NCAA Women’s Frozen Four schedule
at Ridder Arena – Minneapolis, Minn.
Semifinals – Friday
No. 1 Minnesota (39-0-0) vs. No. 4 Boston College (27-6-3), 6 p.m.
Mercyhurst (29-6-1) vs. No. 3 Boston University (27-5-3), 9 p.m.
Championship game – Sunday
Semifinal winners, 4 p.m.
Note: All three games will be streamed live on NCAA.com. WMCE-FM/88.5 will broadcast Mercyhurst’s game tonight and Sunday’s championship game (if the Lakers advance).

Frozen Four teams at a glance
Mercyhurst Lakers (29-6-1)
Coach: Michael Sisti, 14th season (363-98-30)
Players to watch: Jr. F Christine Bestland (28 goals, 41 assists, 69 points), Sr. G Stephanie Ciampa (19-1-0 record, 1.37 goals-against average, .937 save percentage, 4 shutouts), Fr. F Jenna Dingeldein (14-27-41), Fr. F Emily Janiga (19-21-40), So. D Molly Byrne (8-24-32)
Frozen Four facts: Has reached the Frozen Four for the third time (2009-10, 2013) during a NCAA-record nine straight appearances in the national playoffs, but has never won a national championship. … Has a 1-2 Frozen Four record, with the lone win coming against Minnesota in the 2009 semifinals. … Lost to Wisconsin in the 2009 title game. … Lost to Cornell in the 2010 semifinals at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis, site of this weekend’s Frozen Four. … Has a 4-7 record in the NCAA playoffs. … Has a 4-2 all-time record against Boston University, tonight’s semifinal opponent, including a 4-2 national quarterfinal loss in Boston in their last meeting (March 12, 2011).
Outlook: The Lakers are decided underdogs as the only unseeded team in the field. But is this the year they claim their first national title?

No. 3 Boston University Terriers (27-5-3)
Coach: Brian Durocher, 8th season (158-92-37)
Players to watch: Jr. F Marie-Philip Poulin (17 goals, 34 assists, 51 points), Jr. G Kerrin Sperry (23-4-3 record, 2.19 goals-against average, .914 save percentage, 4 shutouts), Sr. F Isabel Menard (15-29-44), Sr. F Jenelle Kohanchuk (23-20-43), Fr. F Sarah Lefort (23-19-42)
Frozen Four facts: Has reached the Frozen Four for the second time and the NCAA playoffs for the fourth straight time in the program’s eight-year history. … Reached the Frozen Four in 2011 at Erie Insurance Arena (beat Cornell 4-1 in the semifinal, but lost 4-1 to Wisconsin in the title game. … Lost to Cornell 8-7 in overtime in the 2012 quarterfinals. … Tied a school record for wins in a season. … Poulin was named to the Canadian Women’s National Team that will play in the IIHF Women’s World Championship next month in Ottawa, Ontario. … Menard transferred from Syracuse, Mercyhurst’s College Hockey America rival, after her sophomore season.
Outlook: The Terriers have another shot at the national title that slipped away in Erie two years ago. Mercyhurst stands in their way.

No. 1 Minnesota Golden Gophers (39-0-0)
Coach: Brad Frost, 5th season (145-36-16)
Players to watch: Jr. F Amanda Kessel (44 goals, 53 assists, 97 points), Sr. G Noora Raty (36-0-0 record, 0.88 goals-against average, .959 save percentage, 17 shutouts), Fr. F Hannah Brandt (31-49-80), Sr. D Megan Bozek (20-35-55), Fr. F Maryanne Menefee (16-19-35)
Frozen Four facts: Have won three national championships (2004, 2005, 2012) in nine trips to the Frozen Four (2002-06, 2009-10, 2012). … Was led in 2012 by Jen Schoullis, a Girard native who now plays for the Boston Blades (CWHL) and the United States National Team. … Has a 47-game winning streak. … Needed three overtimes to beat WCHA rival North Dakota in the quarterfinals. … Has all three finalists for the Patty Kazmaier Memorial Award, which honors the national player of the year (Bozek, Kessel and Raty). … Has won 21 games by shutout. .. Has outscored opponents 207-31. … Lost in the semifinals in the Frozen Four’s last trip to Ridder Arena in Minneapolis in 2010.
Outlook: The Golden Gophers are the clear favorite to win the natioal title on their home ice. They also have all the pressure on their shoulders.

