NCAA Women's Hockey Quarterfinals
Cornell at Harvard
Face Off: Friday, March 12 • 7 p.m.
Site: Bright Hockey Center • Cambridge, Mass.
2009-10 Records:
    Cornell: 19-8-6, 14-2-6 ECAC Hockey
    Harvard: 20-7-5, 13-6-3 ECAC Hockey
Series Record: Harvard leads, 50-18-3
Season Series: Cornell leads, 1-0-1
    Cornell won, 4-3, on Oct. 31, in Ithaca, N.Y.
    Tied, 4-4, on Jan. 15, in Cambridge, Mass.

Media Information
Live Video: GoCrimson.com
Live Stats: NCAA Gametracker

Game Notes in PDF Format

ITHACA, N.Y. -- The dream season continues for the Cornell women's hockey team, as it will make its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament on Friday when it travels to fourth-seeded Harvard for a 7 p.m. contest. Cornell has already collected multiple program firsts this year and willl look to add one more dramatic moment to the list against the Crimson. Cornell went 1-0-1 against the Crimson this season and will try to advance to the NCAA Frozen Four in its first appearance in the national tournament. Live streaming video of the game is available free of charge through links provided at CornellBigRed.com.

HEAD COACH DOUG DERRAUGH
In his fifth season behind the Big Red bench, Doug Derraugh has done something no other coach in Cornell history has done - win an ECAC Hockey regular-season championship and take the Big Red to the league title game. Derraugh, a 1991 alumnus of Cornell, guided the Big Red to its first-ever ECAC Hockey regular-season and tournament championships and to the first Ivy League crown since 1996, and has Cornell in the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history. With a career coaching record of 56-80-15, Derraugh has guided the Big Red to double-digit win totals in each of the last three seasons, including 19 wins so far in 2009-10, the most in a single season in school history. He has also led Cornell to its third straight berth in the league playoffs for the first time since Cornell reached the post-season from 2002 through 2004. Derraugh was named the program's head coach prior to the 2005-06 season after concluding a 13-year playing career in Europe. He is assisted by Danielle Bilodeau, a 2001 Cornell graduate and former Big Red player, in her fourth season, and Edith Zimmering, in her first year with the Big Red.

ABOUT THE BIG RED
Cornell claimed its first ECAC Hockey tournament championship with a thrilling 4-3 overtime victory against Clarkson on March 7 at Lynah Rink to earn the program's first-ever berth in the NCAA tournament. Sophomore Kendice Ogilvie scored the game-winning goal at the 7:52 mark of overtime to lift Cornell to the win and earn the tournament's Most Outstanding Player award. The Big Red led, 3-0, midway through the second period, only to have Clarkson rally to tie the score with just under four minutes left in regulation. Sophomore Chelsea Karpenko had a goal and an assist, while sophomore Catherine White and freshman Laura Fortino both added a goal for Cornell. Sophomore netminder Amanda Mazzotta stopped 35 shots in earning the victory for the Big Red, her 19th of the season. On the year, White leads the team with 37 points on 11 goals and 26 assists, while Karpenko has a team-best 16 goals on the year with 12 assists for 28 points. In all, Cornell has a balanced offense that includes five players in double figures in goals and nine players in double digits in points. Mazzotta has played all but one game in between the pipes, posting a 1.51 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage with 11 shutouts. The Big Red has been outstanding on special teams this season, ranking fourth in the nation and first among ECAC Hockey teams in power-play percentage (21.5 percent, 28-of-130) and first in the nation in penalty-killing percentage (93.9 percent, 107-of-114).

