Erie, PA—After a thrilling regular season finale against Penn State, the Mercyhurst Women's Hockey team will return to the Erie Insurance Arena for the CHA Tournament. They Lakers will play at 7:30 on Friday, however the Lakers will not know their opponent until the quarterfinal round is concluded on Thursday.
Laker Overview
The Lakers were able to secure a first-round bye after defeating the number 8 team in the country in Penn State. Mercyhurst was able to bounce back from a 5-2 loss to Penn State on Friday with a 3-2 overtime win on Saturday. The Lakers received they help they needed within the league and were able to clinch the bye in dramatic fashion.
Mercyhurst had a really good final month of the regular season, as they were to go 7-2 in the month of February including sweeps of both Syracuse on the 5th and 6th along with a three game sweep of Lindenwood on the 18th, 19th and 21st.
The Lakers have a combination of young and old for goal scorers this season, however leading the way has been freshman Sara Boucher who has scored 12 goals and added seven assists in her rookie season. Her 12 goals as a freshman led the nation for rookie goal scorers. Junior Emily Pinto was able to jump to second in the team in goal scoring after netting the overtime winner against Penn State. She now has six goals and six assists in her third season with the Lakers. Seniors Alexa Vasko, Rachel Marmen and Summer-Rae Dobson round out the top five scorers for the Lakers this season.
Up Front
The forward group for the Lakers have contributed all but five goals for the Lakers, along with Boucher, Pinto, Vasko, and Dobson, freshman Chantal Ste-Croix has tallied five goals while junior Liliane Perreault and freshman Grace Nelles have each scored three goals. The forward group has also won 55% of their faceoffs this season, leading the way in the faceoff dot has been Vasko who wins 62% of her faceoffs.
On the Blueline
The Mercyhurst defense core is a group that came into the season with a lot of experience, the Lakers returned six defenders from last season adding Calista Rowbottom as the lone freshman. The Lakers did not receive a goal from the defense core until Marmen scored her first of the season against Penn State on January 23rd. As of late the Laker defenders have been on fire of late which was highlighted against Lindenwood on February 14th, K.K. Thiessen was able to tally four points while Marmen was able to get on the scoresheet three times. All in total the Laker defenders have accounted for 31 points for the Lakers and 138 blocked shots.
The Last Line of Defense
Both Jenna Silvonen and Ena Nystrøm have been huge factors in the crease for the Lakers this season. Nystrøm earned starts in both games this weekend but was relieved by Silvonen after the first period in the first game of the Penn State series. Silvonen has been able to post a .918 save percentage and a 1.85 goals against average. Nystrøm has been able to post a 2.11 goals against average while adding a .931 save percentage.
Where They Rank
Boucher led the nation in goals scored as a freshman, while finishing in sixth in the CHA for points per game, she also led all goal scorers this season in CHA as she was able to score 12 goals this season. Boucher also leads the CHA in game-winning goals. Both Silvonen and Nystrøm rank in the top five for goals against average, while Silvonen is ranked third with a 1.85 and Nystrøm ranked fifth with a 2.11. Nystrøm is also ranked fourth in save percentage while Silvonen is ranked seventh.
Battle on Special Teams
The Lakers currently hold a 12.3 powerplay percentage while scoring 8 times on 65 tries, the Laker penalty kill has the Lakers ranked second in the CHA. Mercyhurst has killed off 55 of 61 powerplays while also scoring two shorthanded goals.
Honor Roll
College Hockey America has announced the 2020-21 regular season awards, three Lakers found their names on All-Conference Teams while one player saw her name on the All-Rookie Team. Boucher, Vasko, Marmen were named to the All-Conference Second Team that is voted on by the CHA head coaches. Boucher was also named to the All-Rookie Team and finished second in voting for Rookie of the Year.
What's Next?
The Lakers will play the CHA Tournament this weekend and depending on the results, the NCAA Tournament will take place in Erie at the Erie Insurance Arena starting on March 15th. The NCAA selection show will take place on Sunday, March 7th.
