Princeton University Athletics
Women's Hockey Looks to Shut Down Northeastern and Boston College this Weekend
December 09, 2004 | Women's Ice Hockey
Dec. 9, 2004
Princeton, N.J. - The Princeton women's hockey team (7-4-2; 3-3-1 ECACHL) closes out 2004 with a pair of non-conference games this weekend at Northeastern (2-12-1; 1-4 Hockey East) and Boston College (4-10-1; 1-6-1 Hockey East). Princeton has held its opponents scoreless in its past three games and brings a 234:29 shutout streak into this weekend's games.
Defense has been Princeton's key to success this season. The Tigers have not allowed an opponent to score more than two goals in any of their seven wins, and have allowed four goals in a game only once this season. Princeton has not allowed more than two goals in a game since a 3-0 loss at Mercyhurst on Nov. 20, and has shutout its last three opponents, Connecticut, Colgate and Cornell. Friday's 0-0 tie with Colgate was the first scoreless tie in the history of Princeton women's hockey.
The string of three consecutive shutouts is the longest for a Princeton team since the 1994-95 season when the Tigers shut out five consecutive opponents. In that stretch, Princeton downed Yale, Harvard, Dartmouth, St. Lawrence and Bowdoin. Princeton also shut out three consecutive opponents in its inaugural season of women's hockey, 1979-80, when it topped Wesleyan, Connecticut and Yale. To increase the streak to four games, Princeton will have to shut down Northeastern on Saturday afternoon at Matthews Arena. The Huskies are 2-12-1 on the season and 1-4 in Hockey East. They face New Hampshire on Thursday night before the Princeton game. They have been shut out three times this season, on the road at Niagara and New Hampshire, and on home ice against Wisconsin.
Northeastern is 24-10-2 all time against Princeton and 13-4-1 against Princeton at home. Last season the two teams played early in the season, also at Matthews Arena, with the Huskies pulling off a 3-2 overtime win. Princeton's last win in the series came on Dec. 1, 2002 at Baker Rink. Princeton has never shut out Northeastern. The only common opponent thus far between Northeastern and Princeton has been Brown. The Tigers defeated Brown 3-2 while the Bears defeated Northeastern 6-1.
On Sunday the Tigers will visit the Conte Forum to face Boston College. Princeton is undefeated in 17 contests with the Eagles, sporting an overall record of 15-0-2. The Tigers are 8-0 in road games. Princeton has won the last two meetings, 4-1 two seasons ago and 8-0 last year. Three years ago the teams tied 3-3 in Princeton. Princeton and BC have three common opponents so far this season. BC lost to Providence twice, while Princeton was 1-0-1 against the Friars. BC defeated Vermont twice, to one win for the Tigers, and both teams fell to Dartmouth; Princeton lost 3-0 and BC lost 7-1.
Junior goaltender Roxanne Gaudiel has backstopped the Tigers in all 13 games this season. She already has recorded four shutouts this season, which when combined with the two shutouts she brought into the year, puts her fourth in the Princeton record books for career shutouts. She has a 1.53 goal-against average and a .937 save percentage this season.
On the offensive side of the ice, Princeton is hoping to for a spark to help increase goal production. Sophomores Laura Watt and Liz Keady each have hit double digits in points, but the Tigers will look to the entire offensive unit to help pick up the pace in order to produce more goals. Princeton has scored just seven goals in its last four games, with one of those coming against an empty net.