Yale
The last time Cornell and Yale met, the Big Red picked up a tight 3-2 victory over the Elis. This game had the same result, but a very different box score. This game was all about the Lady Rouge. The first period saw three goals, all on even strength, all by Cornell defensemen. The first was scored almost six minutes into the period by Lauriane Rougeau, assisted by Monika Leck and Jill Saulnier. The second was scored just over halfway into the period, by Alyssa Gagliardi, from Cassandra Poudrier and Taylor Woods. The third was scored with just over two minutes left in the period, by Cassandra Poudrier from Emily Fulton and Jill Saulnier. The second period saw two more Cornell goals, both from the stick of Brianne Jenner. The first set of assists went to Jill Saulnier and Lauriane Rougeau, while the second set went to Jill Saulnier and Monika Leck. Lauren Slebodnick stopped all eleven shots she faced in the first two periods and Stefanie Moak stopped the two she faced in the third. Even more impressive was the Big Red's discipline. The Lady Rouge only took two penalties on the entire game, one in the first and one in the third, and kept Yale from scoring on both opportunities.
Brown
The game against Brown was a bit more back and forth and contained a bit more penalties than the night before, but the Lady Rouge did what needed to be done. The first period was a tight one, with neither team scoring in spite of fifteen cumulative shots taken. Something had to give in the second period and Brown was the first to score just 2:23 into the period. The Big Red knew that they could not let the scoring for the period end there. Brianne Jenner battled back and scored a goal less than six minutes later, assisted by Emily Fulton and Jill Saulnier. Hayleigh Cudmore kept the scoring going, with help from Brianne Jenner and Jill Saulnier. Jill Saulnier would score to end the period, this time on a power play, assisted by Brianne Jenner and Laura Fortino. Brown was down, but they were still fighting, scoring a power play goal in the third, but Erin Barley-Maloney would score an insurance goal from Jenner and Fortino with less than four minutes remaining in the game to keep Cornell on top, ending the game with the Big Red winning 4-2.
Mercyhurst
Two wins in a weekend is great, especially on the road, but Cornell wasn't done yet. Cornell took on the current leader of the CHA, Mercyhurst, for a Tuesday bout at Lynah. While the Big Red's penalty minutes had been down in its conference games, the same could not be said about this game. Cornell took almost double the penalties in the Mercyhurst game than it had in the Brown and Yale games combined. Additionally, there was a delay in the game when a Mercyhurst player had to leave on a stretcher. We hope she is recovering well and no serious injuries were incurred. But I digress, let us begin looking at the first period. Cornell was ready to go right off the bat as Hayleigh Cudmore showed, scoring the eventual game-winning goal just two and a half minutes into the frame, with help from Jill Saulnier and Laura Fortino. Brianne Jenner had an unassisted breakaway goal at just over nine minutes of the period, putting the Big Red up 2-0. Jenner would score a second goal before the period was out, with help from Laura Fortino. The second period saw nothing but penalties, with the Big Red and Mercyhurst each taking two. The third was even more penalty laden, with six Big Red penalties to Mercyhurst's two. In between the penalties, Jess Campbell found the time to score, as she took a shot from Taylor Woods and Alyssa Gagliardi. The night ended with a 4-0 victory for the Big Red as they defeated number seven Mercyhurst in regulation for a three-win week.
This Coming Weekend: Union and RPI
This weekend, the Big Red host the Capital Region teams as Union and RPI come to Lynah for the Do It For Daron Series. If you're not sure what that is, or you're going to be in Ithaca and want more info, check out the latest article from the sports page here. And don't forget to wear purple!
Union
Union is going to be a tricky team for the Big Red to face. Though they are winless in the ECAC, they are having one of their best seasons, with seven wins including two sweeps of out-of-conference opponents in the CHA (Penn State) and Hockey East (Maine). Former Harvard player Julie Chu seems to be bringing great things to Union. Starting goaltender Shenae Lundberg is solid in net, as is needed, given Union's penalty killing numbers. Union averages 23 shots per game and 1.27 goals, while allowing their opponents just over three goals per game. However, in all of their wins, Union has scored three or more goals. In fact, Union has won every game in which it has scored three or more goals. Cornell will need to be vigilant during this game and not take Union for granted.
RPI
RPI, on the other hand, is currently in a good position to make ECAC playoffs, sitting at seventh in the league. Neither netminder is as solid as Slebodnick, in fact, not even approaching Union's Lundberg. But they are coming off a sweep of Union and will be hungry for points the first time they meet the Big Red this season. Rensselaer is middling in terms of power play and penalty kill, but they pulled conference wins over Brown, Yale, Dartmouth, Princeton, and Union, as well as out of conference opponents Robert Morris, UConn, and Vermont. They are not to be trifled with and the key to this weekend will be not taking any team for granted.
Let's Go Red! And don't forget your purple!
41 - Jenner
33 - Saulnier
17 - Rougeau
16 - Campbell
15 - Cudmore
14 - Woods
13 - Fortino, Fulton, Gagliardi
12 - Poudrier
11 - Barley-Maloney
7 - Leck, Murray
6 - Brown, Campbell
5 - Zorn
4 - Pittens
3 - Richardson
2 - Slebodnick