ABOUT HARVARD
Harvard fell to Clarkson in the semifinals of the ECAC Hockey tournament on March 5 by a 3-2 score, as Clarkson scored the game-winner with less than three minutes to play in regulation. Harvard enters the weekend after having gone 10-2-1 in its last 13 games, allowing either one or zero goals nine times over that span. The Crimson rank among the nation's leaders in both scoring offense and scoring defense, scoring 2.88 goals per game to rank 10th in the nation and allowing just 1.50 goals per contest, second-best in the country. Harvard's offense is led by junior forward Kate Buesser, who has tallied 39 points this season on 16 goals and 23 assists, leading the team in both categories. Freshman Jillian Dempsey is second on the team with 27 points on 11 goals and 16 assists. Four players have double-digit goal totals, while 11 different players have recorded double-digit point tallies. In goal, Harvard has recovered from the loss of senior netminder Christina Kessler in January to a season-ending injury, with freshman Laura Bellamy picking up the slack in Kessler's absense. Bellamy has a 1.42 goals-against average and a .942 save percentage in 17 games this season, going 10-4-2 on the year with three shutouts. Like Cornell, Harvard boasts strong special teams units, ranking 11th in the nation in power play percentage (18.2 percent, 25-of-137) and sixth in the country in penalty killing (89.9 percent, 116-of-129).

THE SERIES WITH HARVARD
Harvard has owned the all-time series against the Big Red, posting a 50-18-3 mark against Cornell, though the Big Red has gone 1-0-1 against the Crimson this season. Cornell won the first meeting of the year, 4-3, on Oct. 31, to claim its first win over Harvard since the 1996-97 season. Then, in the return game at the Bright Hockey Center, Cornell got the game-tying goal from junior Karlee Overguard with 4.4 seconds left in regulation to earn a 4-4 tie.

HOW THEY GOT HERE
Cornell won one of the three automatic berths into this year's NCAA tournament after winning the ECAC Hockey tournament with a 4-3 overtime win over Clarkson on March 7. Harvard, meanwhile, lost in the semifinals of the league tournament to Clarkson on March 5, but was awarded one of the five at-large berths into the field.

NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY
Cornell is making its first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament. Since the NCAA officially recognized women's hockey as a sport prior to the 2000-01 season, the 2009-10 season is the first time that Cornell has had a winning overall record. Harvard, by contrast, is making its eighth appearance in the NCAA tournament and has reached the Frozen Four five times and the national title game three times.

FAMILIAR FOES
Cornell and Harvard are certainly not strangers in women's hockey, as the two teams meet twice each season in ECAC Hockey play. Cornell's seniors will be seeing the Crimson for the 13th time over the course of their career on Friday, the most of any single opponent.

A CHANCE FOR PAYBACK
In both of the last two seasons, Cornell had qualified for the ECAC Hockey quarterfinals, only to be awarded the eighth seed and face Harvard in a best-of-three series. Both times, the Crimson earned the sweep in the series to end Cornell's season. This year, Cornell has a chance to return the favor and end the season for the Crimson with a win in the NCAA quarterfinals.

POSTSEASON AGAINST HARVARD
Cornell and Harvard are used to facing each other in the postseason, as the two teams have met nine times previously. Harvard has won all nine of those contests, eliminating Cornell from postseason play five times. All nine of the previous meetings in the postseason have been played at Harvard's Bright Hockey Center.

.500 AGAINST THE FIELD
Cornell has played seven games against teams in this year's NCAA tournament field, going 3-3-1 against tournament teams. Cornell was 0-2 in opening the season against top seed Mercyhurst, 1-0-1 against fourth-seeded Harvard and 2-1 against Clarkson. Cornell did not face Minnesota-Duluth, Minnesota, New Hampshire or Boston University this season.

BUCKING THE TREND
Among the seven other teams in this year's NCAA tournament field, Cornell has a winning record against Clarkson (16-9-1), while having a losing mark against Mercyhurst (0-11-1), Minnesota (0-3), Harvard (18-50-3) and New Hampshire (1-32-1). Cornell tied its only previous meeting with Boston University in 1982, and has never faced Minnesota-Duluth.

