Utica, NY (1/2/13)- The Utica College women's ice hockey team returns to the ice Wednesday after a three-week break as it hosts nationally ranked No. 4 Middlebury College. Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Last Time Out: Utica is coming off back-to-back losses against NESCAC opponents Hamilton College and Amherst College on December 8 and 9… UC suffered a 3-1 defeat at the hands of the Continentals before falling 1-0 to the Lord Jeffs… Sophomore
Louise Steele-Norton (Avondale, PA/Millbrook School) netted her first goal of the season and goalies
Jennifer Hamel (Ithaca, NY/Northwood School) and
Marissa Hotaling (Whitesboro, NY/Whitesboro) combined for 37 saves in the two games.
Where We Sit: The Pioneers are currently 4-5 overall and 3-3 in the ECAC West Conference… UC is fourth in the conference standings with six points… Ten of the team's 16 remaining games are conference contests… Utica is averaging 1.9 goals per game while firing 24.9 shots on goal each outing.
Game Coverage: Livestats and video for all home contests are available at ucpioneers.com… Fans can also get live score updates on Twitter by following @UCscoreboard.
Leading the Way: Junior
Megan Myers (Las Vegas, NV/LA Selects) has a team-high five goals and eight points… She has led the team in scoring each of the last two seasons… Freshman
Morgan Reed (Fort Myers, FL/Cushing Academy) is second on the team with six points (three goals, three assists), while senior
Meghan McMahon (Gardner, MA/St. Marks (MA)) ranks third with two goals and three assists… Junior
Brittany DelleChiaie (Leominster, MA/The Winchendon School) has also chipped in with one goal and three assists of her own, and senior
Mary Fusco (Enfield, CT/Salve Regina University) leads the defense with four points on the year.
Hamel Named Goalie of the Week: Junior
Jennifer Hamel (Ithaca, NY/Northwood School) was named the ECAC West Goalie of the Week on December 10… Hamel stopped 17 of the 18 shots she faced as Utica fell 1-0 to Amherst in the team's last action before the winter break… On the season, Hamel has a .909 save percentage and 1.85 goals against average through seven games played.
Scouting Middlebury: The Panthers are 5-1-1 overall (3-0-1 NESCAC) and are ranked fourth in the country in the latest USCHO.com poll… Middlebury is coming off a 3-0 win over Castleton State on Dec. 6… The Panthers are led by sophomores Hannah Bielawski and Katie Sullivan… Bielewski has eight points (four goals, four assists), while Sullivan has one goal and five helpers for a total of six points.
Against the Panthers: UC is 0-3 all-time against Middlebury… The last time the two teams met was Jan. 6, 2008 when Middlebury claimed a 4-2 victory.
Looking Ahead: UC returns to action Saturday as it hosts Manhattanville College… Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m.
--- www.ucpioneers.com
