• FOR THE RECORD: The Cardinals closed out the 2022 campaign sitting at 9-18 overall, including a 2-9 in their 11 conference contests.
• POST-SEASON HONORS: Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.) collected her second straight First-Team All-MIAC honor, while Abbie Stigler (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) was an honorable-mention selection.
• SWEEPING UP: Six of Saint Mary’s nine wins last season were 3-0 sweeps, with the other three wins coming in four sets. On the flip side, the Cardinals were swept nine times, while falling three times in four sets and dropping all six five-set matches.
• END OF THE ROAD: The Cardinals closed out the 2022 season playing their last five contests on the road. SMU played just six of its 27 matches on its home court, going 1-5. The Cardinals were 8-13 away from the Saint Mary’s Gym.
• ON THE ATTACK: Ciarra McNally (Lewiston, Minn.) ended the year leading the team with 346 kills, followed by Abbie Stigler (Menomonee Falls, Wis.) with 313. Braidyn Ruetten (Holmen, Wis.) is third on the team with 170 kills, while Elise Amerongen (Lake Elmo, Minn.), Faith VanErp (Sartell, Minn.), and Brenna Bruchert (Eau Claire, Wis.) are sitting at 93, 87, and 79 kills, respectively.
• DOUBLE DIGITS: McNally delivered a single-match season-high 28 kills against Grinnell on Sept. 2, and has recorded 10 or more kills 40 times in her collegiate career — including nine matches of 20 or more kills.
• CAREER BESTS: The Cardinals had two players post career-highs of 10 or more kills in 2022. Stigler recorded a career-best 21 kills twice — first against Webster on Sept. 16 and then again against Hamline on Oct. 7, while Bruchert posted 16 kills in the Cardinals’ 3-1 win over Ripon on Sept. 23. … SMU boasted five players who recorded career-highs of 10 or more digs last season — Peyton Berg (Chatfield, Minn.) put up a career-best 32 digs vs. Saint Benedict on Oct. 14; McNally delivered a career-high 20 digs against Grinnell on Sept. 17; Stigler notched a career-high 19 digs vs. Ripon on Sept. 23, and Larkin Clem (Elk River, Minn.) and Hannah Herrem (Fall Creek, Wis.) both recorded a career-best 15 digs — Clem vs. Buena Vista on Oct 12 and Herrem vs. Knox on Sept. 17
• GIVING AN ASSIST: Mandy Schmidt (Mitchell, S.D.) and Larkin Clem (Elk River, Minn.) shared the setting duties in 2022, with Schmidt owning a team-high 465 assists, followed closely by Clem with 411. … Schmidt recorded at least 20 assists in a match nine times in 2022 — including a season-high 31 against Knox on Sept. 17 — and delivered 20 or more helpers 25 times over the past two seasons. … Clem eclipsed the 20-assist mark seven times during her senior season in 2022.
• JOINING THE CLUB: With her third assist against Marian on Sept. 10, Schmidt became the 13th player in program history to reach 1,000 career assists. Schmidt closed out her collegiate career with 1,374 helpers, ranking her 11th all-time.
• DOUBLING UP: McNally led the team with 14 double-doubles in 2022, followed by Schmidt (11), Stigler (8), and Clem (4). … Saint Mary’s had three players record double-doubles in the same match three times in 2022.
• DIGGING IT: Berg owned a team-high 443 digs, and collected 10 or more digs in 16 of the team’s last 17 matches — and in 22 of the Cardinals’ 27 contests. … McNally was second on the team with 292 digs, followed by Schmidt with 237, Stigler with 206, and Clem with 158.
• SERVING UP ACES: Along with her team-leading 443 digs, Berg also led the team with 46 service aces. VanErp was second with 36, followed by Clem with 26 and McNally with 23. … As a team, Saint Mary’s owned 175 aces through 27 matches.
• BY THE NUMBERS: SMU closed out 2022 hitting .159 (1128-for-3711) and averaged 11.4 kills-per-set. The Cardinals’ opponents, meanwhile, hit .197 (1112-for-3427) and averaging 11.2 kps. … Saint Mary’s won the first set in 11 of its 27 contests last season.
—By DONNY NADEAU, Saint Mary's Sports Information Director
