ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst University women's hockey team is getting hot at the right time of the season. The Lakers parlayed a suffocating defense with special team goals by junior Jenna Dingeldein and senior Shelby Bram to turn back visiting Penn State, 2-0, on Friday afternoon in the opener of a crucial weekend series. With the win, Mercyhurst improved to 21-7-3 overall and 12-4-1 in College Hockey America (CHA) and stretched its lead over the second-place Nittany Lions (15-12-4, 9-6-2) to five points with three regular season games remaining.

Mercyhurst held Penn State, which won the first two games of the regular season over the Lakers in State College two months ago, to eleven shots in the sixty minutes. The beneficiary of the stout defense was junior goaltender Julia DiTondo, who made her third successive start and posted her second straight shutout.

The Lakers got on the board early in the first period when junior forward Jenna Dingeldein scored while the Lakers were down-a-skater. Junior Emily Janiga blocked a Penn State shot just inside the Mercyhurst blue line and then sent Dingeldein for a breakaway opportunity. The junior from Toronto wristed a shot over the blocker of Penn State goaltender Celine Whitlinger for her 16th goal of the season, and second shorthanded, at 5:04. Mercyhurst outshot Penn State, 9-5, in the first period, one in which each team incurred two minor penalties.

Dingeldein has now scored a goal in four of her last five games and extended her point-scoring streak to five straight.

Helped by two more Penn State penalties, the Lakers dominated the second period, outshooting the Nittany Lions 15-4, but couldn't extend the lead as Whitlinger, the game's third star, made some big saves to keep the margin at one goal.

Senior forward Shelby Bram finished the scoring with her fifth of the season, a power play goal, at 15:34 of the third. Junior defenseman J'nai Mahadeo took the initial shot from the left wing circle that Bram was able to redirect through the five-hole of Whitlinger. Janiga also assisted on the goal.

With the second assist, Janiga now has scored two points in each of the last three games - the second time this season she has had such a streak.

Penn State pulled Whitlinger with nearly three minutes left in regulation but neither team was able to crack the scoreboard the rest of the way.

The Lakers outshot Penn State 12-2 in the third and held a 36-11 advantage for the contest. Mercyhurst was 1-for-6 on the power play while Penn State finished 0-for-3. DiTondo, who has allowed just one goal in her three starts, improved to 3-0-0 on the season. The reigning CHA Goaltender of the Week lowered her goals against average to 1.05 and upped her save percentage to .945 in her five appearances this season. Whitlinger dropped to 11-7-1, despite stopping 34-of-36 shots.  

Mercyhurst has now won 10 of 12 meetings against Penn State and improved to a perfect 6-0-0 against the Nittany Lions at the Ice Center.

The two teams conclude the weekend series on Saturday afternoon at 2:00 p.m. A win or a tie will give Mercyhurst the CHA regular season crown for the 13th consecutive season. The Lakers will also honor their four seniors prior to the opening faceoff - Bram, Molly Byrne, Caroline Luczak, and Amanda Makela.