WINONA, Minn. — Pressure? What pressure?

The Saint Mary's University women's basketball team went into Wednesday evening's season finale with St. Catherine knowing exactly what lay in front of them:

* A win, and the Cardinals were taking part in their third straight Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference post-season tournament.

* A loss, and the Cardinals would be on the outside looking in when the tournament bids were announced.

And with the game — and their season — hanging in the balance, Jamie Rattunde (Rollingstone, Minn.) took matters into her own hands. The SMU sophomore, who has been the Cardinals' leading scorer all season, posted a game-high 20 points and added a career-best 17 rebounds to lead the Cardinals to a 62-52 victory over the Wildcats at the SMU gym.

MIAC Tournament, here come the Cardinals.

"That was a big win for us, no question about that," said SMU coach Dan Messmann, whose team won for the second straight time in evening its MIAC mark at 11-11. "We knew going into the game what was on the line — there was a lot of pressure, but everyone stepped up and did a great job."

None greater than Rattunde.

The SMU sophomore connected on just 4 of 13 field goals, but she nailed 12 of her 14 free-throw attempts en route to her fourth 20-point scoring performance of the season. She also grabbed 11 offensive boards and six defensive boards in completing her seventh double-double of the season.

But that was just the beginning.

Rattunde also recorded seven steals, giving her 91 in 22 MIAC games and 100 overall, shattering both the MIAC single-season (88) and the SMU single-season (98) records.

"Jamie played a great game," praised Messmann of his all-conference forward. "But she didn't do it alone. Keri (Drake) hit a couple of huge threes in the second half that got us going. This was a total team win."

Ashley Luehmann (Lewiston, Minn.) chipped in 14 points, while Keri Drake (Sturgeon Bay, Wis.) added 12 points.

"We didn't shoot the ball as well as I would have liked," admitted Messmann, whose team shot 32 percent from the field (18-for-55) — including just 30 percent in the second half (8-for-26). "But the bottom line is, we got the win."

The Cardinals got the win — and another shot at MIAC rival St. Thomas.

"One of our goals at the start of the season was to get back into the conference playoffs — we've accomplished that goal," said Messmann, whose team has lost 37 straight against the Tommies — including 66-60 and 76-72 decisions this season. "But we're not going to be satisfied just getting there. We're not about to be intimidated by having to play (St. Thomas). We played two very tight games with them already this season, and there's no reason not to expect the same thing this time around.

"We've proven over the course of the season that we can play with anyone in the conference. Now we just have to go out there and do it."

* THIS AND THAT: Jamie Rattunde's (Rollingstone, Minn.) 20-point, 17-rebound effort vs. St. Catherine was her seventh double-double of the season. The 17 rebounds were also a season and career high. … Rattunde also recorded seven steals, giving her 100 for the season, breaking SMU's single-season record of 98, previouslyly held by Shannon Martin. … Rattunde's 91 steals in conference play also broke the 18-year-old MIAC single-season steals mark of 88. … Keri Drake's (Sturgeon Bay, Wis.) 12 points vs. St. Catherine were one shy of her career high, set Feb. 8 vs. Macalester. … Ashley Luehmann (Lewiston, Minn.) scored 14 points vs. the Wildcats, extending her double-figure scoring streak to five games. … SMU is making its third straight trip to the MIAC post-season tournament. … Rattunde and Luehmann lead the Cardinals in scoring, averaging 14.9 and 11.7 ppg, respectively. Jaimie Lee (Eden Prairie, Minn.) is also averaging in double figures at 10.1 ppg. … As a team, SMU is averaging 62.2 ppg, while its opponents are at 62.3.