By DONNY NADEAU
Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
 
WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team returns home to the Saint Mary's Gym on Saturday, as the Cardinals honor their lone graduating senior — Michele Remer — prior to the opening tip of their 3 p.m. conference showdown against Hamline
 
The Matchup:
• Saint Mary's Cardinals (3-14 MIAC, 3-19 Overall) vs. Hamline Pipers (9-8 MIAC, 14-8 Overall)
 
GameDay Live On The Web:
• Live Stats * Live Video | Senior Salute

Last Action:
• Saint Mary's — February 12, 2020 * West Gym * Northfield, Minn.: The Cardinals struggled to find their shooting touch early — falling behind 21-12 after the game's opening 10 minutes — and could not make up the deficit, falling to Carleton 68-58 | Recap
• Hamline — February 8, 2020 * Si Melby Hall * Minneapolis, Minn.: The Pipers clawed to within four points of No. 14 Augsburg in the fourth quarter, but the Auggies pulled away down the stretch, dealing Hamline a 78-66 conference setback | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Hamline — Earlier This Year:
• January 11, 2020 * Hutton Arena * St. Paul, Minn.: Hamline's Lydia Lecher knocked down two free throws with eight seconds remaining in overtime, lifting the Pipers to an 87-85 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference win over the Cardinals | Recap
 
Saint Mary's vs. Hamline — A Year Ago:
• January 2, 2019 * Hutton Arena * Winona, Minn.: Hamline erupted for 28-points in the game's final 10 minutes — including a buzzer-beating 3-point bomb by Kaeli Stayer — as the Pipers rallied from a nine-point deficit with 3:19 remaining to deal the Cardinals a 67-66 setback | Recap
 
Up Next:
• Saint Mary's: The Cardinals return home to the Saint Mary's Gym for one final time this Wednesday, entertaining Gustavus in a 7 p.m. conference matchup.
• Hamline: The Pipers are back on their home court at Hutton Arena in St. Paul, Minn., on Wednesday, playing host to Carleton in a 7 p.m. MIAC contest.
 
Scouting The Saint Mary's Cardinals:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's game against Hamline is the first of back-to-back home games for the Cardinals. … Ewelina Schlomann (New Berlin, Wis.) scored a career-high 19 points to lead the Cardinals in scoring in Wednesday's 68-58 loss to Carleton. Schlomann's 19-point effort was four better than her previous single-game career-high, set against Macalester on Dec. 11. … Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.) also scored in double figures against the Knights, netting 11 points. … The Cardinals have had a player score 20 or more points in three of their last six games — Shayley Vesel (Austin, Minn.) has accounted for two of the three (20 vs. Augsburg on Feb. 5 and 26 vs. Macalester on Jan. 29), while Paulson owns the other (27 vs. St. Olaf on Jan. 25). … Vesel's 26-point effort against Macalester on Jan. 29 was two points shy of her career-high 28-point showing against Concordia in their first meeting on Dec. 7. … Vesel's 28-point effort against Concordia on Dec. 7 was the highest individual single-game total since Alexa Huisman poured in 32 against Hamline on Jan. 20, 2018. … Vesel has scored 20 or more points in a game five times this season. … Paulson's 27 points against St. Olaf on Jan. 25 marked the second time this season the sophomore has recorded a career-high in scoring. She netted a then-career-best 26 points against Hamline on Jan. 11. … Paulson has scored 10 or more points 29 times in her first two years as a Cardinal — including seven games of 20 or more points. … Ashley Streveler (Colby, Wis.) scored a career-high 11 points to lead the Cardinals in scoring in their 55-53 loss to St. Catherine on Jan. 20, becoming the fifth different player to lead the Cardinals in scoring this season, joining Vesel, Paulson, Schlomann, and Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn.). … The Cardinals boast four players who have scored a single-game career-high of 10 or more points this season — Vesel (28 v. Concordia on Dec. 7), Paulson (27 v. St. Olaf on Jan. 25), Schlomann (19 v. Carleton on Feb. 12), and Streveler (11 v. St. Catherine on Jan. 22). … Paulson netted 26 points and Vesel added 23 in the Cardinals' 82-80 overtime loss to Hamline on Jan. 11, marking the second time this season the Cardinal duo has each scored 20 or more points in the same game — Vesel tallied 25 and Paulson added 23 against UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 30. … Vesel heads into Saturday's conference game against Hamline averaging a team-leading 15.6 ppg, while Paulson (13.0 ppg) is also averaging in double figures. … Vesel also holds the team lead in rebounds with 91 (4.6 rpg). … Patterson is the team-leader in assists with 54, six in front of Hallie Schmeling (Onalaska, Wis.), while Vesel boasts a team-high 41 steals. … Jada Biermeier (Eau Claire, Wis.) owns a team-high six blocked shots, followed by Vesel and Maggie Robertson (Orland Park, Ill.) with five each. … Paulson — who knocked down a single-game career-high seven 3-pointers against Augsburg in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 5, 2019 — leads the team with 50 treys, followed by Vesel (26), Streveler (16), and Schmeling (12). … The Cardinals are 476-for-1317 (.361) from the field — including 139-for-483 (.288) from behind the 3-point line — while hitting 272 of 399 (.682) from the free throw line. … The Cardinals have netted a season-high 10 3-pointers four this season — vs. Augsburg on Feb. 5, vs. St. Olaf on Jan. 25, vs. Concordia on Dec. 7, and against UW-Stevens Point on Dec. 30. … Saint Mary's has put four players in double figures in the same game twice this season — against Bethel on Feb. 8 and vs. St. Catherine on Dec. 4. … With their 20-point, 77-57 win over Macalester on Jan. 29, the Cardinals put an end to their 11-game losing streak, dating back to a 70-68 overtime win over the Scots on Dec. 11. … Saint Mary's set a season-high for free throws made (23) against St. Olaf on Jan. 25. … The Cardinals' upset win over fifth-ranked Bethel on Feb. 8 marked the seventh game this season against teams ranked nationally — having also faced No. 7 Wartburg, No. 8 UW-Oshkosh, No. 17 UW-Whitewater, No. 17 Gustavus, No. 22 St. Thomas, and then-No. 25 Bethel in their first meeting. … Saint Mary's 82-80 loss to Hamline on Jan. 11 was the Cardinals' third overtime game of the season. The three overtime games are the most since Saint Mary's went into OT three times during the 1997-98 campaign. … All three of Saint Mary's OT games have been decided by two points — the Cardinals beat Macalester 70-68 in OT on Dec. 11, while falling to St. Catherine 79-77 in double overtime on Dec. 4, and losing to Hamline 82-80 last Saturday. … The Cardinals' 79-77 loss to St. Catherine on Dec. 4 was its first double-overtime game since beating Bethel 73-69 on Jan. 24, 2009. … The Cardinals' 80-point effort in their 82-80 loss to Hamline on Jan. 11 was a season-high. … Saint Mary's, which is averaging 62.0 ppg, has scored 70 or more points eight times this season.
 
