WORCESTER, Mass.- The Holy Cross women's ice hockey team will host Maine for the final weekend of the regular season on Friday, Feb. 23 and Saturday, Feb. 24. On Saturday, the Crusaders will honor program legend Stacey Hochkins '12 by retiring her jersey, the first in women's hockey history. Puck drop is set for 6 p.m. for game one and 4 p.m. for game two at Hart Center Rink at Luth Athletic Complex. Both games will be broadcast on ESPN+. 

THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT HOLY CROSS (7-21-3, 4-18-3 Hockey East): 

• The Crusaders took on New Hampshire (UNH) for the final matchups of the regular season. The Wildcats swept the weekend taking a 4-2 win on Thursday, Feb. 15 and a close 2-1 win on Saturday, Feb. 17 over Holy Cross.
• In game one, the Wildcats scored early in the first period but the Crusaders battled back with a goal by freshman forward Lulu Rourke at 18:59 to end the opening frame with a 1-1 result. She was assisted by fellow freshman forward Emily Crovo. UNH entered the second period with back-to-back goals just five minutes into action. The Crusaders answered with a goal by the captain, senior forward Lilly Feeney at 9:40 to close the gap to a one-goal deficit. She was assisted by Rourke and Crovo. The Wildcats scored an empty net goal after Holy Cross pulled the goalie for the 4-2 win.
• In game two, after two scoreless periods, UNH scored early in the third period for the 1-0 lead. The Wildcats furthered the lead with a power-play goal with less than 10 minutes left in the game. The Crusaders battled back to capitalize on a 5-on-4 situation with a goal by sophomore forward Alexia Moreau to cut the Wildcats lead in half at 15:00. She was assisted by sophomore forward Charlotte Sonntag and  junior defenseman Carmen Elliott. UNH held the one-goal lead until time expired to take the 2-1 win over the Crusaders.
• Senior forward Millie Sirum leads the charge for Holy Cross in every offensive category with the most goals (11), most assists (10) and most points (21) of any Crusader. Junior defensemen Emma Min, Emilie Fortunato and Elliott led the Crusaders defense in blocked shots. Min has made 51 blocks, the most of the team, followed by Fortunato with 40 and Elliott with 38.
• Senior goalie Madison Beck was in between the pipes for the game making 27 saves in game one and 29 saves in game two for a 2.65 goals against average and a .911 save percentage this season.

BACKGROUND ON THE BLACK BEARS (13-17-2, 9-14-2 Hockey East):

• Maine concluded the 2022-23 season with a 15-18-2 overall record and 12-13-2 conference record. The Black Bears finished in sixth place in the Hockey East and fell at No. 14 Providence 5-2 in the Hockey East quarterfinals.
• The Black Bears most recently took down Providence last weekend on Friday, Feb. 16 at home. Maine took the 2-1 overtime win in the lone Hockey East matchup.
• After a scoreless first two periods, the Friars got off to a strong start to begin the third period with a goal at 1:29. The Black Bears replied with a goal by sophomore forward Ava Stevenson, who took it on her own, at 7:07 to tie the game up 1-1. After a hard fought second half of the period, the game was sent into overtime. Just 13 seconds into overtime and junior forward Mira Seregély netted the game winner for the 2-1 win. She was assisted by junior defenseman Adriana van de Leest and freshman forward Sam Morrison.
• Graduate forward Ann-Frederique Guay is currently the Black Bears leading scorer with 12 goals. Senior forward Rahel Enzler has the most assists of any Maine skater with 17 on the season. Fifth year forward Ida Kuoppala has the most points with 34 on the year coming from a combined 18 goals and 16 assists. Junior defenseman Jamie Grinder leads the Maine defense with 34 blocks so far this season.
• Senior goalie Jorden Mattison was in net for the competition making 34 saves (three short of her season high). She has been splitting her time in goal with freshman goalie Julia Bachetti this season. Mattison currently has a 1.91 goals against average and a .919 save percentage.

LAST TIME THEY MET:

• The Crusaders and the Black Bears met earlier this season when Holy Cross traveled to Maine and took a 6-0 loss on the road.
• The Crusaders own a 3-11-3 all-time series and conference record against Maine.

FOLLOW THE CRUSADERS 
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