A SEASON FULL OF FIRSTS
The 2009-10 season will long be remembered in Cornell hockey lore, as the Big Red women have pulled off a number of program firsts. Cornell won its first ECAC Hockey regular-season championship and its first tournament title, in addition to making the NCAA tournament for the first time. Cornell also won its first-ever ECAC Hockey tournament game with a 2-1 win over Colgate on Feb. 26 and its first-ever league tournament series with a win over the Raiders on the following day. Cornell also advanced to the league tournament final for the first time in history when it defeated Rensselaer on March 5. Individually, sophomore forward Catherine White became the first Cornell player to earn ECAC Hockey Player of the Year honors when she was named the league's best player on March 6.

THE LEAGUE'S BEST
Sophomore Catherine White was named the ECAC Hockey Player of the Year on March 6, the first time a Cornell player has earned the league's top individual honor. White led the league with 24 assists in 22 conference games, the only player in the league to average more than one assist per game. She finished third in the overall scoring race with 31 points on seven goals and 24 assists, while also leading the league with 11 points on the power play. The 2009 ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year, White also earned a spot on both the ECAC Hockey and Ivy League First Teams this season.

GOOD LUCK CHARM
Catherine White has been held scoreless in just five of the 30 games she has appeared in this season. When White scores at least one point, the Big Red has a 17-5-3 record. When the sophomore has suited up for a game and been held off the scoresheet, Cornell is just 2-2-1.

SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST
Sophomore goaltender Amanda Mazzotta picked the perfect time to post her highest save total this season. Mazzotta made 35 saves in the ECAC Hockey championship game against Clarkson, picking up the 4-3 overtime victory in the process. That game marked just the second time this season that she faced 30 or more shots, with the first coming in Cornell's 2-0 win over Clarkson on Nov. 13.

GOING STREAKING
Cornell enters the NCAA quarterfinals tied for the nation's longest unbeaten streak at 10 games. The Big Red has gone 9-0-1 over that span, equaling Boston University's 7-0-3 mark over the last 10 games. Cornell has won nine straight contests, with the last loss coming on Jan. 30 at Clarkson.

WHO WILL BE THE HERO THIS WEEK?
One reason Cornell has been so difficult to stop this season is because a different player seems to step up every time things get rough. Seven different players have tallied at least a pair of game-winning goals this season, led by sophomore Kendice Ogilvie's four. Additionally, junior Karlee Overguard has two of the Big Red's three game-tying goals on the year.

LYNAH LOCKDOWN
Unfortunately for the Big Red, this weekend's NCAA quarterfinal game will not be played at Lynah Rink, where Cornell is 4-0 all-time in postseason play. All four of Cornell's postseason wins have come at home this season.

ENJOYING POSTSEASON HOCKEY
Cornell's two freshmen defensemen seem to be adjusting to postseason hockey quite well, as the pair are among the top players in scoring. Lauriane Rougeau leads all ECAC Hockey players in scoring in the playoffs with nine points on two goals and seven assists in four games. Laura Fortino, meanwhile, finished tied for fifth among all league players in scoring with four points. Rougeau scored all of her points in the last three games, while Fortino has scored once in each of the four games this postseason. Fortino is also the only Cornell player who has scored at least one point in each of the four postseason games so far.

WE'RE NOT DONE YET
Cornell's four seniors have been a huge part of the program's resurgence, and the quartet has played a key role in making sure that the season continues on. Laura Danforth has four points in the postseason on two goals and two assists, while Liz Zorn has three points on a pair of goals and one assist. Both players had a pair of points in the league semifinal win over Rensselaer, with Zorn scoring the game-winning goal. In the championship game against Clarkson, both Danforth and Zorn picked up an assist, with Zorn's assist coming on Kendice Ogilvie's game-winning goal. As a class, the seniors have tallied eight points in four games in the postseason. On the year, the seniors have combined for 46 points, led by 16 points each from Zorn and Melanie Jue.

