ARDEN HILLS, Minn. — The last time the Saint Mary's University women's basketball team squared off against Bethel, the Royals were ranked No. 5 in the nation and riding a program-record 20-game winning streak.
 
Unimpressed, the Cardinals promptly scored 15 of the game's first 16 points and walked away with a streak-snapping 77-69 victory.
 
Almost one year to the day later, the Cardinals and Royals were back on the hardwood, squaring off in the their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener at Robertson Center Gym.
 
Unfortunately for coach David Foley, the Cardinals weren't able to replicate their Herculean performance of a year ago, as Bethel exploded for a combined 43 points in the middle two quarters — and held off a furious SMU fourth-quarter rally — en route to an 81-67 win over Saint Mary's Saturday.
 
The first half was a tale of two quarters for the Cardinals — one good, and one not-so-good.
 
The Cardinals scored the game's first five points — getting a pair of free throws from Claire Patterson (Marine, Minn.) and a 3-pointer by Maggie Robertson (Orland Park, Ill.). Saint Mary's would build its lead to as many as six twice over the game's first 10 minutes, before settling for an 18-16 advantage heading into the second quarter.
 
A quarter dominated by Bethel.
 
Patterson knocked down a jumper to give Saint Mary's a four-point, 20-16 lead, but Bethel answered with six straight points and led by one, 25-26 with 3:43 to play in the half. In those final minutes, BU would outscore Saint Mary's 12-2 — including nine straight points from Kat Brown-Erdal — as BU took an 11-point, 38-27 lead into the break.
 
The Cardinals did not fare any better in the third quarter, as Bethel outscored SMU 21-10, building its lead to as many as 19, 57-38, and held a 59-43 cushion with one quarter remaining.
 
A 3-pointer by Michaela Craigan three minutes into the fourth quarter gave Bethel its biggest lead of the game, 72-51 — but the Cardinals were not about to throw in the towel.
 
Led by Brooklyn Paulson (Holmen, Wis.), who scored eight of the team's 10 points during a 10-0 run, the Cardinals whittled the lead to 11, 72-61, with 3:18 left in regulation. Saint Mary's would get as close as nine, 76-67 — thanks to a pair of free throws and a layup by Ewelina Schlomann (New Berlin, Wis.) — but that would be as close as the Cardinals would get.
 
Paulson equaled her career high, scoring 27 points on 8 of 14 shooting — including three 3-pointers — and an 8-for-9 showing from the free throw line. Schlomann chipped in 12 points for the Cardinals, who shot 42.6 percent from the field (20-for-47) with five 3-pointers, and finished 22-for-26 from the charity stripe.
 
Brown-Erdal delivered a game-high 30 points for the Royals, who finished 29-for-54 from the field (52.7 percent) and, after going 0-for-7 from behind the arc, knocked down eight of their next 12 treys.
 
The Cardinals (0-1 MIAC, 1-1 overall) are back in action on Wednesday, when they return home to the Saint Mary's Gym for a 7 p.m. conference matchup against Augsburg.