AT HOME: The Union College women's hockey team concludes their stretch of 10 straight home games this weekend, opening ECAC Hockey play against #10 Clarkson University on Friday night and #15 St. Lawrence University on Saturday afternoon.
LAST WEEKEND: Union College hosted the 2025 Ice Breaker Tournament at M&T Bank Center last weekend, featuring #1 Wisconsin, the University of Vermont, and Saint Anselm College. Six different goal scorers (
Emma Fulawka,
Megan Duplantie (2),
Karianne Engelbert,
Mikayla Blomquist, and
Greta Kropp ) propelled the Garnet Chargers to a 7–5 semifinal victory over the Hawks on Friday afternoon. Goaltender
Monja Wagner made 17 saves in the win. In Saturday's championship game, Union fell to #1 Wisconsin, 4–0, as Wagner turned aside 49 shots against the Badgers.
ABOUT THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS: #10 Clarkson split with Providence College, falling 2-1 on Friday morning before earning a 3-0 win on Saturday afternoon. Raedyn Spademan scored the lone goal for the Golden Knights in Friday's loss, while goaltender Holly Gruber made 26 saves. On Saturday, Andrea Trynkova, Lara Beecher, and Sara Manness scored, and goaltender Arainne LeBlanc stopped 20 shots to secure the shutout.
ABOUT THE SAINTS: #15 St. Lawrence split their weekend series against the Rochester Institute of Technology. The Saints opened with a commanding 3–0 win over the Tigers on Thursday evening. Meghan Crowley, Brooke Mulvihill, and Alexa Davis scored the goals, while goaltender Kassidy Lawrence made 35 saves in the shutout. On Friday, St. Lawrence fell 4–1, as Abby Hel scored the lone goal for the Saints and Emma-Sofie Nordstrom stopped 33 shots in the loss.
M&T BANK CENTER
This season, Union Hockey will call the state-of-the-art M&T Bank Center its home, becoming the primary tenant of the 100,000-square-foot multi-purpose venue. The arena boasts a capacity of 2,200 for hockey games and expands to 3,600 for other sporting events, trade shows, special events, and conventions. Highlights include seven luxury suites, a spacious hospitality suite, two full-service concession stands, and an elegant bar overlooking the Mohawk River. Convenient on site parking is available, with an additional 700-space lot within walking distance.
MEGAN'S MAGNIFENCE
First-year
Megan Duplantie tallied two goals in Union's 7–5 semifinal win over Saint Anselm on Friday afternoon. This marked her second multi-goal game of the season, after scoring twice on Saturday, October 4, against Merrimack College, including the game-tying goal with 50 seconds remaining to force overtime. Due to her standout performances, Duplantie earned ECAC Hockey #Bitcoin Rookie of the Week honors on both Tuesday, October 7, and Tuesday, October 21.
BRICKWALL BRILLANCE
Junior goaltender
Monja Wagner recorded a career-high 49 saves in Union's 4–0 loss to #1 Wisconsin. Among all of Wisconsin's non-conference opponents this season—including two 5–0 series sweeps over the University of Maine and an 8–1 win against Vermont—Union allowed the fewest goals against the top-ranked Badgers.
This season Wagner has posted a 3-1-2 record with a 2.28 GAA and a .918 save percentage.
ICE BREAKER ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Junior
Maddie Leaney and sophomore
Karianne Engelbert were named to the Ice Breaker All-Tournament Team on Saturday afternoon. Leaney tallied a goal and two assists in Friday's 7–5 win over Saint Anselm, while Engelbert added a goal and an assist. Through eight games this season, Leaney has recorded three goals and three assists for six points. Engelbert has registered two goals and one assist for three points in six games played.
RETURNING ROSTER
The team is comprised of 18 returners, including nine forwards (sophomores
Mikayla Blomquist,
Karianne Engelbert, Klara Kenttälä, and
Jill Willis; juniors
Emma Fulawka and
Maddie Leaney; and seniors
Amanda Quan,
Greta Kropp, and
Mallory Mauracher), six blueliners (sophomores
Lauren Johnson and
Giavanna Mancy; juniors
Quinn Dunkle,
Brigitte McGuire, and
Megan Ognibene and senior
Stephanie Bourque), and three goaltenders (sophomore
Sara Da Silva, junior
Monja Wagner, and senior
Emily Evans).
NEW BLOOD
Union welcomes six first-year players— forwards
Natalie Andelova,
Megan Duplantie, and
Reanna Loberg; blueliners
Isabel Powers and
Kaitlyn Toner; and goaltender Emma Rhéaume—along with two transfers, forward
Hayley Kelleher and blueliner
Peyton O'Neill, to the program for the 2025-26 season. The incoming class represents two countries, three provinces, and three states, and features four forwards, three blueliners, and one goaltender, each eager to make an immediate impact.
FORWARD FLEET
Union returns two of its top forwards from last season. Key contributors junior
Maddie Leaney and sophomore
Karianne Engelbert appeared in all 37 games for the Garnet Chargers. The forward group also features returning veterans
Greta Kropp,
Mallory Mauracher, and
Amanda Quan, along with juniors
Mikayla Blomquist and
Emma Fulawka, and sophomores Klara Kenttälä and
Jill Willis.
Engelbert looks to build on one of the most productive rookie seasons in program history. In 2024-25, Engelbert tallied 15 goals and nine assists for 24 points, setting a new Union rookie single-season points record and tying the first-year goals mark. Her 10 goals in the first half of the season led all first-years nationally, and she finished third among all Division I rookies in goals scored.