HOW FAR WE'VE COME
Head coach Doug Derraugh has brought the Cornell program back from the depths in just five short seasons. The year before his arrival, under Melody Davidson, the Big Red went just 3-22-3, dropping all 10 Ivy League games and going 3-16-1 in ECAC Hockey play. Fast-forward to this year and Cornell has set a record for the most wins in a season with 19, going 8-0-2 in Ivy Legaue play and winning the ECAC Hockey regular-season title with a 14-2-6 mark in league play.

18 AND OVER ONLY
Cornell won its 18th game of the season on March 5 against Rensselaer, setting a program record for the most wins in a single season. Cornell had previously won 17 games in 1979-80, 1977-78 and 1976-77.

WAIT, WAIT, DON'T GO SO SOON!
Forgive Cornell's players if they didn't want to flip their calendars to the month of March, as February was exceptionally kind to the Big Red. Cornell went 7-0-1 during the month, finishing with seven straight victories to claim the league's regular-season crown. Cornell also allowed only three goals during the entire month, posting five shutouts over that span.

RARE OCCURRENCE
Cornell has given up three power-play goals over the last two games, surrendering one against Rensselaer on March 5 in the ECAC Hockey semifinals and two against Clarkson on March 7. That marked the first time this season that the Big Red allowed more than one power-play goal in a weekend and in a single game. Cornell has only allowed seven power-play goals on the year.

JUMPING OUT IN FRONT
Cornell holds a 19-2-2 record when scoring the first goal of a game this season. The Big Red has yet to win a game in which its opponent scores first, going 0-6-3 in those games.

ONE SHORT BENCH
One of the more amazing things about the Big Red's success this season is that Cornell only has 16 skaters and two goaltenders on the roster. Often only filling out three full forward lines, the Big Red has not tired down the stretch of games, as Cornell holds a 14-2-2 record when leading after two periods. When Cornell's record when tied after two is factored in, the Big Red is 19-3-4 when tied after two periods.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
Cornell has had plenty of success in playing Friday night games this season, going 8-1-5 on Fridays. Catherine White has tallied 15 points in the 15 Friday games this season, with Karlee Overguard tallying 12 points on six goals and six assists. Laura Fortino has also scored in double figures on Friday with four goals and seven assists for 11 points. Amanda Mazzotta has also been solid on Friday nights, posting a 1.40 goals-against average and a .925 save percentage. Six of Mazzotta's 11 shutouts this season have come on Friday nights.

OUT IN FRONT EARLY
Cornell has been extremely difficult to beat this season when it scores the first goal of the game, as the Big Red has an 18-2-2 record when scoring first. On the other hand, the Big Red has yet to win a game this season when the opposition scores first, going 0-6-3 when forced to come from behind.

ANOTHER TROPHY FOR THE COLLECTION
Cornell has won all three trophies it has been eligible for this season, adding plenty of new hardware to the trophy case. Cornell claimed the Ivy League trophy for the first time since 1996 with an 8-0-2 league mark and won the ECAC Hockey regular-season title for the first time in program history. The Big Red then added the 2010 ECAC Hockey tournament trophy to its collection when it defeated Clarkson, 4-3, in overtime, on March 7 at Lynah Rink.

A CROWN OF IVY
Cornell's 4-0 win over Brown on Feb. 12 gave Cornell the Ivy League title outright, the Big Red's first since the 1996 season. Cornell has now won the league championship 10 times, winning the title outright nine times.

MISS CONSISTENCY
Sophomore Catherine White has been one of the most consistent scorers for the Big Red this season, as she has scored at least one point in 28 of the 30 games she appeared in this season. White also has 10 multi-point games this season and has scored in all but two games since the calendar turned to 2010.

