WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team kicks off its home season on Saturday hosting Hamline in a 7:30 p.m. Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference contest at the SMU Ice Arena.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-1-0 MIAC | 0-5-0 Overall)
at Hamline Pipers (1-0-0 MIAC | 3-2-0 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Pipers scored a pair of goals less than two minutes apart early in the third period to pull away from the Cardinals, handing SMU a 6-4 setback in the teams' Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener at Vadnais Sports Center in Vadnais Heights, Minn.

SMU vs. Hamline — A Year Ago:
November 19, 2010: Despite an early lead, and a furious last-second comeback effort, SMU had its three-game winning streak snapped, falling nationally-ranked Hamline 4-3 at the SMU Ice Arena.

November 20, 2010: Beau Braun (Darwin, Minn.) and Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.) scored for the Cardinals, but it was not enough, as Hamline netted two goals in the game's first 10 minutes and never looked back in a 6-2 MIAC win over SMU at the Fairgrounds Coliseum in St. Paul, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals are now off until Nov. 22-23, when they host 11th-ranked Milwaukee School of Engineering in a pair of nonconference games at the SMU Ice Arena. The Tuesday, Nov. 22 game is set for 7:30 p.m., with Wednesday's rematch at 2:30 p.m. … Hamline, meanwhile, kicks off a conference series against St. Olaf in Northfield, Minn., at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, before hosting the Oles in the second game of the two-game series on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Vadnais Sports Center in Vadnais Heights, Minn.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | Media Guide
Saturday's game against Hamline is the first home game of the season for the Cardinals, who opened the season with five straight road games. … Saturday's game vs. HU is also the third of five straight games against teams that have been nationally ranked this season. SMU lost to then ninth-ranked UW-Superior on Nov. 4, plays the second of two vs. Hamline — ranked No. 10 in the preseason poll — then hosts No. 11 Milwaukee School of Engineering for two games on Nov. 22-23. … The Cardinals' four goals vs. Hamline Friday came from four different players — Nick Nagel (Andover, Minn.), Chase Marshall (Maple Grove, Minn.), Austin Balko (Midland, Mich.) and Bob Marx (Sioux City, Iowa). … The goal was the second in as many games for Marx. … SMU's 13 goals this season have now come from 12 different players. … Nagel also had an assist vs the Pipers Friday, moving him into a share of the team's points lead (3) with Nick Gorup (Omaha, Neb.), Brad Denny (Fishers, Ind.) and Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.). … Three of the Cardinals' five games this season have been decided by one goal, while the other two were two-goal losses. … SMU has gotten at least one point from 18 of the 24 players who have played this season. … SMU's four goals against the Pipers were a season high. … Jason Horstman (Faribault, Minn.) made 29 saves against the Pipers on Friday and enters Saturday's rematch with a 4.41 goals-against-average and an .874 save percentage. … The Cardinals have scored five goals in the first period and four in both the second and third periods this season. On the flip side, SMU's opponents have scored seven goals in both the first and third periods, while netting six in the second.

Hamline Pipers News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
The Pipers enjoyed a storybook season in 2010-11, winning both the MIAC?regular-season and tournament titles, while also reaching the NCAA?National Tournament quarterfinals, where they dropped a 4-0 decision to eventual national champion St. Norbert. … The Pipers' regular-season title was their second in the last four years, while the NCAA?appearance was the first in school history. … Friday's win over Saint Mary's snapped HU's two-game losing streak. After opening the season with back-to-back 3-2 wins over Bethel and Augsburg at the MIAC Hockey Showcase, the Pipers have now lost two straight. … Friday's game against Saint Mary's was the Pipers' first home game of the season — and the first ever at Vadnais Heights Arena. … Jordan Van Gilder, who had a hand in all three goals vs. UW-Eau Claire last Saturday — scoring twice and assisting on the other — scored his team-leading third goal of the season vs. SMU, while assisting on another. … Nick Widing also scored vs. the Cardinals Friday to stay in a tie with Van Gilder for the team lead. … Beau Christian, who made his fifth straight start in goal Friday, stopped 19 shots against the Cardinals and enters Saturday's rematch with a 3.98 goals-against-average and an .868 save percentage. … Nine of the 18 goals HU has allowed have come in the second period.