Women's Hockey Heads to Harvard and Dartmouth For ECAC Weekend

Friday, January 9

Cambridge, Mass.

5 p.m.

Brown University

Harvard

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Photo by: Jamie Fiedorek

Women's Hockey Heads to Harvard and Dartmouth For ECAC Weekend

1/8/2026 2:00:00 PM | Women's Ice Hockey

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PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Brown women's hockey hits the road for the first time in 2026 with an ECAC weekend at Harvard (Jan. 9) and Dartmouth (Jan. 10).

The matchup with Harvard is set to begin at 5 p.m. and puck drop against Dartmouth is set for 3 p.m. Both games will be streamed on ESPN+.

SKATE SHAVINGS
• Brown is coming off wins over RPI and Union last weekend and have now won six-straight home ECAC games. In the win over RPI, Brown erased a three-goal deficit with ten minutes left in the third period. The Bears scored two goals with an extra attacker to tie the game in the final two minutes of regulation.
• In the win against Union, Brown outshot the Garnet Chargers 54-10, tying the most shots in a game for the Bears this year and the largest shot discrepancy in a game this year. Brown did not allow a shot on goal in the third period.
• Brown's eight wins were tied for the most through 12 games since the 2004-05 season. Brown started that season 8-4-0. The Bears' nine wins before the holiday break are tied for the most in program history with the 2004-05 season.

SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
• Harvard is 8-7-1 overall and 4-5-1 in ECAC play. The Crimson fell 2-3 to Boston University in the Friendship Four in Belfast in their last game on Jan. 3.
• Harvard pulled a 3-2 upset against No. 5 Minnesota Duluth in the first game of the Friendship Four.
• Harvard dropped its last ECAC game, falling 3-1 to RPI on Dec. 6.
• Carla McSweeney leads the Crimson with six goals and two others have five this season
• Time in net has been split between three goalies for Harvard this year. Ainsley Tuffy leads the team with a 1.83 GAA and .950 save percentage. Emily Davidson has a team-best two shutouts.

INSIDE THE SERIES
• Harvard leads the series 55-37-1 but the Bears have controlled the recent series.
• Brown has won six-straight against the Crimson, winning by at least two goals in four of the six meetings.
• The last time Brown had won six-straight games in the series against Harvard was part of a 11-game win streak from 1993-98.
• The last lost for Brown in Cambridge was on Jan. 14, 2022 when the Bears dropped the contest 5-1.

LAST HARVARD GAME
• Brown beat Harvard 4-3 in overtime in the first meeting this season (Nov. 15). The Bears got the game-winning goal from Monique Lyons at 3:56 in overtime. It was Lyons' second goal of the game.
• India McDadi tied the game in the third with a shorthanded goal at 14:15.
• Anya Zupkofska had 25 saves in net for Brown.

SCOUTING THE BIG GREEN
• Dartmouth is 4-12-2 overall and 2-6-2 in ECAC play. Dartmouth will host Yale on Friday before taking on Brown on Saturday.
• The Bears lost back-to-back games against Vermont last weekend with both games being decided by one goal.
• Dartmouth's last ECAC win was a 3-0 win over Clarkson back on Nov. 1. The Big Green have gone 0-4-2 in their last six games.
• Dartmouth is averaging just 1.6 goals per game and has two players leading the team with four goals. The Big Green does not have a player with double-digit points this season.

INSIDE THE SERIES
• Brown is 35-50-13 all-time against Dartmouth but has lost just once in the last ten meetings.
• Brown has won three-straight games against the Big Green and are 4-0-1 in the last five meetings. The Bears have scored at least two goals in each of the last five games.
• A win for Brown would match the longest win streak in the series for the Bears since winning four-straight from 1999-2000.
• Brown has not lost in Hanover under head coach Melanie Ruzzi (2-0-2).

LAST DARTMOUTH GAME
• Brown cruised to a 4-0 win over Dartmouth in the first meeting this season (Nov. 14).
• Four different Bears scored a goal in the game and Sam Broz finished with two assists.
• Martina Accardi scored her first-career goal and Cadence Richards and Zoe Li had their first-career assists.
• Anya Zupkofska had 26 saves for Brown.

