What's On Tap:  The Minnesota State women's hockey team takes to the road for the fourth time this season as the Mavericks play St. Cloud State this Friday and Saturday.

The 2-9-1 (0-8-0 WCHA) Mavericks and Huskies, claiming a similar record of 3-7-0 (1-7-0 WCHA) will match up for the first time this season. Puck drop for Friday's game is scheduled for 7:07 p.m. while Saturday's game is slated for a 3:07 p.m. start.

Last Time on the Ice:  Two weekends ago, Minnesota State played host to a now top-ranked Wisconsin on October 30-31.  The Mavericks were downed in both games by the Badgers by scores of 6-0 and 7-0.

In Friday's matchup, Wisconsin generated two goals in each period, skating to an easy 6-0 win.  All six goals were scored by different Badgers, including two on the power-play.   Special teams did not play a big part in the game as Minnesota State was 0-2 compared to Wisconsin's 2-4 on extra-attacking opportunities.  

Saturday's game played to the same tune as UW outscored MSU 7-0.  All seven goals scored came off of the stick of six different Badgers with Sophia Shaver netting two in the contest.  The Badgers produced two power-play goals and netted a shorthanded marker for a total of five special-teams goals on the weekend.

Looking at the Huskies:  In the last five games, St. Cloud State holds a record of 1-4 with their lone win on the season coming against a No. 6 North Dakota two weekends ago.  The Huskies defeated UND by a score of 5-4 at home.  Most recently, SCSU was swept by Bemidji State in Bemidji, Minn., last weekend by clips of 3-1 in both losses.

St. Cloud is led by head coach Eric Rud who is in his second season at the helm of the Huskies program. Senior Molly Illikainen is the leading scorer for SCSU tallying 4-4--8 in nine games played. Sophomore Brittney Anderson is following Illikainen with six points on the season including six assists and senior Lexi Slattery has generated five points in nine games played with two goals and three assists. Senior Katie Fitzgerald heads the goaltending duties for the Huskies as she has started nine games and produced a 3.92 goals against average with a .883 save percentage. Fitzgerald's record on the 2015-16 season stands at 1-7-1. The Huskies are averaging 1.8 goals per game while allowing 4.4 and are averaging 17.2 shots per game while allowing 32.3.

Last Time Around: Last season the Mavericks held a 1-2-1 record vs. St. Cloud State. Minnesota State's lone win against the Huskies last season came in a 5-1 fashion in St. Cloud, Minn.  Sophomore Hannah Davidson (Kincardine, Ont.) recorded a goal and an assist in the contest while sophomores Anna Keys (Cottage Grove, Minn.) and Amanda Conway (Naperville, Ill.) tallied  helpers as  well.

Minnesota State All-Time:  The MSU women's hockey program - started in 1998-99 - is currently in its 18th season of competition and has compiled a 163-380-49 (.317) record in 592 total games played. The Mavericks are in their 17th year as members of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association and hold an 83-286-39 (.251) mark in 408 league contests.

Consistency Between the Pipes: Junior goaltender Brianna Quade (Newcastle, Ont.)  ranks second in the country in minutes played with 715:08 in net.  She has been between the pipes for 98.6% of the time Minnesota State has taken the ice this season. Quade also ranks second in the nation in saves with 353, respectively.

Productive Underclassmen: MSU has now scored 18 goals through the first seven weeks of action in the 2015-16 season. Of those 18 markers, 16 have been tallied by underclassmen.  Seven of which are first-career markers for Maverick freshman.  Also, in the first 10 games of the season,  Minnesota State generated 44 points (goals and assists).  35 of those points have been recorded by Maverick freshmen and sophomores.

Road Warriors:  The Mavericks will play 16 road games this 2015-16 season, that features 16 WCHA games as well as a trip to the state of New York, where MSU split with RIT in Rochester, N.Y.  Oct. 2-3, 2015.  Minnesota State has played six of the 16 road games on the season and compiles a 1-5-0 record on the road.

Beat the Best to Be the Best:  16 of Minnesota State's 34 scheduled games this season come against opponents who are currently ranked in the top-10 nationally.  Thus far, the Mavericks have played two of those games,  against #7 North Dakota.  MSU was swept and is 0-4 vs. top-10 opponents.


Looking Ahead:  After traveling to St. Cloud this weekend, Minnesota State will return home to host the University of Minnesota Gophers Nov. 27-28.  After the Minnesota Series, the Mavericks will not take to the ice until the New Year on January 3-4, 2016 as they host Lindenwood University in Mankato.
 To view the full release, please click HERE.