ITHACA, N.Y.—The Big Red women's ice hockey team resumes ECAC Hockey action this weekend, playing a home-and-home series against Colgate. Cornell will play host to the Raiders on Saturday afternoon, before hitting the road on Sunday. The Big Red is currently in seventh place in the league with a 3-3-2 conference mark, but with two wins this weekend could potentially move into a tie for fifth.

Game Information
Game #16: Cornell vs. Colgate
Face off: Saturday, Jan. 10 at 3 p.m.
Site: Lynah Rink (4,267), Ithaca, N.Y.
Game #17: Cornell at Colgate
Face off: Sunday, Jan. 11 at 3 p.m.
Site: Star Rink (2,246); Hamilton, N.Y.
2008-09 Records: Cornell 7-6-2, 3-3-2 ECAC Hockey; Colgate 8-9-2, 2-4-2 ECAC Hockey
Last Meeting: Feb. 2, 2008; Colgate won 2-1
Series Record: Cornell leads, 20-9-2

At the Helm
Doug Derraugh `91 returns for his fourth season as the head coach of the Cornell women's ice hockey team. The Big Red has a 32-64-6 record under Derraugh's tutelage. He is once again joined by assistant coaches Danielle Bilodeau '01 and Kim Insalaco (Brown '05).

Scouting the Raiders
Colgate travels to East Hill in a tie for seventh place in ECAC Hockey with a 2-4-2 league record and is 8-9-2 overall. In its only contest of the new year, the Raiders fell to Boston College, 3-1, on Jan. 2. Kiira Dosdall leads her team with 18 points on four goals and 14 assists and is followed by Sam Hunt with 16 points (7-9—16). Hunt also leads the team with five power-play goals. Kimberly Sass has a 6-3-2 record and a 2.60 goals-against average with a .921 save percentage in net.

League Honors
Freshman Catherine White was named ECAC Hockey's Rookie of the Week on Wednesday. White led the Big Red last weekend with two goals and an assist in a series split with Providence in non-conference action. On Sunday afternoon, the rookie notched Cornell's first goal of the game, and she followed on Monday with a goal and an assist. She was +2 for the weekend with eight shots.

Honorable Mention
Sophomore goaltender Kayla Strong made the ECAC Hockey honor roll this week after leading the Big Red in net, logging 94 minutes in two games against Providence. Strong took over in net for Cornell for the last 34 minutes of the game on Sunday and made 14 saves, and followed with a win on Monday afternoon with 31 saves. The Big Red sophomore averaged 1.28 goals per game and a .957 save percentage on the weekend.

Bringing Home the Silver
Sophomore Rebecca Johnston joined up with the Under-22 Canadian National Team in Ravensburg, Germany, for the MLP Cup, from Jan. 2-6. Johnston and Team Canada brought home the silver medal after Sweden edged out the Canadians 2-1 in the gold medal game. Johnston totaled seven points in four games with three goals and four assists. The Big Red forward scored a natural hat trick and added an assist in leading Canada past Russia, 11-0, in the preliminary round.

Taking Advantage
The Big Red ranks second in ECAC Hockey on the power-play with a 20.9 conversion percentage. Colgate leads the league with a 27.5 percentage. Sophomore Rebecca Johnston is second in the league in power-play goals with five. She ranks first in the league in power-play goals per game, averaging 0.50 per game. Junior Liz Zorn ranks sixth in the conference with four power-play goals.

It's a Winner
Forward Rebecca Johnston leads the league in game-winning goals with three in just 10 games. Sophomore Karlee Overguard ranks fourth with two, but with two, the forward also holds the top spot in game-winners in conference games.

D-Fence
The Big Red defenders have proven to be a formidable offensive threat from the blue line. Freshman Jess Martino ranks fifth in the league in points among defensemen with 10 (1-9—10), while classmate Amanda Young is tied for seventh with nine (0-9—9).

Four Nations Cup
Sophomore Rebecca Johnston rejoined the Canadian National Team to play in the Four Nations Cup held in Lake Placid, N.Y., from Nov. 4-9. Team Canada took silver in Johnston's second Four Nations Cup; she helped Team Canada win its fourth-straight gold medal last season in Leksand, Sweden.

Netting a Dozen
The Big Red's 12 goals against Vermont ranks as the most Cornell has scored in a weekend series since the 2004-05 campaign, when Cornell notched 13 against Union on Nov. 12-13, 2004, to defeat the Dutchwomen 8-2 and 5-3.

Double Duty
After a two-year hiatus, junior Melanie Jue joined the 2008 Big Red field hockey team and was the starting goaltender in all but one game this season. With an 11-4 record and three shutouts, Jue was named first-team All-Ivy. She finished the season ranked 24th nationally with a .742 save percentage and 29th in Division I with a 1.66 goals-against average. Jue also posted the third-highest number of saves in the nation in a single game with her 19-save performance vs. Albany on Sept. 6, which earned her Ivy League Rookie of the Week honors.

Summer Competition
Sophomore Rebecca Johnston and freshman Chelsea Karpenko teamed up this summer to help the Canadian Under-22 team defeat the United States in a best-of-three series. Johnston notched a goal and three assists in the three contests.

Sitting Pretty
The Big Red was picked to finish fifth in ECAC Hockey in the preseason coaches' poll. Harvard led the poll with 10 first-place votes, followed by St. Lawrence, Dartmouth, Clarkson and Cornell to round out the top five spots. Sophomore Rebecca Johnston was also named to the 2008 ECAC Women's Hockey Preseason All-League team.

Fighting for the Cause
The team laced up its sneakers on Oct. 5 to raise over $1,600 for the American Cancer Society's Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. The American Cancer Society's premier event, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, raises awareness and funds to fight breast cancer. In 2007, nearly 500,000 walkers around the country collected more than $50 million to help fight breast cancer.

Smarty Pants
Six players received ECAC Hockey All-Academic honors last season. The group included Kelly McGinty, Kayla Strong, Steph Ulrich, Sam Wauer and graduated seniors Caeleigh Beerworth and Brittany Forgues.

First Time Ever
Rebecca Johnston was Cornell's first player to be named first-team ECAC Hockey or receive rookie of the year honors. Johnston was also named first-team All-Ivy and Ivy League Rookie of the Year.

Fresh Faces
The Big Red added eight freshmen and a junior transfer to its roster this season, with four defensemen, four forwards and a goaltender. The group hails from three different states and three provinces. The newcomers have combined for 68 points so far this season, with Catherine White leading the way with 21. White ranks fourth nationally in scoring among rookies with 1.40 points per game.

Up Next for the Big Red
Cornell will remain at home next weekend when it plays host to Union and Rensselaer. The Big Red will take on Union at 7 p.m. on Jan. 16, and will welcome RPI to Lynah Rink on Saturday, Jan. 17 for a 4 p.m. contest.