Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Women’s Notes: Lavender Leads Knights
Senior Netminder Records 97-Save Weekend
Saint Michael’s earned a four-point weekend against conference opponent Long Island, marking its first win over LIU since Nov. 2, 2019. Seven of the last 10 meetings between the teams have been decided by two goals or fewer, with four going to overtime.
Saturday’s team effort featured three different goal scorers and eight players recording points, with senior netminder and assistant captain Annika Lavender (Wayzata, Minnesota) continuing to be a catalyst between the pipes for the Purple Knights. Her performance over the weekend earned her NEWHA Goalie of the Week honors.
Lavender faced 99 shots over the weekend, making 97 saves while allowing just two goals for a .980 save percentage. The senior now has 47 career games with at least 40 saves and recorded her sixth career 50-save performance.
A look into the Saint Michael’s record book highlights her impact: Lavender ranks second all-time in career saves with 2,419, just 94 shy of Erin Stevens’ (‘13) school record of 2,513. She also holds three of the top 10 single-game save totals, including a 69-save effort against then-No. 3 Clarkson in September 2024.
Lavender has two seasons in the top 10 for total saves, including the program record 1,171 saves in 2023-24. She ranks second in career minutes played, trailing only Stevens’ 4,262:49.
The Purple Knights hit the road to face Harvard on Friday before returning to conference play the following weekend against Sacred Heart.
Daily Scoreboard | National Schedule | Scoring Leaders | Goaltending Leaders
Must Read:
Daily Gazette: It will be a family reunion for Halls at Women’s Ice Breaker Tournament
ESPN: University of St. Joseph will field men’s, women’s hockey in 2026
NCAA: Breaking down the top conference contenders heading into women’s hockey conference play
NE Hockey Journal: Here’s where the 2007 girls are headed
Sports Illustrated: Wisconsin Holds Firm as Team to Beat in Women’s College Hockey
The Boston Globe: Northeastern captain Lily Shannon has never let her hearing loss become an obstacle
The PWHL: Montreal Victoire Sign First Round Draft Pick Nicole Gosling
The Star Tribune: Gophers remains undefeated with 5-3 victory over No. 10 St. Cloud State
USCHO: Women’s Hockey Weekend Wrap – October 13, 2025
Must Hear & Watch:
Crease Huddles: Crease Hudles EP2: Attack of the Schedules
KeyC News Now: Mankato elementary students fill arena to support Mavericks
Ride to the Rink: Jessie Thompson on Overcoming the “I Don’t Wanna” Days
The Hockey News: Yale University’s Olivia Muhn Leads On and Off the Ice
Early Season Streaks
Eight players have opened the 2025-26 season riding point streaks of at least four games. Wisconsin senior forward Kirsten Simms (Plymouth, MI), Minnesota graduate forward Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park, Ill.), Penn State forward Maddy Christian (Elk River, Minn.), and Minnesota forward Ava Lindsay (Minnetonka, Minn.) have all recorded points in six straight games.
Murphy leads the nation in scoring and has tallied a goal in each of Minnesota’s six contests, including four multi-goal performances. Christian has scored in four consecutive games for Penn State, with three of those goals standing as game-winners.
Fast Start Freshmen:
Adjusting to the speed of college hockey is no easy task, but several freshmen are wasting no time making their mark this season. Among players with at least four games played, seven are averaging over a point per game, while nine others are right at one point per game.
Boston College forward Ava Thomas (Downingtown, Pa.) leads the charge with 11 points (5g, 6a) in just five games — good for 2.2 points per game and tied for third in national scoring. She’s also tallied two game-winning goals for the Eagles.
Penn State defender Danica Maynard (Lake Country, B.C.) has been steady from the blue line, recording nine points (2g, 7a) through six games. At Ohio State, forward Hilda Svensson (Oskarshamn, Sweden) collected her first career game winning goal in the Buckeyes’ 2–1 win over Bemidji State and sits at six points (3g, 3a) in four games.
Other rookies off to strong starts include Clarkson’s Sara Manness (Winnipeg, Man.), who has six assists in four games – including a three-point performance against Merrimack – and Minnesota’s Anabella Fanale (Webster, N.Y.), who opened her career with a six-point weekend and now totals eight points (4g, 4a) in six contests.
