WINONA, Minn. — The Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's soccer discovered something 11 schools before them had already learned—St. Thomas is very stingy when it comes to giving up goals.
 
Very stingy.
 
The Tommies—who entered Saturday's Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference game leading the country with 11 shutouts, made the Cardinals shutout victim No. 12.
 
St. Thomas scored twice in the opening 45 minutes and kept Saint Mary's off the scoreboard in handing the Cardinals a 2-0 setback at Ochrymowycz Field.
 
Shae Bottum opened the scoring for the Tommies, taking a feed from Mark Heydt and beating Cardinal goalkeeper Nate Levy (Bryon, Minn.) in the game's 32^nd minute.
 
Heydt would give the Tommies a little breathing room seven minutes later, scoring his sixth of the season and a rocket that clanged off the crossbar and landed in the net behind Levy.
 
The Cardinals had their share of chances—especially in the game's final 45 minutes—but UST goalkeeper Aidan Hogan was up to the challenge, stopping all six Saint Mary's shots, including five in the second half.
 
Levy, meanwhile, finished with five saves in goal for the Cardinals—including a pair of point-blank second-half shots.
 
The Cardinals (3-5-1 MIAC, 7-8-1 overall) step out of conference play for the final time on Tuesday, heading to Morris, Minn., for a 6 p.m. nonconference matchup against UM-Morris.