Scouting The Hamline Pipers:
2019-20 Roster | 2019-20 Schedule | 2019-20 Statistics
• Saturday's game at Saint Mary's is the final regular-season home game for the Pipers, who are 11-3 on the road, while owning a 3-5 mark at Hutton Arena. … Hamline enters Saturday's game against Saint Mary's sitting fifth in the conference standings, one game in front of St. Catherine and two up on both Concordia and Saint Benedict with three regular-season games to play. … Wednesday's 78-66 loss to No. 14 Augsburg marked the second time in their last three games that the Pipers have faced a nationally ranked team. HU dropped a 65-57 decision to No. 20 St. Thomas on Feb. 5. … With Wednesday's loss at Augsburg, Hamline saw its losing streak climb to a season-high three straight. … Lydia Lecher scored a team-high 22 points and Sarah Loken chipped in 13 for the Pipers against Augsburg Wednesday. … Hamline enters Saturday's matchup against Saint Mary's boasting two players who are averaging in double figures in scoring — Reilly Geistfeld 15.5 ppg) and Lecher (12.5 ppg). … Along with her team-leading 15.5 ppg scoring average, Geistfeld also owns a team-best 216 rebounds (9.8 rpg). … Kaeli Stayer is the Pipers' assist leader with 51, while Chan'el Anderson-Manning (48) and Geistfeld (40) lead the way in steals, and Geistfeld has amassed a team-leading 22 blocked shots. … Hamline has netted 136 3-pointers through 22 games, led by Geisfeld (36), Stayer (26), and Lecher (23). … As a team, Hamline is 510-for-1265 (.403) from the field — including a 136-for-423 (.322) effort from behind the 3-point line — and is 289-for-454 (.637) from the free throw line. … Hamline is averaging 65.6 ppg, while the Pipers' opponents are scoring at a 61.8 ppg clip. … Hamline has scored 70 or more points in eight of its 22 games this season — including three games of 80 or more points. HU scored 84 points in each of its two wins against Macalester — beating the Scots 84-52 on Nov. 26 and 84-55 on Jan. 15 — while netting a season-high 87 in edging Saint Mary's 87-85 in overtime in the teams' first meeting on Jan. 11.