HOCKEY EAST HEADLINES

Vermont took a 2-1 win at #1 Northeastern on Friday afternoon, earning the program’s first-ever win over the nationally top-ranked team. Goaltender Jessie McPherson stopped 35 of 36 shots, including a diving save with 37 seconds left in regulation that preserved victory and snapped the Huskies’ 20-game unbeaten streak. The Catamounts, the hottest team in New England, have now won seven in a row and eight of their last nine.

Maine earned the season sweep of Providence with a pair of road victories last weekend. Mira Seregely scored the game-winning goal in Friday’s 2-1 victory and followed up her game-winning score by adding a pair of assists and another tally in a 4-1 victory on Sunday. Her second assist came on the game-winning strike.

UConn earned nine points in league play with a 3-1-0 week, taking two wins against New Hampshire in a rescheduled series and taking another victory over Holy Cross on Sunday. Natalie Snodgrass enjoyed a four-point week (2g, 2a) while Megan Warrener went 2-0-0 in two starts, including a 24-save shutout victory over New Hampshire. With the performance, UConn kept pace with Vermont and sits third by the slimmest of margins (.016) in the Army ROTC Hockey East Standings.

Boston College goaltender Abigail Levy stopped 74 of 77 shots in a two-win week for a .961 save percentage and 1.50 goals against average while also earning an assist. Hannah Bilka finished with four points on one goal and three assists. She scored the game-winning goal in Tuesday’s win over Providence while adding two assists and dished out another helper in Friday’s road win at UConn to reach 75 career points. She fired 11 shots on goal and had a plus-three rating.

HOCKEY EAST PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Jessie McPherson - Vermont

Jessie McPherson (So., G; Chatham, Ont.) made 55 saves in two outings last week as Vermont defeated #1 Northeastern and New Hampshire in a weekend set. McPherson stopped 35 of 36 shots Friday afternoon in Vermont’s first-ever win over a nationally top-ranked team, a 2-1 victory. Her diving save with 37 seconds left in regulation that preserved the 2-1 road win over the Huskies was featured as the #2 play on ESPN’s SportsCenter Top 10. She has now won seven-straight starts and 10 of her last 11 outings.

PRO AMBITIONS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK

Mira Seregely - Maine

Mira Seregely (Fr., F; Budapest, Hungary) scored the game-winning goal in Friday’s 2-1 victory over Providence. She followed up her game-winning score by adding a pair of assists and another tally in a 4-1 victory over the Friars on Sunday. Her second assist came on the game-winning strike.

HOCKEY EAST DEFENDER OF THE WEEK

Chloe Gonsalves - UConn

Chloe Gonsalves (Gr., D; Toronto, Ont.) anchored a UConn defense that allowed just five goals in four games last week. In a 3-1-0 run in league play, UConn allowed just one goal in two outings and posted one shutout. Over her four contests, Gonsalves tallied an assist while also blocking a total of seven shots for the Huskies.

HOCKEY EAST GOALTENDER OF THE WEEK

Abigail Levy - Boston College

Abigail Levy (Sr., G; Congers, N.Y.) stopped 74 of 77 shots in a two-win week for a .961 save percentage and 1.50 goals against average while also earning an assist. She posted a 30-save performance on Tuesday in a victory over Providence and followed up by making 44 stops in a 3-1 road win at UConn on Friday The netminder also assisted on BC’s first goal of the game against the Friars.

HOCKEY EAST TOP PERFORMERS

Hannah Bilka, BC (Jr., F: Coppell, Texas) Finished a two-win week with four points on one goal and three assists. She scored the game-winning goal in Tuesday’s win over Providence while adding two assists and dished out another helper in Friday’s road win at UConn to reach 75 career points. She fired 11 shots on goal and had a plus-three rating.

Abby Newhook, BC (Fr., F; St. John’s, N.L.) Capped a two-win week with four points on two goals and two assists. The rookie had a career-high three points on one goal and two helpers in Tuesday’s win over Providence and added a goal in Friday’s road win at UConn. She had four shots on goal, a plus-three rating and one blocked shot.

Alexie Guay, BC (Jr., D; Magog, Que.) Helped backend Boston College to a two-win week and had two assists, with one coming on the game-winner Tuesday against Providence and another on an insurance goal in Friday’s win at UConn. She blocked three shots and had four shots on goal to go with a plus-four rating.

Kylie Roberts, BU (Fr., F; Edina, Minn.) Playing for the first time since Nov. 11, Roberts matched her season totals with two goals and one assist in a 4-3 win at Holy Cross. Roberts tallied the eventual game-winner on a beautiful shot midway through the third period. She also had a terrific redirection for her first goal. She finished the game as a plus-two and generated four shots on goal.

Julia Shaunessy, BU (So., D; Marshfield, Mass.) Lit the lamp in the Terriers’ 4-3 win over Holy Cross on Friday. She finished the game as a plus-one.

Natalie Snodgrass, UConn (Gr., F; Eagan, Minn.) Enjoyed a four-point week (2g, 2a) in which the Huskies went 3-1-0 across four contests. Snodgrass opened the scoring in both games wins against New Hampshire and chipped in two assists.

Megan Warrener, UConn (Fr., G; Stony Creek, Ont.) Went 2-0-0 in two starts last week, including a 24-save shutout victory over New Hampshire and a 25-save, one-goal outing in a win at Holy Cross.

Millie Sirum, HC (So., F; Oslo, Norway) Potted a pair of goals this week, with one each against Boston University and UConn. She has now recorded a point in each of the last three games.

Ida Kuoppala, ME (Jr., F; Pendersore, Finland) Scored two goals and added one helper as she powered Maine to a weekend sweep of Providence. Her weekend including an assist on the game-winning goal in Friday’s 2-1 victory and two power-play goals on Sunday, one of which was the game-winning goal, in Maine’s 4-1 win.

Kira Juodikis, UNH (Fr., F; LaSalle, Ont.) Recorded two goals and an assist for three points in four games last week. She also had nine shots on net and a plus-two rating. She scored a goal 51 seconds into the second period at Merrimack to lift UNH into a 1-1 tie in an eventual 2-1 Wildcats’ win. Juodikis followed that with an assist at Vermont; that helper tied the game, 2-2, in the third period. Juodikis began the week by scoring UNH’s only goal in the Jan. 24 game at UConn’ she had a plus-one rating that game.

Maddie Truax, UNH (Sr., D; Gardner, Mass.) Recorded two goals, six blocked shots and a plus-four rating in four UNH games last week. She broke a 1-1 tie with 65 seconds left in regulation to lift the Wildcats to a 2-1 victory on Jan. 28 at Merrimack. She finished that outing with a plus-two rating and a blocked shot. Truax followed that with a goal, two blocks and a plus-one rating at Vermont; her third-period goal tied the score 2-2. In a Jan. 25 game at UConn, Truax blocked four shots and had an even rating.

Ava Boutilier, UNH (Sr., G; Charlottetown, P.E.I.) Went 1-0-0 last week with a 1.00 GAA and .960 save percentage as she stopped 24 of 25 shots in Friday’s 2-1 win at Merrimack College. She made 14 saves in the third period, and that included one in the closing seconds to preserve the win.