No. 4 Boston College Eagles (27-6-3)
Coach: Katie King Crowley, 6th season (119-61-34)
Players to watch: So. F Alex Carpenter (32 goals, 37 assists, 69 points), Sr. D Blake Bolden (6-23-29), Fr. F Haley Skarupa (24-27-51), Sr. G Corinne Boyles (22-4-1 record, 1.79 goals-against average, .927 save percentage, 3 shutouts), So. F Emily Field (15-29-44)
Frozen Four facts: Has reached the Frozen Four for the third straight season. … Lost to Wisconsin in the semifinals the past two seasons – 3-2 in 2011 at Erie Insurance Arena and 6-2 a season ago in Duluth, Minn. … Enjoying the best season in program history, headlined by an offense that set a school record with 4.36 goals per game. … Lost to Northeastern in the Hockey East Association semifinals, but rebounded with a 3-1 NCAA quarterfinal win against Harvard last weekend. … Has a 1-4-1 all-time record against Minnesota, their Final Four opponent.
Outlook: The Eagles never have won a Frozen Four game. But a win over the defending champs could vault them to their first national title.

- Victor Fernandes

No. 9 Mercyhurst University (26-6-1) vs. Robert Morris (15-14-13)
Syracuse (19-14-1) vs. Rochester Institute of Technology (16-15-5)
When: Today, 1:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.; Saturday, 3 p.m.
Where: Mercyhurst Ice Center
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst begins its quest for a 10th College Hockey America tournament championship in the last 11 years with a healthy lineup. Junior F Christie Cicero (severe concussion, sprained neck) rejoined the lineup Feb. 23 against RIT. … The Lakers can capture their 12th conference title in the last 13 years, dating back to the 2000-01 season in the Great Lakes Women’s Hockey Association. … Win or lose, the Lakers learn if they will make a NCAA-record ninth straight NCAA Division I tournament appearance when the eight-team field is unveiled Sunday at 6 p.m. on NCAA.com. … Mercyhurst lost the first three regular-season meetings with defending CHA champion Robert Morris before posting a 9-1 home win Feb. 9. … The Lakers swept all four respective meetings with Syracuse and RIT. … Junior F Christine Bestland finished the regular season ranked fourth nationally with 40 assists, fifth with 66 points and ninth with 26 goals. She also tied for second with 10 power-play goals and tied for eighth with six game-winning goals. … Sophomore Ds Molly Byrne and and Vaila Higson were tied for fifth among all defensemen with 31 points apiece. … F Emily Janiga is third among all freshmen with 40 points, one spot ahead of F Jenna Dingeldein (39 points). … Senior G Stephanie Ciampa ranks second with a .944 winning percentage (17-1-0), fourth with a 1.40 goals-against average, tied for seventh with a .935 save percentage and tied for eighth with four shutouts. … RMU needed two wins last weekend over Lindenwood, including a three-overtime victory in the opener, to reach the semifinals. … RIT, which beat Penn State twice by one goal last weekend, looks for a CHA championship in its first season in the league and at the D-I level. … Syracuse reached the title game two of the last three years.

- Victor Fernandes

Rochester Institute of Technology (14-13-5, 7-6-5 CHA) at No. 9 Mercyhurst University (24-6-1, 15-3-0)
When: Friday, 3 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m.
Where: Mercyhurst Ice Center
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)
What to expect: Mercyhurst enters the final weekend of the regular season already having clinched a 12th straight College Hockey America regular-season championship and top seed in the upcoming conference tournament. The Lakers and second-seeded Syracuse will have byes in next weekend’s first round, which features the other four teams in best-of-three series for the first time in CHA history. The Lakers will host the semifinals and title game March 8-9. … Mercyhurst swept a season-opening, two-game series from CHA newcomer RIT, 6-2 and 7-0, in Rochester, N.Y., Sept. 28-29 behind junior F Christine Bestland‘s three goals and seven points. … RIT needs one win to secure a winning record in its first NCAA Division I season. The Tigers, which will have home-ice advantage in a first-round playoff series, need one point to earn the third seed. They lead Robert Morris and Lindenwood by four points with two games left. Penn State has clinched the sixth seed. … Bestland ranks third nationally with 39 assists and fifth with 63 points. She’s also tied for second with nine power-play goals and tied for sixth with six game-winning goals. … Sophomore D Molly Byrne is tied for fourth among all defensemen with 30 points. Sophomore D Vaila Higson has moved into the top 10 with 27 points. … F Emily Janiga is third among all freshmen with 39 points, one spot ahead of F Jenna Dingeldein (35 points). … Senior G Stephanie Ciampa ranks second with a .938 winning percentage, fifth with a 1.39 goals-against average, seventh with a .935 save percentage and tied for sixth with four shutouts.

