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ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst University women's hockey team returns to action after the holiday break to host No. 3 Cornell University for a two-game battle at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.

The Lakers will compete against the Big Red on Friday, January 10 at the Mercyhurst Ice Center at 7:00 p.m. The series will conclude on Saturday, January 11 with a 2:00 p.m. puck drop. The weekend marks the final cross-over series for the Lakers of the 2013-14 season.

After going 4-0-0 during the month of December, the Lakers have stretched the winning streak to seven-games which marks the longest of the season. The Lakers have outscored their opponents 44 to 16 in the stretch and have jumped to second in the CHA. Mercyhurst currently trails Robert Morris in the standings, which is on an eleven game winning streak.

The Lakers are 14-5-2 overall and 7-2-1 in the CHA after capturing seven straight wins before the winter break. After capturing four straight conference wins, Mercyhurst is back in second place in the CHA and look to continue full steam ahead. With a home record of 7-1-1, Mercyhurst has not lost at the Ice Center since the overtime loss against Ohio State on October 5.

Mercyhurst looks to continue the eight game unbeaten streak with the home ice advantage with the help of seniors Christine Bestland and Christie Cicero. Bestland leads the team this season with 33 points on 13 goals and 20 assists in the 21 games played. Cicero is third on the team in scoring with 22 points and looks to continue her six game point streak against the Big Red as she has tallied 11 points in the run. Freshman Jillian Skinner has also contributed to the Lakers recent success as she has contributed six points in the last four contests for a four-game streak heading into the weekend.

Against Cornell the Lakers have a 14-5-1 lifetime advantage against the Big Red and are 6-5 in the last ten meetings. Last season, the two teams met once during the regular season in a mid-week battle where the Lakers suffered a 4-0 loss after allowing three goals in the first period at Lynah rink. After receiving their ninth consecutive NCAA bid, the Lakers had a chance at redemption in the first round of the NCAA playoffs. After a back and forth match-up, Sophomore Jenna Dingeldein tallied the overtime game-winning goal at the Lakers upset #2 Cornell to advance to the NCAA Frozen Four. This weekend, the Lakers seek another upset against the Big Red and a spot back in the national spotlight.

Cornell remains on as one of the teams to beat on the national board as they have suffered just one loss this season. The Big Red are currently 12-1-2 overall and remain undefeated in the ECAC conference with a record of 8-0-2. Cornell is ranked third nationally heading into the weekend and collected an eleven game winning streak at the start of the season. This year, Cornell has faced just one other CHA opponent during a mid-week contest against Syracuse where the Orange suffered a 5-2 loss. Cornell is outscoring their opponents 59 to 28 throughout the season and is currently unbeaten on the road at 5-0-2.

Individually, the Big Red's Emily Fulton leads the nation in scoring after averaging 1.73 points per game. Fulton currently leads her team with 26 points on nine goals and 17 assists. Jillian Saulanier has 24 points on the season and is leading the nation in assists (0.73), while Jessica Campbell has 22 points. The Big Red's goaltender Lauren Slebodnick has allowed 22 goals and stopped 261 shots faced for a 1.88 goals against average in 13 games played. She remains unbeaten at 10-0-2 in net and has collected one shutout.