'Cuse Heads To Mercyhurst For CHA Series

Syracuse vs. Mercyhurst
Game Details	Friday, Jan. 29 @ 3:00 p.m. \| Erie, Pa. \| Mercyhurst Ice Center
Game Coverage	Live Coverage: Stats \| Video Twitter: @cuseice Instagram: @cuseice Facebook: /cusewice
Syracuse Links	News \| Roste r \| Schedule \| Notes
Mercyhurst Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

Syracuse vs. Mercyhurst
Game Details	Saturday, Jan. 30 @ 2:00 p.m. \| Erie, Pa. \| Mercyhurst Ice Center
Game Coverage	Live Coverage: Stats \| Video Twitter: @cuseice Instagram: @cuseice Facebook: /cusewice
Syracuse Links	News \| Roste r \| Schedule \| Notes
Mercyhurst Links	News \| Roster \| Schedule

SYRACUSE, N.Y.- The Syracuse women's ice hockey team will get back on the road this weekend to take on College Hockey America's first place team Mercyhurst for a two-game series on Friday, Jan. 29 at 3 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m.

Syracuse (11-12-3, 7-3-2 CHA) is only two points behind Mercyhurst in the CHA standings and will have the chance to take over first place with two wins. The Orange split a series two weeks ago with Mercyhurst (11-9-4, 8-2-2 CHA), beating the Lakers 2-0 before falling 3-1 the following day.

The Orange are coming off a CHA series split with rival RIT, losing 2-1 in overtime last Friday and bouncing back with a 3-0 win on Saturday. Senior netminder Jenn Gilligan recorded her fourth shutout of the season on Saturday, registering 14 saves en route to her 10th win of the season.

The Lakers lost their second CHA contest last weekend when they were shutout by Lindenwood by the final score of 1-0. Mercyhurst goaltender Sarah McDonnell made 18 saves in the loss, but put up a 25-save shutout the day before. McDonnell has been stellar in between the pipes for the Lakers this season, having already beat the Orange with a 39-save performance.

Scouting Mercyhurst
Rachael Smith and Jenna Dingeldein lead the Lakers in points, tallying 18 and 17 points, respectively. Smith leads the team with 11 assists while both players have seven goals this season. Emily Janiga also has seven goals on the year.

McDonnell has a 1.67 goals against average and .919 save percentage so far this season for the Lakers. McDonnell's 1.67 goals against average ranks first in the CHA. Her .684 winning percentage is also the best in the conference.

The Lakers average 2.4 goals per game while giving up 2.2 goals. Mercyhurst and Syracuse are evenly matched by the stats, but the power play could be a key factor this weekend. Mercyhurst took advantage of Syracuse last time out by scoring twice on the power play.

Gilligan Continues to Impress
Gilligan is starting to come into her own in between the pipes. Gilligan has a career high four shutouts this season, totaling nine for her career.

Gilligan is currently 18 saves away from 2,000 for her career and two shutouts away from the Syracuse single-season record.

The senior has played in a total of 97 games, which is more than any other goaltender at Syracuse. 39 of those games were played at New Hampshire.

Piacentini Among the Top of CHA
Senior Melissa Piacentini is having another stellar season for the Orange, leading the Orange with 25 points, including a team-high 18 assists.

Piacentini leads the CHA with a +/- of +18.

The senior is only one assist away from tying Hollie Carrie-Mattimore for the program record of 57 career assists. With two more assists, Piacentini would then own every offensive record with the Orange.

Both live video and live stats for this weekend can be accessed by clicking on the links above.

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Players Mentioned

Jenn Gilligan

Melissa Piacentini

Syracuse University Athletics