By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
ST. PETER, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team entered Wednesday's showdown with No. 17 Gustavus looking to do something no other conference school has been able to achieve this season — beat the Gusties.
 
Gustavus, however, had other ideas.
 
The Gusties outscored the Cardinals 40-26 in the middle two quarters in handing Saint Mary's an 82-65 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at Gus Young Court.
 
The Gusties scored the game's first five points, and never relinquished the lead, taking a 22-17 advantage after the opening quarter. Gustavus followed that up by scoring 20 points in both the second and third quarters — while limiting Saint Mary's to 11 second-quarter points and 15 third-quarter points in pushing its lead to 62-43 heading to the fourth stanza.
 
Saint Mary's outscored the Gusties 22-20 in the game's final 10-minute period — getting within 11, 73-62 — only to have Gustavus close the game on a 9-3 run to ice its seventh straight conference win.
 
Shayley Vesel (Austin, Minn.) netted a team-high 14 points for the Cardinals, who shot 26.7 percent from the field (22-for-60), with four 3-pointers, while going 17 of 24 from the free throw line. Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Minn.) chipped in 10 points, while Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn.) added nine and Rachel Kedl (Lamberton, Minn.) finished with eight.
 
Paige Richert and Caitlin Rorman combined to score more than half of the Gusties' 82 points, with Richert finished with 23 points and 10 rebounds, while Rorman added 20 points. Gustavus went 29-for-60 from the field (48.3 percent) with three 3-pointers and finished 21 of 30 from the free throw line.
 
The Cardinals (1-5 MIAC, 1-10 overall) are back on the road on Saturday, heading to Hamline's Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 3 p.m. MIAC matchup against the Pipers. The Gusties (7-0 MIAC, 11-1 overall) leave the friendly confines of Gus Young Court on Saturday, traveling to Bethel's Robertson Center Gym for a 3 p.m. conference showdown against the Royals