Saint John's plays host to Saint Mary's for its regular-season, home finale on Saturday, Oct. 26. The match is set for 1 p.m. at Haws Field in Collegeville.
Preview Video:
-Head coach John Haws (0:40)
A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Senior Joe Laue's (St. Louis Park, Minn./Holy Angels) goal with 17:15 remaining in the match proved to be the difference in a 1-0 win for Saint John's (6-6-3, 4-2-2 MIAC) at Augsburg on Oct. 19 in Minneapolis. The scoring play developed when senior Michael Coborn (St. Cloud, Minn./Cathedral) turned the corner and fired a pass from the end line to Laue, who was alone in front. Freshman Rocky Harmon (Hudson, Wis.) was credited with the second assist. Sophomore Kevin Lebahn (New Hope, Minn./Benilde-St. Margaret's) made two saves to earn his third shutout of the season and improve to 4-4-3 (4-2-2 MIAC).
MIAC RACE: SJU currently sits in fourth place (14 points) with three conference matches remaining, though the Johnnies only have two (their bye is Tuesday, Oct. 29). The top four teams in the league standings advance to the MIAC Playoffs following the regular-season finale Nov. 2.
55: Laue's game-winning goal at Augsburg, assisted by Harmon and Coborn was his first goal since Oct. 9, 2010, during his freshman season against Hamline; a span of 55 matches. Coincidentally, the goal against the Pipers back in 2010 was his second in as many matches, was assisted by Coborn and served as the game-winner.
COBORN CLIMBING: Coborn is currently tied with Tyler Bosch (2001-04) for fourth in school history with 86 points (26g/34a) in 67 career matches and needs one point to tie Jim Phelps (87 pts., 1979-81) for third on the all-time list.
REGULAR-SEASON HOME FINALE: Saturday's match is the final regular-season contest at home for seven Johnnie seniors: Coborn, Laue, Joe Balder (Stillwater, Minn.), Ryan Brutger (St. Cloud, Minn./Apollo), Matt Carson (Waconia, Minn.), Calvin Koep (Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata) and Elliott Olsen (Cedar, Minn./St. Francis). The six fielders have combined for 134 points (42g/50a) and 11 game-winning goals in 332 games played (30-26-11 overall, 19-13-6 MIAC record). Brutger, meanwhile, has a 9-10-4 record with a 1.51 GAA and a .781 save percentage (132 saves) in 27 matches.
A LOOK AT THE CARDINALS: Saint Mary's (4-10-1, 1-6-0 MIAC) ended a nine-match losing streak with a 1-0 win at home against Bethel Oct. 19. Sophomore Evan Claffy made seven saves to earn a shutout in his first collegiate start between the pipes. Sophomore Ryan Geidner, junior Matt Graber and senior Midhat Mujic are tied for the team-lead with three goals apiece. Mujic leads the team in both assists (4) and points (10).
LAST YEAR'S MATCH: Seven different Johnnies recorded a point as Saint John's earned a 3-0 shutout at Saint Mary's last Oct. 20 (2012) in Winona. Coborn's fourth goal of the season, 5:57 into the match, proved to be the game-winning tally. Junior Josh Whitaker (Milwaukie, Ore.) ended the scoring 2:10 into the second half with his third goal of the season. Lebahn made four saves to earn his third shutout of the season and improve to 5-4-1 on the year (4-2-1 MIAC).
SERIES HISTORY: SJU is 26-4-3 against the Cardinals since 1981, including a 14-2-2 record in Collegeville. The Johnnies have won 13 of the last 15 meetings overall, out-scoring SMU 40-11. Both of SJU's losses were by a 1-0 decision.
