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Women's Hockey March 16, 2016

Clarkson Women's Hockey Returns to Frozen Four

PDF of Tournament notes

Making its second Frozen Four appearance in three years the Clarkson University Women's Hockey team has its sights set upon adding another National Championship trophy to the display case at Cheel Arena to go alongside the one the Golden Knights won in 2014.

Guided by eighth-year head coach Matt Desrosiers and assistant coaches Meghan Duggan and Britni Smith, Clarkson stands at 30-4-5.  The Golden Knights placed second in the ECAC Hockey standings with a 14-3-5 league mark, just three points shy of claiming their third straight conference regular season title.

Clarkson will be joined by an accomplished group on the Whittemore Center ice at the University of New Hampshire this weekend. Rounding out the foursome in Durham, NH are the top three seeds in the tournament - #1 Boston College, #2 Wisconsin and #3 Minnesota.

After defeating fourth-seeded Quinnipiac 1-0 in the quarterfinals this past Saturday in Hamden, CT, the Knights will now face the undefeated Boston College Eagles of Hockey East in Friday's first semifinal game. Faceoff is slated for 4:00 p.m. WCHA rivals Wisconsin and Minnesota will battle in the second semifinal game, starting at 7:00 p.m. Friday's winners will square off on Sunday, beginning at 2:00 p.m. to determine who will be crowned the champion of the 16th NCAA Women's Hockey Championship. 
 
 Frozen Four Coverage
All three games will be streamed live at NCAA.com for free, audio on B99.3 FM and live stats. The 2016 National Championship game is scheduled to air on tape-delay on CBS  Networks next Sunday, March 27 as well.
The four nationally renowned programs in Durham this weekend have combined to claim 10 of the first 15 NCAA Championships, including the last five. 

Defending National Champion Minnesota has won five overall titles, including three of the last four. The Gophers streak was interrupted by Clarkson in 2014 when the Green and Gold earned the University's first NCAA Championship in any sport. 

Wisconsin has won four titles with the last coming in 2011. Duggan, behind the Clarkson bench now, helped the Badgers to three of those championships (2007, 2009, 2011).  Also on Wisconsin's 2007 National Championship team was Emily Morris, the oldest daughter of former Clarkson Men's Head Coach Mark Morris.

The lone team in Durham this weekend to not have won a national title, Boston College will be looking to cap off a perfect season with the NCAA crown. The Eagles are 39-0-0.

