley stopped all 28 shots she faced in Saint Mary's 1-0 win over St. Catherine on Jan. 19 — it was her second shutout of the season. The freshman also stopped all 16 shots in notching her first collegiate shutout — in her first collegiate start — against Marian on Oct. 27. Corcoran stopped all 22 shots she faced against Saint Benedict on Nov. 30 en route to her first shutout of the season and second of her collegiate career; while Ziakas posted her first collegiate shutout in the Cardinals' first meeting with UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 8, stopping all 24 Pointer shots. … Corcoran finished with a season-high 39 saves against UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 20 — including 20 in the game's opening 20 minutes. … Keeley posted a career-high 29 saves in Saint Mary's 4-1 loss to Augsburg on Nov. 17. … Saint Mary's game against sixth-ranked UW-River Falls on Jan. 8 was the fourth against a nationally ranked opponent this season. The Cardinals played a pair of games against then-No. 9 St. Thomas on No. 9-10, and faced then-No. 10 UW-Eau Claire on Nov. 20. … Six of the nine goals scored between Saint Mary's and Saint Benedict on Nov. 30-Dec. 1 were scored in the first period. The Cardinals scored all three of their goals in their 3-0 win vs. Saint Benedict on Nov. 20 in the opening period, while the Bennies netted three of their five tallies in their 5-1 win the following day in the game's first 20 minutes. … Saint Mary's has scored first 11 times this season — including all seven of its wins — and five of its six ties. The Cardinals are still searching for their first win (0-9-1) when their opponent scores first. … Saint Mary's is 7-1-2 when leading after two periods, but are winless (0-6-1) when trailing heading into the third period. … The Cardinals' six goals in their 6-3, season-opening win over St. Norbert equaled their single-game season high from a year ago. … The Cardinals' 6-3 loss to nationally ranked UW-River Falls on Jan. 8 was their final nonconference game of the season. Saint Mary's finished 3-2-2 in its seven non-league games. … With their 6-3 season-opening win over St. Norbert on Oct. 26, the Cardinals have now won their season-opener in each of their last four seasons. … Thanks to their 6-3 win over St. Norbert and 4-0 victory over Marian, the Cardinals have now swept those two teams to open each of the last three seasons.
 
Scouting The Hamline Pipers:
2018-19 Roster | 2018-19 Schedule | 2018-19 Statistics
• Friday's game against Saint Mary's is the third straight home game for the Pipers, who are 11-1-1 on their home ice this season. … Hamline enters this weekend's two-game series against Saint Mary's ranked fifth in the latest USCHO.com poll, while sporting a No. 6 ranking in the D3hockey.com Top 10. … After opening the season with a five straight wins, HU suffered its lone setback, falling to Gustavus 2-1 in overtime on Nov. 17. Since then, Hamline has gone 12-0-3 in its last 15 games. … Hamline's 10-goal outburst in last Friday's 10-0 win over Concordia was a single-game season high, and marked the eighth time this season the Pipers — who have already locked up one of the five MIAC Playoff berths — have scored six or more goals in a game. … Bre Simon picked up five points (2 G, 3 A) in last Friday's 10-0 win over Concordia, while Molly Garin also scored twice. Garin also scored in Saturday's rematch with the Cobbers, with Dani Wright accounting for the other goal. … Simon heads into this weekend's two games against Saint Mary's own a team-leading 21 goals. Simon is one of three Pipers who have scored 10 or more goals this season — Molly Garin (15) and  Leah Schwartzman (11) are the other two. … Simon also leads the team in assists (26) and points (47). … Simon's 47 points are tops among NCAA Division III. … Hamline boasts six players — Simon (26), Schwartzman (20), Jordan Hansen (16), Dani Perry (16), Garin (13), and Wright (12) — with 10 or more assists, while Simon (47), Schwartzman (31), Garin (27), Hansen (25), Wright (18), Perry (17), Katie Carlson (14), Madison Kolbow (13), and Becca Zarembinski (10) have all posted 10 or more points through 21 games. … Hamline has scored 28 power-play goals and has also netted a pair of shorthanded tallies. Garin leads the team with six power-play goals, one more than Simon. … McKenna Hulslander has been the workhorse between the pipes for the Pipers, compiling a 1.64 goals-against-average and a .924 save percentage in 16 starts. Jeala O'Brien (0.90 GAA, .929 save %) has started Hamline's other five games in goal. … Hulslander has made 318 saves, while O'Brien has chipped in 65 saves. … Hamline heads into the weekend averaging 4.48 goals- and 40.8 shots-per-game. … HU has outscored its opponents 94-31 — including 26-8 in the first period. … Hamline has scored first in 16 of its 21 games, going 13-1-2. HU is 4-0-1 when its opponent scores first. … The Pipers are a perfect 14-0-0 when leading after two periods, while sporting a 2-0-2 record when trailing heading into the third period. … Hamline has played six overtime games this season — beating UW-Superior (2-1) and Gustavus (3-2), while also losing to the Gusties (2-1) and tying UW-Eau Claire (2-2), Augsburg (2-2), and Bethel (4-4).