FAIRFIELD, Conn. — For the first time in program history, the Sacred Heart University women's hockey team hosts the annual Nutmeg Classic at Martire Family Arena this weekend. The Pios welcome fellow in-state rivals No. 9/7 Quinnipiac, No. 14 UConn and RV Yale for the round-robin style tournament with the Pios taking on the Bobcats in the opening matchup on Friday, November 29 at 3 p.m. 
 
RV Yale and No .14 UConn will play in the nightcap on Friday before all four teams hit the ice the following day, Saturday, November 30 for the third place and championship games. The third-place game is slated for 3 p.m. while the 2024 Nutmeg Classic Championship Game will be played at 6 p.m. More information can be found at sacredheartpioneers.com. 
 
ORIGINAL SIX
The Pioneers enter the tournament weekend on a seven-game win streak which is the longest streak for the program since the 2019-20 campaign where the Pios rattled off 13-straight victories. SHU has outscored opponents 23-2 during the current win-streak.
 
Sophomore Isabella Chaput heads into the weekend as the leading scorer for the Pios and is currently riding a career-long three game goal-streak. She leads the program with 11 points this season courtesy of a 8-3-11 scoring line. She has earned a point in every series this season and has scored in a goal in every weekend series since opening NEWHA action against Saint Anselm. 
 
During SHU's win-streak, the Pioneers have secured five shutouts as a team. In total, the Pios rank second in the nation with seven shutouts on the year, which is one back of this weekend's opponent Quinnipiac who have grabbed eight this year. 
 
The Pios currently rank No. 1 in the conference in most defensive categories, boasting the best scoring defense (1.21), team goals-against average (1.210) and team shutouts (7). SHU's marks in scoring defense and goals-against average both rank third in the nation entering the weekend. 
 
Graduate student defensemen Savannah Popick enters the weekend having earned her second conference accolade of the season after a two-goal outing against Franklin Pierce. The Connecticut native heads into Friday's matchup on a career-long five-game point streak and is tied for the team lead in defensemen scoring with Peyton Bennetts (7). 
 
Lauren Larson enters the weekend after earning her first collegiate wins in the series against FPU. Earning her first career start on Friday, Larson had a shutout through 57:40 of action before allowing a power-play goal in a 3-1 win for the Pios. She followed up her impressive 21-save outing from Friday with a career-high 27-save shutout performance in the series finale to keep SHU in first place in the NEWHA standings heading into the Thanksgiving break. 
 
TOURNAMENT CENTRAL
The Pioneers host the 2024 Nutmeg Classic for the first time in the program's history this weekend, welcoming three perennial women's hockey powerhouses to Martire Family Arena. The round-robin format tournament sees Sacred Heart taking on No. 9/7 Quinnipiac in the opener at 3 p.m. before RV Yale takes on No. 14 UConn in the nightcap on day one. The third place and championship games will be played the following day at 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., respectively. 
 
Quinnipiac enters the weekend having won the tournament last season with a 3-0 win over Yale in the championship game. The Bobcats have won the last four installments of the tournament and are on an eight-game win streak during the last four years in the Thanksgiving weekend tourney, outscoring opponents by a 26-9 margin. 
 
This weekend marks the sixth appearance for the Red & White in the tournament's history. The Pioneers made their debut in the annual Nutmeg Classic back in the 2009-10 season, falling to Yale, 10-1, on November 27, 2009. 
 
The Pioneers made back-to-back appearances in the tournament in the 2009-10 & 2010-11 season's and have appeared in the last three installments dating back to the 2021-22 season. The tournament was not played in a shortened 2020-21 season due to COVID-19. The first-ever Nutmeg Classic was held during the Halloween Weekend of 2004 with Quinnipiac, Yale, UConn, and Niagara participating.
 
SHU heads into the weekend searching for their first tournament win in the annual tournament The Pios had a strong showing last season in the consolation game, falling narrowly to UCONN, 3-1. The Pios closest game in the Nutmeg Classic came in the 2022-23 tournament where the Pios took No. 15 UConn to overtime before falling in the sudden-death period, 3-2. 
 
Nine current Pioneers were present on the team in SHU's 3-2 OT loss to UConn. Katie Keenan and Paige McNeil earned the assists on Delani MacKay's game-opening power-play goal while Anastasia Sloan earned an assist on a Kelly Solak go-ahead goal in the second period. Carly Greene made 54 saves during the contest as the goalie of record.