WEEKLY AWARDS
• Isabella Gratzl was named ECAC Defender of the Week on Nov. 11, the first Bear to pick up a weekly honor this season. Gratzl finished the weekend against Delaware with a goal and two assists.
• Monique Lyons earned her first ECAC Forward of the Week honor on Nov. 18 after helping the Bears going 2-0 on the weekend with wins over Dartmouth and Harvard. Lyons scored on goal against the Big Green before posting a three-point game with two goals, including the overtime game-winner against Harvard.
• Anya Zupkofska was named ECAC Goaltender of the Week on Nov. 18 for the first time after going 2-0 against Dartmouth and Harvard. Zupkofska posted her third shutout of the season against Dartmouth (26 saves) and earned the win with 25 saves against Harvard.
• Victoria Damiani earned her first ECAC weekly honor, being named ECAC Defender of the Week on Jan. 6. Damiani finished with four assists in three games for Brown last week.

GRATZL HAD A MONTH
• Isabella Gratzl was named ECAC Defender of the Month for the month of November. Gratzl finished the month with four goals and four assists, to be second on the team in points with eight.
• Gratzl had a five-game point streak during the month and had a goal in three-straight games from Nov. 14-21
• The first year was also named a runner up for AHCA National Defender of the Month.
• Gratzl is the first Bear to win an ECAC monthly award since Anna Hurd was named ECAC Rookie of the month on Nov. 2, 2021.

YOU CAN CALL IT A COMEBACK
• Brown had a comeback for the ages with a 4-3 overtime win against RPI on Jan. 2. The Bears erased a three-goal deficit in the final ten minutes of regulation before India McDadi scored the game winner in overtime. Brown scored two goals with an extra attacker to send the game into overtime.
• The win was the first win for Brown under head coach Melanie Ruzzi where the Bears completed a three-goal comeback.
• It was the first game since at least 1999-2000 that Brown has overcome a three-goal third-period deficit.
• The last time Brown won a game in which it trailed by three goals was a 5-3 win over Maine on Nov. 8 2014. Brown trailed 3-0 at 6:59 in the first period.
• Brown last overcame a two-goal third-period deficit against St. Lawrence in a win over the Saints on Jan. 17, 2025. That game also featured a tying goal in the third period with an extra attacker for the Bears.

CAPTAIN, MY CAPTAIN
• The Bears will have two players with the 'C' on their sweaters this season, as seniors Jade Iginla and India McDadi were both voted captains for the season
• Iginla, who served as a captain last season, finished last year with 16 points (6 goals, 10 assists)
• McDadi was an assistant captain a season ago and was third on the team in points (20) and second on the team in assists (14).

DONNING THE 'A'
• Two Bears will be serving as assistant captains this season with seniors Gali Levy and Ellie Gauvin being voted by their teammates.

RETURNING FIREPOWER
• Brown boasts and impressive group of returners as Brown returns 85% (63-74 goals) of its goal scoring from a season-ago.
• The top-five goal scorers from last year are back, led by Moniques Lyons (14), Margot Norehad (12), Ava DeCoste (11), India McDadi (6) and Jade Iginla (6).
• The Bears return seven of their eight double-digit points scorers from last season, including Lyons (24), DeCoste (21) and McDadi (20), who all reached the 20-point mark.

STRONG START FOR THE BEARS
• Brown began the season 2-0-0 with wins over No. 13 Boston University and Merrimack. It is the second-straight season Brown has started 2-0-0 and the first time Brown has going 2-0-0 to start back-to-back seasons since 2000-01 and 2001-02
• The win at No. 13 Boston University was the first ranked win in a season opener for the Bears since Brown beat No. 2 Minnesota to start the 2000-01 season.
• Brown's 7-2-1 start to the season is the best 10-game start for the Bears since Brown went 8-2-0 to start the 1999-00 season. Brown bested their 6-4-0 start from last season.
• Brown matched its most wins before the winter break (9) since the Bears won nine games in the 2004-05 season, that year the Bears started the season 9-4-0.

