WINONA, Minn. — Today’s meet against St. Catherine could very well be the most important meet the Saint Mary’s University swimming and diving teams compete in all season.

And it has nothing to do with winning or losing.

For five Cardinals, today’s meet marks the end of a journey. Four years of grueling morning workouts and hundreds upon hundreds of laps has come down to this — one last home contest.

“This is a huge meet, not just for our seniors, but for everyone involved in our program,” said SMU coach Eric Lindquist, whose teams are coming off dual-meet losses to St. Thomas on Friday. “We always talk about how important it is that we use every meet as a stepping stone toward the conference championships. But today isn’t really about stepping stones — it’s about doing our best, so that we can give these five seniors the type of send-off they deserve.

“This is a pretty tight group of individuals, who have all been through a lot together,” continued Lindquist, who, like the rest of the Cardinals, will be watching seniors Tony Gruenke, Brian Travers, Jennifer Phillips, Heidi Andre and Abby Huot compete in the Jul Gernes Pool for the last time this afternoon. “It’s going to be hard to see them compete in this pool for a final time.”