- Victor Fernandes

No. 9 Mercyhurst University (22-6-1, 13-3-0 CHA) at Syracuse (18-11-1, 12-3-1)
When: Friday, 7 p.m.; Saturday, 2 p.m.
Where: Tennity Ice Pavilion – Syracuse, N.Y.
On the air: www.americaonesports.com (live stream), www.hurstathletics.com (live statistics)
What to expect:Mercyhurst can clinch their 11th straight College Hockey America regular-season championship – and 10th outright title – with a sweep of this two-game series. The Lakers lead the Orange by one point with four games left in the regular season. … Mercyhurst split a series with Robert Morris last weekend, while the Orange swept a series from Rochester Institute of Technology by 2-1 scores to extend their winning streak to eight games. … The Orange won six of those games by one goal, including the past four outings. They haven’t lost since Jan. 15 (8-1 at Cornell). … The Lakers swept a two-game series from Syracuse, 1-0 and 4-1, Jan. 11-12 at Mercyhurst Ice Center. … Mercyhurst is unbeaten against Syracuse (20-0-1), with the only blemish being a 1-1 tie Jan. 7, 2012. … The Lakers slipped to ninth from seventh in USCHO.com’s Division I poll this week. They remain seventh in the Ratings Percentage Index and PairWise Ranking, which are used to determine the eight-team field in the upcoming NCAA Division I playoffs. … Junior F Christine Bestland ranks fifth nationally with 61 points and fourth with 2.10 points per game. She also ranks among the national leaders in goals (23), goals per game (0.82), assists (38), assists per game (1.31), power-play goals (nine) and game-winning goals (six). … Sophomore D Molly Byrne is tied for fourth among all defensemen with 28 points and 0.97 points per game. … Freshman F Emily Janiga is third among all rookies with 37 points and 1.28 points per game, one spot ahead of F Jenna Dingeldein (35 points, 1.21 per game). … Mercyhurst senior Stephanie Ciampa (13-1-0 record, 1.24 goals-against average, .941 save percentage, four shutouts) and Syracuse junior Kallie Billadeau (14-6-0, 1.35, .947, six shutouts) are two of the nation’s top goaltenders. … The Orange have relied on the nation’s eighth-best scoring defense (1.93 goals per game). They are only 16th in scoring offense (2.80 goals per game).

- Victor Fernandes

JAMESTOWN, N.Y. – The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team felt right at home at Jamestown Savings Bank Ice Arena.
Behind a potent offense left by Christine Bestland’s six points and Jenna Dingeldein‘s two goals, the No. 6 Lakers dominated Lindenwood from start to finish in a 10-0 College Hockey America win Friday afternoon in a game that was initially scheduled for Mercyhurst Ice Center.
A water main break Thursday forced Mercyhurst officials to close the school and send students home through the weekend. But the change of venue didn’t bother the Lakers (18-4-1, 9-2-0 CHA), which have won all seven career meetings with the Lions by a combined 47-3 score.
Bestland assisted on all three first-period goals on her way to six assists. Her fourth assist, on Dingeldein’s second goal, sparked a three-goal second period. Bestland also assisted on the final two of the Lakers’ four third-period goals to give her 95 career assists. She also reached 150 career points in the game. Shelby Bram added three assists, while Caroline Luczak had her first career goal and an assist. Molly Byrne added a goal and assist for the Lakers, which outshot the Lions 48-17.
Amanda Makela (eight saves) and Julia DiTondo, which made nine saves in her collegiate debut, combined on the shutout. Taylor Fairchild made 36 saves for the Lions (2-22-1, 2-8-1). The two teams conclude the weekend series today at 2 p.m. at Erie Insurance Arena.

The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team was special on special teams Friday night.
The ninth-ranked Lakers scored four power-play goals on five chances, and were a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill, on their way to a 6-3 win against Providence at Mercyhurst Ice Center. Molly Byrne scored both of her goals with the man advantage and added an assist for a three-point outing.
Christie Cicero scored twice for the Lakers (4-0-1). Jenna Hendrikx, Jenna Dingeldein and Christine Bestland had two assists apiece.
The two teams meet again Saturday at 2 p.m. at MIC.

