Friday, December 8
Chestnut Hill, Mass.
7:00 PM
Boston College
vs
Merrimack
Photo by: John Quackenbos
Semester Closes with Two-Game Merrimack Series
December 06, 2017 | Women's Hockey
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Eagles will play the Warriors twice before the winter break
CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – The second-ranked Boston College women's hockey closes its fall schedule this weekend with a home-and-home series against Merrimack.
The Eagles will host the opening game on Friday, Dec. 8, facing off at 7 p.m. at Kelley Rink. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN3, which is available via WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app. On Saturday, BC travels to the Warriors' Lawler Rink in North Andover, Mass., where they'll face off at 4 p.m.
Boston College (13-1-3, 7-0-3 HEA) comes into the game atop the Hockey East standings after claiming five points last week with wins against Northeastern and Boston University, plus a tie against the Terriers. BC holds a one-point lead in the league table over No. 10 Providence, which has a 7-1-2 record. The Friars' lone loss is to the Eagles: 7-4 at Kelley Rink on Nov. 3.
The Eagles also enter the weekend with the nation's longest undefeated streak, which stands at seven games (6-0-1). BC's last – and only – loss this season came on Nov. 10 at No. 8 St. Lawrence, a 2-1 defeat at Appleton Arena.
Merrimack (6-10-3, 1-6-3 HEA) had a bye in its schedule last week, one week removed from a home sweep of Princeton on Nov. 24 and 25. Those victories snapped a five-game winless run (0-4-1) that included a pair of losses to Providence and other defeats at Northeastern and at Union.
The Warriors opened the season on fire, defeating Boston University, 2-1, at Walter Brown Arena, before splitting a two-game seriesat then-No. 3 Minnesota in Minneapolis the following weekend. Merrimack then earned a loss and a tie against UNH and then-No. 4 St. Lawrence at Lawler Rink. They then split a home series with Penn State before falling in both games at home against Vermont.
Merrimack is tied for eighth in the Hockey East standings, matching UConn's four points. After their season-opening win against BU, the Warriors have not won a league game since.
Head coach Erin Hamlen's third-year program is led by Katelyn Rae, who has a team-high nine points (six goals, three assists). No Warriors have reached double-digits in scoring yet, but they have three players with at least four goals and seven players with five or more points. The Warriors have no seniors on their roster, with 12 juniors.
In goal, the Warriors have split time between a pair of returning goaltenders. Junior Samantha Ridgewell has a 1.77 goals against average with a .941 save percentage and two shutouts despite her 3-6-1 record. Sophomore Lea-Kristine Demers is 3-4-2 and has a 2.23 GAA and a .929 save percentage.
Overall, BC is 8-0-0 all-time against Merrimack, including a 5-0-0 mark at Kelley Rink and a 3-0-0 record at Lawler Rink. Last year, the teams met in the Hockey East Quarterfinals, where BC advanced in two games, winning 4-0 and 1-0. The Eagles allowed just two goals in five meetings against Merrimack in 2016-17.
Makenna Newkirk has eight career points against the Warriors, including four goals and four assists. Kenzie Kent has four points (two goals, two assists), including her first career shorthanded goal last year at Lawler Rink.
Katie Burt is 7-0-0 all-time against Merrimack, which includes an 0.42 GAA, a .978 save percentage and four shutouts. Gabri Switaj is 1-0-0 against the Warriors with a 0.00 GAA and a 1.000 save percentage after her 8-save shutout in 2016.
On Friday, Newkirk will look to extend her season-opening point streak to 17 games, which is now the fourth-longest point streak in program history. After the nation's top two scorers – Daryl Watts (44 pts.) and Caitrin Lonergan (41 pts.), she ranks third on the team with 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists). Toni Ann Miano (6-11-17), Willow Corson (4-11-15) and Serena Sommerfield (1-9-10) also have reached double digits in points.