Leaney contributed eight goals and 15 assists for 23 points, ranking second on the team in scoring. Her 15 helpers also ranked third all-time for most assists in a single season at Union.
ANCHORING THE BLUELINE
Union returns two of its top-six defensemen from last season. Senior captain
Stephanie Bourque appeared in all 37 contests, while junior
Quinn Dunkle skated in 36. The Garnet Chargers also bring back junior blueliners
Megan Ognibene and
Brigitte McGuire, along with sophomores
Lauren Johnson and
Giavanna Mancy. Transfer sophomore
Peyton O'Neill and first-years
Isabel Powers and
Kaitlyn Toner look to make an immediate impact on the blue line.
Bourque anchors the defense after a record-breaking 2024-25 campaign, tallying eight goals and 14 assists for 22 points. She ranked third on the team in scoring, and her five power-play goals tied for third-most in a Division I single season. Bourque set the Union single-season record for goals by a defenseman with her eighth of the year against Quinnipiac on February 15. One week later, her assist in the program's first-ever ECAC Tournament win over Brown broke the school standard for points by a defenseman in a season and ranked fifth among all skaters.
BRICKWALL BRIGADE
Union enters the season with a four goaltenders consisting of senior
Emily Evans, junior
Monja Wagner, sophomore
Sara Da Silva, and first-year Emma Rhéaume.
Wagner has started five games for the Garnet Chargers posting a 3-1-2 record with a 2.28 GAA and a .918 save percentage. Wagner has earned wins against Franklin Pierce (Sept. 26), Merrimack (Oct. 3), and Saint Anselm (Oct. 17), secured ties against Merrimack (Oct. 4), and New Hampshire (Oct. 10), and her only loss came against #1 Wisconsin on Oct. 18.
Rhéaume has appeared in two games for Union this season posting a 1-1 record. Rhéaume earned her first collegiate shutout and win in the 2–0 victory over Franklin Pierce on Sept. 27, and made her second start in 3–1 loss to New Hampshire on Oct. 11, recording 23 saves.
Evans made one appearance during the 2024-25 campaign, stopping seven shots against Quinnipiac on January 3.
GOING STREAKING
Senior
Stephanie Bourque (114 games) and junior
Maddie Leaney (80 games) are both riding multi-year iron-woman streaks, having appeared in every game of their three- and two-year careers, respectively. Sophomore
Jill Willis also skated in all 37 contests as a first-year and look to build on her streak.
OH CAPTAINS, OUR CAPTAINS
Senior blueliner
Stephanie Bourque will serve as team captain for the Garnet Chargers, while junior defenseman
Megan Ognibene returns as an assistant captain for a second consecutive season. Senior forward
Mallory Mauracher joins the leadership group as a first-time assistant captain.
ENGELBERT'S EXCELLENCE
Sophomore
Karianne Engelbert will look for more success after registering one of the most productive rookie seasons in program history in the 2024-25 season, scoring 15 goals with nine assists for 24 points while playing in all 37 games as a first-year. Engelbert's points broke the school D-I record for points by a rookie and tied the school's first-year goals mark. Her goals ranked second in program D-I history in single-season goals and points overall. Engelbert also scored six power-play goals to finish second on the school single-season list and tallied a team-leading three game winning goals. Engelbert's 10 goals in the first half of the season led all first-years nationally and she finished the season third among all Division I rookies in goal scoring.
COACHES CORNER
Tony Maci was named the fifth head coach in the history of Union women's hockey on July 31, 2024, and begins his second season behind the bench for the Garnet Chargers in 2025-26. Maci and his staff made an immediate impact in his first season in Schenectady, leading the Garnet Chargers to the most wins in program history and earning the team's first-ever postseason victory. Union finished the season with a 13-23-1 record and won a program-record eight conference games as part of a very challenging ECAC Hockey slate, including the team's first-ever win over a top-10 opponent with a 3-2 win at #9 Cornell University in November. Playing a total of 19 games against nationally ranked foes, eight losses came by a single goal and Union was less than 70 seconds away from taking eventual conference champion and national semifinalist #3 Cornell to a third game in their ECAC Hockey Quarterfinal series. The squad also set new program records for most goals scored and fewest goals allowed in a season in the school's Division I era, while also earning the program's first ECAC postseason honor since 2008 with first-year
Karianne Engelbert's All-Rookie Team nod.
HERE TO ASSIST
Joining Maci are second-year coaches
Shawn Skelly,
Tina Ciraulo, and
Courtney Hall. Skelly, Ciraulo, and Hall were all a part of a staff that made an immediate impact in their first season in Schenectady, leading the Garnet Chargers to the most wins in program history and earning the team's first-ever postseason victory. Union finished the season with a 13-23-1 record and won a program-record eight conference games as part of a very challenging ECAC Hockey slate, including the team's first-ever win over a top-10 opponent with a 3-2 win at #9 Cornell University in November. The squad also set new program records for most goals scored and fewest goals allowed in a season in the school's Division I era, while also earning the program's first ECAC postseason honor since 2008 with first-year
Karianne Engelbert's All-Rookie Team nod.
PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
Union will look to surprise the ECAC Hockey landscape under the leadership of second year head coach
Tony Maci, as the Garnet Chargers were picked to finish 9th in the ECAC Hockey Preseason Poll out of 12 teams. The team received 56 points, finishing three points behind Brown University in 8th place and 14 points ahead of Harvard University in 10th place, 25 points ahead of Dartmouth in 11th place, and 27 points ahead of Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute.
