UVM WOMEN'S HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
The Vermont women's hockey team opens up the 2016-17 home schedule on Sunday (Oct. 9) with a 2 p.m. game against Hockey East rival Boston University. BU is ranked ninth in this week's USCHO Division I Women's Poll and slotted 10th in the weekly USA Today Poll.
 
Fans unable to make it to Gutterson Fieldhouse for the contest can follow along for free with live video through CatamounTV.com.
 
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CATAMOUNTS RECAP
UVM had three different goal scorers on Tuesday night as Ève-Audrey Picard, Mackenzie MacNeil and Taylor Willard lit the lamp en route to a 5-2 season-opening win at Union. Senior Madison Litchfield turned aside 21 shots in the victory. The Catamounts also were 3-for-4 on the penalty kill while notching two power play goals on the night.
 
Vermont has now topped the Dutchwomen in all 20 meetings in series history.
 
SCOUTING BOSTON UNIVERSITY
The Terriers (1-0-0, 1-0-0 WHEA) kicked off the regular season on Sunday, Sept. 25 with a 5-2 home win over Hockey East rival Providence at Walter Brown Arena. Senior Samantha Sutherland finished the day with her first collegiate hat trick, while classmate Victoria Hanson made 34 saves in the win. Both were honored with Hockey East weekly awards after their performances.
 
Last season saw the squad fall just short of capturing the Hockey East Championship, being dealt a 5-0 decision by Boston College in the conference title game.
 
The 2016-17 season is the 12th spent behind the BU bench for head coach Brian Durocher. Under his leadership, the Terriers have played in the Hockey East Championship Game each of the last six seasons and captured 20 wins each year in that timeframe. He has been at the helm of the program since its inception, collecting 231 wins in his first 11 seasons.
 
Prior to heading north, BU hosts New Hampshire on Friday at 7 p.m.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
UVM faces the Terriers for the first time since the squads met in last season's Hockey East Quarterfinals. The Catamounts forced a decisive third game behind two tallies from Saana Valkama, but BU's two first period goals put the Terriers ahead for the balance of game three despite a combined 32 saves by Vermont's Madison Litchfield and Molly Depew.
 
The Catamounts are 2-2-1 in their last five home tilts against BU, including back-to-back home victories on Jan. 24-25, 2014 by a combined score of 9-3. The teams also skated to a 3-3 tie on Jan. 16, 2016.
 
A NIGHT OF FIRSTS
Tuesday's win over Union saw Mackenzie MacNeil and Ève-Audrey Picard each notch their first two goals of the season. The last time a Catamount scored twice in a season opener was in a 3-1 win over North Dakota on Oct. 4, 2014 as Cassidy Campeau marked the scoresheet in the second and third periods.
 
Victoria Andreakos was the most recent player to tally a goal on her first night donning the Green and Gold, doing so in a 3-3 tie against Penn State on Oct. 4, 2013. Picard is the first to score twice in her collegiate debut in the Catamounts' Hockey East era; Liz Reed and Kate McBride both accomplished the feat on Nov. 18, 2000 in an 8-0 win over Amherst College, while UVM played at the ECAC Division III level.
 
CATAMOUNTS PREVIEW SEASON AT MEDIA DAY
UVM welcomed members of the local media to campus last week to preview the upcoming season at Hockey Media Day. Click here to hear head coach Jim Plumer's remarks. Senior captain Sarah Kelly also took time to give an outlook of the season; click here to listen.
 
HOCKEY EAST ANNOUNCES PRESEASON POLL
Vermont was picked to finish tied for fifth in the annual Women's Hockey East preseason poll, announced by the conference office on Sept. 20. The Catamounts shared the spot with New Hampshire, while Boston College, Boston University and Northeastern claimed the top three positions, respectively. Connecticut was projected to finish fourth and Providence, Maine and Merrimack were slotted seventh through ninth.
 
PLUMER ANNOUNCES TEAM CAPTAINS
Seniors Rachael Ade and Sarah Kelly as well as junior Taylor Willard will captain the Catamounts for the 2016-17 season. Kelly, who also served as a captain last season, notched five points on the campaign, while Willard and Ade recorded 19 and six points, respectively.
 
CATAMOUNTS ADD FIVE TO ROSTER
Vermont welcomed five newcomers to the roster over the summer. Forwards Allie Granato (Plainfield, Illinois), Ali O'Leary (Reading, Massachusetts) and Eve-Audrey Picard (Longueuil, Quebec), goaltender Sydney Scobee (Minnetrista, Minnesota) as well as sophomore transfer goalie Melissa Black (Newmarket, Ontario) have joined the team for 2016-17.
 
NEXT UP
UVM hits the road after Sunday's game for a weekend series at Robert Morris on Friday, Oct. 14 and Saturday, Oct. 15. The series opens at 7 p.m. on Friday and the Catamounts will return home after Saturday's 3 p.m. contest.
 
The Windjammer and Upper Deck Pub is the presenting sponsor of the 2016-17 women's hockey season