Niagara Weekly Game Notes
NU Closes Out Home Schedule
Niagara closes out its home schedule with a series against the Syracuse Orange this weekend as both teams are battling for second place in the CHA standings. NU and SU split their first series this season at Syracuse in November.
The Purple Eagles lie two points behind the Orange entering this weekend. Niagara split last weekend’s series against conference foe and then-No. 1 Mercyhurst and is coming off of its biggest victory in program history. The Purple Eagles defeated the Lakers, 2-1, on Jan. 30 for their first-ever win against a number one ranked team.
Niagara returns to Dwyer to play its final two home games. NU is 3-6-3 at home this season and 2-2-2 at home in conference play.
Ready for Action
s Niagara accomplished a program first this past weekend when it defeated then-No. 1 Mercyhurst, 2-1, on Saturday afternoon. It was the first-time Niagara has ever beaten a number one ranked team.
s The Purple Eagles won their first game versus the Lakers since March 6, 2004 and snapped Mercyhurst’s 16-game unbeaten streak and its 26-game CHA unbeaten streak.
s Junior goaltender Jenni Bauer was named CHA Defensive Player of the Week on Feb. 1 for her performance against Mercyhurst. She had .976 save percentage, 1.00 GAA and a season-high 44 saves in the win. She won the award for the third time this season and sixth time in her two seasons at NU.
s Niagara is in third place in the CHA with 10 points, two points behind Syracuse.
s NU received one vote in this week's USCHO.com and USA Today Polls.
s Freshman forward Jenna Hendrikx leads the team with 11 goals and 19 points. She is 14th in the CHA in points and is second among CHA freshmen in goals.
Purps Receiving Top 10 Votes
Niagara has once again received votes in the USCHO.com Poll. On Feb. 1, the Purple and White earned a vote in the poll after not receiving a vote the past two weeks. It marked the seventh time they received votes this season.
On Feb. 2, the Purple Eagles received one vote in the USA Today/USA Hockey for the fourth time this season.
The Purple Eagles have played four teams on their schedule that were in the Top 10: No. 1 Mercyhurst, No. 4 New Hampshire, No. 6 Cornell and No. 8 Northeastern.
The USCHO.com Poll is compiled weekly and consists of 15 voters, including 12 coaches of Division I programs and three women’s hockey writers. USCHO.com provides in-depth coverage of college sports, including hockey, lacrosse, soccer and others.
Program First
The Niagara women’s hockey team accomplished a program first this afternoon. The Purple Eagles defeated No. 1 Mercyhurst, 2-1, for their first-ever win over a number one ranked team.
The Purple Eagles have come close to beating a number one ranked team earlier this season. NU played No. 1 Mercyhurst to a 2-2 tie on Nov. 20 at Dwyer.
Niagara won its first game versus the Lakers since March 6, 2004 and snapped Mercyhurst’s 16-game unbeaten streak and its 26-game CHA unbeaten streak. The Purple Eagles also stopped their four-game losing skid and moved into a second place tie with Syracuse in the CHA standings.
Now on the Ice
Syracuse Orange (15-12-1)
Syracuse heads to Monteagle Ridge winners of two in-a-row after sweeping CHA foe Wayne State last weekend to snap its four-game losing streak. The Orange has the conference’s next three highest points scorers behind Mercyhurt’s five players. Freshman Isabel Menard leads the team with 31 points and is sixth in the CHA in points. Goalie Lucy Schoedel leads the CHA in saves.
Against the Orange
All-time record vs. the Orange (2-3-2)
Niagara is 2-1-0 in its last three meetings against the ‘Cuse. Niagara went 0-2-2 in its first four meetings against Syracuse in the ‘Cuse inaugural 2008-09 season. The Purple Eagles were held at home with identical 1-1 ties on Jan. 17-18. SU topped NU, 2-1 and 3-1, in Syracuse two weeks later.
The Purple Eagles won their first game against the Orange on March 5, 2009. Niagara erased two one-goal deficits and scored the game-winner with less than three minutes in the third period
Last Meeting – November 17, 2009
Niagara 3, Syracuse 2
SYRACUSE, N.Y. - The Niagara women’s hockey team defeated the Syracuse Orange, 3-2, on Saturday afternoon to earn a weekend split in its conference opening series. Niagara erased two one-goal deficits to win its first conference game of the season.
Bauer Grabs CHA Honors
Junior netminder Jenni Bauer collected her third CHA Defensive Player of the Week award on Monday, Feb. 1 after winning the award on Nov. 16 and 30.
Bauer displayed an iron clad performance in net for the Purple Eagles at then-No. 1 Mercyhurst on Jan. 29-30. She had a .976 save percentage (83 out of 85) and limited the nation’s top offensive squad to one goal in each game. On Friday night, she set a then-season-high 39 saves and followed that performance with a season-best 44 saves in NU’s 2-1 win over the Lakers.
Bauer earned her sixth career CHA Defensive Player of the Week award after picking up the honors three times last season.