HITTING THE WINS IN 2024-25
• With Brown's win over Dartmouth, the Bears reached 14 wins on the year and nine wins in ECAC play. Both of those numbers are the most for Brown since the 2005-06 season.
• The Bears earned their winning record since the 2005-06 season.
• Brown's five Ivy League wins last season are the most since winning five in the 2003-04 season.

ZUPKOFSKA SHUTOUTS
• Sophomore Anya Zupkofska posted her first-career shutout in the 1-0 win over Merrimack on Oct. 19.
• Zupkofska followed that up with her second shutout of the season, putting up a clean sheet against Delaware. Zupkofska finished with 21 saves in the shutout.
• Zupkofska kept the sheet clean with a 26-save shutout against Dartmouth before allowing her first goal of the season 6:26 seconds into the game against Harvard.
• Dating back to last season, Zupkofska had a shutout streak of 188:17. It is the longest streak by a Bear goaltender since Ali Brewer posted a 376:03 streak in 1998-99.
• Zupkofska and Rory Edwards have combined for four shutouts this season through 10 games. The four shutouts match the most in a season for the Bears since 2011-12.

LYONS FLYING HIGH
• Monique Lyons posted her third-career three point game against Harvard with the sophomore collecting two goals (including the overtime game winner) and an assist against Harvard.
• Lyons posted a career-best six game point streak and the Bears went 6-1-0 during the streak from Nov. 8 to Dec. 6.

WHO NEEDS SHOTS
• Brown beat No. 13 Boston University despite finishing the game with just 18 shots on goal. Brown had not won a game in the last two seasons (0-17-0) when registering less than 20 shots.
• Brown completed the comeback with a third period goal, a period in which the Bears had just four shots. the fewest in the game.

I GUESS SHOTS DO WORK
• In the win over Merrimack Brown flipped the script, peppering Merrimack with 43 shots. It was the most shots for the Bears in a game since firing 47 against Harvard on Feb. 7, 2025.
• Brown outshot Merrimack 43-10, matching the largest discrepancy since that Harvard game (47-14).
• Brown's 43 shots netting just one goal are the most shots in a game with one goal or fewer since the Bears were shutout despite 47 shots in a loss against Union in 2010.
• In Brown's win over Delaware, the Bears tallied 54 shots, the most shots by a Bears team since the season opener against Franklin Pierce last season (56 shots).

BEARS IN THE PWHL
• Brown had three former players earn spots on training camp rosters in the PWHL. Former goalie Shay Maloney earned a roster spot with the Boston Fleet, Kaley Doyle was in camp with the New York Sirens, and Cam Sikich was in camp with the Minnesota Frost.

TAKING DOWN THE BOBCATS
• Brown shutout Quinnipiac for a win over the No. 7 ranked Bobcats on Oct. 25. In a series that has been dominated by the Bobcats, Brown is now 3-0-1 in the last four meetings.
• It is the first time Brown has gone unbeaten against Quinnipiac in four-straight games since the first four games the two teams ever played from 2002-06.
• In the win, Brown shutdown an offense that had been averaging 4.50 goals per game. It is the second-straight game Brown has shutout Quinnipiac. The last time a non-Brown team had shutout Quinnipiac was Cornell on March 2, 2024.

THE WRONG FIVE
• Brown allowed five goals against Cornell in the first meeting with the Big Red this season. Over the last two seasons, Brown has allowed five goals in just two ECAC games. Both of those occurrences have been against Cornell.

SAYING NO TO SHUTOUTS
• The Bears avoided a shutout against Cornell and have now stretched their streak of regular season games without being shutout to 21 games.
• The last time Brown was shutout in a regular season game was a 0-0 tied against Quinnipiac on Jan. 25, 2025.
• The last time Brown was shutout in a loss was a 0-3 defeat to Yale on Nov. 17. That is a stretch of 34-straight regular seasons contests.

SEEING THE POLLS
• Brown was ranked in the USA Hockey poll for seven-straight weeks before falling out of the polls on Jan. 6. It is the longest stretch in the rankings for the Bears since being ranked for 19 weeks in the 2003-04 and 2004-05 seasons.
• The No. 11 ranking is also the highest in a season for the Bears since 2005-06, when the Bears were ranked 10th at one point.