• Clarkson broke out of a six-game winless stretch (0-5-1) against Quinnipiac with Saturday's quarterfinal win at High Points Solution Arena, the only home loss of the season for the Bobcats.  Senior defenseman Renata Fast lived up to her surname scoring the quickest goal in NCAA Tournament history just 10 seconds after the opening faceoff for the game's lone goal. Sophomore Shea Tiley backstopped a solid Clarkson defensive effort with 14 saves. The Knights outshot the Bobcats 29-14.
• The Knights, who made their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2010,  are 4-3 overall in national tournament games, having gone 2-3 in quarterfinal round action, 1-0 in the semifinals and 1-0 in the championship game. Clarkson is 3-0 in NCAA games played at Quinnipiac's High Points Solutions Arena.
• Friday's semifinal game will be the third consecutive meeting between Clarkson and Boston College in the NCAA Tournament. The Knights won the first encounter against the Eagles in the national playoffs with a 3-1 quarterfinal victory in Potsdam on March 15, 2014. Boston College won a quarterfinal round game last year, 5-1 in Chestnut Hill on March 14, 2015. The Eagles lead the all-time series 6-4-3.
• Clarkson and Minnesota have played six times with the Gophers winning five. Clarkson, however, won the one that meant the most. In their last meeting the Knights defeated Minnesota 5-4 in the 2014 NCAA Championship game. 
• The all-time series against Wisconsin is only two games. The Teams skated to a 1-1 tie in Madison, WI on January 24, 2015 and the Badgers shutout Clarkson the following day, 4-0.
• Clarkson is led by the four-member Class of 2016 – Captain Shannon Mac-Aulay and assistant captains Erin Ambrose, Renata Fast and Olivia Howe. The most successful class in Clarkson Women's Hockey history, the seniors have combined to help Clarkson win 113 games, earn two ECAC Hockey Regular Season titles, compete four times in the NCAA Tournament and win the 2014 National Championship.
• Clarkson has won 19 of its last 20 games. The Knights' only set back in 2016 was the 1-0 loss at Quinnipiac in the ECAC Hockey Tournament Championship game, which the Green and Gold avenged later in the week with the NCAA quarterfinal victory in Hamden, CT.
• The 2015-16 Golden Knights are the second team in Clarkson's 13-year history to reach 30 wins with a 30-4-5 overall record heading into Frozen Four. The 2013-14 squad set a school record for victories with a 31-5-5 slate, capped off by the National Championship.
• Clarkson has been ranked among the Top 5 teams in the national polls throughout the majority of the season.
• A big reason for this year's success was the Knights play at Cheel Arena. Clarkson was 17-2-1 in Potsdam in 2015-16 one of the best home records in the nation. The Green and Gold outscored the opponents 76-27 on their home ice. Through the program's first 13 years, Clarkson has posted 165 of its 281 all-time wins at Cheel.
• The Green and Gold went 12-2-4 in away games and won their only neutral site contest this year when they skated past Colgate 5-2 in the ECAC Hockey semifinals in Hamden, CT on March 5.
• Clarkson is 21-1-2 when scoring first, 16-1-2 when leading after the opening period and unbeaten, 24-0-2 when leading through 40 minutes. The Knights are 1-2-1 when trailing after two periods. 
• Clarkson has yet to win an overtime game this season, going 0-1-5. The Knights' last overtime game was a 2-2 tie at Quinnipiac on February 13.
• The Knights have outshot all but two of their opponents this season.
• The Knights where a perfect 8-0 against Hockey East competition this year. Clarkson shut out Vermont in a home-and home series (5-0, 3-0), won two at Boston University (4-2, 4-1) and swept UNH (4-2, 6-4) and Connecticut (3-1, 3-2) at Cheel Arena. 
• Three of Clarkson's 11 all-time 100-point scorers are playing in the Frozen Four with two other current Knights on the verge of joining the Green and Gold's elite Century Club. 
• One of the top offensive threats in the country, Cayley Mercer leads the Knights offensively with a team-high 25 goals and 49 assists through 39 games. The junior assistant captain ranks seventh on Clarkson's all-time scoring chart with 115 career points on 51 goals and 64 assists through 118 games. Mercer was name a first-team ECAC Hockey All-Star for the second consecutive year. 
• The most prolific scorer from the blueline in Clarkson's history, Erin Ambrose is the Knights' fourth all-time leading scorer with 137 points and is tied with Jamie Lee Rattray for most career assists at Clarkson with 104 through 131 games. The senior assistant captain has 28 points and 21 assists playing in 29 games this season. Ambrose joined Mercer has a first team ECAC Hockey All-Star and was also selected to the conference's all-tournament team. 
• Tied as Clarkson's second-leading scorer, Olivia Howe has tallied 37 points through 38 games on 16 goals and 21 assists. She shares the team in game-winning goals with five. The senior assistant captain has 100 career points (42-58) through 151 games. Howe was named a second-team ECAC Hockey All-Star.
• Clarkson's captain, Shannon MacAulay is one point shy of joining the Knights' Century Club with 99 career points on 47 goals and 52 assists through 154 games, the most played by any current Golden Knight. MacAulay has scored her biggest goals in the NCAA Tournament with three tallies, including the game-winner on an unassisted breakaway in the 2014 NCAA Championship game 5-4 win over Minnesota. MacAulay has 26 points (9-17) this season
• Junior Genevieve Bannon is tied with Howe as the Green and Gold' second-leading scorer with 11 goals and 26 assists. She is closing in on 100 career points with 34 goals and 62 assists through 118 games. Bannon is tied for the team lead in plus/minus at +36 along with Mercer.
• Loren Gabel has emerged as an offensive force in her rookie campaign. She has scored the second most goals in the nation among freshman with 19 and as set up nine more goals for 27 points. Gabel was named to ECAC Hockey's All-Rookie team.
• Freshman Kelly Mariani shares the team lead in game-winning goals with five of her nine goals being the deciding tally.
• Only a sophomore, Shea Tiley has already surpassed 50 career wins with 51 entering her first Frozen Four. Tiley recorded her third career postseason shutout and 18th career whitewash with 14 saves in the 1-0 win over Quinnipiac last Saturday. Tiley ranks sixth in the nation in goals against average (1.32), 15th in save percentage (.931), seventh in winning percentage (.819) and is tied for fifth in shutouts (9). 
• Boston College has steamrolled through the season at 39-0-0, outscoring its opponents 209-46. The closest the Eagles have come to having a blemish put on their perfect season was a 4-3 overtime win over rival Boston University on November 10. BC defeated Northeastern 5-1 in Saturday's quarterfinal round. Boston College has posted 14 shutouts. Alex Carpenter a Top Three Finalist for the 2016 Patty Kazmaier Award powers the nation's leading offense. She has 85 points (43-42) in 39 games. Katie Burt backstops the Eagles' defensive effort with a .945 save percentage and a 1.15 GAA.
• Wisconsin, which boasts the best team defense in the country, owns a 35-3-1 record and won its last five games all by shutout. The Badgers blanked Mercyhurst 6-0 in the quarterfinals after shutting out Minnesota 1-0 in the WCHA Final Face-Off Championship on March 6.  Ann-Renee Desbiens, a finalist for the Kazmaier Award, has posted 21 of Wisconsin's 23 shutouts behind a ,962 save percentage and a 0.71 GAA. Annie Pankowski paces the Badgers' offense with 58 points (22-26).
• Minnesota is 33-4-1 on the year and has suffered just one loss in its last 19 games, the 1-0 setback to Wisconsin in the WCHA Championship game. The Golden Gophers defeated Princeton 6-2 in the quarterfinals. Dani Cameranesi leads the Minnesota offense with 68 points (33-35). Amanda Leveille posts a .941 save percentage and a 1.28 GAA starting 32 games in the Gophers' net.
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Players Mentioned

