Skip To Main Content

Scoreboard

Clarkson University Athletics

Clarkson Women's Hockey Draws Cornell in ECAC Quarterfinals

By: February 24, 2016
CornellWIN15
The Knights celebrate one of the goals they scored in the 4-0 win over Cornell at Cheel on December 5 that started Clarkson's current 15-game unbeaten streak - photo by Jim Meagher

Women's Hockey | 2/24/2016 3:23:00 PM

PDF of weekly release

A 15-game unbeaten streak (12-0-3) in the second half of the conference season lifted the fifth-ranked Clarkson University Women's Hockey team to a second-place finish in the standings. The Golden Knights will now host seventh-place Cornell in the best-of-three ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals series this weekend at Cheel Arena. Games times are 3:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday if necessary.
 

Can't make it to the game? Follow the Golden Knights over the Internet at
Clarkson Hockey Broadcast Central or Clarkson Athletics on your mobile device
with live video, internet radio broadcast and live in-game scoring.

Led by eighth-year head coach Matt Desrosiers and second-year assistant coaches Britni Smith and Meghan Duggan, the Golden Knights finished the regular season with a 26-3-5 overall record and a 14-3-5 conference mark. The Golden Knights' .838 winning percentage is the fifth-best in the nation while their current 16-game unbeaten streak is the third-longest active streak. It is also the fifth season in a row that Clarkson has hosted its ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals.

• ECAC Hockey standings
• USCHO.com Poll
• USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll
• NCAA Pairwise Rankings

Freshman Loren Gabel had a big game in the 7-0 win against Brown on Friday, scoring three goals for her first collegiate hat trick, helping her to win ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Week for the first time this season. It was the first hat trick by a Clarkson freshman since Juana Baribeau '12 had four goals of her own against Vermont in 2008. Gabel is now fourth on the team with 26 points on 18 goals and eight assists. She has been especially productive during conference games, racking up 16 points in 22 games. She is tied for the nation's lead for most goals by a freshman, is eighth in the country in points among rookies and is tied for 19th in goals per game among all skaters.  

On Saturday, Clarkson's dramatic 3-2 win over Yale ended the Bulldogs' season. It was another freshman who came through for the Green and Gold, with Rhyen McGill scoring the late goal that delivered a Clarkson win. McGill sits just behind Gabel with 23 points of her own. McGill also has 16 conference points, putting her, along with Gabel, in a tie for third among ECAC Hockey Rookies. She is also tied for 13th in the country for points among freshmen.  

On Senior Weekend, Clarkson's four player senior class also played a big part in keeping the unbeaten streak going. On Friday, senior assistant captain Olivia Howe had two goals, including the game-winner, and senior assistant captain Renata Fast also added a goal. On Saturday, senior assistant captain Erin Ambrose had two assists, one of which came on a goal by senior captain Shannon MacAulay. Ambrose is closing in on 100 career assists, as she now has 98 career helpers. Howe and MacAulay are also close to a milestone, with Howe needing just two points to be the 11th member of the Clarkson 100-point club while MacAulay is five points away from the same mark.

During the 16 game unbeaten streak, Clarkson has been extremely strong on defense, allowing just 18 goals in the 16 games. One reason for that has been sophomore goaltender Shea Tiley. Tiley is fifth in the country with a 1.37 goals against average, a mark that would be the third best mark in Clarkson history among goaltenders that played in at least 20 games. Tiley owns a 23-3-5 overall record and is one win away from tying her previous career high for wins in a season. She is just two wins shy of tying Lauren Dahm '11 from second all-time among Clarkson goalies.

On the offensive side, junior Genevieve Bannon and junior assistant captain Cayley Mercer have led the way during the unbeaten streak. Bannon has a career-high 35 points on ten goals and a team-high 25 assists. Bannon also has 17 points in her last 17 games and has an active three-game point streak. Mercer leads the team with 44 points on 22 goals and 22 assists, with her next point setting a career high. Mercer is eighth in the country in goals per game and tied for 11th in points per game.

Cornell finished its regular season with a 13-12-4 overall record and a 9-9-4 conference mark. The Big Red will be trying to reach the ECAC Hockey Championship for the seventh straight year. In that span, Cornell has knocked Clarkson out of the tournament three times, including the last two seasons. Last season saw the Big Red knock out Clarkson with a 3-1 win in the semi-finals while in 2014, Cornell earned a 1-0 win in the championship, with both games taking place in Cheel Arena. Overall, Clarkson has a 13-12-4 record against Cornell, including a win and tie this season. Clarkson won the first match-up between the two teams by the score of 4-0, a result which started Clarkson's current unbeaten run. Mercer scored a pair of goals in the win with Gabel scoring the game-winner. Later in the season, the two teams skated to a 2-2 tie in Ithaca in a game that was broadcast on espn3. 
 
Print Friendly Version

Players Mentioned

Erin Ambrose

#23 Erin Ambrose

D
5' 5"
Senior
Genevieve Bannon

#9 Genevieve Bannon

F
5' 8"
Junior
Renata Fast

#12 Renata Fast

D
5' 7"
Senior
Olivia Howe

#16 Olivia Howe

F
5' 10"
Senior
Shannon MacAulay

#4 Shannon MacAulay

F
5' 11"
Senior
Cayley Mercer

#18 Cayley Mercer

F
5' 8"
Junior
Shea Tiley

#35 Shea Tiley

G
5' 10"
Sophomore
Loren Gabel

#19 Loren Gabel

F
5' 4"
Freshman
Rhyen McGill

#25 Rhyen McGill

F
5' 8"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Erin Ambrose

#23 Erin Ambrose

5' 5"
Senior
D
Genevieve Bannon

#9 Genevieve Bannon

5' 8"
Junior
F
Renata Fast

#12 Renata Fast

5' 7"
Senior
D
Olivia Howe

#16 Olivia Howe

5' 10"
Senior
F
Shannon MacAulay

#4 Shannon MacAulay

5' 11"
Senior
F
Cayley Mercer

#18 Cayley Mercer

5' 8"
Junior
F
Shea Tiley

#35 Shea Tiley

5' 10"
Sophomore
G
Loren Gabel

#19 Loren Gabel

5' 4"
Freshman
F
Rhyen McGill

#25 Rhyen McGill

5' 8"
Freshman
F