Women's Hockey Set For First Round of CHA Tournament Against RITWomen's Hockey Set For First Round of CHA Tournament Against RIT
Craig Houtz

Women's Hockey Set For First Round of CHA Tournament Against RIT

BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Penn State women's hockey team starts postseason play this Thursday, March 5, in the College Hockey America Tournament at the LECOM HarborCenter.
 
The fourth-seeded Nittany Lions' first round matchup pits them against the fifth-seeded RIT Tigers for the second consecutive postseason.
 
FOLLOW THE ACTION
#5 RIT Tigers (12-18-4, 5-13-2 CHA) vs. #4 Penn State Nittany Lions (12-14-8, 7-8-5 CHA)
Time: 6:00 p.m.
Place: LECOM HarborCenter
Tickets: Day 1 (Thursday) | Tournament Package
Watch: CHA Digital Network ($)
Stats: Live Stats
 
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Tickets for the CHA Tournament are priced at $10 per day for adults and $5 per day for students with a valid student ID. A full tournament package is also available, priced at $25 for all three days for adults and $15 for students. See the ticket links listed above to purchase.
 
All games will be broadcast on the CHA Digital Network, which is available for purchase at either $25 for the whole tournament or $12 for a single day.
 
For more information on the CHA Tournament, visit the 2020 CHA Tournament website.
 
FULL TOURNAMENT BRACKET











Penn State's game on Thursday will be the second of the day as #3 Syracuse plays #6 Lindenwood at 3:00 p.m. After the first round games, the lowest remaining seed will play top-seeded Mercyhurst in the semifinals at 12:30 on Friday afternoon. The higher remaining seed faces second-seeded Robert Morris at 4 p.m. Friday evening.
 
The championship game will be played by the winners of the two semifinal games at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday. The winner of the three-day single elimination tournament receives an automatic bid in the 2020 NCAA Tournament which features a field of eight programs.
 


NITTANY LIONS NOTES

  • Penn State has a 6-5 record all-time in the first round of the CHA tournament, including a 2-1 mark since the conference reformatted the playoff to a single-elimination tournament in 2017. PSU is 1-1 against RIT in the single-elimination format and 3-5 overall against the Tigers in the postseason since 2013.
  • The Nittany Lions went 2-2 against RIT in 2019-20 with both teams defending home ice in the series.
  • PSU is entering the tournament after a 1-1 home weekend last weekend against top seeded Mercyhurst. Penn State's win came last Saturday on Senior Day in a 2-0 shutout, marking Penn State's fourth ever win and first ever shutout against the Lakers.
  • Junior goaltender Chantal Burke currently holds the Penn State single-season program record with seven shutouts, which is also tied for the most career shutouts by Penn State goaltenders. Burke also holds a 1.64 GAA and .938 save percentage, both ranked seventh best in the nation and leading the CHA.
  • Junior forward Natalie Heising is Penn State's active leading scorer in the CHA Tournament with four points (3G, 1A) in four games.
  • Forward Brooke Madsen's 19 points (8G, 11A) in her senior season are third most by a Nittany Lion senior in program history.
  • Sophomore defender Rene Gangarosa set a program record for points by a defender in a season with 18 (6G, 12A) this season. Blue-line partner and fellow sophomore Izzy Heminger wasn't far behind with 15 points (4G, 11A) and finished the regular season tied for the third best plus-minus rating in a season by a Nittany Lion at +7.
  • The CHA regular season awards will be announced Wednesday evening at the CHA Banquet.

 
For the latest updates on Penn State women's ice hockey, follow @PennStateWHKY on Twitter, "like" the Penn State Women's Ice Hockey page on Facebook, and follow @pennstatewhky on Instagram.