No. 6/7 women’s hockey played two games and scored four goals last weekend, but didn’t get a win or a loss. After regaining three of their top players and their head coach, the Red want more than a tie this weekend, as they face two tough ECAC opponents in Quinnipiac and Princeton.
Game details:
Friday’s against Quinnipiac is at 6 p.m. at Frank Perrotti, Jr. Arena in Hamden, Connecticut. Saturday’s game versus Princeton is at 3 p.m. at Hobey Baker Rink. Both games can be streamed live on ESPN+.
Series history:
Cornell holds a positive record against historically against Quinnipiac, at 14-9-7. Recent history has tipped in the Bobcats’ favor, as the Red is 3-5-1 in its last 10 against Quinnipiac. The teams’ most recent matchup came last January, where the Red suffered a 4-0 loss.
The Red has a long history playing Princeton, but sports a losing overall record at 43-46-5. Last season, the matchup favored the Red, as Cornell won the winner-take-all game three of the ECAC quarterfinal series.
Cornell last time out:
Last weekend, the Red played to two ties at Mercyhurst. Game one was a high-scoring affair, ending in a 4-4 draw. Sophomore Maddie Mills led the Red in scoring with two goals and also had one assist. The second game had no scoring, ending in a 0-0 draw. Senior goaltender Marlène Boissonnault stopped 30 shots in the shutout.
Quinnipiac last time out:
The Bobcats started last weekend off well with a 1-0 win over Harvard. They then suffered their first conference loss with a 3-2 overtime loss to Dartmouth.
Princeton last time out:
Princeton spent last weekend in Syracuse for a two-game, out-of-conference series against the Orange. After tying the first game, 1-1, the Tigers won game two, 5-3
Scouting the Bobcats:
This weekend will be a challenge for the Red, as it plays two opponents who join it atop the ECAC standings. Cornell starts the weekend off with Quinnipiac, (3-5-2, 3-1 ECAC) who is tied with the Red for second in the conference with 6 points. After struggling in their out-of-conference schedule, the Bobcats have come on strong in the conference by winning three of their first four ECAC games.
If defense truly wins championships, then Quinnipiac is faring well so far. Having allowed three goals in four conference games, the Bobcats rank third in ECAC play in goals against average.
Scouting the Tigers:
Princeton (4-2-2, 3-0-1 ECAC) currently sits at the top of the ECAC standings, holding a slight one-point edge over the Red, Quinnipiac and Colgate.
The Red will have to adapt overnight to a different style of play. The Tigers have the highest-scoring offense in ECAC play at 4.25 goals per game. They are led by junior Carly Bullock, who leads ECAC play in goals (7), points (10) and points per game (2.5)
Cornell wins this weekend if:
…it can smoothly reincorporate returning personnel. The Red will welcome back juniors Kristin O’Neill, Micah Zandee-Hart and Jaime Bourbonnais and head coach Doug Derraugh ’91 this weekend, as they have been playing in the 4 Nations’ Cup in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.
What they’re saying in Ithaca:
Derraugh on the opportunity to coach Team Canada: “It’s always an honor to be asked by your country to represent them in any tournament. … It was a great experience for both the players and myself.”
Derraugh on this upcoming weekend: “It’s always tough when a team gets split up and then they come back together. You don’t have a whole lot of time to get everything clicking again. We’re hoping that we can weather some storms early in the games this weekend and get ourselves back on track like we were before we were split up.”
What they’re saying in Hamden:
Quinnipiac head coach Cassandra Turner on her team’s overtime loss to Dartmouth: “We made too many mistakes to end up on the right side of the game today. I think there is a lot of things that we need to work on and get ready to go over these next two weeks before we hit five games in nine days.”
What they’re saying in Princeton:
Princeton co-captain Karlie Lund on the structure of her team this year: “We have a good mix of offensive and defensive skaters along with three solid goalies. …We were able to run three lines consistently whereas some teams only run two lines.”
Sound smart:
Cornell has ended Princeton’s season twice in the past five seasons — 2014 and 2018. Both eliminations have come in the ECAC tournament quarterfinals.
Fun fact:
The Quinnipiac Polling Institute is home to one of the nation’s top polling sources.