UTICA, NY - The No. 9 Utica University women's hockey team returns to action on Tuesday, January 7 at 4:30 p.m. and on Saturday, January 11 at 3 p.m. Utica travels to Williams College on Tuesday, followed by a trip to SUNY Canton on Saturday.
 
Follow Along: Williams College - live video and live stats.
                         SUNY Canton - live video and live stats.
 
Last Time Out: The Pioneers last played on December 10 and fell to Hamilton College (0-1).
Game Recap: Each team saw three power plays on the evening, although two of the Pioneers' player-up opportunities were short lived due to achieving a quick penalty on one and seeing the time run out on the other. Hamilton managed their only score on the power play, getting their first conversion of the year during an unusual second-period passage of play. The goal eventually proved to be the difference. The Pioneers were outshot 30-8 on the night but did a good job warding off the Continentals' attacks, with eight blocks and some outstanding play by their goalkeeping guru, Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer). Hawthorne showed out once again, saving 29 of the 30 shots that came her way and making some spectacular plays during a few penalty kills. Utica fell to 9-4 on the night and picked up their first home loss of the 2024-2025 season, a season in which the 2024 portion came to a conclusion with Tuesday's contest. The Pioneers will be off on winter break for a few weeks before returning with a couple more visits to non-conference opponents at the onset of 2025.
 
In the Polls: USCHO ranking link below (last updated December 9): https://www.uscho.com/rankings/d-iii-womens-poll/
 
Consistent Calhoun: Riley Calhoun (New Hartford, NY/Plattsburgh State University (NCAA DIII)) leads Utica with 13 points off seven goals, six assists and 47 shots. Her seven goals are ranked 13th nationally while totaling two in the past three games against No. 4 Adrian and No. 1 Middlebury. She has totaled at least one shot in every game and 19 in her last six. Calhoun's skated well all season and has been a force on the forecheck, hunting pucks down and creating fast-break opportunities.
 
Blue Line Production: Utica's defense ranks eighth in the country with a 1.08 goals-against average, allowing only 14 goals in 14 games. Autumn Mish (Long Lake, NY/University of New Hampshire (NCAA DI)) leads the Pioneers with 13 blocked shots and a plus-17 rating. Her pressure on the puck and her ability to get in shooting lanes has made her a premier defender in the nation. Tess Barrett (Tewksbury, MA/St. Mark's) leads Utica with nine assists, Madison Novotny (Wesley Chapel, FL/Northwood School) has a steady three goals and four assists and Maya Jerome (Belleville, MI/Belle Tire) has three goals and three assists.
 
Hawthorne's Dominance: Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) continues to dominate between the pipes, posting a 1.26 goals against average and three shutouts in 13 games played. She's allowed three goals only twice, which came against Nazareth and Adrian and allowed two goals twice against Elmira and Middlebury. All four of those teams are top-15 nationally.
 
About Williams: The Ephs are 6-2-0 overall and 0-2-0 in NESCAC play, which is last in the conference. The team is coming off a 4-2 victory against Trinity College (CT) and before that, the team had not played a game since December 8 against SUNY Morrisville. William's only two losses came against No. 6 Amherst College on November 15 and November 16 (0-3, 2-6). Leah Rubinshteyn leads the Ephs with 13 points off seven goals and six assists. In the team's last game, she posted two goals, one assist and seven faceoff wins. Quinn Dawson has a team-leading 10 assists, posting five against Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts on November 19. Amanda Lackmann and Erin Pye are the team's goaltenders. Lackmann is 3-0-0 with no goals allowed and a 1.000% save percentage. Pye is 3-2-0 overall with one shutout and a 2.22 goals-against-average.
 
About the Matchup: Utica is 8-2 all-time against Williams, dating back to the 2006-2007 season. Utica's only two losses came in the 2011-2012 season (1-3) and in 2015-2016 (1-2).
 
About Canton: The SUNY Canton Kangaroos are 4-7-0 overall and 3-4-3 in SUNYAC competition. Canton last played on December 7 against Hamilton, where they fell 0-2. Utica and Canton met once before during the season on November 26 as the Pioneers won 5-0. The Roos' are led by Riley Andzel with two goals and five assists. Molly Lenihan and Abby Seaman have five starts each. Lenihan sports a 1-4-0 overall record, 153 saves and a 2.77 goals-against average. Seaman is 3-2-0 with one shutout and a 1.94 goals-against average.
 
About the Matchup: Utica is 9-1 all-time against Canton, dating back to the 2013-2014 season. The Pioneer's only loss came in 2019-2020, where the Kangaroos won 3-0.
 
Up Next: Utica travels to Worcester State University on Thursday, January 16, at 6:30 p.m. in Worcester, MA.