Weekend Preview: Teams Try to Build Momentum

ALBANY, NY  -- Ten out of the 12 ECAC Hockey teams are in action this weekend, including all four of the nationally-ranked teams.  Two of the ranked teams, No. 5/6 Dartmouth and No. 9/10 Harvard will be playing host, while the other two ranked teams, No. 4/4 St. Lawrence and No. 10 Clarkson take to the road. 

Colgate/Cornell at No. 5/6 Dartmouth/No. 9/10 Harvard:  The Big Green enters the weekend with a 5-1-1 overall record and a 4-1-1 mark in league-play.  Dartmouth will take on Cornell Friday and Colgate Saturday.  The Big Green's penalty kill unit, which ranks first among its league counterparts with a success rate of 91.7%, will be tested this weekend, as the Raiders' power play has posted a 30.1% success rate, while the Big Red has capitalized 24.5% of the time on power plays, ranking one and two among league members in overall play.  Dartmouth has only surrendered eight goals in seven contests thus far this season.  The weekend series will also showcase hot goaltenders, featuring sophomore Kayla Strong of Cornell (3-0-1), Raiders' freshman Kimberly Sass (5-1-0) and Dartmouth' senior Carli Clemis (4-1-1).  The Crimson returns to Brights Hockey Center this weekend looking to snap their two-game losing streak, as they also take on Cornell and Colgate.  Harvard owns a 13-1-1 record all-time in its series with Colgate and a 46-17-2 record versus Cornell, including taking the last six.  The Crimson is 24-0-1 in its last 25 contests at home.  Harvard has been getting scoring from its defenders, as junior Cori Bassett is sixth in the nation among defenders in scoring at 1.00 PTS/GM.  Look for junior Christina Kessler to be in goal for Harvard.  She sports a 2-2-1 record overall, with a .907 save percentage and a 1.98 GAA.

No. 4/4 St. Lawrence/No. 10 Clarkson at Quinnipiac/Princeton:  Clarkson is coming off a very successful weekend, taking three of four possible points from then 4th-ranked Harvard and 3rd-ranked Dartmouth.  The Golden Knights were victorious over the Crimson, while they earned a 2-2 tie with the Big Green.  The Golden Knights have played eight ranked opponents this season and are a stout 3-3-2.  Clarkson returns to the top ten in the national rankings, taking the No. 10 spot in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll.  Quinnipiac head coach Rick Seeley will be facing his former squad for the first time this weekend, when the Bobcats head to Cheel Arena to take on the Golden Knights.  The Bobcats' scoring output has come from senior foward Elyse Cole (5G) and junior forward Janine Duffy (4G).  Princeton leads the all-time series against Clarkson 10-2-1, but the Golden Knights have won the last two meetings between the teams.  Sophomore defender Sasha Sherry continues to lead the team with nine points (3G-6A), which is second in the nation at 1.12 PTS/GM among her counterparts.  St. Lawrence will travel to Quinnipiac Friday and Princeton Saturday.  The Saints are riding a seven-game unbeaten streak going 6-0-1 during the stretch.  The Saints have been taking care of business at both ends of the ice netting 3.60 G/GM, which ranks sixth in the nation, while only allowing 1.60 G/GM, which is fourth in the nation.

At Brown, Niagara/Mercyhurst:  The Bears will be at home this weekend hosting two non-conference opponents, Niagara Friday and Mercyhurst Saturday.  Brown snapped a three-game losing streak last Saturday with a 4-3 victory over Colgate.  The Bears own a 10-3-3 all-time record against Niagara.  The Bears are 2-1-2 in their last five meetings versus the Purple Eagles recording a 16-12 goal advantage.  The scoring punch for the Bears has come from junior forward Andrea Hunter, who has netted three power play goals in eight games and rookie defenseman Paige Pyett, who has netted three goals and three assists in eight games.  The Bears welcome the 6-4 Lakers Saturday.  Mercyhurst is riding a three-game winning streak of late and owns a 3-3 record against ECAC Hockey opponents this season.

Rensselaer at Robert Morris:  The Engineers travel to Pennsylvania to take on Robert Morris, after their male counterparts faced off in the Governor's Cup earlier this season.  The Engineers own a 5-1-0 all-time record versus the Colonials.  The Engineers are currently tied in ECAC Hockey standings with Dartmouth.  Junior defender Laura Gersten has been solid at both ends of the ice scoring three goals and adding five assists in 13 games for RPI.  Rookie forward Alisa Harrison has also been a spark on offense for RPI averaging  0.77 PTS/GM.  Mercyhurst freshman netminder Hillary Pattenden has an impressive 1.93 GAA in over 400 minutes of action this season.

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