Women’s Hockey: Terriers Face First Ranked Opponent with Series vs. No. 12 Providence

By Michael Wax

Boston University Women’s Hockey (3-5-0, 2-4-0 HE) starts a series at home for the first time this year as they face No. 12 Providence (7-2-1, 4-4-1 HE), in a home-and-home starting Friday at Walter Brown Arena and concluding Saturday in Providence.

“I think we’re definitely on the upward trend,” said BU junior defender Andi Calderone, who scored during last Saturday’s win. “I think going into next week and all the other weeks. We need to be able to find that feeling that we had today and recreate it in the following games.”

BU swapped scores of 5-2 last weekend against Merrimack, falling to the Warriors on Oct. 28 before putting together their most complete performance on Oct. 29.

Senior forward Julia Nearis put up a goal during Saturday’s victory and had an assist in last Friday’s loss. Nearis comes into the weekend leading the Terriers in goals (4) and points (7), while junior forward Lacey Martin leads the Terriers in assists (6).

Freshman forward Sydney Healey joined Nearis on the scoresheet in Saturday’s win. With two goals in the weekend series, Healey was named Hockey East Rookie of the Week for the week of Oct. 24.

The Terriers may be without senior defender and captain Nadia Mattivi this weekend after she suffered an upper-body injury. BU assistant coach Abby Ostrom said the Terriers want Mattivi back “as soon as possible.”

Graduate goaltender Andrea Brändli comes into this weekend’s series with a 3-1-0 record, sporting a .955 save percentage and a 1.25 goals against average, while sophomore Callie Shanahan is 0-4-0 with a .898 save percentage and a 3.75 GAA.

Providence looks to rebound from their worst series of the season, as they went 0-1-1 against No. 6 Northeastern last weekend, falling 4-1 on Oct. 28 and tying 2-2 on Oct. 29.

Freshman forward Reichen Kirchmair leads Providence in goals (7) coming into this weekend’s matchup. Kirchmair won Hockey East Rookie of the Week for the week of Oct. 24, putting up two goals in the series versus Northeastern. Kirchmair also won Hockey East Rookie of the Month, with her seven goals leading all Hockey East freshmen.

Graduate forward Sara Hjalmarsson outright leads the Friars in points (11) and is tied with graduate forward Noemi Neubauerova for the team lead in assists (7).

Graduate goaltender Sandra Abstreiter has started all 10 games for Providence, putting up a 7-2-1 record with a .945 save percentage and a 1.39 GAA, along with four shutouts.

BU and Providence played three times during the 2021-22 season, with a record of 1-1-1. Their Oct. 31 matchup saw a 2-1 BU victory, while the Feb. 18 game ended in a 1-1 tie. The Friars won the final matchup of the year 2-1 on Feb. 19.

The Terriers and Friars will face off Friday at Walter Brown Arena, with puck drop scheduled for 7 p.m.