Weekend Preview: Regional Challenges Set
ALBANY, NY -- The ECAC Hockey Tournament Champions No. 8/8
Dartmouth, who earned an automatic bid to NCAA Women's Ice Hockey
Tournament, and No. 7/7 St. Lawrence continue postseason play this
weekend in one-game regional action on the road. The Big
Green and Saints are part of the field of eight teams which will
compete for spots in the eighth NCAA Women's Frozen Four. The
2009 Women's Frozen Four will be hosted this year by Boston
University, March 20 and 22, at Agganis Arena in Boston.
No. 8/8 Dartmouth at No. 1/1 Wisconsin: The Big Green will
make their seventh NCAA tournament appearance this weekend when
they travel to Madison, Wisconsin to take on the top-seeded
Badgers. Capturing their fourth ECAC Hockey Tournament title,
the Big Green vaulted to the No. 7/7 spot in the national rankings
automatically earning the trip to the big dance. The Big
Green has had a tough time in the tournament, going 4-15 during
their visits. Dartmouth posted an 8-5-2 road record this
season to go along with a 7-4 overall non-conference mark.
The Big Green faced ranked teams seven times this season posting a
2-5 record. The last time Dartmouth and Wisconsin met in the
postseason was in 2005, when the Big Green ended the Badgers'
season with a 4-3 win the NCAA Quarterfinals. Dartmouth owns
an all-time record of 3-1 against Wisconsin. Dartmouth has
remained in the top-10 for all 23 weeks this season, while
Wisconsin has not fallen below second all season. Wisconsin
(31-2-5) has only lost twice this season to opponents ranked in the
No. 2 and No. 3 spots. The Big Green offense, netting 3.79
goals-per-game will challenge the Badgers' top ranked defense that
only surrenders 1.37 goals-per-game.
No. 7/7 Lawrence at No. 3/3 Mercyhurst: The Saints will make
their sixth straight trip and seventh overall to the NCAA
Tournament, when they travel to Erie, Pennsylvania to take on the
third-ranked Lakers, who are making their fifth straight
trip. The Saints are 4-6 in games against ranked opponents
this season, including dropping a pair of games to Mercyhurst by
scores of 5-2 and 2-1. The Lakers outshot the Saints by a
count of 89-35 in those two wins this season. The Saints own
an all-time record of 12-4-2 versus the Lakers, but have fallen in
three of the last four games. St. Lawrence boasts a 6-6
overall mark in NCAA postseason games. The Saints posted a
6-4-2 record this season against non-conference foes and registered
an overall road record of 8-7-2. Meanwhile, no one has been
able to find the answer against the Lakers at Mercyhurst Ice
Center, where the Lakers are a perfect 16-0 this season. The
Lakers are currently riding a 15-game winning streak, having not
lost a game since January 16 when their 11-game winning steak was
stopped by Connecticut, 3-2. ECAC Hockey members Clarkson and
Colgate each posted wins over the Lakers this season with the
Golden Knights sweeping a two-game set in Potsdam 5-2 and 5-4 and
the Raiders edging the Lakers 4-3.
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