DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – For the second straight year the St. Scholastica women's hockey team will play at Lake Forest College (Ill.) in the NCHA O'Brien Cup quarterfinals on Friday and Saturday.
Game Schedule: (Game Day Media)
Friday at Lake Forest – 7 p.m.
(Live Video)
Saturday at Lake Forest – 2 p.m.
(Live Video)
O'Brien Cup Quarterfinal Format
Two games, plus a mini-game (if necessary) – If neither team earns three points after the two games, then a 20-minute mini-game will be played immediately following game two Saturday.
About the Saints
Record: 12-9-4, 9-8-3 NCHA
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The Saints enter as the No. 6 seed in this year's tournament after being the number five seed a year ago.
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Sophomore Nina Waidacher (Arosa, Switzerland/Wirtschaftschule KV Chur (ZSC Lions/Swiss U18 National)) clinched her second consecutive league scoring title, finishing with 35 points on 14 goals and 21 assists in NCHA games.
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Waidacher also leads NCAA Division III overall with an average of 1.73 points per game.
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Waidacher has recorded 10 points in the last four games combined.
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Michelle Fischer (St. Paul, Minn./Cretin-Derham Hall) leads the nation in assists (28). She has seven points in the last four games combined.
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Gina Dodge (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS (Minn.-Duluth)) scored three goals in the regular season series finale against Marian last weekend.
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Alex Blair (Drake, Saskatchewan/Lanigan Central HS) is in the top 10 in the country for points per game by a defenseman (0.72).
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CSS is ranked eighth in the nation in scoring offense with an average of 3.68 goals per game and are fifth in the power-play with a 23.9 success rate.
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The Saints have scored two power-play goals in each of the last three games.
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Senior goaltender Teraysa White (Belgrade, Maine/Brewster Academy (New England College)) has recorded three shutouts this season and has a .913 saves percentage.
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White made a program-record 56 saves in the 3-2 overtime loss to Lake Forest at the end of January.
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CSS is 10-1-1 this season when leading at the second intermission and have won 10 games they scored first.
About the Foresters
Record: 15-5-4, 12-4-4 NCHA
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Lake Forest entered the final game of the regular season with a chance to win the conference title outright, but was defeated by UW-River Falls 5-0.
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At one point, the Foresters were on a 12-game winning streak, but since then are just 1-3.
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The last time LFC was home, they were swept by St. Norbert.
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The Foresters are 6-4-1 at home this season and are 8-1-3 on the road.
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Freshman Michelle Greeneway leads the team with 23 goals and 35 points. She leads the NCHA in goals and is fourth in points.
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Greeneway is second in the nation, averaging a one goal per game.
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Fellow freshman Melissa Paluch leads the team with 19 assists.
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Both freshmen are two of the top three scorers in NCAA Division III.
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In net, Stacey Dierking is 12-3-0 with a .936 saves percentage and a 1.73 goals-against-average.
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Lake Forest is ninth in the country in scoring offense averaging 3.46 goals per game and is eighth on the power-play with a 22.6 success rate.
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The Foresters are 12-0-3 when leading after two periods this season and are 4-1 in one-goal games.
Series History: (CSS is 0-6-2 vs. Lake Forest)
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The Foresters are just one of two NCHA teams the Saints have yet to beat in the program's three-year history (UW-River Falls).
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Lake Forest swept the Saints in Duluth during the regular season 4-1 and 3-2 in overtime.
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In the overtime loss, the Saints led entering the final two minutes of regulation, but the Foresters tied it with an extra attacker and then won 50 seconds into overtime.
