CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Fresh off a bye week, Harvard women's ice hockey is set to return to play this weekend when it makes the trip to the Northern New York to battle the No. 11 St. Lawrence Saints and the No. 6 Clarkson Golden Knights. The Crimson (2-8-1, 1-7-0 ECAC) will also resume its ECAC schedule with matchups against two opponents ranked inside the USCHO National poll. Harvard will first take on the Saints (9-5-4, 3-1-2 ECAC) before ending the trip with a matchup against the Golden Knights (14-3-1, 5-1-0 ECAC). The Landry Family Head Coach for Harvard Women's Ice Hockey, Laura Bellamy and her Crimson are looking to add a pair of signature wins to its resume before heading into the long break for finals and the holidays.
 

What to Know

 

Last Time Out

The Crimson last competed on the weekend of Nov. 22-23 in a home-and-home series against the Providence College Friars. In a pair of incredibly close contests, both matchups went into overtime with the first game going to Providence in the shootout and the second game also going to the Friars in the overtime period.
 

Comeback Crimson

In the first matchup against the Friars at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center, the Crimson founds themselves down 2-0 late in the third period. With just over three minutes left, Coach Bellamy pulled the goaltender to add an extra skater. The Crimson would go on to score two extra attacker goals in the final 90 seconds to send the game into overtime.
 

Scouting St. Lawrence

The No. 11 St. Lawrence Saints have posted a record of 9-5-4 with a 3-1-2 mark in ECAC play during the first half of its season. Also coming off a bye week, the Saints lasted competed in an ECAC series against Yale and Brown on Nov. 22-23, earning a win over the Bulldogs and a tie against the Bears. A two-game sweep of No. 15 Mercyhurst highlights the Saints' first-half accomplishments.
 
St. Lawrence deploys a strong defensive unit that has led the team to its strong start. Allowing just 1.6 goals per game, the team's defense currently ranks fourth in the nation. Starting goaltender, Emma-Sofie Nordström, has been a key piece of the defense by posting a .950 save percentage and a 1.35 GAA, both of which rank fourth in the nation. Offensively, Abby Hustler leads the group with 18 points and Aly McLeod leads the team with seven goals.
 

Scouting Clarkson

The No. 6 Clarkson Golden Knights sport a record of 14-3-1 heading into the weekend including a 5-1 mark in ECAC action. The team was on the road in Nashville last weekend where it competed in the SMASHVILLE Women's Collegiate Hockey Showcase. The Knights claimed the tournament title after defeating St. Thomas (5-4, OT) and Merrimack (4-0). The Golden Knights only losses this season came on the road at Boston College (twice) and at Quinnipiac as the team remains undefeated on home ice with a 7-0 record.
 
The high-powered offense of Clarkson has led the team through its strong start. The group is currently outscoring opponents 76-27 while averaging nearly 43 shots on goal per game. Additionally, the powerplay unit ranks second in the nation with a .391 (18-for-46) percentage on the year. Defensively, Clarkson allows just 1.5 goals and 19.1 shots on goal per game while the penalty kill has shut down 36-of-40 opponent powerplays on the year. Minnesota transfer Anne Cherkowksi and senior Haley Winn lead the team with 25 points each. Cherkowksi's ten goals are a team high. Julia Minotti leads the goaltending effort for Head Coach Matt Desrosiers squad, allowing just 17 goals on the season to go along with her .930 save percentage and 1.40 GAA.
 

Too Tuff

First-year goaltender Ainsley Tuffy has shined through six career games played, posting a .939 save percentage and a 1.97 GAA. The save percentage is the ninth highest nationally. Tuffy stymied a surging No. 7 Quinnipiac team in just her second career start on Nov. 9, making 40 saves and holding the team to just one goal. It was the first time a Harvard first-year goalie had made 40 or more saves in a game since the 2017-18 season when Lindsay Reed accomplished the feat, also in her second career start.
 

Kaley's Clutch

Sophomore defense, Kaley MacDonald, had a strong weekend against the Friars to move into the team lead with seven points on the season. MacDonald first scored the clutch game tying goal with just over thirty seconds left in the matchup against the Friars before dishing out two assists in the second game of the series.
 

From the Blue Line

14 of Harvard's 40 points on the season have come from defenders with K. MacDonald's seven and Maria Pape's four leading the way. Pape also scored in the matchup against Providence, potting the first goal to start the comeback.
 
Senior captains Mia Biotti and Jenna MacDonald have combined for three points on the year to round out the scoring from the Harvard defense.
 

Blocking Shots

One of the Crimson's strengths on the defensive end this season has been its ability to get into shooting lanes and block shots. The Crimson has already blocked 205 shots as a team, averaging 18.6 per contest. That total is the second highest in the NCAA and leads the ECAC.
 
Mia Biotti and Jenna MacDonald lead the team with 25 blocked shots apiece and their 2.72 blocked shots per game total them tied for the 14^th most nationally. First-year Scout Oudemool has also contributed 18 blocked shots to the cause and is currently ranked as the third-highest forward in blocked shots per game with a 1.63 clip.
 

Up Next

Harvard women's hockey will put a bow on the first half of its 2024-25 schedule this week before pausing for the finals and holiday break. The Crimson will return to action shortly after the new year with a home-and-home series against the Dartmouth Big Green. The two-game set will begin with a matchup at the Bright-Landry Hockey Center on Friday, Jan. 3.