ITHACA, N.Y.—The Big Red women's ice hockey team will play host to Harvard and No. 8 Dartmouth this weekend in its final home games of the regular season. Cornell is currently tied for seventh place in ECAC Hockey and will look to move up to secure a playoff spot. The Big Red will take on the Crimson on Friday night, before facing off against the Big Green on Saturday afternoon. The games this weekend will be part of ECAC Hockey and the American Cancer Society's Pink at the Rink, and the Big Red encourages fans to wear pink to show their support. Cornell will also honor its three seniors after Saturday's contest.
Game Information
Game #26: Cornell vs. Harvard
Face off: Friday, Feb. 13 at 7 p.m.
Site: Lynah Rink (4,267); Ithaca, N.Y.
2008-09 Records: Cornell 11-10-4, 7-7-4 ECAC Hockey; Harvard 13-8-3, 12-4-2 ECAC Hockey
Last Meeting: Nov. 22, 2008; Harvard won 5-1
Series Record: Harvard leads, 45-17-2
Game #27: Cornell vs. No. 8 Dartmouth
Face off: Saturday, Feb. 14 at 4 p.m.
Site: Lynah Rink (4,267); Ithaca, N.Y.
2008-09 Records: Cornell 11-10-4, 7-7-4 ECAC Hockey; No. 8 Dartmouth 16-6-2, 13-3-2 ECAC Hockey
Last Meeting: Nov. 21, 2008; Dartmouth won 5-4
Series Record: Dartmouth leads, 39-20-5
At the Helm
Doug Derraugh `91 returns for his fourth season as the head coach of the Cornell women's ice hockey team. The Big Red has a 36-68-8 record under Derraugh's tutelage. He is once again joined by assistant coaches
Danielle Bilodeau '01 and Kim Insalaco (Brown '05).
Scouting the Crimson
Harvard comes into the weekend in third place in ECAC Hockey with a 12-4-2 league record, and is 13-8-3 overall. In its last outing, the Crimson lost 1-0 on Tuesday, Feb. 10 to Boston College, which snapped a seven-game win streak for Harvard. The Crimson is led by seniors Sarah Vaillancourt (12-20—36) and Jenny Brine (11-11—22). Junior Christina Kessler has been a mainstay in net for Harvard with a .924 save percentage and 1.69 goals against average. The Big Red and the Crimson last met on Nov. 22 with Harvard winning a 5-1 contest. Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston scored her team's lone goal with
Liz Zorn and
Catherine White picking up the assists. Junior
Jenny Niesluchowski was in net for the Big Red making 34 saves.
Looking at the Big Green
Before heading to East Hill, Dartmouth will take on Colgate on Friday night. The Big Green is led by sophomore Amanda Trunzo with 29 points on 15 goals and 14 assists, while Maggie Kennedy has 28 points (8-20—28) and Jenna Cunningham has added 27 (8-19—27). In net for Dartmouth, Carli Clemis paces the team with a 13-6-1 record, a .919 save percentage, and a 2.20 GAA. The Big Green is in second place in the league standings and is ranked eighth nationally. Earlier this season, Dartmouth edged out the Big Red 5-4 on Nov. 21. The Big Red led 4-2 heading into the third period, but Dartmouth came back with three unanswered goals to win the game.
Rebecca Johnston had a goal and two assists in the contest, while freshman
Chelsea Karpenko notched two goals. Sophomore
Kayla Strong made 25 saves in net for the Big Red.
Saying Goodbye
The Big Red will honor its three seniors,
Emma Chipman,
Brianne Gilbert and
Steph Ulrich, after Saturday's game against Dartmouth. Heading into the weekend, Chipman has played 19 games this season with one goal and three assists. For her career she has seen action in 102 games with 28 points on 15 goals and 13 assists. Gilbert has suited up for the Big Red in 21 games in her last season with a goal and three assists. In her four years, she has nine points (3-6—9) in 86 contests. Ulrich has returned to the Big Red lineup after missing a few games due to a midseason injury. She has played in 11 games, to total 92 for career, and she has 10 points (2-8—10).
League Honors
Freshman
Catherine White earned her third ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week honor on Monday.
White recorded five points for the weekend on two goals and three assists. She had a hand in all but one of the Big Red's six goals during the weekend, helping Cornell to pick up vital ECAC Hockey points with two ties. On Friday, White notched a goal and added two assists in Cornell's 4-4 deadlock with Quinnipiac, and followed on Saturday with a goal and an assist in a 2-2 stalemate at Princeton. Through the weekend, White has recorded 34 points with 15 goals and a team-high 19 assists. The center has notched at least one point in 21 of the 25 games she has played this season, and she has 10 multi-point games.
Last Time Out
Cornell picked up two ties last weekend in ECAC Hockey action. The Big Red skated to a 4-4 deadlock on Friday before tying Princeton 2-2 on Saturday afternoon. Against the Bobcats sophomore
Rebecca Johnston notched two goals and added an assist, while freshman
Catherine White had a goal and two assists. Johnston added two more assists on Saturday night, while White notched a goal and an assist. Freshman
Chelsea Karpenko also added a goal and three assists for the weekend. Freshman goaltender
Amanda Mazzotta earned both ties making 39 total saves.
