(RV) MERCYHURST (8-7-1, 5-3-0 AHA) vs SYRACUSE (6-9-0, 4-4-0 AHA)
Friday, Nov. 21 – 6 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 22– 3 p.m.
Syracuse, N.Y. 
TV: Flo Hockey 
 
The Mercyhurst women's hockey team will play on the road for the next four games. They continue conference play this Friday, Nov. 21 with a 6 p.m. puck drop. The series finale will take place Saturday, Nov. 22 at 3 p.m. 
 
Previous Results
The Lakers are 8-7-1 this season and 5-3-0 in AHA play. They hosted No. 5/6 Minnesota Duluth in their first series. Game one ended 4-3 in overtime and game two ended 5-3. The second series was on the road at New Hampshire where they swept the Wildcats. Game one ended 3-2 and game two finished in a 4-0 shutout. The Lakers then hosted No. 10 St. Lawrence in a series split. The Lakers picked up their second shutout of the season in game one, 1-0, and dropped game two 3-0. Mercyhurst then played No. 6 Penn State on the road. The Nittany Lions proved to the toughest opponent yet as they took the series 3-0 and 6-1. The Lakers then hosted No. 8/9 UConn. The two sides played to a 1-1 draw in game one. The second game featured seven goals, with the Huskies prevailing 4-3. Mercyhurst then swept Delaware. The Lakers won the first game 3-2 in OT and blanked the Blue Hens 4-0 in game two. They then swept RMU 5-1 and 7-2, earning a pair of AHA Player of the Week nominations in the process. Most recently, the Lakers split their series with RIT at home as both games ended 1-0. 
 
Matchup History
Mercyhurst is ahead of the series by a large margin. The all-time record is 61-15-4. The first series took place in the 2008-09 season when the Lakers won game one 4-1 and game two 7-1 both on the road. In fact, the Lakers were 28-0-2 in the first 30 matchups. The first time Syracuse won was at their own barn in the 2014-15 season, 4-1. The Lakers are 27-6-1 on the road against the Orange and 8-2-0 in their last 10 overall matchups. They have scored 281 goals on the Orange and are averaging 3.51 goals in each game. Most recently, Mercyhurst Syracuse in the AHA semifinals in March of 2025. Syracuse took game one 1-0, then the Lakers won game two 4-0 and game three 5-2 to advance to the finals.
 
Lakers to Look Out for
Julia Perjus leads the Laker's goals and points column with eight goals and four assists for twelve points. Perjus has two multi-goal games this season, a .532 faceoff win percentage, and is tied for the third-highest net rating at +7. The Stockholm native scored the lone goal in a 1-0 win against No. 10 St. Lawrence in the Laker's second home series. She also netted two goals against Delaware and one against RMU.
 
Julia Schalin is another forward who has been on an impressive run of form. Schalin had a league-high five points against RMU, scoring 2 goals and registering three assists. The reigning AHA Rookie of the Year earned her first AHA Forward of the Year award last week.
 
Nayeon Kim currently leads the team in assists with nine. The freshman from South Korea is tied with Perjus in points (12) and scored her first career goal against Delaware. Kim is also second on the team with a +8 net rating. She had a three-point weekend against RMU, where she scored two goals and recorded an assist. Kim also assisted the lone goal in the team's recent 1-0 win against RIT.
 
Defensively, Abby Poitras and captain Makayla Javier have been all over the ice. Poitras recorded four assists against RMU two weeks ago and has six in her last six games. Javier scored the game-winning goal in a 3-2 win against New Hampshire and recorded a career-high three assists in the 4-0 win in game two. Javier and Poitras both lead the team in blocks with, which puts them tied for eighth in the nation. 
 
Magdalena Luggin started between the pipes against No. 5/6 Minnesota Duluth and recorded a career-high 47 saves in the first game and another 28 saves in the second game. Luggin was the winning netminder in game one of the New Hampshire series. The Austrian native then posted 25 saves and a shutout victory against No. 10 St. Lawrence, which led to her being named the AHA Goaltender of the Week. 
 
Luggin made 37 saves in a 1-1 draw against No. 8/9 UConn and 30 saves in the 4-3 loss. She recorded a league-high 59 saves against RMU. This helped her earn her second AHA Goaltender of the Week award. Most recently, she made 24 saves and recorded her second shutout of the season in the Laker's 1-0 win against RIT. 
 
Scouting Syracuse 

• The Orange opened their season the same way the Lakers did, hosting No. 5/6. UMD, who won both games 4-0. 
• Syracuse then swept Stonehill, 3-2 and 8-2. 
• They then lost 3-0 and 5-1 to No. 7 Quinnipiac before sweeping Delaware in their first AHA series. 
• They split their series with RIT, winning 5-2 and falling 4-1. 
• At the end of October, they lost to No. 4 Cornell. 
• They then split with Lindenwood, winning 2-1 and losing 4-1. 
• Most recently, they were swept by undefeated No. 6 Penn State. 
• Emma Gnade (4G, 4A, 8 PTS), Peyton Armstrong (3G, 6A, 9 PTS), and Sami Gendron (1G, 2A, 3 PTS, 29 BLKS) all lead the team in goals, assists, points, and blocks.