After coming out victorious in its quarterfinal series versus the Brown Bears, the Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey team finds itself in an unfamiliar spot: one game away from the ECAC Championship.
But first, it has to face the opponent in front of them. That opponent is the co-regular season champion of the ECAC and No. 2 seed in the conference tournament, the Princeton Tigers, a team that has effectively been the Bobcat’s Kryptonite in the 2025-26 season.
REGULAR SEASON
In two regular season matchups, Quinnipiac fell to Princeton twice. One came at the hands of an overtime thriller and the other came with a 2-0 shutout at home. The former marked only their second loss in conference play all year, with the latter being one of two losses on home ice for Quinnipiac.
The X-factor for the Tigers in game one was sophomore forward Mackenzie Alexander. The Etobicoke, Ontario native recorded six shots and two goals, including the game-winner in overtime. The Tigers also had an effective defensive performance, forcing Quinnipiac to score dirty and gritty goals.
In game two, however, Princeton’s star of the show was junior goaltender Uma Corniea. After not seeing game action for the entirety of her sophomore campaign, she recorded a 1.73 goals against average and six shutouts. One of those shutouts was on Nov. 22, as Corniea stopped a red-hot Quinnipiac offense, shutting them out for the first and only time this season.
While history spells doom for the Bobcats, the two teams haven’t seen each other since Nov. 22. Yet, the Quinnipiac of 2026 is much different than the Quinnipiac of 2025.
FRANK VS CORNIEA
While a majority of focus will be on the two high-powered offenses, the goaltending battle between Corniea and Quinnipiac’s sophomore Felicia Frank will be another factor in either team moving on to the finals.
While Corniea has been solid in net for the Tigers, Frank has been lights out for the Bobcats.
The MAC Goaltender of the Year and First Team All-ECAC member started all but one contest for the Bobcats, recording a conference leading 1.54 goals against average and nine shutouts, which puts her third in the country behind senior Katie DeSa of Penn State and junior Eve Cascon of Minnesota Duluth.
Frank has faced a prestigious list of offensive talent in her sophomore season, but arguably her biggest challenge lies in front of her with this Princeton offensive group.
Leading the way for the Tigers in scoring is senior and All-ECAC First Team forward Izzy Wunder, who has recorded 27 goals in 32 games. Alexander is right behind her with 22 goals in 32 games, including the game winner in the two squads’ first meeting this season.
Stopping that forward tandem has been a tall order for goaltenders all across the ECAC and NCAA as a whole. That sentiment remains the same for Frank and the Quinnipiac blue line. If they can neutralize their impact, a path to Quinnipiac’s first ECAC title in over a decade becomes a lot easier.
PLAYOFF LAMARCHE
While the regular season was nothing short of historic for junior forward Kahlen Lamarche has been nothing short of phenomenal in the postseason.
In only three games, the Sudbury, Ontario native has recorded seven goals and eight points, including her fourth hat-trick of the season in the winner-take-all game three matchup. That final goal put her over the threshold and gave her the single-season record for points by a Bobcat with 60.
But against the Tigers, she only recorded 12 shots with no points tallied in the two contests. But even when she isn’t touching the puck, she’s able to draw defenders off her teammates and create chances for her fellow Bobcats to find the back of the net.
Lamarche’s success on both sides of the puck will be crucial to the success of the Bobcat attack against Princeton.
NEXT WOMAN UP
In a season defined by injuries and missed games, the Bobcats have relied heavily on their depth to get where they are. The latest injury has struck the blue line as sophomore and All-ECAC Second Team defenseman Makayla Watson went down.
In her sophomore campaign, Watson has been one of the premier defenders in the ECAC, recording 32 blocked shots and 24 points in 32 games. Watson recorded the first hat trick by a Quinnipiac defenseman in 15 years in the team’s 5-1 win over Colgate Jan. 23.
To say her loss was damaging to the Bobcats’ defense is an understatement. But where a void opens, another Bobcat rises to fill it. In this case, it was the veteran leadership of senior defenseman Zoe Uens who stepped up in Watson’s place. In 37 games, she has recorded 47 blocked shots and 18 points.
It’s that kind of mentality that has carried the Bobcats to their highest win total since 2023 and can carry them to a berth in the ECAC Championship game.
The road to do so begins on Friday, March 6, from the historic Herb Brooks Arena in Lake Placid N.Y. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m.
