GAME INFORMATION
GAME #1: Cornell vs. Mercyhurst
DATE: Friday, Oct. 23, 2009
TIME: 3:00 p.m.
SITE: Ithaca, N.Y. – Lynah Rink (4,267)

GAME #2: Cornell vs. Mercyhurst
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009
TIME: 3:00 p.m.
SITE: Ithaca, N.Y. – Lynah Rink (4,267)
2009-10 RECORDS: Cornell – 0-0-0 (0-0-0 ECAC Hockey); Mercyhurst – 4-0-0 (College Hockey America)
SERIES RECORD: Mercyhurst leads, 9-0-1
LAST MEETING: Mercyhurst won, 6-2, on Jan. 6, 2007, in Erie, Pa.
LIVE VIDEO: http://www.cornellbigred.com/showcase/
LIVE STATS: http://sidearmstats.com/cornell/whockey

The Cornell women's hockey team couldn't have asked for a more challenging start to the season, as the Big Red opens the year against top-ranked Mercyhurst with a pair of games at Lynah Rink. The Big Red and Lakers will open the two-game series on Friday at 3 p.m. before closing out the set on Saturday at 3 p.m. Live streaming video and live stats for both games will be available at www.CornellBigRed.com.

ABOUT THE BIG RED
Cornell returns 16 letterwinners from the 2008-09 squad that finished 12-14-5 overall and eighth in ECAC Hockey. Leading the way for the Big Red is ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year Catherine White, who finished last season as the third-highest scorer in the league and the fourth-highest scoring freshman across the country. Cornell features a potent offense that finished last season ranked 13th nationally in scoring.

HEAD COACH DOUG DERRAUGH
In his fifth season behind the Big Red bench, Doug Derraugh has turned the Cornell women's hockey program into one of women's college hockey's top young programs. Derraugh has a career record of 37-72-9, but has taken the Big Red to a back-to-back double-digit wins in each of the last two seasons, the first time the Big Red has done that since the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons. He has also led Cornell to the ECAC Hockey playoffs in each of the last two seasons. Derraugh is assisted by Danielle Biloudeau, in her fourth season, and Edith Zimmering, in her first year with the Big Red.

ABOUT MERCYHURST
The top-ranked team in this week's USCHO Division I women's college poll, the Lakers were last year's national runner-up, falling in the title game to Wisconsin. Mercyhurst returns 14 letterwinners from last year's team and have gotten off to a perfect 4-0 start this year. The Lakers opened the year on Oct. 2-3 with a sweep over Bemidji State before taking two last weekend at ECAC Hockey foe Rensselaer. Vicki Bendus and Jess Jones lead the Laker offense with eight points each through the first four games of the season. In all, 14 different players have contributed to the Lakers' 44 total points thus far this season. In goal, Hillary Pattenden has a 0.75 goals-against average and a .966 save percentage, allowing just three goals on 88 shots.

THE SERIES WITH MERCYHURST
Mercyhurst leads the all-time series with the Big Red, 9-0-1, with the lone tie coming on Feb. 26, 2006, in Ithaca. The Lakers are riding a two-game winning streak over the Big Red coming into this weekend's play, taking both meetings during the last time the two teams played during the 2006-07 season.

EXHIBITION PLACE
Cornell kicked off the season with a 5-5 tie against the Toronto Aeros on Sunday afternoon at Lynah Rink. The Aeros, a senior club program that had downed ECAC Hockey rival Harvard, 4-2, on Saturday, rallied from a 4-2 third-period deficit to take a 5-4 lead, but an extra-attacker goal from Karlee Overguard knotted the score at five with 24 seconds remaining in regulation.

FOR STARTERS
Cornell will be trying to even its record in season openers on Friday against Mercyhurst. The Big Red is 17-18-2 all-time to open the season. Cornell has won the last two season openers, claiming a 7-1 victory at Vermont last year and a 3-0 win against the Catamounts in 2007-08.

THE WHITE STUFF
Catherine White picked up right where she left off last season during the Big Red's exhibition game against the Toronto Aeros on Sunday. The sophomore picked up two goals and an assist in the contest, leading all scorers in the game. White last season scored 18 goals and had 26 assists for 44 points.

WELCOME ABOARD
The Big Red will have three freshmen on the roster in 2009-10, as Lauriane Rougeau, Laura Fortino and Xandra Hompe have joined the Cornell women's hockey team. Rougeau and Fortino have been teammates together on the Canadian U-18 National Team, while Hompe enjoyed a storied career in high school in Connecticut.

DUAL THREAT
Cornell's women's hockey team features two players who are dual-sport athletes in senior Mel Jue and freshman Xandra Hompe. When not lacing up the skates, Jue is strapping on goaltender's equipment for the Cornell field hockey team, while Hompe is a member of the Cornell women's soccer team. Both have excelled in their other sport this fall, as Jue is currently ranked fourth in the country in save percentage. Hompe, meanwhile, has collected a pair of assists for the women's soccer squad.

UP NEXT
The Big Red opens up ECAC Hockey play with a pair of home games next weekend. The Big Red will open up against Dartmouth on Friday, Oct. 30, at 3 p.m., before facing Harvard the following day with the same start time.