• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals pushed their overall record to 10-1-1 Wednesday, getting a goal from Maya Wachter (Dubuque, Iowa) with 4:08 remaining in the second overtime in beating UW-River Falls 1-0. Along with their 10-1-1 mark, the Cardinals will sport a 4-0-1 MIAC record into Saturday's showdown with Augsburg.
• TOUGH TO BEAT: Saint Mary's 10-1-1 start to the season is its best start since opening the 1991 season 11-1-0. That 1991 team went on to finish 14-4-0 and earned a berth in the NCAA Tournament, falling to UC-San Diego in the opening round. … The Cardinals also opened the 1988 season 11-1-0 — it's the best 12-game start in program history.
• CLOSE CALLS: The Cardinals' last seven games have all been decided by one goal or less — including back-to-back-to-back 1-0 victories in their last three contests. SMU has beaten Carleton (1-0), St. Catherine (2-1), Gustavus (1-0), Concordia (1-0), and UW-River Falls, lost to UW-Stout (2-1), and tied Saint Benedict (0-0).
• WORKING OVERTIME: With Wednesday's double-overtime win over UW-River Falls, the Cardinals have now played three overtime games this season, going 2-0-1. Saint Mary's played four overtime games in 2019 — with all four going into a second OT.
• TOP OF THE HEAP: The Cardinals will enter their Saturday matchup at Augsburg sitting in first place in the MIAC standings with a 4-0-1 overall record and 13 points. SMU is one point clear of St. Catherine (4-1-0), three points in front of Augsburg (3-1-1) and four points up on St. Scholastica (3-2-0), Bethel (3-2-0), and Carleton (3-2-0).
• NONE BETTER: As a team, the Cardinals lead all MIAC teams in goals (30), assists (23), points (83), and goals-against-average (0.24). Individually, Alexis Nguyen's (West Corvina, Calif.) 0.12 goals-against-average and .970 save percentage lead the league. Her 0.12 GAA ranks No. 2 in all of NCAA Division III and her .970 save percentage is No. 1 in the nation. … Matthews shares the top spot in the league in points (17) and is second in both goals (7) and shots attempted (46). … Genesis Capacio (Las Vegas, Nev.) is sitting second in the MIAC in assists with five.
• CONFERENCE HONORS: Nguyen and Matthews have both been named MIAC Athlete of the Week this season — Nguyen earning the honor on Sept. 20 and Matthews following suit one week later.
• ONE GOT PAST: St. Catherine's goal in the game's 72nd minute on Sept. 26 was the first allowed by the Cardinals this season — ending a span of 722:13 scoreless minutes. … UW-Stout's goal in the fourth minute the following day, meanwhile, marked the first time all season the Cardinals have not scored first.
• LEADER OF THE PACK: Matthews enters Saturday's game against Augsburg leading the team in goals with seven, one more than Haddy Falkman (Waconia, Minn.), and three in front of Kassie Arriaga (Chula Vista, Calif.). … Capacio owns the team lead in assists with five — two more than Matthews, Falkman, and Kaley Manglitz (Onalaska, Wis.) — while Matthews and Falkman are the team-leaders in points with 17 and 15, respectively.
• DOUBLING UP: Saint Mary's has had six players score two goals in a game this season — a feat Matthews has achieved twice. Falkman and Elisia Jensen (Gig Harbor, Wash.) achieved the feat against Ripon on Sept. 12, while Matthews, Arriaga, Brooklyn McKinney (Thornton, Colo.), and Megan Trindle (Castle Rock, Colo.) all posted two-goal games against Martin Luther on Sept. 6. It was the first career two-goal game for Arriaga, McKinney, Trindle, Falkman, and Jensen.
• FIRST GOALS: The Cardinals have had six players score their first collegiate goals this season. Wachter netted the 2 OT game-winner against UW-River Falls last Wednesday; Falkman and McKinney scored the Cardinals' two goals in their season-opening win over UW-Superior; Mikayla McCart (Council Bluffs, Iowa) tallied the game's only goal in SMU's win over Coe; and Trindle and Jenna Zimmer (Calgary, Alberta) tallied their first career goals in SMU's 11-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6.
• THE BRICK WALL: Nguyen — who stopped a career-high 10 shots in SMU's 2-1 win over St. Catherine on Sept.26 — posted her sixth shutout of the season against Concordia last Saturday, stopping both CC shots. … Nguyen has now stopped 32 of the 33 shots she's faced for a 0.12 goals-against-average and .970 save percentage.
