(RV) MERCYHURST (13-9-2, 9-4-1 AHA) vs NO. 4 PENN STATE (18-3-0, 12-0-0 AHA)
Friday, Jan. 9 - 3 p.m.
Saturday, Jan. 10 - 1 p.m. 
Erie, Pa.   
TV: Flo Hockey 
 
The Mercyhurst women's hockey team will face their biggest rival as they host No. 4 Penn State. This rematch of the previous few AHA championships will begin Friday, Jan. 9 at 3 p.m. Game two will take place Saturday, Jan. 10 at 1 p.m. Viewers can find live coverage on the Flo Hockey. 
 
Previous Results
The Lakers are 13-9-2 this season and 9-4-1 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. The Lakers then split their series with RIT at home as both games ended 1-0. At Syracuse, game one ended in a 2-2 tie where the Orange took the shootout. The Lakers edged them in game two, 3-2. Over Thanksgiving, Mercyhurst traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to compete in the Smashville Showcase. They beat Stonehill 6-1 in Michael Sisti's 600th career win. They fell 5-1 to No. 1 Wisconsin in their second game. In the beginning of December, the Lakers split a series with Lindenwood. They took game one with a commanding, 10-1 victory before falling 5-2 in game two. Most recently, the Lakers began 2026 with a series sweep over Lindenwood. They won 5-1 in game one and Abby Poitras scored with 1.6 seconds left on the clock in overtime to secure a 2-1 victory in game two. 
 
Matchup History
Mercyhurst is 26-24-9 all time versus Penn State. The Lakers first exhibition game in the 1999-2000 season was against the Nittany Lions. However, Penn State was a club team at the time which is why the Lakers won 17-0. The first official matchup between the two was in 2012 when Penn State officially added its DI hockey programs. The Lakers won every series in the Nittany Lion's first three seasons, outscoring them 44-5. In the 2014-15 season, the rivalry was truly born. Penn State hosted Mercyhurst at the Pegula, which had only been a season old at the time. The Nittany Lions swept the Lakers 2-1 and 5-3. Since then, there have only been seven series sweeps in the last 16 series. In the 2021-22 season, the Lakers knocked the Nittany Lions out of the CHA tournament in the semifinals. Since then, the final two CHA championships in 2022-23 and 2023-24 as well as the first ever women's AHA championship in 2024-25 have featured an MU vs. PSU matchup. Most recently, PSU won 3-0 and 6-1 in October.
 
Lakers to Look Out for
Julia Perjus leads the Laker's goals and column with 11 goals and 11 assists for 22 points. Perjus has two multi-goal games this season, a .540 faceoff win percentage, and has the second-highest net rating on the team with +9. 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. Perjus had a three-point game against Stonehill, scoring one and assisting two others. She also had a five-point weekend against Lindenwood in December. She recorded a career-high four assists in game one and netted a powerplay goal in game two. She earned AHA Rookie of the Week and Month honors for this performance. 
 
Julia Schalin is another forward who has been on an impressive run of form with 8 goals and a team-high 15 assists for 23 points. 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 after that performance. The Espoo, Finland native also scored two goals in a 2-2 matchup against Syracuse in November. Schalin recorded a hat trick of assists in the team's 6-1 win over Stonehill. She then had a five-point weekend against Lindenwood at home. This featured a hat trick and an assist in game one and another assist in game two. This was her second career hat trick, and she was named AHA Forward of the Week for this performance. Most recently, Schalin recorded a hat trick of assists in the team's 5-1 win on the road at Lindenwood. Her star performances with the Lakers have played a massive role in her recent selection on the Finland Olympic Team for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. 
 
Defensively, Poitras and Payten Evans have been all over the ice. Poitras recorded four assists in the series against RMU, and her nine total assists are fifth on the team. The Whitby, Ontario native also has a team-high 46 blocks, which is 10th in the nation. Poitras also netted the game-winning goal in the Laker's recent 2-1 overtime win at Lindenwood. Evans had a great series against Lindenwood when the two sides played in Erie in December. The Calgary, Alberta native scored a powerplay goal and registered a hat trick of assists in the 10-1 win in game one. She also scored and assisted in game two. For these efforts, Evans was named the AHA Defenseman of the Month for December. Additionally, her 30 blocks are third on the team. 
 
Maja Alenius and Holly VanNetten are two freshman defenders who have contributed to the Laker's success as of late. VanNetten was named the AHA Defender of the Week in November after assisting the game-winning goal in overtime against Delaware and recording a multi-point game in the 4-0 win in game two. The Simcoe, Ontario native has 2 goals and 4 assists for six points this season. Alenius has two goals and is fourth on the team with eight assists. 
 
Magdalena Luggin started between the pipes against No. 5/6 Minnesota Duluth and recorded a then 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. A few weeks ago, she made 24 saves and recorded her second shutout of the season in the Laker's 1-0 win against RIT. After Thanksgiving, she registered a career-high 56 saves against No. 1 Wisconsin. 
 
Tara Bach has proven to be another strong netminder for the Lakers. Bach started in both games against Lindenwood last weekend. She only allowed two total goals, recorded 41 saves, and was named the AHA Goaltender of the Week for her efforts. Bach is now 4-1-0 on the season and has won in her last three starts. She has 1.08 goals allowed average and a .946 save percentage. Off campus, she has been competing with the German U18 National Team as well.   
 
Scouting No. 4 Penn State 

• The Nittany Lions started this season undefeated for their first 16 games. 
• They swept No. 9 St Lawrence, Vermont, Delaware, Mercyhurst, Lindenwood, Robert Morris, Syracuse, and RIT in that time. 
• Their first loss of the season came on the road in a series split at No. 7 Northeastern. Here, they lost 3-2 in the first game and won 4-1 in the second. 
• They closed 2025 with a win at home vs. #10 Cornell. 
• Most recently, the Nittany Lions were swept 5-1 and 4-1 at No. 2 Ohio State. Penn State is currently undefeated in AHA play with 12 wins and 36 points. Maddy Christian (13G, 8A, 21 PTS), Tessa Janecke (12G, 16A, 28 PTS), and Kendall Butze (1G, 14A, 15 PTS) lead the team in goals, assists, points, and blocks.