Come back each week for a preview of interesting NCAA games coming up and some thoughts on what happened in the previous week's action. Check out Thursday's How to Watch for links to all the weekend's games.
(8) Colgate at (5) Princeton
Friday at 6:00 PM Eastern
Princeton is on a historic 6-0 start to the season, but Colgate is 8-2 in the last ten meetings between the two teams. They split last season's series.
The Tigers are on a roll and have been getting contributions from the usual suspects like Mackenzie Alexander and Riley Sorokan, but also from Chloe Brinson and Caroline Averill. It's a youth movement for Princeton, which means not only are they very good now, but they're only going to get better and stay that way for a a few more years to come. They seem to have knack for big time goals and goalie Uma Corniea continues to be solid and steady in the net, giving them the freedom to push on offense.
Colgate will be without Alexia Aubin and Linda Vocetková as they are competing in the Women's World Championships in Denmark starting today. Aubin leads the Raiders with four goals and four assists for eight points. The team's current 2.7 goals per game is the lowest average of any Colgate team over the last five seasons, so they're going to miss her production and need some other players to step up. The Tigers are averaging more than three goals per game, so something had to give there.
The Raiders' only two losses were to #1 Ohio State. On paper this looked like a team that would need some time to rebuild after two big graduating classes, but no one seemed to tell Colgate. The younger players have integrated and stepped up quickly. But Aubin and Vocetková have been two of the big spark plugs. Their absence leaves opportunity for a few other players to make a big impact.
Assumption at LIU
Friday at 3:00 PM and Saturday at 2:00 PM Eastern
Assumption is tied atop NEWHA with 18 points, having started conference play 6-0. LIU is just four points behind after starting 4-1-1.
The Greyhounds are in just their fourth season of play and have never won a regular season or conference tournament title. But they've steadily improved, winning nine more games last season than the season before to finish about .500 for the first time. Now they seem primed to take another big step and this weekend should prove to be their first big NEWHA test. They're coming off a pair of non-conference losses to Mercyhurst, but I love that Assumption added some AHA teams to their schedule. Their second game against the Lakers showed how much they took in from the first game and how well they can adjust. That will serve them well as the season goes on.
Last season, Assumption took three of four games against the Sharks, winning a pair of overtime games at home in mid-March before splitting a pair of games at Long Island. Each of those games was also decided by a single goal. These teams are well matched and I expect similarly tight games this time around.
LIU will likely need to rely on good goaltending and a strong defense - the Greyhounds are averaging nearly 50 shots per game, though they haven't turned that into a similarly high goals average. But they like to put on pressure and will work to hem the Sharks in. LIU will want to try and break up that possession and keep Assumption from getting too comfortable in the zone.
(14) Cornell vs. (6) Quinnipiac
Friday at 6:00 PM Eastern
While there's a smaller slate this week because this is an international slot on the calendar, there are actually a ton of great games happening in the ECAC and the likelihood is that they will have big implications by the time we reach the end of the regular season. In a conference that uses half points where there was still a tie at the top last season and Quinnipiac ended just a point back, each of these games matter not just for the points taken, but for the position garnered head to head.
Cornell split last weekend, losing in OT to Union before rebounding to beat RPI. Quinnipiac lost to Yale before rebounding with a big win over Dartmouth. The Big Red continue to get their scoring on special teams and from their blueliners. They're clearly capable of providing both side of the play to Cornell, but I would like to see more variety and depth in their attack.
Quinnipiac's success has come with the emergence of Aynsley D'ottavio alonside strong starts form Alex Law, Kahlen Lamarche, Avery Baros and Rosalie Breton. The Bobcats have a much more well-rounded approach and aren't relying on a couple of players. The offense is more complex.
(Photo: Assumption Women's Hockey/IG)
