ERIE, Pa. – The Mercyhurst women's ACHA team took part in a home & home series against the Niagara Purple Eagles over the weekend. With the first game at the Mercyhurst Ice Center, the Lakers were looking to rebound and earn a conference win after dropping their last matchup against Pittsburgh the previous weekend.
 
In Game 1, Katie Spindel got the start in net for the Lakers, her 6^th of the season.
 
In the 1^st period, graduate captain Ellie Schau scored her 18^th goal of the season after stealing the puck from a Niagara defender at 7:09. This was also Schau's 100^th career ACHA goal, marking a major milestone for her career at Mercyhurst. A Niagara penalty soon followed, but the Laker power play unit was not able to capitalize on the situation. At 14:56, Marina Evert scored her 17^th goal of the season thanks to a feed from Haylie Petyk, and Schau recorded her 2^nd goal of the night at 15:28, assisted by Alexa Kelley.
 
In the 2^nd period, Niagara was able to score on the power play in the final 5 minutes of the period, bringing the score to 3-1 in favor of the Lakers. At 16:09, Kelley scored her 4^th goal of the season, with her assist coming from Genevieve Picard.
 
In the 3^rd, the teams traded penalties and this opened the door for Kylie Cushman to deal the game with a power play goal at 13:20, her 6^th of the year. She was assisted by Marina Evert and Erin Prendergast. The Lakers would ultimately win Game 1 by a score of 4-1.
 
Spindel stopped 30 of 31 shots faced, earning her 2^nd win of the season.
 
In Game 2, Victoria Campana got the start for the Lakers as they looked to complete the series sweep in Niagara.
 
In the 1^st period, Niagara scored an early goal at 2:46. Despite a Laker power play at 12:15, the Hurst was unable to score on special teams, and the score remained at 1-0 heading into the 2^nd period.
 
In period 2, Niagara scored another early goal at 3:03 and followed up with a power play goal with just under 3 minutes left in the frame. Schau responded with her 20^th goal of the year 5 seconds later, with the assist coming from Petyk. The Lakers would head into the 3^rd period with a power play.
 
In the 3^rd period, the Lakers were unable to score on special teams, but Evert found the back of the net 8 and a half minutes into the period for her 18^th goal of the season. She was assisted by Petyk, her 2^nd of the night and 16^th of the year. Niagara sealed the game with an empty net goal with just over 2 minutes remaining. The Lakers would ultimately fall to the Purple Eagles 4-2.
 
Campana stopped 33 of her 36 shots faced.
 
The Lakers will next host West Virginia for a pair of home games starting Friday, February 20. Puck drop set for 9:30 PM.