ITHACA, N.Y. – Coming off its fourth ECAC Hockey title in five seasons, Cornell women's ice hockey is poised for another fantastic season in 2014. The Big Red enter the season with high expectations as the team features one of the most potent scoring duos in NCAA Division I. Cornell is set to open its 43^rd season as a varsity program with a two-game road series at third-ranked Boston College this weekend. Opening faceoff for the season opener is scheduled for 2 p.m. at Conte Forum.
 
No. 5 Cornell Big Red (0-0-0; 0-0-0 ECAC Hockey) at No. 3 Boston College Eagles (3-0-1; 1-0-0 Hockey East)
Friday, Oct. 24, 2014 | 2:00 PM | Chestnut Hill, Mass. – Conte Forum
Live Stats | Live Video | Cornell Game Notes | BC Game Notes

No. 5 Cornell Big Red (0-0-0; 0-0-0 ECAC Hockey) at No. 3 Boston College Eagles (3-0-1; 1-0-0 Hockey East)
Saturday, Oct. 25, 2014 | 2:00 PM | Chestnut Hill, Mass. – Conte Forum
Live Stats | Live Video | Cornell Game Notes | BC Game Notes
 
All-Time Series: Cornell Leads, 16-4-1
Last Year's Series: Cornell Split, 2-0 (W), 1-4 (L)
 
Big Red Headlines
Cornell is set to kick off its 43^rd season on Friday afternoon as it squares off with the third-ranked Eagles of Boston College. The team is poised for another big season after making a run through the ECAC Tournament to capture its fourth title in the last five seasons in 2013-14. The Big Red finished the year with a 24-6-4 record last season, bowing out in the quarterfinals of the NCAA Tournament to rival Mercyhurst. Cornell lost five players from last year's squad - including last season's Co-captains Jessica Campbell and Alyssa Gagliardi – however, the team returns five of its top eight scorers, plus welcomes back the services of First Team All-American and Olympic Gold Medal winner Brianne Jenner.
 
About Head Coach Doug Derraugh '91
Derraugh enters his 10^th season at the helm of the Cornell women's ice hockey program. Returning to his alma mater before the 2005-06 season, he quickly transformed a program that posted only four wins in the season prior to his appointment into a consistent presence in ECAC Hockey and on the national stage. The Cornell program continues to grow under the guidance of the veteran coach. In 2013-14, he led the program to its fourth ECAC Hockey Tournament title over the last five seasons. All five of the Big Red's NCAA Tournament appearances have come under his leadership. Derraugh has twice been named ECAC Hockey Coach of the Year, most recently during the 2012-13 regular-season and tournament championship season. He is the winningest coach in the history of the program with a 170-101-21 record at Cornell. He returns both excellent assistant coaches Danielle Bilodeau '01 (ninth season) and Edith Racine (sixth season) in 2014-15.
 
The Series Against Boston College…
The Big Red has thoroughly dominated the all-time series with the Eagles, holding a 16-4-1 edge over its Hockey East rival. The school's first met in 1974-75, a 7-3 Cornell victory. The victory would start a run of a 15-game unbeaten streak in which the Big Red went 14-0-1 in meetings from 1975-2001. The Eagles have closed the gap in recent seasons as the Big Red is just 2-4 against Boston College since the 2001-02 season. Cornell has a 6-2-0 record all-time in games played at Boston College, which includes a series split against the then third-ranked Eagles to begin the 2012-13 season.
 
Last Season's Series…
The Big Red split the two-game series with the Eagles in 2013-14. Boston College visited Lynah for the two-game set over Thanksgiving Weekend a season ago. Cornell took the opening game 2-0 on the strength of power-play goals from Hayleigh Cudmore and Taylor Woods. Net minder Lauren Slebodnick made 27 saves – withstanding a 19 shot onslaught in the third period – to notch the shutout. The Eagles got revenge in the second contest of the weekend, dispatching the Big Red 4-1. Boston College jumped out to a three-goal lead in the contest, while goalie Corinne Boyles stood on her head to make 39 stops.
 
Eagle Headlines
Third-ranked Boston College is off to a flying start to the 2014-15 season. The team enters the weekend 3-0-1 and a 1-0-0 mark in Hockey East play. The Eagles are coming off a fantastic three-game road swing in which they went 2-0-1, which included a win and tie against St. Lawrence of ECAC Hockey. BC got off to a 1-0-0 start to Hockey East play with its 4-0 victory over New Hampshire on Sunday. The team jumped out to a 2-0 start in the first period on goals from Lexi Bender and Kenzie Kent. Alex Carpenter and Haley McLean added goals in the third period to salt the game away. Freshman goaltender Katie Burt made 21 saves to record her first collegiate shutout.
 
