ERIE, Pa – The Mercyhurst University women's ice hockey team will continue their homestand with an in conference matchup against  Lindenwood on Jan. 14-15. The Lakers (14-7-2, 4-2 CHA) and Lions (5-15-0, 3-3-0 CHA) face off inside of the Mercyhurst Ice Center at 6:05 p.m. on Friday and 2:05 p.m. on Saturday.

Updated Fan Policy

The Mercyhurst University Athletic Department, in its continued commitment to maintaining the health and safety of the Mercyhurst community, announced that home athletic events will be held with limited spectators until further notice effective January 12. Spectators may only attend if they are on the player pass list.

Laker Overview 

The Lakers come into the contest with Lindenwood after splitting a series at home last week against LIU. The CHA standings continue to feature Syracuse on top, Mercyhurst is right below the Orange in a second place tied with Penn State. Both teams have a 4-2 record in conference with eight points, two behind Syracuse. In their first outing of 2022, the Lakers cruised to a 4-2 win over the visiting LIU Sharks, in the second game LIU squeaked past the Lakers by a narrow 3-2 margin. The series concluded Mercyhurst's 2021-22 non conference schedule that saw the team go 9-5-2 in those games, from here on out it is strictly CHA opponents for the Lakers.

Against the Lions

Friday's contest with Lindenwood will be the 40th time that the two programs have played one another all-time. The Lakers hold a 31-7-1 record against the Lions and have won each of the last three times the teams have met. The matchup will mark the first time that Mercyhurst first-year assistant coach Scott Spencer will go against his former team in Lindenwood where he served as the team's head coach from 2014-2019.

Scouting Lindenwood

Lindenwood will enter Friday's matchup with the Lakers holding a 5-15-0 record, they have played a harsh non conference schedule that includes No.1 Wisconsin, No.2 Ohio State, and No. 7 Clarkson. They have beaten RIT twice and Syracuse once in CHA competition. The Lions have been led this season by Valerie Caldwell and Sierra Burt. Caldwell leads the team with five goals and Burt is top in assists, 14, and points with 18. THe Lions have started four different goaltenders in net this season, Natalie Ferenc leads the group with nine starts and holds a 4-5 record.

Notable Notes

• Mercyhurst Defensemen K.K. Thiessen and Alexandria Weiss each scored their first goal of the season this past weekend against LIU. Thiessen and Weiss both now have five goals in their respective careers at Mercyhurst, which leads all Laker defensemen in that category.

• With her four points over the weekend series, Sara Boucher now has amassed 40 points in 40 career collegiate games at Mercyhurst. The sophomore now has 20 career goals and 20 career assists since she came onto campus back in the fall of 2020. 

• The Lakers are an impressive 11-0-0 this season when they lead at the end of the second period, they are also 10-0-0 when they score three or more goals in a game.

Up Next

The Mercyhurst women will get their final break before the end of the season next weekend as they are non scheduled to play, the following week Mercyhurst will travel to University Park, Pa for a pivotal matchup with the Penn State Nittany Lions.