The undefeated run may be over, but the University of Connecticut women’s hockey team will look to continue their hot start to the season as they take on the Boston University Terriers in a weekend series.
The Huskies (8-1-0, 4-1-0 Hockey East) split the weekend as they lost to Merrimack by a score of 3-0 and then proceeded to beat Vermont 2-1 in overtime the next day.
Graduate student Summer-Rae Dobson scored the game-winner on Saturday as she slipped a shot past Vermont’s goaltender. Dobson now has four goals and one assist on the season and has been a great pickup from the transfer portal.
Senior Danielle Fox is also off to an explosive start this season. Like Dobson, Fox picked up her fourth goal of the season and her three assists give her seven points. Fox has also been taking great chances as she currently ranks second on the team with 39 shots.
The main goal scorer for the Huskies has been senior Viki Harkness, who has five goals and two assists. She looks to continue her spectacular start especially as the Huskies continue rolling in Hockey East play.
Captain Natalie Snodgrass has been the most productive point-scorer on the team with a team-leading eight points on three goals and five assists and a whopping 46 shots. In her second year as captain, Snodgrass is continuing to bring the leadership and talent necessary to lead the team.
We cannot forget about the Wabick sisters. Taylor has seven assists and has set up numerous Husky shots that find the back of the net. Morgan has one goal and five assists to her name with her six points putting her in fifth on the team’s scoring chart.
Keep an eye on junior Coryn Tormala, who has three goals and one assist for four points while she finds ways to find scoring chances with every waking moment. She is going to have a breakout series and it might be coming sooner than later.
The defense has been physically compelling this season and in addition to T. Wabick, there is the production of juniors Ainsley Svetek and Claire Peterson leading the way with three points each. Look for the Husky defense to anchor down in Boston Harbor this weekend.
The Huskies also have strong anchors in their two-goalie tandem. Senior Samantha Carpentier-Yelle has handled the primary starting role well as she currently sports a .187 GAA with a .908 save percentage in seven games. Freshman Megan Warrener has started the other two games and her 37 saves gives her a .949 save percentage. Regardless of who starts which game, the Huskies have the tandem that can keep the offense at bay.
Like the Huskies, Boston University (5-1-3, 4-0-3 Hockey East) has one loss on the season, which came against RPI. Riding off a shootout win against Vermont and a close victory against Providence, the Terriers will look to continue their winning ways.
The Terriers are averaging three goals per game, and the main reason is because of Hockey East Player of the Month, Courtney Correia. Her six goals and 11 points are second in the Hockey East conference behind Northeastern’s Maureen Murphy (seven goals and 12 points). She will look to start November play the same way she ended October play, on a roll.
Next up is junior Julia Nearis, who has four goals and six assists for 10 points on the season. Like Correia, she has been a dangerous point collector and can deke the puck whenever she feels like it. Her mobility will be something to look out for this weekend.
The third most dangerous player on the team is senior Mackenna Parker, who has two goals and six assists for eight points. Parker knows how to finish off nice plays and therefore there is rarely a game in which none of the three are on the scoreboard. This trio is something to look out for.
Sophomore Catherine Foulem has also been productive this season as she has two goals and three assists for five points. She knows how to sneak shots through any holes that the goaltender might leave open and knows how to consistently rack up points.
The Terrier defense has been nasty too as they have allowed just 1.9 goals per game. The main squadron behind that is sophomore Andi Calderone and senior Alex Allan, both of whom have four points. In addition to being point collectors, these two blueliners know how to terrify the offense into turning the puck over. Like the offense, the Terrier defense will be something to look out for over the weekend.
Behind the crease, the Terriers have two strong goaltenders they can rely on to freeze any opponent in their tracks. Who else to do it but senior Kate Stuart and freshman Callie Shanahan, both of whom are key reasons the Terriers only have one loss on the season.
Stuart has gotten six games worth of playing time and has capitalized on them by putting up a 1.76 GAA with 164 saves and three wins on the season. As proven by Stuart’s three ties, it is hard to get anything past her, especially in overtime.
Shanahan has had an impressive start to her collegiate career. In three starts and five games, Shanahan has conceded just five goals with 62 saves to her name. Even though she is credited with the team’s only loss, she does also have a shutout and from there it basically becomes impossible to get anything past her as well.
The Huskies and Terriers will square off at Freitas tonight at 6 p.m. before shipping up to Boston for a 3 p.m. matinee. Both games can be accessed on SportsLive with live stats provided by StatBroadcast.
