MENDOTA HEIGHTS, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University men's hockey team closes out its two-game MIAC series against league-leading St. Thomas Saturday. Puck drops at 7 p.m. at the St. Thomas Ice Arena.



The Matchup:
Saint Mary's Cardinals (1-5-1 MIAC | 4-11-1 Overall)
vs. No. 12 St. Thomas Tommies (7-1-1 MIAC | 12-3-2 Overall)

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Last Night:
The Cardinals jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but St. Thomas answered with four straight goals — two in the second and two more in the third — as the 12th-ranked Tommies handed SMU a 4-2 MIAC setback at the SMU Ice Arena.

SMU vs. St. Thomas — Earlier This Year:
October 29, 2011: For the first 52 minutes, SMU had an answer for everything St. Thomas threw at them. When the Tommies' Travis Baker scored UST's third goal with 7:31 remaining in regulation, however, it went unanswered, as UST held off the Cardinals 3-2 during the MIAC Showcase at Fogerty Arena in Blaine, Minn.

SMU vs. St. Thomas — A Year Ago:
January 28, 2011: Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.) scored with 12 seconds remaining in regulation, lifting the Cardinals to a 3-3 conference tie against the Tommies at the SMU Ice Arena.
January 29, 2011: St. Thomas erupted for three, second-period goals in cruising to a 6-2 MIAC win over the Cardinals at the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minn.

Up Next:
The Cardinals return home next Friday, hosting Augsburg in the first game of their two-game MIAC series at 7:30 p.m. at the SMU Ice Arena. SMU will then travel to Minneapolis, Minn., for the second game against the Auggies on Saturday at 7 p.m. … St. Thomas, meanwhile, begins its two-game conference series against St. Olaf next Friday at 7:30 p.m. in Northfield, Minn. The two teams will then square off at 7 p.m. at the St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, Minn., on Saturday.

Saint Mary's Cardinals News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule | 2011-12 Media Guide
The Cardinals' two goals vs. St. Thomas were both power play goals. SMU's last four goals have all been scored with the man advantage. … Nick Nagel (Andover, Minn.) scored the Cardinals' second goal vs. St. Thomas, giving the SMU sophomore a goal in his fourth straight game. … During his streak, Nagel has scored one game-winner — against St. Norbert on Jan. 7 — while also netting the game-tying goal against Bethel last Saturday. … A.J. Mueller (New Berlin, Wis.) accounted for the Cardinals' other goal vs. UST Friday. … Austin Balko (Midland, Mich.) enters Saturday's rematch against the Tommies with team-highs in goals (6) and points (12), while also sharing the team lead in assists (6) with Brad Denney (Fishers, Ind.). … Balko's six goals are one more than Nagel, and two in front of Nick Gorup (Omaha, Neb.) and Kevin Wentland (Columbia Heights, Minn.). … The Cardinals have now scored 16 power play goals this season. … All four of Gorup's goals this season have been power-play tallies. … Andy Scheib (Sun Prairie, Wis.) finished with 23 saves against the Tommies Friday. He and Jason Horstman (Faribault, Minn.) have shared the goaltending duties this season, with Scheib owning a 3.26 goals-against-average and an .896save percentage, while Horstman comes into Saturday's rematch vs. UST with a 3.51 GAA and an .892 save percentage. … Last Saturday's 2-2 tie against Bethel marked the ninth time in SMU's 15 contests that the game has been decided by one goal or less. … SMU's 2-2 tie vs. Bethel was also the Cardinals' first tie of the season. … The Cardinals have now played three overtime games this season. Along with Saturday's 2-2 tie, the Cardinals dropped a 4-3 decision to Hamline on Nov. 12 and collected a 2-1 win over Milwaukee School of Engineering on Nov. 23. … SMU's 2-1 victory over MSOE was the Cardinals' first overtime win since beating UW-River Falls 2-1 on Jan. 17, 2009. … With Friday's 4-2 loss to UST, SMU is now 3-3-1 in its last six games. … All four of SMU's wins — and their lone tie — have come on their home ice. Two of the four wins were by identical 2-1 scores — a 2-1 win over MSOE on Nov. 22 and a 2-1 victory over St. Olaf on Dec. 3. … SMU's 3-2 win over sixth-ranked and defending national champion St. Norbert on Jan. 6 was the Cardinals' second win over a nationally ranked team this season. SMU downed then-eighth ranked Milwaukee School of Engineering 2-1 in overtime on Nov. 22. … The Cardinals equaled their season high with their four-goal effort against Marian on Dec. 9. SMU also scored four goals in a 6-4 loss at Hamline on Nov. 11. … SMU's Dec. 3 win over St. Olaf marked the first time this season SMU has won when its opponent scored the game's first goal (1-6-1). The Cardinals are 3-5-0 when scoring first.

St. Thomas Tommies News and Notes:
2011-12 Roster | 2011-12 Statistics | 2011-12 Schedule
With their 4-2 win over Saint Mary's Friday night, St. Thomas extended its winning streak to six straight. … The Tommies come into Saturday's rematch with SMU ranked No. 12 in the latest  USCHO.com national poll. … The Tommies' six-game winning streak is a season-high for UST, which owned a four-game win streak earlier this season. … The Tommies are 16-4-4 in their last 24 games — including 11-2-3 vs. MIAC opponents. … UST, which currently sits atop the MIAC standings, three points ahead of Concordia,  has scored three or more goals in all 12 of its wins this season — including a season-high nine goals in a 9-4 win over Bethel on Jan. 7. … UST's nine goals against Bethel on Jan. 7 came from nine different players. … In two seasons under coach Jeff Boeser, the Tommies are 21-3-1 in games when they score three or more goals. In games when they score two or less, the Tommies are 5-9-3. … Riley Horgan had a four-point night against SMU Friday, scoring once and assisting on UST's other three goals. … Robby Philipp and Travis Baker each chipped in a goal and an assist, while Chris Hickey accounted for UST's other goal. … Philipp, who has now scored four goals in his last three games, comes into Saturday's game vs. SMU with a team-leading 10 goals. … Horgan is the team-leader in both assists (19) and points (22). Horgan (22) and Philipp (20) are two of six UST players with 10 or more points this season. … UST has now won its last 12 games in which Philipp has scored a goal. … UST's 59 goals have come from 19 different players. … Drew Fielding finished with 28 saves in Friday's win over Saint Mary's. … UST has used three different goalies this season. Simcoe (2.70 GAA, .904 save percentage) has appeared in 11 games, while Fielding (1.99 GAA, .920 save percentage in four games) and Geoff Sadjadi (1.64 GAA, .909 save percentage in three games) have also seen time between the pipes for the Tommies. … Last Friday's 2-1 overtime win over Hamline was the fifth OT game of the season for the Tommies, who are 3-0-2 in games going an extra period. … Eleven of UST's 16 games this season have been decided by one goal or less — including six of the Tommies' 12 wins. … UST has outscored its opponents 19-10 in the first period. … St. Thomas has scored first in 12 of its 17 games, going 9-2-1.