Pink at the Rink
The Big Red encourages fans to wear pink to its games this weekend as ECAC Hockey and the American Cancer Society are once again lacing up their skates together to bring “Pink at the Rink” to the league to help in their fight against cancer. Throughout February, fans can visit www.ecachockeycoachesvscancer.com to place bids on special men's game-worn black and pink jersies and women's game-used sticks with pink wraps. There will also be signed coaches' ties and scarves. Funds raised will support the American Cancer Society's mission of research, education, advocacy, and programs in the community, as well as hockey coaches care programs. Please join the Big Red in the fight against cancer.
What a Pair
With a team-high 37 points, sophomore
Rebecca Johnston has notched the most points in a season for Cornell since the 1991-92 campaign when Kim Ratushny totaled 38 on 21 goals and 17 assists her senior year. Cyndy Schlaepfer holds the school record for points in a season with 89 during the 1976-77 season. Freshman
Catherine White is second on the team with 34 points. She has recorded the most points by a rookie since Dana Antal had 36 with 17 goals and 19 assists during the 1995-96 season.
Everyone's Chipping In
In the Big Red's 3-0 shutout over Union on Jan. 13, every Cornell player recorded at least one shot on goal with senior
Brianne Gilbert leading the team with eight. Cornell totaled 50 shots for the first time since the 2005-06 season when the Big Red tallied 58 against the Dutchwomen on Feb. 5, 2006.
Bringing Home the Silver
Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston joined up with the Under-22 Canadian National Team in Ravensburg, Germany, for the MLP Cup, from Jan. 2-6. Johnston and Team Canada brought home the silver medal after Sweden edged out the Canadians 2-1 in the gold medal game. Johnston totaled seven points in four games with three goals and four assists. The Big Red forward scored a natural hat trick and added an assist in leading Canada past Russia, 11-0, in the preliminary round.
Racking Them Up
Rebecca Johnston leads the league in overall points with 37 (19 goals, 18 assists) and is second in the league in points per game with 1.85. Johnston also ranks sixth in the country in points per game, and is sixth in goals per game with 0.95. Freshman
Catherine White also ranks fourth in the league in scoring with 15 goals and 19 assists for 34 points.
Taking Advantage
The Big Red ranks third in ECAC Hockey on the power-play with a 20.3 conversion percentage. Colgate leads the league with a 24.3 percentage. The Big Red also ranks 10th on the country with the man advantage. Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston is third in the league in power-play goals with seven.
Four Nations Cup
Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston rejoined the Canadian National Team to play in the Four Nations Cup held in Lake Placid, N.Y., from Nov. 4-9. Team Canada took silver in Johnston's second Four Nations Cup; she helped Team Canada win its fourth-straight gold medal last season in Leksand, Sweden.
Netting a Dozen
The Big Red's 12 goals against Vermont ranks as the most Cornell has scored in a weekend series since the 2004-05 campaign, when Cornell notched 13 against Union on Nov. 12-13, 2004, to defeat the Dutchwomen 8-2 and 5-3.
Double Duty
After a two-year hiatus, junior
Melanie Jue joined the 2008 Big Red field hockey team and was the starting goaltender in all but one game this season. With an 11-4 record and three shutouts, Jue was named first-team All-Ivy. She finished the season ranked 24th nationally with a .742 save percentage and 29th in Division I with a 1.66 goals-against average. Jue also posted the third-highest number of saves in the nation in a single game with her 19-save performance vs. Albany on Sept. 6, which earned her Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors.
Summer Competition
Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston and freshman
Chelsea Karpenko teamed up this summer to help the Canadian Under-22 team defeat the United States in a best-of-three series. Johnston notched a goal and three assists in the three contests.
Sitting Pretty
The Big Red was picked to finish fifth in ECAC Hockey in the preseason coaches' poll. Harvard led the poll with 10 first-place votes, followed by St. Lawrence, Dartmouth, Clarkson and Cornell to round out the top five spots. Sophomore
Rebecca Johnston was also named to the 2008 ECAC Women's Hockey Preseason All-League team.
Fighting for the Cause
The team laced up its sneakers on Oct. 5 to raise over $1,600 for the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. The American Cancer Society's premier event, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, raises awareness and funds to fight breast cancer. In 2007, nearly 500,000 walkers around the country collected more than $50 million to help fight breast cancer.
Smarty Pants
Six players received ECAC Hockey All-Academic honors last season. The group included
Kelly McGinty,
Kayla Strong,
Steph Ulrich,
Sam Wauer and graduated seniors
Caeleigh Beerworth and
Brittany Forgues.
First Time Ever
Rebecca Johnston was Cornell's first player to be named first-team ECAC Hockey or receive rookie of the year honors. Johnston was also named first-team All-Ivy and Ivy League Rookie of the Year.
Fresh Faces
The Big Red added eight freshmen and a junior transfer to its roster this season, with four defensemen, four forwards and a goaltender. The group hails from three different states and three provinces. The newcomers have combined for 98 points so far this season, with
Catherine White leading the way with 34. White ranks fifth nationally and leads the league in scoring among rookies with 1.36 points per game.
Up Next for the Big Red
Cornell will close out its regular season next weekend when it travels to Rensselaer and Union. The Big Red will take on RPI at 7 p.m. on Feb. 20, and head to Union on Saturday, Feb. 21, for a 4 p.m. contest.