WOMEN'S HOCKEY NOTEBOOK
The Vermont women's hockey team is gearing up to resume Hockey East action for the remainder of the regular season, beginning with a Tuesday night (Jan. 3) tilt at Merrimack in North Andover, Massachusetts. Puck drop will be at 7 p.m. at Lawler Rink.
 
Fans can follow along during Tuesday's game with live video provided with subscription by MerrimackAthletics.TV. Live stats will also be available free of charge.
 
RELATED LINKS
Video | Live Stats
 
ALUMNAE WEEKEND SCHEDULED FOR FEBRUARY 3-4
All women's hockey alumnae are invited to save the date for Alumnae Weekend, taking place Feb. 3-4, 2017 around Pack the Gut presented by The Windjammer. Details will be announced shortly. To ensure that you receive updates on this and other alumnae events, please contact the Victory Club office via phone at (802) 656-0956 or email at Victory.Club@uvm.edu with your updated contact information.
 
CATAMOUNTS RECAP
Vermont wrapped up the 2016 calendar year picking up a 2-1 win over Yale (Dec. 31). Ève-Audrey Picard scored with 12:13 to play to regain the lead for UVM, while Madison Litchfield kicked out 25 pucks at the other end. The afternoon was also highlighted by Alyssa Gorecki's third career multi-point game as the sophomore netted a goal and later assisted on Picard's game-winner.
 
Saturday's decision finished an undefeated month of December for the Catamounts, who are 4-0-1 in their last five games.
 
SCOUTING MERRIMACK
The Warriors (6-13-2, 2-10-0 WHEA) sit in ninth place in Hockey East entering Tuesday's matchup with UVM, which will end a nearly month-long layoff as MC was dealt a 3-2 setback at Providence on Dec. 9. Mikyla Grant-Mentis gave Merrimack a 2-1 lead in the third period but the Friars later used an unanswered pair to secure the win.
 
Tremendous youth comprises the Warriors' roster as just one senior is on the team in contrast to five freshmen and 17 sophomores. Katelyn Rae has racked up 11 goals and six assists for a team-high 17 points and four of her teammates stand in double figures in points. Léa-Kristine Demers has paced the team in goal, making 14 appearances and compiling a 3.32 goals against average. Fans should also keep an eye out for a particularly interesting special teams matchup as Merrimack's power play (ranked eighth nationally) will go up against the Catamounts' penalty killing unit which clocks in at sixth in the country.
 
A 1993 New Hampshire graduate, Erin Hamlen is in her second year at Merrimack after guiding the Warriors in their inaugural season of competition. Under her watch, two players garnered All-Conference mention in 2015-16.
 
INSIDE THE SERIES
The Catamounts eked out a 3-3 tie against the Warriors in the teams' most recent tilt on Feb. 20, 2016 at Lawler Rink. Victoria Andreakos, Saana Valkama and Dayna Colang all teamed up to give UVM a 3-0 lead in the first 6:27 of the game but Merrimack stormed back and ultimately tied up the contest with just 61 seconds left in regulation. The Warriors were victorious in their only other two meetings with Vermont, including a 2-1 overtime result at Gutterson Fieldhouse on Jan. 4, 2016.
 
CATS CLIMBING THE RECORD BOOK
With 25 goals and 35 assists throughout her career, Andreakos now has collected 60 points in her career at UVM. That puts the Aurora, Ontario native at fifth all-time in program history in points behind Allie Knowles, who amassed 87 from 1995-99. Andreakos also has moved into fifth all-time in assists, short of Knowles and former teammate Gina Repaci (2011-16), each of whom racked up 41 helpers.
 
Between the pipes, Madison Litchfield ranks among the top-3 winningest goaltenders in program history with 26 victories to her name. Only Roxanne Douville (2010-14) and Tiffany Hayes (1999-2003) sit ahead of her with 27 and 28, respectively. She also has made 1875 saves donning the Green and Gold, which stands fifth all-time.
 
PRETTY SPECIAL IF YOU ASK US
Vermont has enjoyed recent success on special teams, particularly with its penalty killing unit. Catamount opponents have netted just seven goals on 80 power play opportunities, putting UVM at 91.2 percent on the kill and ranking sixth across the country in a tie with Minnesota. The Green and Gold last surrendered a power play goal on Nov. 20 against Connecticut, constructing a perfect stretch of 475 minutes, 50 seconds of game time and 29 kills since then.
 
The win over Dartmouth on Dec. 10 also saw the Catamounts light the lamp four times on the power play for the first time since Nov. 7, 2009. On that afternoon, UVM logged a 5-1 victory at Boston College.
 
GET OUT THERE AND VOTE!
Vermont received a vote in the most recent USCHO Division I Women's Poll, announced on Dec. 12. It is the fourth time in program history that the Catamounts have been featured and first time in back-to-back polls.
 
UVM previously received a vote in the poll during the weeks of Nov. 3, 2014 and Oct. 26, 2009. The former came in the aftermath of the team's best start in program history (6-2-1), while the Catamounts first were mentioned shortly after upsetting No. 4 Clarkson at Gutterson Fieldhouse on Oct. 17, 2009.
 
WE'RE PULLING RANK ON THIS ONE
Vermont's result at Northeastern (Dec. 4) locked up the Catamounts' third win of 2016-17 against a ranked opponent, the first time in program history that UVM has reached that mark. In addition to sweeping the Huskies that weekend, Vermont knocked off then-No. 9 Boston University on Oct. 9 at Gutterson Fieldhouse.
 
The team last pulled off two ranked wins during the 2014-15 campaign, upsetting No. 7 North Dakota on the road to open the season and later topping sixth-ranked BU.
 
NEXT UP
The Catamounts will return to Burlington following Tuesday's game and begin preparations to host Maine this Saturday and Sunday (Jan. 7-8). Both games are scheduled for 2 p.m. at Gutterson Fieldhouse.
 
The Windjammer and Upper Deck Pub is the presenting sponsor of the 2016-17 women's hockey season