OH, CANADA!
When Canada won the gold medal at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, that made more than two-thirds of the Cornell women's hockey team happy, as 13 of the 18 players on the Cornell roster are originally from Canada. The province of Ontario boasts six players, with four players calling Alberta home. Quebec, Manitoba and British Columbia each are home to one player on the Cornell roster.

MORE OLYMPIC CONNECTIONS
Cornell had a pair of connections to the Canadian Olympic team that won gold at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Rebecca Johnston '12 played the last two seasons for the Big Red before taking a leave of absence to train with the Canadian program. That Canadian program was coached by Melody Davidson, who was coach of the Cornell program prior to Doug Derraugh.

TO THE VICTORS GO THE SPOILS
As the end of the season awards start being announced, Cornell has had a large number of honors go towards its players. Catherine White, Laura Fortino and Lauriane Rougeau were each named to the All-ECAC Hockey First Team, with Amanda Mazzotta earning third-team honors. White was also named the ECAC Hockey and Ivy League Player of the Year. Rougeau also garnered Ivy League honors, taking home the league's Rookie of the Year award. White, Rougeau, Fortino and Mazzotta were each named to the Ivy League first team, with Chelsea Karpenko earning second-team All-Ivy honors.

ONE LONG BLANK
Cornell goaltender Amanda Mazzotta posted four straight shutouts from Feb. 5 through Feb. 13, in the process setting the fourth-longest shutout streak in NCAA history. Stretching from the third period against Clarkson on Jan. 30 to the second period against Rensselaer on Feb. 19, Mazzotta was in net for 286:54 consecutive scoreless minutes, the longest streak in ECAC Hockey history. Wisconsin's Jessie Vetter owns two of the  three longest shutout streaks in NCAA history, including the record of 448:39.

DEFEND YOUR TURF
Cornell has done a good job of doing just that in league play this season, posting a stellar 10-1-2 at home this season against ECAC Hockey foes. The Big Red has allowed just 10 goals at Lynah Rink this season in league play, outscoring its opposition, 38-10. When non-league games and postseason games are factored in, Cornell holds an 13-5-2 mark at home while outscoring the opposition by a 60-31 margin.

DOUBLE VISION ONCE AGAIN
The Cornell women's hockey team has recorded double-digit wins this season, marking the third year in a row that Cornell has done so. The Big Red last won at least 10 games in three straight seasons during a stretch of six years with double-digit win totals from 1995-96 through 2000-01.

NO SOUP FOR YOU!
Cornell sophomore goaltender Amanda Mazzotta has posted 11 shutouts this season, becoming the Big Red's all-time single-season leader in that category. She surpassed Kathryn LoPresti's six shutouts from 1988 when she blanked Quinnipiac on Feb. 5, then added her eighth shutout the next night against Princeton. Mazzotta's 11 shutouts are the most all-time among Cornell goaltenders, male or female. Mazzotta surpassed David McKee, who had 10 shutouts in 2004-05, with her shutout win against Colgate on Feb. 27. For her career, Mazzotta has 12 shutouts, tying LoPresti's career total of 12 shutouts from 1985-88.

DRAWING A BLANK
Cornell was held scoreless on Jan. 10 at Providence, the first time this season Cornell has failed to score at least one goal. Cornell was also held scoreless by Quinnipiac on Feb. 5, but picked up a tie in the 0-0 contest. By contrast, Big Red opponents have been shut out 11 times through the first 33 games. Cornell has also scored two or more goals 24 times through the first 33 games. When Cornell scores two or more goals, the Big Red is 17-2-5.

KAZMAIER WATCH
When the 45 nominees for the Patty Kazmaier Award were announced on Feb. 17, a trio of Cornell players were among those up for the award. Sophomore Catherine White and freshmen Laura Fortino and Lauriane Rougeau were each nominated for the award, which will be handed out on March 20. Unfortunately, none of the three were among the 10 finalists that were announced on March 2.

CATHERINE THE GREAT
Catherine White has become one of the nation's top playmakers, as evidenced by her ranking as sixth in the nation in assists per game. White has 28 assists in 30 games for an average of 0.93  assists per game.

