Erie, Pa. - The Mercyhurst Women's Ice Hockey team is set to host Robert Morris in the semifinals of the CHA tournament. The Lakers are hosting the semifinals for the second straight year. The Lakers enter the postseason riding a four-game winning streak and look to avenge their championship loss from a season ago. Head Coach Mike Sisti has his team playing well at the right time.
History Lesson
The Lakers lead the all-time series 52-21-5. The Lakers and Colonials met four times during the regular season, splitting those four games. The Colonials won the most recent matchup back in January by a score of 2-1. The Lakers are 25-7-4 at home all time in this series. The last time these two teams met in the CHA postseason was in the 2020-21 season. The Colonials won that series and advanced to the Championship against Syracuse.
Last Time Out
This past weekend, the Lakers swept Syracuse to end their regular season on a four-game winning streak. In Friday's 3-2 win, the Lakers got goals from Sara Boucher, Sofia Ljung, and Thea Johansson. Ena Nystrøm stopped 26 shots and grabbed her 17th win of the season. In Saturday's 4-1 win, the Lakers got goals from Kylee Mahoney, Vanessa Upson, Thea Johansson, and Sydney Pedersen. Henlee Mahoney had two assists, and Kylee Mahoney and Sydney Pedersen had two points. Ena Nystrøm stopped 32 shots and grabbed her 18th win of the season and her 50th win of her career.
Stats Leaders
Sara Boucher finished the regular season with 17 goals and 21 assists for 38 points, which all led the team. Boucher finished tied for second in goals, and third in assists and points in the CHA. Vanessa Upson finished the regular season second in points with 30. Sofia Nuutinen and Sydney Pedersen tied for second on the team in assists with 19. Nuutinen was top five among freshman in the country in assists and points. Pedersen led all CHA Defenseman in assists. Thea Johansson finished second on the team in goals with 16. Ena Nystrøm finished 18-14-1 with a .926 save percentage, 2.21 GAA, 916 saves, and six shutouts.
A Look at the Opponent
The Colonials finished the regular season with a record of 14-17-1 overall, and 11-8-1 in conference play. Alaina Giampietro had a tremendous freshman season, finishing with the most goals on the team with 17. Giampietro finished the regular season tied for second in the CHA in goals. Janelle Evans and Chloé Puddafant are tied for the team lead in assists with 19. Evans also leads the team in points with 28. Maggie Hatch is 8-11-1 in net with a .921 save percentage, 3.12 GAA, and 742 saves.
CHA Postseason
#1 Penn State will host #4 RIT in the other semifinal matchup in State College. Penn State, the defending champions of the CHA tournament and this year's regular season champion, will have home ice throughout the CHA tournament. Both semifinals will be a best of three series to determine who will advance to the Championship next weekend. The highest remaining seed will host the championship. We could have a rematch of last year's championship, or a new face could sneak their way into the championship.
Puck drop for games one and two on Friday and Saturday are set for 2 PM. Game three (if necessary) will start at 2 PM on Sunday.
