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Mercyhurst Athletics

Women's Ice Hockey Gabe Herman, Director of Communications

AHA Women’s Postseason Journal (March 6, 2026)

No. 2 Mercyhurst visits No. 1 Penn State to decide the 2026 AHA Postseason champion.

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - For the fourth consecutive season, Mercyhurst and Penn State are set to face off in the Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) Postseason championship game with the 2026 edition slated for 2 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 7.

The winner of the contest will be AHA’s automatic qualifier to cement a spot in the 2026 NC Women’s Ice Hockey Championship bracket.

QUICK HITS
  • Mercyhurst leads the all-time series over Penn State with a 27-25-9 record. In the postseason, the Nittany Lions own a 3-2 record, with all three victories being in conference title games.
  • Mercyhurst (115) and Penn State (156) are two of 10 programs in the nation with 110+ goals scored in 2025-26.
  • The familiar foes are also just two of 11 Division I teams allowing opponents fewer than 2 goals per game, with Mercyhurst averaging 1.9 goals-against and Penn State leading the nation at 1.3 goals-against per game.
  • In a 7-0 win over Syracuse on Feb. 27, Penn State senior forward Tessa Janecke joined former Mercyhurst skater Stefanie Bourbeau as the only two skaters to record two hat tricks in the league’s postseason history.

NET GAINS
Among AHA goaltenders in postseason play (min. 33% team minutes played), Penn State senior Katie DeSa leads the pack with a 0.50 goals-against average and a .969 save percentage. The AHA Goaltending champion has only allowed one goal in two appearances in net during the tournament.

DeSa leads the nation with 11 shutouts and is tied for the second-most wins with 25 on the campaign.

Mercyhurst sophomore goaltender Magdalena Luggin has also appeared in two postseason games and has a 1.22 goals-against average, which ranks second. Luggin’s .941 save percentage through the tournament is the third-highest among qualifying AHA netminders.

Through five career postseason games (4-1-0), Luggin has recorded one shutout, a 1.65 goals-against average and a .921 save percentage.

BY THE NUMBERS
3 - Penn State has won three total AHA postseason tournaments, and all have come over the past three seasons.

4 - The 2025-26 AHA Coach of the Year, Jeff Kampersal, is in search of his fourth title, which would move him to the second-most championship wins in conference history behind Mercyhurst head coach Mike Sisti (13 titles).

14 - The Lakers are seeking their 14th overall league championship. Their last crown was won in 2020 during overtime against Robert Morris.

20 - This contest marks Mercyrhurst’s 20th appearance in the conference championship game.

ABOUT ATLANTIC HOCKEY AMERICA
Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) is in its second season following the merger between the Atlantic Hockey Association and College Hockey America. The conference fields 10 Division I men's teams and seven women's teams. For more information, visit atlantichockeyamerica.com.

Connect with AHA on X (@Atlantic_Hockey), Instagram (@atlantichockeyamerica) and Facebook (Atlantic Hockey America).

Watch AHA games on FloHockey this season.