ST. PAUL, MINN. – It's not even the weekend, and yet the St. Catherine University basketball team has had one of its most exciting weeks of the season. The Wildcats defeated the Concordia College Cobbers Wednesday afternoon 63-61 thanks to a last-second layup from junior guard
Audra Clark (Kenyon, Minn. / Kenyon-Wanamingo).
St. Kate's hopes that winning momentum carries over to Saturday afternoon's game against Saint Mary's University, which could have major implications in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) playoff picture. Currently, the Wildcats sit one game ahead of the Cardinals in the conference standings. However, the two teams have been battling each other for the No. 5 and 6 spots all season long with nearly identical records (St. Kate's is 14-8 overall with an 8-7 in MIAC play, while Saint Mary's in 13-9 with a 7-8 record in conference play).
Saturday will also serve as senior day, as
Mari Lee (Dawson, Minn. / Dawson-Boyd),
LaShay Holt (Minneapolis, Minn. / Humboldt) and
Kennedy Jennings (Grimes, Iowa / Dallas Center-Grimes) will be playing in one of the final two home games of their career.
Live stats and video will be available for Saturday's game for fans who can't make it to the 3 p.m. tip off in the
Butler Center Gym. Score updates will also be made on St. Kate's official Twitter account -0
Make sure to prepare for the big game with these five facts and stats:
10 – Lee, Holt and Jennings hold a combined 10 school records thanks to an outstanding four years at St. Kate's. Lee currently holds the school record for single-season field goal percentage (.621) and single-season 3-point field goal percentage (.483), while Holt may be considered one of the most successful basketball players in school history. The senior guard holds six school records, including career points (1426), career rebounds (779) and career steals (234).
42 – Lee, Holt, and Jennings also make up the winningest class in head coach
Sean Pinkerton's tenure, with an overall record of 42-55 and a 24-49 record in MIAC play. They've also helped turn the Wildcats from one of the worst teams in the conference to a playoff contender and have helped St. Kate's record an overall record above .500 in back-to-back seasons.
2 – Saturday's game between the Cardinals and Wildcats will be the second meeting between these two teams this season. St. Kate's and Saint Mary's last played each other on January 7, with the Cardinals coming out on top 80-73. Holt scored a team leading 19 points in the game, while Jennings added 15.
26 – Clark scored a career-high 26 points in the Wildcats 63-61 win over Concordia on Wednesday. She is now five points away from reaching the 1000 point milestone and could be the second junior to achieve the mark in the last two seasons. Last year, Holt, then a junior, recorded her 1000 career point against Saint Mary's.
743 – Cardinal forward Brandi Blattner has logged 743 minutes this season, the third-highest total in the MIAC. In that time, she's pulled in 210 rebounds and scored 320 points, which ranks second and sixth in the MIAC respectively.