• SHUTOUT NO. 1: Madison Mora (Honolulu, Hawaii) stopped all five UW-River Falls shots last Wednesday en route to her first collegiate shutout — and her first win as a Cardinal.
• TOTAL DOMINATION: The Cardinals hold a commanding 205-79 advantage in shots attempted through 12 games — including a 111-43 edge in shots on goal. Saint Mary's attempted a season-high 40 shots against Ripon on Sept. 12, while their 24 shots on goal against the Red Hawks were also a season high. … Matthews — who took a season-high 10 shots against Coe on Sept. 4 — leads the team with 46 shots, including 24 on goal.
• STRIKING FAST: Saint Mary's has scored at least one goal in the first half in seven of its 12 games this season. SMU has outscored its opponents 17-2 in the first half and 13-1 in the second.
• BACK-TO-BACK: With their 1-0 overtime win over Gustavus on Sept. 29, the Cardinals have now shut out Gustavus in each of the teams' last two meetings, having beaten GAC 3-0 on May 2, 2021.
• FIT TO BE TIED: With their 0-0, double-overtime tie against Saint Benedict on Sept. 18, the Cardinals and Bennies have now played to a draw in each of their last two meetings, having battled to a 1-1 deadlock a year ago.
• SNAPPED: The Cardinals' 2-1 win over St. Catherine on Sept. 26 put an end to a nine-game losing streak against the Wildcats, dating back to a 3-1 win on Oct. 15, 2011.
• NAILBITERS: With their 1-0 win over Carleton on Sept. 14, the Cardinals are now 2-0-1 in their last three meetings with the Knights — with all three games being decided by one goal or less. Along with their 1-0 win, SMU beat Carleton 3-2 in 2 overtimes in 2018, and battled to a 1-1, double-overtime draw in 2019.
• DOUBLE DIGITS: Saint Mary's 11-goal outburst in its 11-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6 marked the first time since beating Northland 10-0 on Sept. 9, 2017 that the Cardinals scored 10 or more goals in a game. … SMU's 11 goals were the most since beating UW-Platteville 11-0 on Sept. 7, 1996 and just three goals shy of the school record, set in a 14-0 win over Saint Benedict on Oct. 22, 1986. … Saint Mary's has scored 10 or more goals in a game seven times in program history.
• PERFECTION: With their 11-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6, the Cardinals improved to 7-0-0 all-time against MLC and have outscored the Knights by a combined 45-5. |
• FOR THE RECORD: The Auggies head into Saturday's key conference showdown with Saint Mary's sitting at 3-1-1 in conference play — three points back of SMU for the league lead — while also sporting a 6-3-2 overall record.
• ON A ROLL: Augsburg is unbeaten in its last three games, sandwiching 2-1 wins over Carleton and St. Scholastica around a 1-1, double-overtime tie against Saint Benedict. The Auggies scored two goals in the game's final 15 minutes in beating St. Scholastica 2-1 last Wednesday.
• KEEPING IT CLOSE: Five of Augsburg's six wins this season have been by one goal, including a 2-1, double-overtime win over UW-Superior on Sept. 10.
• FUELING THE OFFENSE: Jennifer Bobaric has been the sparkplug of the Auggies' offensive match, scoring eight of the team's 14 goals. Bobaric's eight goals not only lead the team, but are also tops in the conference, while her team-leading 17 points share the league lead with Saint Mary's Jordyn Matthews.
• HITTING THE MARK: Aside from Bobaric's eight goals, Augsburg's other six tallies have come from three players — Jaelyn Nedelcoff, Jen Masello, and Ana Ortiz have all scored twice.
• LENDING A HAND: Annika Rudolph and Sam Donahugh share the team lead with two assists each, with Bobaric, Masello, Ortiz, and Molly Conners all adding one helper each.
• HITTING THE MARK: The Auggies have attempted 184 shots through 11 games, including 84 that have been on goal (.457 shot %). Bobaric leads the way for the Auggies with 48 shots, including 21 on goal.
• BETWEEN THE PIPES: Iz Shuster and Aspen Brockhouse have both seen time in goal for the Auggies. Shuster has compiled a 1.27 goals-against-average and .771 save percentage in 776:50 minutes, while Brockhouse owns a 1.36 GAA and .692 save percentage in 264:22 minutes. …Â
Shuster has stopped 37 of the 48 shots she's faced. Brockhouse, meanwhile, has made nine saves on 13 shots.
• NIGHT AND DAY: Augsburg has scored 11 of its 14 goals after the halftime intermission. On the flip side, the Auggies' opponents have netted 10 of their 15 goals in the game's opening 45 minutes.
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