Dec. 29, 2011

Series Notes

COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Ohio State women's hockey team takes on non-conference opponent Princeton at the OSU Ice Rink in a two-game series, Dec. 30-31. The two squads face off at 2:07 p.m. Friday and conclude the weekend with a 12:07 p.m. game Saturday.

SERIES BASICS
Ohio State Buckeyes (9-7-2, 6-7-1-1 WCHA) vs. Princeton Tigers (6-9-1, 5-6-1 Ivy League)
Schedule:
Friday, Dec. 30 - 2:07 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 31 - 12:07 p.m.

Live video: Buckeye Vision (OhioStateBuckeyes.com)
Live audio: OhioStateSports.net (Friday only)
Live Stats: OhioStateBuckeyes.com
Twitter.com/OhioState_WHKY
Facebook.com/OhioStateWomensHockey 

SKATE WITH THE BUCKEYES
Be sure to head out for a special matinee game Saturday and enjoy a post-game skate with the team as we ring in 2012 at the OSU Ice Rink. Make sure to catch the Buckeyes take on the Princeton Tigers at noon and then celebrate with a free skate rental and ice time! 

WCHA STANDINGS
The Buckeyes, under first-year head coach Nate Handrahan, are fifth in WCHA standings entering the weekend. Ohio State has 20 points with a 6-7-1-1 record in conference play. Top-ranked Wisconsin is in first with 39 points (13-1-0), while Minnesota (11-3-0) and North Dakota (9-6-1) round out the Top 3. 

LAST TIME OUT: MINNESOTA
The Ohio State women's hockey team closed out the first half of the season on the road at No. 2 Minnesota and fell 4-1 and 3-1 to the Golden Gophers at Ridder Arena, Dec. 10-11.
                A pair of Buckeyes scored for Ohio State on the weekend in freshman Danielle Gagne and senior Laura McIntosh. Gagne, of Caledon, Ont., produced her fifth goal of the season in the team's opening loss to the Gophers. She notched an unassisted goal at 6:15 in the second period. McIntosh, a captain from Waterloo, Ont., scored her seventh goal of the season at 13:01 in the second the next day and was assisted by classmate Natalie Spooner. Sophomore goaltender Lisa Steffes started for the Buckeyes in both games and fell to 7-5-0 on the season. She tallied 58 saves on the weekend for a total of 299 on the year. 

BUCKEYE DUO COMPETE OVERSEAS
Sophomore Annie Svedin and junior Minttu Tuominen represented their respective countries at the 2011 Euro Hockey Tour, Dec. 16-18, held in Finland. Svedin and Team Sweden captured the tournament title, while Tuominen and Team Finland finished second. 

MECO CUP PARTICIPANTS
A trio of Buckeyes is competing in this year's Meco Cup (formerly known as the MLP Nations Cup) in Germany, Jan. 3-8. Missing in action this weekend are Laura McIntosh (Canada), Annie Svedin (Sweden) and Minttu Tuominen (Finland). Last year, McIntosh captured gold with Team Canada, while Svedin was on the silver-medal winning Swedish team. Tuominen was a part of the Finnish team that competed in the 2009 and 2010 tournaments. 

PRINCETON
The Tigers come to Columbus with a 6-9-1 overall mark and is 5-6-1 in the ECAC this season. The team is coming off a pair of losses to conference opponent Quinnipiac, Dec. 9-10.
                Three Tigers have double-digit points this season in Sally Butler, Denna Laing and Olivia Mucha. Butler leads the team with seven goals and has seven assists for 14 points, while Laing has 13 points (6g, 7a) and Mucha has 10 (4g, 6a). Rachel Weber has played and started all 16 games for Princeton in the net, notching a 2.20 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage.  

BUCKEYES VS. TIGERS
Ohio State holds a 5-4 advantage in the all-time series against Princeton. The two teams first met during the 1999-2000 season with the Tigers taking a 2-0 victory. The squads last met five years ago to the day at Princeton, Dec. 30-31, 2006. The Buckeyes opened with a 3-2 win, but the Tigers responded with a 2-1 victory the following day. 

FRESHMEN CONTRIBUTIONS
This year's newbies are quickly becoming key factors in the team's success this season. Taylor Kuehl leads all Ohio State freshmen with 10 points on 10 assists and ranks tied for 26th nationally in freshman scoring. Her 10 points also puts her tied for fifth in WCHA in freshman points. Danielle Gagne has five goals and two assists on the season, while Kayla Sullivan has two goals and one assist for the Buckeyes. Sara Schmitt has played a key role for the team's defensive strikes and has also added one goal and three assists to the team's offensive play. 

CAREER FIRSTS
A pair of Buckeyes picked up the first goals of their careers in Ohio State's 6-3 victory at Syracuse, Nov. 18. Sophomore Madison Marcotte scored the team's first goal of the game at 18:50 in the first, while freshman Sara Schmitt notched Ohio State's fifth goal at 9:22 in the third. Against Niagara on Dec. 3, sophomore Anne Svedin scored the first goal of her career at 19:29 in the first.

Career Moments

• Annie Svedin - first-career point/assist: Oct. 7 vs. Bemidji State; first-career goal: Dec. 3 vs. Niagara
• Madison Marcotte - first-career point/assist: Oct. 7 vs. Bemidji State; first-career goal: Nov. 18 at Syracuse
• Taylor Kuehl - first-career point/assist: Oct. 7 vs. Bemidji State
• Ally Tarr  - first-career hat trick: Oct. 8 vs. Bemidji State
• Kayla Sullivan - first-career point/goal: Oct. 8 vs. Bemidji State; first-career assist: Oct. 21 at North Dakota
• Danielle Gagne - first-career point/goal: Oct. 8 vs. Bemidji State; first-career goal: Oct. 14 vs. St. Cloud State
• Sara Schmitt - first-career point/assist: Oct. 22 at North Dakota; first-career goal: Nov. 18 at Syracuse 

BUCKEYE CORNER
Ohio State seniors Natalie Spooner and Laura McIntosh finished the first half of the season with 21 points apiece to lead all Buckeyes. Spooner notched a team-best 15 goals over 16 games played with six assists, while McIntosh totaled a team-high 14 assists and seven goals in 18 appearances. Highlighting the first 18 games were a pair of four-goal performances from Spooner (Oct. 7; Nov. 25) and a hat trick from sophomore Ally Tarr (Oct. 8). Tarr is second on the squad with eight goals and third overall with 14 total points. Junior Hokey Langan has 11 points (5g, 6a) and freshman Taylor Kuehl leads all Ohio State rookies with 10 points (10a).
                Goaltender Lisa Steffes concluded the beginning half of the year with a 2.67 goals-against average and a .906 save percentage over 14 games played (12 starts). The Amherstburg, Ontario, product stands at 7-5-0 on the season.

UP NEXT
The Buckeyes return to WCHA play when they travel to St. Cloud, Minn., for a two-game conference series against St. Cloud State, Jan. 6-7. Both games will be played at the National Hockey Center.