PENALTY PROBLEMS
• In Brown's losses to Cornell (Nov. 1) and Yale (Dec. 7), the Bears allowed three power play goals in both games. Those six goals in two games are double what Brown has allowed (3) in the other 14 games.
• Brown was whistled for nine penalties against the Bulldogs in the two game weekend but the penalty kill was a tale of two games for the Bears.
• In Brown's home win against Yale, the Bears managed to kill off all five penalties. In the road loss to Yale, Brown allowed goals in three of the four power plays, with all three goals being scored on the power play.
• Brown now has two weekends on the season (Nov. 14-15; Dec. 6-7) that the Bears have been whistled for nine penalties, a season-high. Last season, Brown's highest penalty weekend was six penalties.
• Last season, Brown allowed 22 power play goals on just 66 penalties (33.3%).
• The six penalties for the Bears against the Big Green were the most whistled on Brown since committing six at St. Lawrence on Nov. 20, 2021.

EARLY SEASON SCORING
• Monique Lyons had eight goals through Brown's first 12 games. Lyons passed Jade Iginla, who had seven goals through Brown's first 12 games when she was a freshman in the 2022-23 season.
• The last Bear to have more goals through the first 12 games in a season was Sena Hanson, who scored nine goals in Brown's first 12 games. Hanson's 10th goal of the season came in Brown's 14 game of the year.

GETTING IGINLA GOING
• Jade Iginla has scored a goal in five of Brown's last six games. The five-straight games with a goal is a career-long streak for Iginla. The senior had been held without a goal for the first 11 games of the season

DUECES WILD
• In Brown's contest against Providence, both Olivia Fantino and Ava DeCoste collected their first two-point games of the season. Both players finished with a goal and an assist.

SCORING EARLY...
• Against Providence, Brown scored at the 1:43 mark in the first period. It was the fastest Brown goal in a game since Oct. 25, 2022 against Harvard.
• The Bears followed that up with a goal just 2:47 into the game against New Hampshire. Iginla's goal against the Wildcats was the second-fastest goal of the season.

GIVING IT UP LATE
• Brown's games against Providence and New Hampshire were the first games all season that Brown had lost when having the lead after the first period.
• When leading after the first 20 minutes Brown came into the weekend 2-0-1.
• Brown was 6-1-0 last season when leading after the first period and have already matched the loss mark from a season ago.
• The Bears also held the lead after the first period against Yale before falling to the Bulldogs.

MAGIC NUMBER THREE
• Under head coach Melanie Ruzzi, Brown's magic number has been three goals. The Bears are 34-5-5 when they can put three goals on the scoreboard. Brown is just 15-66-8 when scoring less than three goals.

FASTEST GOALS UNDER RUZZI
0:20 - Shay Maloney (Forrest, Sikich)
            2/18/22 at Princeton
1:00 - Madi Stockfish (unassisted)
            1/7/22 vs RPI
1:13 - Olivia Williamson (Piersiak)
            10/29/22 at Harvard
1:43 - Olivia Fantino (Li, DeCoste)
            11/29/25 vs Providence
1:49 - Ava DeCoste (Iginla, Calderone)
            10/26/24 vs Princeton
1:57 - Madie Stockfish (Hancock, Doyle)
            12/9/22 vs Union
2:22 - Jess Ciarrocchi (Fantino)
            11/30/24 at Providence
2:31 - Jade Iginla (DeCoste, Calderone)
            2/9/24 at Harvard
2:42 - Madie Stockfish (Bjornson, Lacey)
            1/27/23 vs Clarkson
2:47 - Jade Iginla (McDadi)
            11/30/25 vs New Hampshire
2:53 - Avery Saba (Sikich, Calderone)
            2/8/24 vs Dartmouth
3:01 - Monique Lyons (DeCoste)
            1/4/24 vs Sacred Heart
3:27 - Jess Ciarrocchi (Iginla, Damiani)
            1/4/24 vs Bimidji State
3:28 - Maddie Morgan (Iginla, McDadi)
            1/7/23 at Clarkson
3:48 - Olivia Fantino (Shelden, Norehad)
            10/19/24 at Franklin Pierce
CURRENT SEASON

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