Erin Ambrose

#23 Erin Ambrose

D
5' 5"
Senior
Genevieve Bannon

#9 Genevieve Bannon

F
5' 8"
Junior
Renata Fast

#12 Renata Fast

D
5' 7"
Senior
Olivia Howe

#16 Olivia Howe

F
5' 10"
Senior
Shannon MacAulay

#4 Shannon MacAulay

F
5' 11"
Senior
Cayley Mercer

#18 Cayley Mercer

F
5' 8"
Junior
Shea Tiley

#35 Shea Tiley

G
5' 10"
Sophomore
Loren Gabel

#19 Loren Gabel

F
5' 4"
Freshman
Kelly Mariani

#26 Kelly Mariani

F
5' 3"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Erin Ambrose

#23 Erin Ambrose

5' 5"
Senior
D
Genevieve Bannon

#9 Genevieve Bannon

5' 8"
Junior
F
Renata Fast

#12 Renata Fast

5' 7"
Senior
D
Olivia Howe

#16 Olivia Howe

5' 10"
Senior
F
Shannon MacAulay

#4 Shannon MacAulay

5' 11"
Senior
F
Cayley Mercer

#18 Cayley Mercer

5' 8"
Junior
F
Shea Tiley

#35 Shea Tiley

5' 10"
Sophomore
G
Loren Gabel

#19 Loren Gabel

5' 4"
Freshman
F
Kelly Mariani

#26 Kelly Mariani

5' 3"
Freshman
F