ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team took the ice Friday evening hoping that its conference-opener would have the same end result as their regular season-opener — a Cardinal victory.
 
And it did.
 
Saint Mary's got goals from four different players — including a career-first by Celia Midtbo (Minneapolis, Minn.) and the game-winner off the stick of Jenna Kurkowski (North Branch, Minn.) in the second period — as the Cardinals rolled to a 4-2 victory over Hamline at TRIA Rink.
 
The Cardinals jumped to a quick 2-0 lead, getting back-to-back goals by Mikayla Vasilevich (Chicago, Ill.) and Midtbo less than two minutes apart before the game was even eight minutes old.
 
Hamline turned the tables on SMU to open the second period, getting back-to-back goals from Sydney Lemke and Cheyenne Abear in the first five minutes of the stanza to pull evening with the Cardinals, 2-2.
 
The deadlock did not last long, however — 21 seconds to be exact — as Kurkowski scored her first of the season to put Saint Mary's back on top, 3-2, with 14:59 to play in the second period.
 
Saint Mary's would maintain that one goal lead over the final 15 minutes of the second period, and was still clinging to that slim, one-goal advantage late into the third period, before Reese Heitzman (Hermantown, Minn.) gave the Cardinals some breathing room with her team-leading sixth goal of the season with 4:11 to play in regulation.
 
 Celeste Rimstad (Richfield, Minn.) did her part in preserving the Cardinals' MIAC-opening victory, stopping 27 of the 29 shots she faced, while HU goalie Olivia Renzel kicked out 21 of Saint Mary's 25 shots on goal.
 
Saint Mary's (1-0-0 MIAC, 4-1-0 overall) and Hamline are back on the ice for the second game of their two-game MIAC series on Saturday, heading to the Saint Mary's Ice Arena for the 2 p.m. rematch.
 
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