On the back end, Ohio State defender Jenna Raunio (Husqvarna, Sweden) has five assists in four games, while Robert Morris forward Jessica MacKinnon (Clarks Harbour, N.S.) has matched that production with eight points (2g, 6a) in six games, including a game-winner last Friday against RIT.
Cata-Mounts Comeback & Upset:
The Vermont Catamounts went 1-0-1 last weekend against No. 12 St. Lawrence, earning a tie on Friday and a win on Saturday at Appleton Arena.
Friday night featured a dramatic finish as junior forward Morgann Skoda (Montreal, Quebec) scored with 4.6 seconds remaining in regulation to force a 1-1 tie. Junior goaltender Ellie Simmons (Buffalo, New York) made 33 saves, setting a career high and while Skoda’s goal was her first as a Catamount.
Saturday’s rematch remained scoreless through two periods before sophomore forward Oona Havana (Turku, Finland) delivered the overtime winner. Havana extended her point streak to four games and freshman goalie Zoe Cliché (Ottawa, Ontario) stopped 25 shots in her collegiate debut to backstop the victory.
Full Slate Ahead:
Between Thursday and Sunday, 42 of the 45 women’s teams will hit the ice. Follow along for scores and highlights all weekend long, here.
Top 15 Matchups:
Friday, Oct. 17 – No. T-15 Princeton at No. 11 Connecticut, No. T-15 Mercyhurst at No. 6 Penn State, No. 12 Northeastern at No. 7 Quinnipiac.
Saturday, Oct. 18 – No. T-15 Princeton at No. 11 Connecticut, No. T-15 Mercyhurst at No. 6 Penn State, No. 12 Northeastern at No. 7 Quinnipiac, No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Minnesota.
Sunday, Oct. 19 – No. 2 Ohio State at No. 3 Minnesota
Notebook Quotebook:
“Yeah, it was super exciting for the group. I think we were pretty motivated coming into the weekend to bounce back from last weekend and focus on doing the little things the right way, and I think we accomplished that in the end.”
— Colgateforward Emma Pais (Jr., London, Ontario) comments on the Raider’s bounce back to sweep Boston University. Source: Emma Pais and Alexis Petford Postgame Press Conference
PWHL Note of the Week:
The Professional Women’s Hockey League released its preseason schedule and key dates ahead of the 2025–26 season.
Training camps open Nov. 7, with national team players joining on Nov. 9. Full on-ice practices begin Nov. 10 for Boston, Minnesota, Ottawa and Vancouver, and Nov. 11 for New York, Seattle and Toronto.
Preseason games start Nov. 13, including Minnesota at New York at Codey Arena, while other matchups include Montreal hosting Boston and Vancouver hosting Seattle.
Teams must submit final rosters by Nov. 19, with the regular season set to begin Nov. 21.
Fries at the Bottom of the Bag:
RIT junior forward Linda Rulle (Pale, Latvia) scored her first career short-handed goal in the Tigers’ 5-1 win over Robert Morris on Friday … Boston University senior forward Lily Shanon (Andover, Mass.) posted the first four-point game of her career in Saturday’s win over RPI … St. Thomas graduate goalie Julia Minotti (Laval, Quebec) posted a season-high 26 saves in the Tommie’s Friday win over Minnesota State … New Hampshire senior forward Kelly Harty (Billerica, Mass.) is on a three-game goal streak … Merrimack Netminder Adreanna Doucette (So., Millbury, Mass.) recorded her fist win as a Warrior making 43 saves against Lindenwood on Saturday … The RIT power play is converting at 40% with 10 goals on 25 opportunities … Wisconsin’s penalty kill has yet to surrender a goal this season … Senior goalie Ava Hill (Pembroke, NH) made 50 saves for Bemidji State on Saturday in their 2-1 loss to Ohio State … Ohio State leads the nation in face off percentage at 67.4%.
Conference Websites
Atlantic Hockey America | ECAC Hockey | Hockey East | NEWHA | WCHA
College Hockey Inc. Resources:
- 2024-25 Women’s Conference Honors
- NCAA and the PWHL
- NCAA Alumnae Selected in the 2025 PWHL Draft
- 2024-25 NCAA Alumnae in the PWHL
Did you know? 97% of NCAA Division I women’s hockey players earn their degree!