ON THE ROAD: The Union College women's hockey team returns to ECAC action this week, traveling to Harvard for a 3:00 p.m. puck drop on Friday before heading to Dartmouth College for a 3:00 p.m. start on Saturday afternoon to close out the first half of the season.
LAST TIME OUT: Union swept Delaware last weekend, opening with a 7–0 win on Friday.
Stephanie Bourque led the offense with a five-point night (1G, 4A), while
Karianne Engelbert (2G, 1A) and
Megan Duplantie (1G, 2A) added three-point efforts.
Megan Ognibene tallied a pair of assists while
Jill Willis,
Natalie Andelova, and
Mallory Mauracher each added a goal.
Peyton O'Neill and
Lauren Johnson tallied one assist each, and
Emily Evans earned her first career win and shutout in the victory, stopping 14 shots. On Saturday, Union recorded a 3-0 win led by two goals from
Maddie Leaney and one by
Quinn Dunkle.
Greta Kropp, Bourque, Engelbert, and Duplantie tallied one assist each. First-year Emma Rhéaume tallied 18 saves to pick up her second shutout of her career.
ABOUT THE CRIMSON: Harvard hosted the University of Maine for a weekend series, opening with a 4–3 overtime loss to the Black Bears on Friday night. Emily Hamann, Morgan McGathey, and Ella Lucia tallied the goals for the Crimson, while Emily Davidson made 27 saves in net. On Saturday, the Crimson bounced back with a dominant 5–1 victory. Annie Sun, Keira Ley, Elle Sproule, Ella Lucia, and Antonina Dinges found the back of the net, and Ainsley Tuffy turned aside 31 shots to secure the win.
ABOUT THE BIG GREEN: Dartmouth traveled to #12 Minnesota State–Mankato, falling 5–2 on Friday afternoon. Bridget Pringle and Miami Jones tallied the goals for the Big Green, while goaltenders Michaela Hesová and Jiahuni Zhan split time in net. On Saturday, the Big Green dropped a 5–0 decision to the Mavericks. Jiahuni Zhan earned the start, with Michaela Hesová entering in relief.
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.
BOURQUE'S BRILLANCE
Senior
Stephanie Bourque recorded a six-point weekend against the University of Delaware. Bourque opened the scoring on Friday night with her first goal of the season and went on to earn the primary assist on Union's final four tallies. Her five-point performance tied the program's Division I single-game points record, and her four assists matched the second-highest total in a single game. Bourque added her sixth point of the weekend with an assist on
Maddie Leaney's first goal in Saturday's 3-0 win. With her dominant effort, Bourque earned ECAC Hockey Defender of the Week honors, presented by Adapt Nutrition—her first of the season and the fifth Defender of the Week recognition of her career.
Through 124 career games played, Bourque has tallied 15 goals and 48 assists for 63 points. Her assists rank first all-time and her points rank second all time. Bourque, last season, broke the single season goals and points record by a defender tallying eight goals and 22 points.
LEANEY'S LEAD
With her game-winning goal on Saturday afternoon, Leaney moved into first place on Union's all-time game winning goals list with eight. This season, she has already matched her career best of 12 goals and has added five assists for a total 17 points, including nine goals and one assist for 10 points in the month of November. Her nine goals in November are the most by any Union player in a single month in the program's Division I era.
Leaney was named ECAC Hockey Forward of the Week, presented by Bluebird Hotels, twice in November—becoming the first player in program history to earn the honor twice in a single season and just the second to do so twice in a career. She was also named ECAC Hockey Forward of the Month for November, becoming the first player in program history to receive the monthly honor. She tallied four points against cross-town rival Rensselaer, including two goals in the dominant 7–4 victory on Nov. 8. Leaney also recorded a hat trick in Union's upset win over #4 Cornell on Nov. 21, marking the program's first-ever victory over a top-five opponent. Her hat trick was the second of her career, making her the first player in program history to register multiple hat tricks. Leaney, then, added a goal against #13/12 Colgate the following day.
STONEWALL SHUTOUTS
Senior goaltender
Emily Evans and first-year Emma Rhéaume recorded back-to-back shutouts, marking the second time this season that Union's goaltenders have accomplished the feat. Junior
Monja Wagner and Rhéaume previously combined for consecutive shutouts against Franklin Pierce University on Sept. 26 and 27, becoming the first goaltending duo in program history to do so. Evans' win and shutout on Friday also marked the first of her career.
CYSTIC FIBROSIS AWARENESS GAME.
This past Saturday marked the third year of Union Women's Hockey's Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Game, a tradition rooted in personal connections within the program. Each year, Union proudly partners with the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation – Northeast New York Chapter to raise awareness, encourage donations, and support ongoing research aimed at improving the lives of those living with CF. The team is proud to share that they surpassed their $500 fundraising goal, raising $866 in support of the Foundation. All proceeds will go directly toward research efforts and the ongoing pursuit of a cure.
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 record for single season points by a defenseman 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 ten games for Union posting a 4-4-2 record with a 2.95 GAA and a .908 save percentage. Wagner earned wins against Franklin Pierce (Sept. 26), Merrimack (Oct. 3), Saint Anselm (Oct. 17), and #4 Cornell (Nov. 21) earned ties against Merrimack (Oct. 4), and New Hampshire (Oct. 10), and the four losses came against #1 Wisconsin (Oct. 18), #9 Clarkson on (Oct. 24), #7 Quinnipiac (Oct. 31), #13/12 Colgate (Nov. 22).
Rhéaume has appeared in seven games for Union this season posting a 3-4-0 record with a 2.32 GAA and a .922 SV%. Rhéaume earned her first collegiate shutout and win in the 2–0 victory over Franklin Pierce on Sept. 27 and tallied her second win of her career against cross-town rival Rensselaer on Nov. 1 tallying 22 saves in a commanding 7-4 victory, and posted her second shutout of the season and her career against Delaware on Nov. 29. Rhéaume's losses came against New Hampshire (Oct. 11), Saint Lawrence (Oct. 25), Princeton (Nov. 1) and Rensselaer (Nov. 7).
Evans made her first season debut on against #7 Quinnipiac on Oct. 31 playing 26 minutes of relief, tallying 10 saves on 12 shots. Evans made her first start of the season against Delaware on Nov. 28, posting her first win and shutout victory of her career.
GOING STREAKING
Senior
Stephanie Bourque (124 games) and junior
Maddie Leaney (90 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 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.
