By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team kicks off the 2020 portion of its schedule on Saturday, as the Cardinals entertain UW-Stevens Point in a 7 p.m. nonconference contest at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena.
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (2-6-1 Overall) vs. UW-Stevens Point Pointers (6-3-1 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video
 
Last Action:
• Saint Mary's — December 6-7, 2019 * Winona, Minn./St. Peter, Minn.: The Cardinals picked up one conference points in their two-game MIAC series against fourth-ranked Gustavus. Saint Mary's battled GAC to a 2-2 overtime tie on Dec. 6, before falling to the high-power Gusties 5-1 in the rematch | GAC Recap 1 * GAC Recap 2
• UW-Stevens Point — December 7, 2019 * Stevens Point, Wis.: The Pointers scored twice in both the second and third periods in rolling to a 4-1 WIAC victory over Northland in their final game before the holiday break | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. UW-Stevens Point — Their Last Meeting:
• December 8, 2018 * Saint Mary's Ice Arena * Winona, Minn.: The Cardinals scored single goals in all three periods — and Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Ill.) stopped all 24 shots she faced for her first collegiate shutout — as Saint Mary's blanked UW-Stevens Point 3-0 | Recap
• January 4, 2019 * Ice Hawks Arena * Stevens Point, Wis.: Delaney Wolf (Bismarck, N.D.) scored with less than four minutes remaining in the first period, and the Cardinals made that solo goal stand up, as the two teams skated to a 1-1, overtime tie | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals are right back on their home ice at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena on Sunday, playing host to Marian in a 2 p.m. nonconference game.
• UW-Stevens Point: The Pointers hit the road again on Sunday, heading to Augsburg's Ed Saugestad Rink in Minneapolis, Minn., for a 2 p.m. nonconference showdown with the Auggies.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's nonconference game against UW-Stevens Point is the first of four straight home games for the Cardinals, who are 2-1-1 at the Saint Mary's Ice Arena this season. … The Cardinals' 2-2 tie against fourth-ranked Gustavus on Dec. 6 was their first overtime game of the season. It was also the third straight year in which Saint Mary's and GAC played to an overtime draw — the Cardinals and Gusties tied 1-1 in each of the last two seasons. … With their 2-2 tie, and 5-1 loss to No. 4 Gustavus on Dec. 6-7, the Cardinals have now earned at least one point in all three conference series this season. The Cardinals split their first two MIAC series against Concordia and St. Catherine. … With their 3-1 victory over St. Catherine on Nov. 22, the Cardinals have now scored three or more goals in their wins this season — Saint Mary's netted a season-high four goals in beating Concordia 4-3 on Nov. 15. On the flip side, the Cardinals have been held to one goal in each of their last five losses. … Five of the Cardinals' first nine games this season have been against teams ranked in the USCHO.com Poll. Saint Mary's dropped 3-2 and 4-2 games to No. 3 Adrian on Nov. 2-3, while falling to No. 5 UW-River Falls 4-1 on Nov. 9, and tying (2-2) and losing (5-1) to No. 4 Gustavus on Dec. 6-7 … Sophia Zebro (Oak Grove, Minn.) and Lauryn Folker (Cody, Wyo.) netted Saint Mary's two goals against Gustavus in the teams' 2-2 tie on Dec. 6, while Courtney Moser (Blaine, Minn.) netted Saint Mary's lone goal in the 5-1 loss the following day. … With her goal against Gustavus, Zebro moved into a tie for the team lead (3) with Anya Hafiz (Woodbury). Folker, Moser, Kayla Henning (Burnsville, Minn.), Natalie Ryan (Village of Lakewood, Ill.), and Carolyn Chrastka (Franklin Park, Ill.) are all second to Zebro and Hafiz with two goals each. … Moser and Amber Miller (Kasson, Minn.) share the team lead in assists with three each, while Moser owns a team-high five points. … Zebro's two-goal game in Saint Mary's 4-3 win over Concordia on Nov. 15 was her third collegiate multiple-goal game. The sophomore also scored two goals against both Marian and UW-River Falls last season. … Miller's goal against Adrian on Nov. 2 was her first as a Cardinal. … Five of the Cardinals' 17 goals this season have come on the power play. … Ary Ziakas (Palatine, Ill.) stopped a season- and career-high 44 shots — including 19 in the third period — against Gustavus on Dec. 6. … Ziakas — who has made 30 or more saves give times in her collegiate career — enters Saturday's game against UW-Stevens Point boasting a 2.46 goals-against-average and a .924 save percentage. … Jordan Keeley (St. Peter, Minn.) boasts a 3.32 goals-against-average and an .890 save percentage four starts. … Keeley finished with a career-high 43 saves in Saint Mary's 4-2 loss to Adrian on Nov. 3. … Keeley's 43-save effort bettered her previous career-high by 12 saves. … Saint Mary's has scored eight of its 17 goals this season in the second period. On the flip side, the Cardinals' opponents have scored 13 of its 29 goals in the third period. … Saint Mary's has scored first in six of its nine games, going 1-4-1 … Saint Mary's is 2-1-1 when leading after two periods, while going 0-4-0 when trailing after two. … Six of the Cardinals' nine games this season have been decided by two goals or less. … The Cardinals' 4-3 win over Concordia on Nov. 22 was the first collegiate coaching win for Cardinal HC Sarah Murray. … Saint Mary's 3-2 loss to Adrian on Nov. 2 snapped its 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.
 
Scouting The UW-Stevens Point Pointers:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Saint Mary's is the first of back-to-back road games for the Pointers — with both contests against teams from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. … UW-Stevens Point is currently 2-1-1 against the MIAC this season, sweeping St. Olaf (3-0, 4-1), while tying and losing to St. Thomas (2-2, 4-0), with games vs. Saint Mary's and Augsburg this weekend. … UW-Stevens Point picked up its second straight win — and sixth of the season — with its 4-1 win over Northland on Dec. 7. … UW-Stevens Point's four goals against Northland on Dec. 7 came from four different players — Ashlyn Wiltscheck, Alex Grubbs, Mary Kremer, and Nicole Neuberger. … Neuberger's goal against Northland was her team-leading sixth of the season. … Kremer is second to Neuberger with four goals, while Grubbs, Wiltscheck, and Emma Berthiaume have all scored three times. … Sophia Regovic owns a team-leading five assists, two more than both Neuberger and Grubbs. … Neuberger leads the Pointers with nine points, followed by Kremer, Grubbs, and Regovic with six each. … Neuberger and Grubbs have both netted two game-winning goals, with Berthiaume and Alana Achterkirch accounting for the other two. … Olivia Schultz has started nine of the Pointers' 10 games in goal, compiling a 2.10 goals-against-average and .939 save percentage. … Schultz has stopped 275 of the 293 shots she's faced and has recorded a pair of shutouts. … Marit Larson has appeared in two games between the pipes this season, posting a 0.68 GAA and .967 save percentage. … Larson stopped all 19 shots she faced against St. Olaf on Nov. 1 in her lone start this season. … UW-Stevens Point has outscored its opponents 30-20 through 10 games — including 12-8 in the second period and 11-6 in the third. … The Pointers are unbeaten (5-0-0) when scoring the game's first goal, while going 1-3-1 when their opponent scores first. … UW-Stevens Point is 6-0-0 when leading after two periods, but are winless (0-3-0) when trailing heading into the game's final 20 minutes.