CANTON, N.Y. - The Mercyhurst University women's hockey team's first trip to St. Lawrence in over four years was an unpleasant one Friday as the Saints turned back the #9/10 Lakers by a count of 6-1 in the first of a two-game series. The Saints, 13-8-3, won their fourth straight while the Lakers, 17-5-3, are now 1-1-1 in the New Year and 1-3-1 in their last five.

The six goals allowed by Mercyhurst on Friday afternoon were the most this season and the most since January 11, 2014 in a 6-4 home loss to Cornell. Meanwhile, the five-goal margin of defeat was the most since a 5-0 loss to Wisconsin in the 2009 National Championship game (March 22, 2009).
  
St. Lawrence junior forward Jenna Marks scored the first period's lone goal at 8:55. Her ninth of the season came against Mercyhurst senior goaltender Amanda Makela (17-5-3). The Saints had a 14-8 shot advantage in the period.

St. Lawrence doubled the lead at 1:12 of the second when sophomore Brooke Webster scored her team-leading 14th goal of the year.

Mercyhurst got back into the game six minutes later when freshman forward Sarah Robello tallied her sixth goal of the season when she beat Saints' senior netminder Carmen MacDonald (8-5-2). Freshman forward Jennifer MacAskill and sophomore defenseman Jillian Skinner had the assists.

Robello's goal was her first since tallying against Lindenwood on December 6 while MacAskill's helper was her first point since November 11 - a 3-0 win at Ohio State.

But the Lakers' momentum was short-lived as freshman Alex Moore registered her first goal of the season at 8:59, a goal which chased Makela for junior Julia DiTondo.

DiTondo's arrival failed to stem the tide as senior Kayla Raniwsky collected her ninth of the year just 46 seconds later. Senior Jacqueline Wand's fourth of the season, six minutes after that, stretched the Saints' lead to 5-1 after forty minutes. St. Lawrence scored four times on eleven shots in the period and limited the Lakers to just six shots on goal.

It was just the fourth time this season that Mercyhurst entered the third period trailing. The Lakers fell to 1-3-0 in such situations.

Moore completed the scoring with her second of the game, and of the season, in the last minute of the third. The Saints outshot Mercyhurst 16-8 in the final period and 41-22 for the sixty minutes.

Only one minor penalty – to Mercyhurst – was assessed in the contest. The last opponent to go unscathed in sixty minutes was Yale December 8, 2002, when Meryhurst prevailed 2-1 in Connecticut. Mercyhurst was not penalized February 21, 2003, in a 3-2 loss to visiting Dartmouth.

The two teams will conclude the weekend series at Appleton Arena on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m.

Notes: DiTondo hadn't seen action since January 24, 2014, in a 3-1 setback to Robert Morris at the Ice Center; DiTondo got the start and played 34 minutes…Makela had played every minute since then until exiting at 8:59 of the second, a span of 37 games…Makela was seeking her 50th career win Friday…the Saints are now 3-0 against CHA teams this season, having defeated Robert Morris 8-2 and 3-1 in mid-October…Mercyhurst is now 12-14-2 lifetime against SLU and 4-7-2 at Appleton Arena…senior Shelby Bram was held scoreless and remains two points shy of 100 for her career…the 41 shots allowed by the Lakers were the most in a regulation game since surrendering 42 in a 3-2 win at home over Boston College January 19, 2013 (the Lakers gave up 44 in a 4-4 overtime tie January 10, 2014 against Cornell at the Ice Center)…the Lakers' lone penalty was their fewest since taking one minor in a 1-1 overtime tie at Cornell December 1, 2014...Mercyhurst was not penalized at all February 21, 2003, in a 3-2 loss to visiting Dartmouth.