UTICA, NY- The Utica College women's hockey team returns to action this weekend as it travels to Aston, PA for a UCHC conference series against Neumann University.  Friday's game is scheduled for 7 p.m. while Saturday's faceoff will be at 2 p.m.
 
LAST TIME OUT: The Pioneers are coming off a sweep over Chatham University last weekend… UC downed the Cougars 5-0 on Friday and 6-1 on Saturday… Seven different players scored at least one goal on the weekend including Olivia Hirschy (Fort Wayne, IN/Culver Academies), Lexi Stanisewski (Lawrence, MA/Boston Shamrocks), Taylor Dion (Colchester, VT/Boston Shamrocks), and Ricki Haab (Stowe, VT/Stowe) who each had two goals, while Kayla Dion (Colchester, VT/Boston Shamrocks), Georgiana Stantullo, and Elizabeth Dohner (Highlands Ranch, CO/Colorado Selects) each found the back of the net once… Bria Reilly (Hamden, CT/Brewster Academy) totaled 24 saves on the weekend.
 
HOT START: The Pioneers are 6-0 to start the season for just the second time ever and the first time since their inaugural season in 2001-2002…  The last time Utica was unbeaten through its first six games was in 2015-16, when the Pioneers opened the year going 5-0-1… That year UC also advanced to the ECAC West Championship game for the second time ever and set a new single-season win record (19).
 
LEADING THE WAY: Three players are tied for the team-lead with nine points on the year… Senior Taylor Dion (Colchester, VT/Boston Shamrocks) and freshman Georgiana Santullo (Woburn, MA/Boston Shamrocks/Woburn High School) each have four goals and five assists, while Lexi Stanisewski (Lawrence, MA/Boston Shamrocks) has three goals and a team-high six helpers… Dion has reached a new single-season career-high in goals, assists, and points, while Santullo is tied for seventh nationally in freshman scoring as she is averaging 1.50 points per game… Stanisewski meanwhile ranks in the top-20 nationally with 1.00 assists per game.
 
ROOKIE OF THE WEEK: Freshman Georgiana Santullo (Woburn, MA/Boston Shamrocks/Woburn High School) was named the UCHC Conference's Rookie of the Week for her four-point effort against Chatham…  On Friday, the freshman assisted on goals in the first and third periods while on the ice for three tallies in total… On Saturday, Santullo opened the scoring with her fourth goal of the year and also added one assist.
 
CAN'T BLOCK BROWN: Junior Rebecca Brown (Steamboat Springs, CO/Norwich University) has recorded at least one point in each game so far and she is one point back of the team-lead with eight total through the first six games… Brown also has a team-high five goals to her credit… Brown, who led the Pioneers in points (23) and assists (17) last season, needs just one more goal to match her output from one year ago.
 
SHUTTING THE DOOR: The Pioneers have outscored their opponents 31-4 through the first six games… Junior goalie Bria Reilly (Hamden, CT/Brewster Academy) ranks fifth nationally with a .50 goals against average and her .964 save percentage is good enough for ninth in the country… Reilly also has two shutouts to her credit so far. 
 
SCOUTING NEUMANN: The Knights are 1-4 overall (0-2 UCHC) including a pair of losses to No. 1 Elmira College… Neumann is coming off a 7-3 win over Wilkes on Saturday… Three players are tied for the team-lead with five points each, including sophomore Katelyn Brown, who has a team-best four goals.
 
AGAINST THE KNIGHTS: Utica is 7-1-1 against Neumann in the last five years… Last year, the teams split the season series with the Knights taking the first game 3-1 before UC responded with a 4-1 win in game two… Olivia Hirschy (Fort Wayne, IN/Culver Academies) had a pair of goals on the weekend, while Elizabeth Dohner (Highlands Ranch, CO/Colorado Selects) had two assists… Gabrielle Igo (Phoenix, AZ/Northern Cyclones) made 15 saves in the win.   
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The Pioneers will return to central New York to take on local rival, Hamilton College on Sunday, Nov. 25… Game time is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Hamilton's Sage Rink.