ST. PAUL, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's soccer team returns to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play on Saturday, traveling to Hamline for a 1 p.m. contest against the Pipers.


The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-4-0 MIAC | 2-7-1 Overall)
at Hamline Pipers (0-3-2 MIAC | 2-7-2 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals stepped out of conference play on Tuesday, falling to UW-Superior 2-0 at Ochrymowycz Field Tuesday. … Hamline, meanwhile, lost a conference heartbreaker on Wednesday, as the Pipers dropped a 2-1 overtime decision to St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minn.

SMU vs. Hamline — Their Last Meeting:
October 16, 2010: Hamline scored the game's only goal five minutes into the second half, as the Pipers handed SMU a 1-0 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference setback at Ochrymowycz Field.

Up Next:
The Cardinals are back in MIAC play on Wednesday, traveling to Northfield, Minn., for a 4 p.m. conference game against Carleton. … Hamline, meanwhile, is also on the road on Wednesday, heading to St. Peter, Minn., for a 4 p.m. contest against Gustavus.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011 Roster | 2011 Overall Statistics | 2011 Schedule
Saturday's game at Hamline is the first of two straight road games for the Cardinals, who travel to Carleton on Wednesday, before closing out the season with four of their final five games on their home turf. … Tuesday's 2-0 nonconference loss against UW-Superior marked just the second time in the Cardinals' first 10 contests that the game was not decided by one goal or less. … The Cardinals' 3-2 victory over Concordia last Saturday snapped a pair streaks — a three-game scoreless streak and a four-game losing streak. … SMU's three goals vs. the Cobbers were a season high. … Matt Graber (Denver, Colo.), Alex Blancas (Des Plaines, Ill.) and Jacob Bina (West Salem, Wis.) accounted for the Cardinals' three goals vs. Concordia last Saturday. … The goals by Graber and Bina moved them into a tie with Juamaine Venter (Rochester, Minn.) for the team goal-scoring lead with two each. … Blancas' goal, meanwhile, was the first of his collegiate career. … Bryan Neu (Hoffman Estates, Ill.) recorded his first multiple-point game Saturday, as the senior defender assisted on the Cardinals' first two goals against the Cobbers. … Neu, Mark Thompson (Madison, Wis.) and Kameron McKeeth (Woodstock, Ga.) share the team lead in assists with two each, while Graber and Bina sit atop the points lead with five each. … Goalkeeper Chris Williams (Chicago, Ill.) enters Saturday's game vs. at Hamline with a 1.65 goals-against-average, while stopping 43 of 60 shots. … Williams has started all 10 games in goal for the Cardinals this season. … After going his first three seasons without recording a shutout, Williams has two this season — blanking North Central (Minn.) on Sept. 6 and Grinnell on Sept. 11. … SMU's 1-0 victory over Grinnell on Sept. 10 was not only its first win of the season, but also the first win for Pete Watkins as the Cardinals' head coach. Watkins then earned his first MIAC victory with last Saturday's 3-2 win over Concordia. …  The Cardinals have scored six of their eight goals in the first half. … SMU's 1-0 win over Grinnell was also its first victory by shutout since the Cardinals blanked Lakeland 1-0 on Sept. 5, 2010. … The Cardinals' 0-0, double-overtime tie against North Central (Minn.) on Sept. 6, meanwhile, was their first scoreless draw since tying St. Thomas 0-0 on Oct. 16, 2004. … SMU has already played more overtime games this year (2) than it did all of last year (1). … Despite their double-OT loss to Lake Forest on Sept. 1, the Cardinals are 4-2-5 in their last 11 overtime games.

Hamline Pipers News and Notes:
2011 Roster | 2011 Overall Statistics | 2011 Schedule
Wednesday's overtime loss at St. Thomas was the Pipers' second straight setback and ran their winless streak to five straight (0-4-1). … All five of the Pipers' conference games have been decided by one goal or less — including three one-goal losses and a pair of double-overtime ties. All told, nine of the Pipers' 11 games have been decided by one goal or less. … Wednesday's game at UST was the Pipers fourth overtime game of the season. Hamline is 0-2-2 in those four games. … Michael Murphy scored his second goal of the season to accounted for Hamline's lone tally vs. St. Thomas Wednesday. … Murphy now shares the team lead in goals (2) and points (5) with Greg Northrop and Ibou Wione. … Spencer VonBehren, who had three saves against the Tommies Wednesday, and Zach Nelson have shared the goalkeeping duties this season, combining for a 2.18 goals-against-average, while stopping 74 of the 97 shots they've faced this season. … Hamline has been held to one goal or less nine times through the first 11 games of the season. … Both of the Pipers' wins — as well as their two ties — have come at home, where Hamline is 2-3-2. HU is 0-3-0 on the road this season.