• THE END: The Cardinals had their three-game winning streak come to a screeching halt on Wednesday, as Carleton scored two goals in less than two minutes early in the first half in handing Saint Mary's a 2-1 setback in the teams' conference opener. After opening the season with a 3-0 loss to the University of Dubuque, the Cardinals had answered with wins over Edgewood (3-1), Martin Luther (5-0), and Simpson (1-0).
• STREAKING ALONG: The Cardinals have now put together a three-game winning streak for the second time in three seasons. The last time SMU won four consecutive games was in 2000, when the Cardinals beat Coe (2-1), Central-Iowa (2-0), Loras (2-0), and St. Thomas (1-0).
• ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Wednesday's game at Carleton was the second straight road contest for the Cardinals, who are 1-2-0 on the road this season.
• HOME SWEET HOME: Saturday's game against Saint John's is the first of back-to-back home games for the Cardinals, who also host St. Scholastica on Wednesday. With their 5-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6, the Cardinals improved to 2-0-0 on their home field this season, having also defeated Edgewood (3-1) at Ochrymowycz Field earlier this year.
• KING OF THE PK: Eli Szymanski (La Crosse, Wis.) scored recorded his third penalty kick goal of the season on Wednesday with a first-half tally. Szymanski scored two of Saint Mary's three goals in its Sept. 4 win over Edgewood — both coming on penalty kicks. Szymanski has now scored Saint Mary's last seven PK goals.
• OFFENSIVE LEADERS: With his first-half goal against Carleton — his second goal in as many games — Szymanski pushed his team lead in goals to four, two more than Landon Pendleton (Mobile, Ala.). Diego Rivera (Chicago, Ill.), who assisted on Szymanski's goal against the Simpson on Sept. 11, leads the team with two helpers, while Szymanski has the team lead in points with nine. … Syzmanski's four goals this season give him 16 for his four-year collegiate career, ranking the senior ninth all-time
• CAREER FIRSTS: Pendleton, Roberto Bontempi (Santos, Brazil), and Alex Keeler (Antioch, Ill.) all scored their first collegiate goals in the Cardinals' 5-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6. … Pendleton netted a pair of goals vs. the Knights for his first career two-goal game. … Jack Hurley (Homewood, Ill.) scored his first collegiate goal in SMU's 3-1 win over Edgewood on Sept. 4.
• TAKING THE SHOT: Szymanski has attempted a team-high 13 shots, four more than Cerim Palislamovic (Jacksonville, Fla.). Szymanski also leads the team with seven shots on goal, one more than Palislamovic.
• BETWEEN THE PIPES: Daniel Sessler (Brookfield, Ill.) — who stopped all four shots he faced against Simpson on Sept. 11 en route to the first shutout of the season and second of his career — equaled his career-high with seven saves against Carleton on Wednesday. … Sessler has now stopped seven shots in a game three-times.
• CAREER FIRST, PART II: Jacob Wing (Verona, Wis.) earned his first career win — in his first collegiate start — in the Cardinals' 3-1 win over Edgewood on Sept. 4. Wing made two saves, with the lone goal coming on a penalty kick. … Wing and Connor Petrich (Arden Hills, Minn.) combined on a two-save shutout against Martin Luther on Sept. 6. Wing stopped both shots he faced in 71:38, while Petrich did not face a shot in 18:22 of relief.
• SECOND HALF DOMINATION: The Cardinals have not allowed a second-half goal through five games and hold a 15-10 advantage in shots on goal after the halftime intermission.
• OFFENSIVE RESURGENCE: The Cardinals scored as many goals against Martin Luther on Sept. 6 (5) as they had in all five of their games combined a year ago.
• PERFECTION: With their 5-0 win over Martin Luther on Sept. 6, the Cardinals improved to 6-0-0 all-time against the Knights. Saint Mary's has outscored MLC 21-0 in its six meetings. |
• PITCHING A SHUTOUT: The Johnnies pushed their record to 3-2-0 with an impressive performance against UM-Morris Tuesday, dealing the Cougars a 3-0 setback in Morris, Minn. Ryan Erickson, Cavin Allen, and Trenton Dodds all scored second-half goals in the Johnnies' 3-0 win over UM-Morris.
• ROAD WARRIORS: After playing three of their first four games at home, Saturday's contest against Saint Mary's is the third straight road game for the Johnnies, who are 1-1-1 on the road, while sporting a 2-1-1 record at Haws Field.
• KICKING OFF CONFERENCE PLAY: Saturday's showdown with Saint Mary's is the conference-opener for SJU, which went 6-4-0 and reached the MIAC Tournament in 2019, the last time the MIAC had a full conference schedule. SJU lost to top-seeded Gustavus 6-2 in the MIAC Tournament semifinals in 2019.
• LEADER OF THE PACK: Erickson's goal against UM-Morris Tuesday was his team-leading third of the season. Erickson's three goals are one more than Matt D. Anderson and Drew Engel, while Allen, Brandt Belisle, Kevin Stark-Haws, and Trenton Dodds own SJU's other four goals. Erickson also leads the team in points with seven, two more than both Anderson and Engel.
• LENDING A HELPING HAND: Kaidan Popp is the team's assist leader with three, one more than both Aiden Becken and Tommy Picka.
• TAKING THE SHOT: Anderson has attempted a team-high 13 shots, followed by Erickson with 12. Anderson also leads the team in shots on goal with eight, once again one more than Erickson.
• THE GAME-WINNER: Erickson, Anderson, and Engel own the Johnnies' three game-winning goals.
• BETWEEN THE PIPES: Evan Siefken has started five of the Johnnies' six games in goal, compiling a 1.34 goals-against average and a .781 save percentage. Jake Swanson has made one start, stopping both shots he faced. … Both Siefken and Swanson have recorded one shutout — Siefken stopped all five shots in a 2-0 win over UW-Platteville on Sept. 4, and Swanson posted a two-save shutout against UM-Morris Tuesday.
• AS A TEAM: The Johnnies have outshot their first six opponents 74-60, while holding a 38-34 edge in shots o
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