In a unique scheduling twist, after college hockey's traditional winter break – which starts next week – the same two teams will also open the second-semester schedule and play their third-straight game against each other Tuesday, Jan. 2, in North Andover. Faceoff for that game at Lawler Rink is set for 4 p.m.
The Eagles will host the opening game on Friday, Dec. 8, facing off at 7 p.m. at Kelley Rink. The contest will be streamed live on ESPN3, which is available via WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app. On Saturday, BC travels to the Warriors' Lawler Rink in North Andover, Mass., where they'll face off at 4 p.m.
Boston College (13-1-3, 7-0-3 HEA) comes into the game atop the Hockey East standings after claiming five points last week with wins against Northeastern and Boston University, plus a tie against the Terriers. BC holds a one-point lead in the league table over No. 10 Providence, which has a 7-1-2 record. The Friars' lone loss is to the Eagles: 7-4 at Kelley Rink on Nov. 3.
The Eagles also enter the weekend with the nation's longest undefeated streak, which stands at seven games (6-0-1). BC's last – and only – loss this season came on Nov. 10 at No. 8 St. Lawrence, a 2-1 defeat at Appleton Arena.
Merrimack (6-10-3, 1-6-3 HEA) had a bye in its schedule last week, one week removed from a home sweep of Princeton on Nov. 24 and 25. Those victories snapped a five-game winless run (0-4-1) that included a pair of losses to Providence and other defeats at Northeastern and at Union.
The Warriors opened the season on fire, defeating Boston University, 2-1, at Walter Brown Arena, before splitting a two-game seriesat then-No. 3 Minnesota in Minneapolis the following weekend. Merrimack then earned a loss and a tie against UNH and then-No. 4 St. Lawrence at Lawler Rink. They then split a home series with Penn State before falling in both games at home against Vermont.
Merrimack is tied for eighth in the Hockey East standings, matching UConn's four points. After their season-opening win against BU, the Warriors have not won a league game since.
Head coach Erin Hamlen's third-year program is led by Katelyn Rae, who has a team-high nine points (six goals, three assists). No Warriors have reached double-digits in scoring yet, but they have three players with at least four goals and seven players with five or more points. The Warriors have no seniors on their roster, with 12 juniors.
In goal, the Warriors have split time between a pair of returning goaltenders. Junior Samantha Ridgewell has a 1.77 goals against average with a .941 save percentage and two shutouts despite her 3-6-1 record. Sophomore Lea-Kristine Demers is 3-4-2 and has a 2.23 GAA and a .929 save percentage.
Overall, BC is 8-0-0 all-time against Merrimack, including a 5-0-0 mark at Kelley Rink and a 3-0-0 record at Lawler Rink. Last year, the teams met in the Hockey East Quarterfinals, where BC advanced in two games, winning 4-0 and 1-0. The Eagles allowed just two goals in five meetings against Merrimack in 2016-17.
Makenna Newkirk has eight career points against the Warriors, including four goals and four assists. Kenzie Kent has four points (two goals, two assists), including her first career shorthanded goal last year at Lawler Rink.
Katie Burt is 7-0-0 all-time against Merrimack, which includes an 0.42 GAA, a .978 save percentage and four shutouts. Gabri Switaj is 1-0-0 against the Warriors with a 0.00 GAA and a 1.000 save percentage after her 8-save shutout in 2016.
On Friday, Newkirk will look to extend her season-opening point streak to 17 games, which is now the fourth-longest point streak in program history. After the nation's top two scorers – Daryl Watts (44 pts.) and Caitrin Lonergan (41 pts.), she ranks third on the team with 27 points (9 goals, 18 assists). Toni Ann Miano (6-11-17), Willow Corson (4-11-15) and Serena Sommerfield (1-9-10) also have reached double digits in points.
In a unique scheduling twist, after college hockey's traditional winter break – which starts next week – the same two teams will also open the second-semester schedule and play their third-straight game against each other Tuesday, Jan. 2, in North Andover. Faceoff for that game at Lawler Rink is set for 4 p.m.
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