Dec. 6, 2012
Game Notes | Live Video ($) | Live Stats | Pegula Ice Arena Video Tour | Yearbook
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- The Nittany Lion women's hockey program finishes out its 2012 slate of games at St. Lawrence on Friday (7 p.m.) and Saturday (2 p.m.). Penn State looks to end the calendar year on a winning note before returning to Happy Valley on Jan. 4-5 vs. Chatham.
PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS (5-10-1, 1-8-1 CHA) at ST. LAWRENCE SAINTS (8-7-1, 5-2-0 ECAC Hockey)
Games 17-18: Dec. 7-8, 2012 // 7 p.m. & 2 p.m. // Appleton Arena // Canton, N.Y.
GAME DAY
VENUE: Appleton Arena (3,200)
STREAMING COVERAGE: AmericaOneSports.com Video
SERIES RECORD: 0-0-0
LAST MEETING: n/a, First Meeting, Dec. 7
NEXT SERIES: Jan. 4-5 vs. Chatham
GAME NOTES
• Penn State travels to St. Lawrence for two-game set on Friday and Saturday
• The Nittany Lions and St. Lawrence meet for the first time in women's hockey
• Penn State fell twice at No. 4 Mercyhurst last weekend
• Shannon Yoxheimer was named CHA Rookie of the Month for November
• Yoxheimer leads the CHA in shots (89), third in goals (10) and sixth in points (18)
• Nicole Paniccia has started 12-straight games dating to Oct. 14 vs. Syracuse
• Paniccia is first in the CHA in saves (500) and third in save pct. (.912)
SCOUTING THE SAINTS
An NCAA team a year ago, St. Lawrence (8-7-1, 5-2-0 ECAC Hockey) has had an up-and-down year entering the final series of the 2012 calendar year. After dropping the first five games of the season, St. Lawrence has rattled off an 8-2-1 record, dropping only games to No. 3 Cornell (4-2), Quinnipiac (6-4) and tying Connecticut (2-2). Last week, SLU beat Colgate 4-3 before falling to Cornell.
The Saint attack is led by reigning ECAC Rookie of the Month Abbey McRae who has a team-high nine goals. Kelly Sabatine (8g, 11a) and Amanda Boulier (2g, 17a) are both tied atop the team charts with 19 points.
Goaltender Carmen MacDonald has started all 16 games in net for the Saints, recording a 2.59 GAA behind 369 saves and a .904 save percentage.
On special teams, St. Lawrence is 13-for-80 on the power play (16.2%) and 47-for-58 (81%).
CHA ROOKIE OF THE MONTH HONORS TO YOXHEIMER
Freshman forward Shannon Yoxheimer was named College Hockey America's Rookie of the Month for her performance during November. Yoxheimer led the Nittany Lions with nine points and helped lead Penn State to a 3-4-0 record last month.
Yoxheimer was Penn State's most powerful weapon offensively, accounting for 39 shots, four goals, five points and nine points during the varsity program's second month. Her four goals were tied for a team-high, while her five assists and nine points were each team bests.
AT THE MERCY OF THE LAKERS
Penn State dropped both games at No. 4 Mercyhurst last weekend (Nov. 30-Dec. 1), but still put forth positive efforts. Friday night's 5-0 loss highlight was Celine Whitlinger's strong third period that yielded one goal in 29 shots as the freshman netminder made her return to the ice. Her last appearance was Oct. 14 vs. Syracuse.
In Saturday's game, Penn State took a 1-0 lead on a Jess Desorcie marker off Taylor Gross's breakaway attempt 8:29 into the contest. The play was set up by Shannon Yoxheimer, who caused a turnover at the blue line and allowed Gross to streak in uncontested for the second time in minutes. Mercyhurst tied the game 1-1 before the period was out and held a 3-1 advantage after two periods as the Lakers won 7-1. Nicole Paniccia was named third star of the game by setting a new school record with 64 saves.
CHA SPLIT AT LINDENWOOD
Penn State women's hockey earned another inaugural milestone on Saturday, Nov. 17, defeating Lindenwood 3-2 for its first College Hockey America victory. Freshman forward Emily Laurenzi struck for the game-winning goal to complete a comeback at Lindenwood Ice Arena. Fellow classmate Jill Holdcroft and junior captain Taylor Gross each notched their fourth goals of the season for the Nittany Lions. Freshman forward Shannon Yoxheimer had two assists to aid the Nittany Lion attack.
Penn State found itself down twice to Lindenwood and each time fought back to knot the game. With 5:50 left in the third period in a 2-2 game, Laurenzi tucked home her second goal of the season as the Nittany Lions held off LU for the final portions of the game. Paige Jahnke and Hannah Hoenshell assisted on the power-play goal.
The previous day did not go as well for the Nittany Lions. Lindenwood scored twice in the second period to break a 1-1 dealock and went on to win, 5-1, for the Lions' first win of the season. Holdcroft scored a power-play goal from Yoxheimer and Gross.
The rest of the game notes can be found in the PDF document.
PEGULA ICE ARENA ON SCHEDULE
Pegula Ice Arena, a $90 million state-of-the-art facility, will serve as the home of the Penn State hockey programs in 2012-13. As of Nov. 25, 2012, all the steel has been put in place for the project and the building held its official topping off ceremony on Friday, Nov. 9, 2012. Construction is set to conclude in time for the 2012-13 season as the building will open Sept. 5, 2013.
Pegula Ice Arena Video Tour
For more information on Pegula Ice Arena, visit page 8 of the game notes.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State won't return to action until the new year when it hosts NCAA Division III side Chatham on Jan. 4-5. The two-game set at Greenberg Ice Pavilion will have a 7:30 p.m. start on Friday and a 7 p.m. start on Saturday.
--NITTANY LIONS--