Poll Position
The Big Red enters the weekend ranked fifth in both the USCHO.com and the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine polls. Despite the season starting two-weeks ago for the non-Ivy League teams, Cornell has held steady in the middle of the top-ten. A strong showing this weekend against third-ranked Boston College will certainly put the Big Red in position to jump up in next week's poll release.
 
Winning-Time
Cornell has been the winningest program in ECAC Hockey over the last five seasons. The Big Red has averaged over 26 wins per season in compiling a 133-29-10 (.802) record since 2009-10. Cornell won the regular-season title four of those five years with the stretch of four straight coming to an end last season. The next closest ECAC Hockey squads in terms of recent wins are Harvard and Clarkson. The Crimson have amassed a 106-42-17 (.694) record, while the Golden Knights check-in with a 118-54-21 (.666) record. Cornell will look to maintain that winning edge with another fantastic season in 2014-15.
 
Streak Snapped
For the first time since the 2009-10 season there is a new team that is reigning atop the Ivy League standings. Harvard edged the Big Red for the top spot in the Ivy, posting a 7-1-2 record to the Big Red's 7-2-1 in 2013-14. Cornell had won three straight Ivy League titles from 2010-11 to 2012-13. While the Big Red has often played the role of the 'hunted' in recent seasons, this year the team will have the chance to play 'hunter' as Harvard was the consensus preseason favorite to win both the ECAC Hockey and Ivy League crowns.
 
Dynamic Duo
Cornell seniors Brianne Jenner and Jillian Saulnier figure to be quite possibly the best 1-2 punch down the middle in NCAA Division I this season. Saulnier is coming off a fantastic 2013-14 which witnessed her lead the team in points (56), goals (28), and +/- (+28). Her 1.65 points per game average was the top mark in NCAA Division I, while she won 58% of her faceoffs (481-of-829). She was named Ivy League Player of the Year, while she earned First Team All-Ivy, First Team All-ECAC, and First Team All-America honors. Jenner returns to the squad after missing last season in order to play for the Canadian National Team in the Winter Olympics. In 2012-13 Jenner led the squad and ranked tied for fifth in NCAA Division I with 70 points. She tallied 35 goals and 35 assists for the Big Red, while her 2.19 points per game average was second only to United States National Team member Amanda Kessel (2.73 ppg). With the powerful point producing punch down the middle, the Big Red should have no trouble finding the back of the net this season.
 
All Gold Everything
Brianne Jenner returns to East Hill for her senior season in 2014-15 and she's bring some hardware with her. The Big Red captain won a gold medal as a member of the Canadian National Team that defeated the United States 3-2 in overtime in the gold medal game of the XXII Olympic Winter Games held in Sochi, Russia. Although Jenner was one of the youngest members of Team Canada in the Olympics, she had a monumental impact in winning Canada's fourth straight gold medal. After the United States held a 2-0 lead through 56-minutes, Jenner sparked the furious Canadian comeback in the final 3:30, firing home a shot through heavy traffic in front of the USA net. Canada would go on to score the tying goal in the final minute, before ending it with a power play marker halfway through the first overtime session to complete the comeback. Fellow Cornellians Lauriane Rougeau and Laura Fortino joined Jenner in celebrating the gold medal achievement.
 
Coach Canada
While head coach Doug Derraugh has been a fixture as the bench boss for the Big Red for the last nine seasons, he will also wear another coaching cap in 2014-15. This past summer, Hockey Canada announced that Derraugh will serve as the head coach for the Canada National Women's Team for the first year of the new Olympic cycle following the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, this past year. He brings a wealth of experience to the position and will be quite familiar with team operations after serving as an assistant coach on the Canadian National Team that won the gold medal at the 2012 IIHF Ice Hockey Women's World Championship. Derraugh is expected to miss minimal game action for the Big Red; however, associate head coach Danielle Bilodeau '01 and assistant coach Edith Racine will be more than capable to step in if a conflict does arise.
 
Special Team Specialists
The Big Red has made a living of thriving during odd-man situations, boasting a dazzling power-play and a stymieing penalty kill. Cornell led the league by a healthy margin in power-play success, converting on 24% of its opportunities with the man-advantage (35-of-146). The team also killed penalties at an 87.6% clip, which was third best in the league. With the amount of top-flight talent returning to East Hill and physical group of newcomers added to the blue-line, both units should be very strong again in 2014-15.
 
