WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team is back on its home ice on Friday, as the Cardinals open Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference play with a 7 p.m. contest against Hamline at the SMU Ice Arena.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (0-0-0 MIAC | 1-2-1 Overall)
vs. Hamline Pipers (0-0-0 MIAC | 1-1-0 Overall)

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Last Action:
The Cardinals went 1-1 in their two nonconference home games last weekend. SMU rallied with four third-period goals to beat St. Norbert 5-3 Friday at the SMU Ice Arena, but gave up a goal 19 seconds into the first period and never recovered against Concordia (Wis.) on Saturday, falling to the Falcons 4-2 at the SMU Ice Arena. … Hamline, meanwhile, has been off since Oct. 28-29, when the Pipers split their nonconference games at UW-Superior, losing the opener 5-1 on Oct. 28, then winning the rematch 3-2 a day later.

SMU vs. Hamline — A Year Ago:
November 19, 2010: The Cardinals, despite outshooting Hamline 30-19, managed just one goal — a Dy-anna Stewart (Eden Prairie, Minn.) tally with less than four minutes remaining in regulation — as SMU settled for its second straight Friday night tie, a 1-1 decision vs. the Pipers at the State Fairgrounds Coliseum in St. Paul, Minn.
November 20, 2010: The Saint Mary's University women's hockey team wrapped up its second straight three-point conference weekend, getting a third-period goal from Brittany Therrien (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) to snap a 1-1 tie and lift the Cardinals to a 2-1 MIAC victory over Hamline at the SMU Ice Arena

Up Next:
The same two teams square off again Saturday, as the Cardinals travel to Drake Arena in St. Paul, Minn., for a 7 p.m. conference contest against the Pipers.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
Friday's game against Hamline is the third straight home game for the Cardinals. … Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) had a hand in all five SMU goals in the Cardinals' 5-3 win over St. Norbert last Friday, as the senior forward scored three times and assisted on the other two. … The hat trick was the first of her collegiate career for Olson, while the five-point night was also a career first. … Breanna Peterson (Macomb, Mich.) notched her first two-goal game vs. St. Norbert Friday, while Cecilia Hardacker (Bloomington, Minn.) and Erin Stenseth (Eau Claire, Wis.) accounted for the Cardinals' two goals vs. Concordia (Wis.) on Saturday. … Olson, who has led the team in points in each of her last two seasons, owns a team-best five points through SMU's first four games this season. … Olson and Peterson share the team lead in goals (3), as the duo have combined for six of the team's nine goals. … Olson also shares the team lead in assists (2) with Haley Coolsaet (Grosse Island, Mich.). … Sarah Gustafson (Esko, Minn.) made 29 saves in her third straight start Friday vs. St. Norbert, while Megan Brantley (Goodyear, Ariz.) kicked out 26 shots in her first collegiate start on Saturday against Concordia (Wis.). … Gustafson enters Friday's game vs. Hamline with a team-best 2.62 goals-against-average and a .917 save percentage. … The Cardinals are now 1-13-2 in the last 15 games in which their opponent scores first — the lone victory being Friday's 5-3 win over St. Norbert. … The Cardinals have not scored a first-period goal this season, scoring five times in the second period and four times in the third. SMU's opponents, meanwhile, have netted eight of their 12 goals in the second period. … SMU's 2-2, season-opening tie against Lake Forest on Oct. 28 marked the first time the Cardinals have opened a season with a tie since battling UW-River Falls to a 2-2 deadlock to kick off the 2006-07 season. … The 2-2 tie with the Foresters was also the fourth tie in the last five overtime games for the Cardinals, who were 1-0-3 in OT games a year ago.

Hamline Pipers News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
Friday's game at Saint Mary's is the third straight road game for the Pipers, who kick off their home season with Saturday's rematch vs. SMU. … Seanna Robinson scored the Pipers' only goal in their 5-1 loss at UW-Superior on Oct. 28, while Haley Johnson, Jessica Kraus and Erin Kastner scored for HU in the rematch on Oct. 29. … After scoring first on Robinson's second-period goal on Oct. 28, the Pipers surrendered six unanswered goals vs. the Yellowjackets, a streak that was snapped by Johnson's unassisted tally at 19:34 of the first period on Oct. 29. … Johnson also picked up an assist on Kastner's goal vs. UW-Superior on Oct. 29, and leads the team with two points. … Nicole Jones and Sarah Schneekloth each started against the Yellowjackets in the Pipers' season-opening series, with Schneekloth stopping 33 of the 38 shots she faced in the 5-1 loss, while Jones kicked out 43 shots in HU's 3-2 victory. … The Oct. 28 start was the first of her collegiate career for Schneekloth. … Hamline scored two of its four goals against the Yellowjackets in the second period. … After finishing ninth with a 3-13-2 conference record a year ago, the Pipers were picked to finish eighth in the year's MIAC Preseason Coaches' Poll.