OFFENSIVE DEFENSEMEN
Cornell's two freshmen defensemen rank among the nation's elite in terms of scoring among defensemen. Laura Fortino is second in the nation in points per game among defensemen, while Lauriane Rougeau ranks third in the nation. The two players have combined for 21 goals and 38 assists and rank second and third on the Cornell roster, respectively. Fortino also ranks tied for fourth in the nation in scoring among all rookies, while Rougeau is sixth in that category.

GOING STREAKING
Catherine White's not the only one who has been on a roll lately, as Laura Fortino has also scored in 14 of the 16 games since the start of the new year. Fortino has 22 points over that span, including eight goals and 14 assists. Fortino has six multi-point games in her last 15 and seven on the season.

CLUTCH IS EVERYTHING
When the Cornell women's hockey team has needed a goal in the closing minutes of a game, Karlee Overguard has delivered. The junior has a pair of game-tying goals on the year, first knotting the score with four seconds left at Harvard on Jan. 15 for a 4-4 tie against the Crimson, then tallying the tying mark with 1:16 to play against St. Lawrence on Jan. 29.

WELCOME RETURNS
Cornell's lineup was boosted by the return of three players who missed three games due to their participation at the MLP Cup as part of Canada's U22 National Team. Catherine White, Laura Fortino and Lauriane Rougeau each missed the games against Syracuse and Providence for the international competition in Ravensburg, Germany, where they claimed the gold medal. The trio, comprising three of the Big Red's top four scorers, combined to score 10 of Cornell's 17 points on the weekend immediately following their return from international duty. Fortino had four of those points (2-2--4), with Rougeau (1-2--3) and White (0-3--3) both tallying three. Without the three players in the lineup against Syracuse and Providence, the Big Red went 0-3, scoring four goals and allowing 11 while dressing just 12 skaters for the two games against Providence.

OFFENSE AND DEFENSE
The formula for a winning hockey team is obvious - putting the puck in the net and keeping it out of yours. The Cornell women's hockey team has followed that formula to perfection, ranking third in ECAC Hockey with 67 goals scored, trailing only Harvard's 69 and Dartmouth's 70. On defense, the Big Red allowed the fewest number of goals, conceeding just 26 goals in 22 league games. Clarkson and Quinnipiac tied for second-fewest goals allowed in the conference, with both teams conceeding 28 goals in league play.

SOMETHING REALLY SPECIAL
Cornell's penalty killing unit stands atop the national rankings in penalty killing percentage and is close to the NCAA record for highest penalty-killing percentage in a season. The Big Red has killed off 93.9 percent of opponents' power plays this season, which is just below the NCAA record of 95.7 percent, set by Harvard in 2003. That year, Harvard allowed just five goals in 117 chances. The Big Red this season has allowed just seven goals in 114 opportunites.

NON-LEAGUE NOT FRIENDLY
Cornell closed out the non-conference portion of the season with a 1-6 record after dropping three games to open the new year. The Big Red went 1-4 against College Hockey America foes at Lynah Rink while dropping a pair at Providence of Hockey East.

TWO-WAY PLAYERS
Cornell's women's hockey team has a pair of players who give new meaning to the term two-way player, as senior Melanie Jue and freshman Xandra Hompe are dual-sport athletes. Jue is a goalie for the field hockey team, and is ranked fourth in the nation in save percentage this season. Hompe, meanwhile, is a forward for the women's soccer team, tallying a pair of assists this fall for the Big Red.

UP NEXT
The winner of Friday night's NCAA quarterfinal game will advance to the NCAA Frozen Four, which will be held at Minnesota's Ridder Arena on Feb. 19 and 21. The Cornell/Harvard winner will take on the winner of top-seeded Mercyhurst and Boston University in one of the two national semifinals on Feb. 19.