2025 Mercyhurst vs Penn State - Women's

AHA Women's Championship Game Preview: Penn State To Battle Mercyhurst

AHA Women's Championship Game Preview: Penn State To Battle Mercyhurst

Penn State and Mercyhurst battled four times this season and the Lakers were the only AHA team to hand Penn State a loss. They'll meet again on Saturday.

Mar 5, 2025 by Jordan McAlpine
AHA Women's Championship Game Preview: Penn State To Battle Mercyhurst

Penn State finished the regular season with a 19-1-0 conference record, setting an Atlantic Hockey record and winning their third consecutive regular-season title.

However, the lone blemish came on Feb. 8 to Mercyhurst – the team Penn State will now battle in the AHA Championship Game.

The Nittany Lions won three of the four matchups in the season series and were simply dominant in AHA play. Yet Mercyhurst put up a fight and slightly closed the gap in the second half.

Penn State led the way with 52 points and Mercyhurst finished second in the conference with 39. The Nittany Lions earned 52 of a possible 60 points, and they out-scored their opponents 74-24. Including a 13-10 edge over Mercyhurst.

Penn State opened the season series with a 4-2 win but the final three were decided by one goal, one of which required overtime. PSU had to rally from 2-0 and 3-1 deficits in that overtime win too, but was able to claw back.

Penn State and Mercyhurst both earned first-round byes and advanced last weekend.

Penn State swept RIT, winning 3-2 and 4-0, and received four points (3-1-4) from captain Tessa Janecke in the series. Saturday’s win gives Penn State 30 on the season, which set a single-season program record.

Mercyhurst won its series over Syracuse too, although it required three games. The Lakers dropped Game 1, 1-0, but responded with 4-0 and 5-2 wins to clinch the series. Thea Johansson recorded a hat trick Sunday afternoon and freshman Julia Schalin netted the game-winner in the third period.

Now the two will battle it out for the AHA title.

Penn State and Mercyhurst combined for eight of the league’s top 11 goal scorers, and this meeting is shaping up to be yet another thriller. Penn State has won the last two titles and is 14-2-0 on home ice this season.

Saturday’s game is set for 2 p.m. EST faceoff at Pegula Ice Arena.

Atlantic Hockey America Women's Awards

The AHA announced it's end-of-season awards Wednesday with many playing in the championship game Saturday. Here's the full list of AHA Awards for 2024-25. Needless to say, Tessa Janecke was the big winner as the league's forward and player of the year. Earlier Wednesday, Janecke was also named to the U.S. Women's National Team that will compete in the 2025 IIHF Women's World Championship.

Here is the full list of winners:

  • Meghan Agosta Player of the Year: Tessa Janecke, Penn State
  • Vicki Bendus Forward of the Year: Tessa Janecke, Penn State
  • AHA Scoring Champion: Tessa Janecke, Penn State
  • Molly Byrne Best Defenseman Award: Kendall Butze, Penn State
  • Brianne McLaughlin Goaltender of the Year: Katie DeSa, Penn State
  • Nicole Hensley Rookie of the Year Award: Julia Schalin, Mercyhurst
  • AHA Best Defensive Forward Award: Jordyn Bear, RIT
  • AHA Individual Sportsmanship Award: Marielle Parks, Mercyhurst
  • AHA Scholar Athlete of the Year Award: Tatum White, Syracuse
  • AHA Coach of the Year: Jeff Kampersal, Penn State

How To Watch The AHA Women's Championship Game

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