UTICA, NY - The No. 10 Utica University women's hockey team squares off against Worcester State University on Tuesday, November 21 at 7 p.m. at the Utica University Nexus Center for the ninth annual Gold Ribbon Game for childhood cancer awareness. 
 
Follow Along: Live stats and video will be provided here.
 
Last Time Out: Then-No. 9 Utica topped Manhattanville College 3-1 on Saturday afternoon to secure another UCHC victory and remain unbeaten. Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) remained red-hot and scored two goals with one assist today after scoring a pair of goals on Friday. Jordan Kowalski (Chicopee, MA/Plattsburgh State (NCAA DIII)) had two points in the game off of one goal and one assist. Emma Corbett (Rochester, NY/Adrian College (NCAA DIII)) tallied one assist in the match as she assisted Modlin's second goal. Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) remained dominant in net making 13 saves and allowing just one goal to collect the victory. Erica Sloan (Potsdam, NY/St. Lawrence Steel) led the team with 14 shots with Carolyn Whitney (Raleigh, NC/Milbrook School), Carly Stefanini (Framingham, MA/Brooks School), and Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) all recording at least seven. Utica dominated the shot battle at 67-36 overall. The teams went an even 23 to 23 on faceoffs as well. The Pioneers had 33 shots on goal to the Valiants' 14 and scored the lone power play goal of the contest with each team having at least seven tries.It was a strong first period for the Pioneers with the team outshooting Manhattanville 23-10. Utica kept the puck in the attacking zone for the majority of the period and Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) found the back of the net off a feed from Jordan Kowalski (Chicopee, MA/Plattsburgh State (NCAA DIII)) to give the Pioneers a 1-0 lead at the 11:54 mark of the first period. Utica kept the pressure on continuing to fire off shots and playing excellent defense to take a 1-0 lead into the first intermission. Manhattanville took momentum quickly, knotting up the game 1-1 just 2:46 into the second period. Yet, Utica would respond as Modlin found the back of the net again off a dime from Emma Corbett (Rochester, NY/Adrian College (NCAA DIII)) to give the Pioneers a 2-1 lead at the 4:04 mark. The teams continued to battle with each having at least two power play opportunities, yet the defenses were stout and did not allow a goal the rest of the period and Utica took a 2-1 advantage into the final period of play. The Pioneers continued the barrage of shots, winning the battle 14-2 for the majority of the period and increased their lead to 3-1 on a Kowalski power play goal at the 11:10 mark. The goal was assisted by Modlin and the duo of Kowalski and Modlin were creating scoring opportunities all game long. The Utica defense was terrific in the third period allowing just three shots on goal which were all denied by Hawthorne en route to the two-goal victory. 
 
Gold Ribbon Jersey Auction: The No. 9 Utica University women's hockey team will welcome back its Gold Ribbon Game on Tuesday, November 21 at 7 p.m. against Worcester State University. The game will be the 9^th edition of the Gold Ribbon Game for childhood cancer awareness. The Pioneers have dedicated one game each season to raising awareness for this important cause, one which hits close to home for the program. Utica will be wearing special edition uniforms that feature a gold ribbon, the color of childhood cancer awareness. These jerseys are currently being auctioned off online (HERE) as well as in the arena during the game on November 21.  All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Hope in Action Foundation, which is a local non-profit that assists families during all stages of their child's battle with cancer.  In the history of the gold ribbon game, the Pioneers have raised over $30,000 for local families dealing with childhood cancer.
*Minimum Bid - $100
*Buy it Now Price - $300
*Bidding Will Conclude After the 2nd Period of the Worcester State-Utica Game on Nov. 21
*Bids Must be Made in Increments of $5 
 
In the Polls: Utica moved back one spot to No. 10 in this week's US College Hockey Online Women's Top 15. The poll was released Monday by the national college hockey website. The Pioneers received 126 points to remain within the top-10 of the USCHO Poll. Utica went 1-0-1 this past weekend in its road series at Manhattanville College. The Pioneers came back to tie the Valiants 3-3 on Friday before falling in the shootout, 1-0. On Saturday, the team responded with a 3-1 to claim the season series. The entire Division III women's poll can be found at https://www.uscho.com/rankings/d-iii-womens-poll/. 
 
Modlin Mania: Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) has been dominating as of late, as she has recorded at least one point in seven out of eight games this season. Her highest single-game point total came this past weekend on Saturday against Manhattanville University, where she tallied two goals and one assist while also going 4-for-8 at the faceoff dot. Modlin currently leads both Utica and the UCHC with nine goals and 14 points while also guiding the team to second overall in the league with 27 goals scored. She is only nine points away from surpassing last season's point total, where she recorded 23 (14 goals and nine assists). Her efforts this past weekend also netted her UCHC player of the Week honors. In all, Modlin registered four goals on 14 shot attempts and had one assist. She also had six faceoff wins over the two games. On Friday, the senior notched her first goal of the night to bring the Pioneers back within one goal of the Valiants in the second period. Nearly eight minutes into the third, Modlin came through with the game-tying goal to help eventually force OT. In Saturday's win, Modlin had two more goals and had a hand in each of Utica's three total. She scored the first goal of the afternoon to give the team a 1-0 lead before scoring her second in the second period to hand the Pioneers the lead once again at 2-1. Midway through the third, Modlin assisted on Jordan Kowalski's (Chicopee, MA/Plattsburgh State (NCAA DIII)) game-winner to bring her season point total to 14.
 
Record Watch: Both Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) and Erica Sloan (Potsdam, NY/St. Lawrence Steel) are close to breaking Utica women's hockey records. Hawthorne is now Utica's all-time leader in shutouts with 14 and she is three career wins away from passing 2016 graduate Keira Goin who recorded 40 wins. Sloan is also creeping up in the program's career records as she has 63 career goals and is 12 shy of passing Deana Wiegand, who was responsible for 74 career goals. She also has 70 career assists, which is 10 shy of tying Stephanie Price, who had 80. As for total career points, Sloan finds herself 38 away from that record as well as she's fifth all-time in program history with 133. 
 
About Worcester: The Worcester State University Lancers sport a 4-3-1 overall record and enter Tuesday's matchup on a three-game winning streak. During its winning streak, the team has outscored its opponents 19-3. Worcester's most recent two matchups came against Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, which ended in a 6-0 victory followed by a score of 6-3 the following day. The Lancers are led by forward Katie Puumala, forward Cassidhe Wozniak and forward Cailey Ryan. Puumala leads Worcester in shots with 46 while also tallying nine points in eight games, with four goals and five assists. She has seven points in two games and is responsible for three goals and four assists. Wozniak enters Tuesday's matchup with two assists and a team-high six goals, while Ryan has totaled seven points off four goals and three assists. Kelsey Czerniawski has started all six games at goaltender for the Lancers, sporting a .906 save percentage and a 2.10 goals against average. She has two shutouts on the season against Curry College and Rivier University. Utica is 2-0 all-time against Worcester State. The teams first squared off in the 2021-22 season, Utica won 6-1, followed by a 2-1 Utica overtime defeat in the 2022-23 season, scored by Erica Sloan (Potsdam, NY/St. Lawrence Steel). 
 
Up Next: The Pioneers host UCHC opponent Neumann University on Friday, December 1 at 5 p.m. and Saturday, December 2 at 2 p.m. for what will be the team's senior day. Both games will be played at the Utica University Nexus Center.