NCAA week 10 preview: Non-Conference feasting

Week 10 sees many top ten schools visit unfamiliar foes. A surging Cornell team could pose more problems than expected for the top team in the nation in the Badgers. Led by senior Hanna Bunton and freshman Kristin O’Neill, the 6-2-1 Big Red squad just knocked off Princeton and tied Quinnipiac. Not listed in this preview below (due to giving other schools spotlight), is Boston College traveling to Northeastern on Saturday for a top ten ranked rematch. The two teams have a quick turnaround and are looking to settle their November 20th, 2-2 dispute. Happy Thanksgiving folks!

John Mazza previews Week 10:

Princeton @ Boston University, Fri 11/25 and Sat 11/26

• Last weekend, Princeton defeated Colgate but fell to Cornell.
• The Raiders entered last Friday’s game unbeaten, but the Tigers handed them their first loss. With her first hat trick of the season, Karlie Lund (Eden Prairie, MN) led her team to a decisive 7-2 victory.
• Freshman Carly Bullock (Eden Prairie, MN) scored Princeton’s only goal in the 2-1 loss to Cornell. The goal came from Kelsey Koelzer (Horsham, PA) and Karlie Lund at 14:32 in the first period.
• BU swept Merrimack in last week’s home-and-home series.
• BU’s junior class had a great night during Friday’s 7-3 win in Lawler Rink. Victoria Bach (Milton, ON) reached the 100-point mark and Rebecca Leslie (Ottawa, ON) tallied her first career hat trick.
• The next day, the Terriers shutout Merrimack in Agganis Arena. Victoria Hanson (Stoughton, MA) made 29 saves to collect her first collegiate shutout. /

Cornell @ No. 1 Wisconsin, Fri 11/25 and Sat 11/26

• The Big Red tied Quinnipiac before going on to defeat Princeton.
• Despite taking a 3-0 lead, Cornell struggled in the last half of the game and skated to a tie with the Bobcats. Kristin O’Neill (Oakville, ON) opened up scoring late in the first with her third shorthanded goal of the season.
• Pippy Gerace (Jamestown, NY) scored the game-winning goal in the 2-1 victory against Princeton. With under a minute left to play in the second, she backhanded a shot past the defensemen into the back of the net.
• No. 1 Wisconsin split the series with then No. 3 Minnesota-Duluth.
• Friday saw the Badgers suffer their first loss despite outshooting their opponent 46-30. Maddie Rowe (River Falls, WI) scored her first collegiate goal - the lone goal - for Wisconsin in the 4-1 defeat.
• The next day the Badgers rallied, beating UMD 4-1. Annie Pankowski (Laguna Hills, CA), who was without a goal so far this season, tallied her third collegiate hat trick leading Wisconsin to victory. /

Bemidji State @ No. 2 Minnesota, Sat 11/26 and Sun 11/27

• Bemidji State split the series with St. Cloud State at home last weekend.
• With six different players scoring, the Beavers broke their six-game winless streak. Haley Mack (East Grand Forks, MN) led her team with 3 assists in the 6-2 win.
• Bemidji fell 3-0 to the Huskies the next day.  Netminder Brittni Mowat (Glenboro, MB) only saved 11 of the 14 shots she faced.
• Minnesota tied both games against North Dakota, but managed to get the extra point in the shootout both times.
• Dani Cameranesi (Plymouth, MN) scored both goals of the Golden Gophers in Friday’s 2-2 tie. Both goals were assisted by Kelly Pannek (Plymouth, MN).
• The next day saw a similar result, with the teams skating to a 2-2 tie and Minnesota winning the shootout. Sarah Potomak (Aldergrove, BC) led the team with a goal and an assist. /

Merrimack @ No. 8 Quinnipiac, Fri 11/25

• Merrimack dropped two games to Boston University last weekend, falling to 2-7 in Hockey East and 4-10-1 overall.
• Merrimack started the scoring in Friday night’s contest. Sophomore Paige Sorensen (Plymouth, MA) took a slap shot from the point which deflected off a BU defender and into the net.
• Goaltender Léa-Kristine Demers (Repentigny, ON) matched her career-high in saves with 39 during Saturday’s game, but the Warriors could not get the puck in the back of net.
• Quinnipiac came away from last weekend with a tie against Cornell and a win against then No. 5 Colgate.
• After being down 3-0 to Cornell, the Bobcats rallied to force a tie. Kate MacKenzie (Winnipeg, MB), Melissa Samoskevich (Sandy Hook, CT), and Kenzie Prater (Hudson, WI) all scored during the comeback.
• The Bobcats then went on to defeat Colgate 3-1. Kenzie Lancaster (Waxhaw, NC) led the team with two goals and Prater scored an empty-net goal for Quinnipiac. /

St. Cloud State @ Vermont, Fri 11/25

• St. Cloud State split the series with the Bemidji State Beavers this past weekend.
• In the 6-2 loss on Friday, Janna Haeg (Lakeville, MN) and Ivy Dynek (Northfield, IL) both scored their first goals as Huskies, but they could not help their team beat the Beavers.
• Netminder Janine Alder (Zurich, Switzerland) earned her second shutout of the season. She blocked all 31 shots that came her way in the 3-0 win.
• Vermont tied both Northeastern and UConn last weekend increasing their Hockey East record to 2-2-3 and overall record to 3-5-4.
• With a goal in each of the first two periods, Alyssa Gorecki (Monee, IL) led Vermont to a 3-1 lead going into the third. However, Northeastern scored two goals in the third to even it up.
• UVM got on the board first in Sunday’s 1-1 tie with the UConn Huskies. Rachael Ade (Davenport, FL) scored 10 minutes into the game, giving the Catamounts an early lead. Just over two minutes later, UConn scored to tie the game./

Note: All rankings listed are from Week 9’s SB Nation’s Women’s College Hockey Division 1 Poll.