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Women's Hockey September 25, 2013

Clarkson Women's Hockey Opens Promising Season, Hosting RIT on Saturday

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Excitement is high around the Clarkson University Women's Hockey program as the Golden Knights get ready to open their 11th season of NCAA Division I play. Guided by sixth-year co-head coaches Matt and Shannon Desrosiers and assistant Matt Kelly, the Knights have high hopes for the 2013-14 campaign after skating to their best record ever last year.

Clarkson has earned high praise in preseason polls, earning the conference coaches' vote as the number one team in ECAC Hockey. The Green and Gold are rated third nationally in both the USCHO.com and the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine rankings.

All but three veterans return from last season's team, which posted a school-record 28-10 overall record that culminated in the Knights' second NCAA playoff appearance in the past four years. Clarkson finished in a tie for second in the ECAC Hockey standings with an 18-4 league mark, just one point shy of the top spot.

The Knights, led by senior captain Carly Mercer and senior assistant captains Vanessa Gagnon and Jamie Lee Rattray, will strive to lift their play to a higher level this winter. Clarkson has a solid nucleus of 16 veterans, including seven standouts who participated in Canada's National Women's Development Team selection camp this past August, to lead the way. A promising group of four freshmen along with a talented red-shirt sophomore will add to Clarkson's lofty potential.

The Knights will face a challenging schedule in 2013-14, including eight games against teams that skated in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. Clarkson opens the 34-game slate this Saturday at 4:00 p.m. against College Hockey America's (CHA) Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) for the first of 20 regular-season games at Cheel Arena.

Two-time ECAC Hockey Goaltender of the Year Erica Howe is back for one more season in the Clarkson crease and should be one of the best netminders in the country during her senior campaign. Jenna Boss and freshman McKenzie Johnson will also push for playing time in goal. Emily Horn will redshirt this year.

With five skilled veterans and a promising freshman patrolling the blueline, Clarkson has the potential to boast one of the top defenses in the country. Vanessa Plante along with Jennifer Shields and Daniella Matteucci give Clarkson three knowledgeable defensive-defensemen. One of the preeminent all-around defensemen in the country, Erin Ambrose is coming off an exceptional rookie campaign and promises to be even better in 2013-14. Renata Fast played a lot of big minutes in her freshman campaign and steadily emerged as one of the Knights' most reliable blueliners. Freshman Corie Jacobson will push the veterans for a regular role on the back end.

The Knights will boast plenty of firepower up front with nine top scorers, including five established seniors providing the leadership. Clarkson's top scorers, Rattray and Carly Mercer have proven to be two of the best forwards in the Green and Gold's history, amassing 115 (48-67) and 105 (39-66) points, respectively, through their first three seasons. Classmates Britney Styner, Gagnon and Shelby Nisbet are solid two-way, senior players who come to play a full 60 minutes every game. Christine Lambert, Shannon MacAulay and Olivia Howe saw significant time last year and should enjoy breakout campaigns this winter. Sophomore Cayley Mercer, who missed all of last season recovering from an injury, and freshmen Genevieve Bannon and Jessica Gillham will add to the skill and depth up front.

RIT, which hosts an exhibition contest against the Toronto Jr. Aeros on Friday, officially begins its second season at the NCAA Division I level with Saturday's game. A member of College Hockey America, the Tigers skated to a 16-16-5 overall record in their inaugural Division I campaign in 2012-13.
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