W. hockey hosts Colgate, Cornell

This weekend, the women's hockey team is looking to get its conference season back on its traditional winning track.

The No. 9 Tigers (6-4-1 overall, 2-3 Eastern College Athletic Conference Hockey League) host Colgate (6-7, 1-3) on Friday and Cornell (3-4-1, 3-3) on Saturday in the friendly confines of Baker Rink. A sweep this weekend would give the Tigers a winning league record for the first time since Nov. 13.

But winning this weekend will be no sure thing for the Tigers.

"We have had a lot of traditional success against Colgate and Cornell," head coach Jeff Kampersal '92 said, "but both teams have gotten a lot better recently. They are well coached, and both matches should be pretty even."

Still the key for the Tigers will be their own level of play.

"We try not to worry ourselves too much with the other teams," Kampersal said. "We need to work on scoring more goals through more shots and crowding more players in front of the net."

Colgate first joined the ECAC in the 2000-2001 season, suffering a typically dismal first year. Since then, they have improved greatly, and this season they managed some impressive upset wins.

On Oct. 17, they defeated then-No. 8 Providence, 2-1, in the second game of their season. They are coming into Friday's game fresh off a 3-1 victory over traditional powerhouse Maine last Sunday.

The Raiders have a potent offense that is led by junior forward Becky Irvine. Irvine leads the team with eight goals, including two goals in only four conference games. She also leads the team with 14 points, including six assists.

Senior forward Amanda Barre also plays a large role in the offense, having chipped in five goals and a team-leading eight assists. Barre also scored the game-winner against Maine.

In the net, the Raiders have a goalkeeping tandem, with senior Rebecca Lahar and sophomore Brook Wheeler splitting time. Lahar has a .910 save percentage with two shutouts, while Wheeler has a .921 save percentage with one shutout.

Wheeler has seen most of the playing time in conference games, so the Tigers are likely to face off against her.

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Cornell, on the other hand, comes into the game devoid of momentum. They have lost two of their last three, including an 8-2 shellacking by Dartmouth.

Throughout the season the Big Red have been dealt a number of blowout losses, including 8-2 to Harvard and 5-0 to Wayne State. Cornell, however, still finds itself with a .500 league record, having twice defeated cellar-dweller Union.

Like Colgate, the Big Red have two goalies that split time evenly; however, one is markedly more effective than the other for Cornell.

Junior Flora Vineberg has a .905 save percentage and a 2-1 record. In contrast, sophomore Beth Baronick has an .821 save percentage, letting in an astounding six goals per game, for a 1-2 record.

Offensively, junior forward Jen Munhofen and sophomore forwards Halina Kristalsyn and Caroline Scott are all tied for the team lead in points with six. Munhofen has one goal and five assists, while both sophomores have three goals and three assists apiece. Freshman forward Brianne Schmidt leads the team with four goals.

After this weekend, the Tigers will play their last games of 2004 at Northeastern and Boston College on December 11 and 12, respectively.