SUMMARY

Mercyhurst 6, Providence 3
Providence 0 2 1 — 3
Mercyhurst 0 3 3 — 6
1st Period — None. Penalties — Chippy (M) body checking, 3:02; Hanrahan (P) holding, 15:18.
2nd Period — 1. Mercyhurst, Molly Byrne 2 (Dingeldein, Bestland), 2:01 (pp). 2. Mercyhurst, Vaila Higson 1 (Luczak, Dingeldein), 2:44 (pp). 3. Providence, Molly Illikainen 2 (Anderson), 16:33. 4. Mercyhurst, Byrne 3 (Bestland, Hendrikx), 19:00 (pp). 5. Providence, Rebecca Morse 1 (Romanchuk), 19:25. Penalties — Anderson (P) interference, :53; Vella (P) interference, 1:17; DeSutter (M) holding, 7:04; DeSutter (M) interference, 10:44; Cohen (P) holding, 17:15; Byrne (M) slashing, 19:44.
3rd Period — 6. Mercyhurst, Emily Janiga 6 (Hendrikx, Byrne), 4:19 (pp). 7. Providence, Allison Micheletti 1 (Groth, Vella), 14:08. 8. Mercyhurst, Christie Cicero 2 (Buquet), 17:02. 9. Mercyhurst, Cicero 3 (Bram), 19:48 (en). Penalties — Morse (P) tripping, 3:36; Dingeldein (M) roughing, 5:02; Cicero (M) cross checking, 14:17.
Shots on goal — Providence, 8-11-8—27; Mercyhurst, 9-14-16—39.
Goaltenders — Providence, Sarah Bryant 1-1-0 (38 shots, 33 saves); Mercyhurst, Amanda Makela 2-0-1 (27 shots, 24 saves).
Power plays — Providence (0-5), Mercyhurst (4-5).
Attendance — 750.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – The Mercyhurst University women’s hockey team didn’t start fast this time around.
The 10th-ranked Lakers didn’t score in the first period after scoring twice in the opening 18 seconds in Friday’s season opener.
But the Lakers responded strong in the final two periods of a 7-0 College Hockey America win against Rochester Institute of Technology Saturday afternoon in front of 630 at James Ritter Memorial Ice Arena. Mercyhurst (2-0-0, 2-0-0 CHA) swept the season-opening series from the Tigers (0-2-0, 0-2-0), which are in their first season as a NCAA Division I program.
Freshman Emily Janiga provided the offensive spark with the first three goals and four points of her collegiate career. She snapped a scoreless tie 8 minutes, 15 seconds into the second period, and scored again 5 minutes later. She also assisted on Shelby Bram‘s goal that opened a 3-0 lead with 1:13 left in the period.
Janiga capped her first career hat trick 6:31 into the third. Christine Bestland scored twice in the period – her second and third goals of the season – and added two assists for a four-point outing. Kelsey Welch, one of three transfers from Niagara, scored her first goal as a Laker. Fellow transfers Jenna Hendrikx and Kaleigh Chippy had an assist apiece. Molly Byrne and Vaila Higson each had two assists for the Lakers, which went 3-for-9 on the power play after failing on all eight chances Friday.
Senior goaltender Stephanie Ciampa stopped all 17 shots she faced for her first career shutout in her sixth career start. The Lakers head to Hamden, Conn., next weekend for a two-game non-conference series at Quinnipiac.

Mercyhurst senior forward Kelley Steadman headlined the annual College Hockey America Tournament banquet by being unanimously named player of the year.

She led the conference with 15 goals, six power-play goals and two short-handed goals. She also finished with 23 points in 12 CHA games.

Freshman Molly Byrne was named the best defenseman and selected to the All-CHA first team and All-Rookie Team. She led all CHA defensemen with 14 points and has 33 points overall.

Senior forward Bailey Bram, senior defenseman Jill Szandzik and sophomore forward Christine Bestland also were named to the first team. Senior forward Jess Jones was named to the second team as well as a co-recipient of the Best Defensive Award. Robert Morris’ Paul Colontino, a former student, player and coach at Mercyhurst, was named coach of the year.

Mercyhurst senior forward Kelley Steadman and freshman defenseman Molly Byrne were named College Hockey America player and rookie of the month for January, respectively, the league announced Wednesday.

Steadman had 10 goals, including two hat tricks, and 12 points in leading the fifth-ranked Lakers to a 4-1-1 record this past month. She leads NCAA Division in goals per game (1.08) and third with 26 goals.

Byrne had a goal and eight points in six games. Her seven assists ranked second on the team, while her point total was fourth. She stands fifth on the team in scoring with 26 points (four goals, 22 assists).

Mercyhurst College’s Jess Jones, Hillary Pattenden and Molly Byrne swept College Hockey America’s three weekly honors, which were released Monday. Jones, a senior forward, was named player of the week after totaling three goals and five points in a two-game weekend split with Cornell.

Pattenden, a senior goaltender, made 27 saves in a 5-4 loss to the third-ranked Big Red on Friday. She stopped 33-of-35 shots in a 5-2 win on Saturday. Byrne, a defenseman, shared rookie honors with Syracuse forward Nicole Ferrara. Byrne had a goal and three points against the Big Red.

Meanwhile, the Lakers (11-3-0) remained sixth in the latest USCHO.com Division I poll, which was released Monday, after a weekend split with No. 3 Cornell (10-2). Wisconsin (17-1-0) and Minnesota (15-3-0) are still 1-2 in the poll. Boston College (12-4-1), which host Mercyhurst in a two-game series Friday and Saturday, and North Dakota (11-6-1) completed the top five.