Between the Pipes
While the forward and defense corps look well stocked with experienced talent, the crease remains a small question mark during the early part of this season. With the graduation of net minder Lauren Slebodnick, Cornell will need to sort out its goalie situation. Slebodnick will be tough pads to fill, as she leaves the program ranked first in wins (68), second in shutouts (18), third in goals against average (1.65), and fourth in saves (1668). The odds-on favorite to win the primary responsibilities in net is sophomore Paula Voorheis. She appeared in 14 games a season ago, posting a stellar 1.79 goals against average and .928 save percentage. She went 7-4-1 – including three shutouts – en route to earning a place on the ECAC Hockey All-Rookie Team. Junior Stefannie Moak and freshman Amelia Boughn will also be in the mix for playing time in the blue paint this season. Moak has appeared in four games during her first two seasons on East Hill, while Boughn posted stellar numbers for her club team – the Mississauga Junior Chiefs – in its run to the Provincial Women's Hockey League silver medal in 2014.
 
Let's Get It Started
Cornell will look to get off to a fast start in its season opener on Friday. The Big Red is 21-19-2 all-time in season opening games; however, the team has won its last four openers dating back to 2010-11. Mercyhurst was the last team to beat the Big Red in a season opener, stifling the Big Red 4-1 at Lynah Rink to open the 2009-10 season.
 
Provincial Party
Of the 20 players on the Cornell roster for the 2014-15 season, 15 hail from our neighbor to the north. The Big Red has players from five different provinces, which include: Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Quebec. Ontario is the province with the most representatives with ten of the 15. The other five players hail from the United States; two from Illinois and one each from Ohio, Pennsylvania, and New York.
 
Fresh Faces
The Big Red will welcome five new members to the squad in 2014-15. The Class of 2018 will be a big boon to the back line as the class is comprised of a goalie, three defenders, and one forward. Two of freshmen hail from Illinois in Erin O'Connor (Evanston, Ill./Chicago Young Americans) and Sydnee Saracco (Countryside, Ill./Chicago Mission). Two others come to East Hill from Toronto, Ontario in goalie Amelia Boughn (Mississauga Junior Chiefs) and Sarah Knee (Toronto Junior Aeros). The lone forward of the group is Morgan McKim (Mars, Pa./Shattuck-St. Mary's).  The common theme amongst the newcomers is size. The new class averages 5-8 and it is expected to bring an added level physicality in front of the net and in puck battles along the wall this season.
 
The Breakdown
The Big Red boasts a nice blend of talented youth and experienced veterans in 2014-15. The roster is comprised of: three seniors, six juniors, six sophomores, and five freshmen. The group is very tight-knit with a number of players also playing together in the club and international level as well. A trio of sophomores (DeBruin, Veerman, and Voorheis) played their club hockey for the Aurora Junior Panthers. A freshman/sophomore combination (Boughn and Doering) played their club hockey for the Mississauga Junior Chiefs, while senior Jillian Saulnier and freshman Sarah Knee both come from the Toronto Aeros club system. Six players were also part of the Canadian Under 18 National Team.
 
All-League Performers
The team has six players returning coming off season's that netted them all-league honors from ECAC Hockey. Senior forward Jillian Saulnier earned First Team All-ECAC, while senior forward Emily Fulton earned Second Team All-ECAC honors. Junior defender Cassandra Poudrier was named Third Team All-ECAC. Sophomores Hanna Bunton and Paula Voorheis both earned All-Rookie honors after fantastic debut seasons. The team also returns 2012-13 First Team All-ECAC performer Brianne Jenner.
 
Career Numbers Watch
* Brianne Jenner currently sits in sixth place on the all-time list in career points (178), fifth in assists (100), and seventh in goals (78). She needs ten points to tie Rebecca Johnston (2007-11) for fifth all-time. She needs just one assist to tie Catherine White (2008-11) for fourth all-time. She is six goals short of tying Amy Stanzin (1982-86) for sixth all-time.
* Jillian Saulnier currently sits in ninth place on the all-time list in career points (151) and is tied for seventh all-time in assists (91). She needs six points to tie Amy Stanzin (1982-86) for eighth all-time. Her next assist will move her past Rebecca Johnston (2008-11) all alone into seventh place on the all-time list. She currently sits at 60 career goals and needs just six more to tie Catherine White (2008-11) for tenth on the all-time list.
* Emily Fulton currently sits at 83 points – 37 goals and 46 assists – she needs 17 points to reach 100 for her career.
* Paula Voorheis currently is tied for second all-time in save percentage (.928). She trails Katelyn Pippy (2011-13) who posted a .956 percentage.
 
Up Next
The Big Red will return home for a season long five-game home stand starting next Friday, Oct. 31, when the team welcomes Princeton to Lynah Rink in the opener to both the ECAC Hockey and Ivy League season for both teams. Cornell will welcome Quinnipiac to Lynah for the second game of the weekend on Saturday, Nov. 1. Opening faceoff for both games is scheduled for 3 p.m.