The program was started in 1999 and Michael Sisti has been its only coach. From 2000 to 2002, the Lakers were part of the Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association (GLWHA). While in the Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association, the Lakers qualified for the GLWHA tournament twice – in 2001, and 2002. The Lakers were regular season champions in 2000–01 and 2001–02, and won the playoff championship in 2002. For the 2002–03 season, the Lakers joined the College Hockey America (CHA) conference, which merged with the Atlantic Hockey Association shortly after the 2023–24 season to form the new Atlantic Hockey America.
History
1999 to 2002
Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association
The Mercyhurst women's ice hockey program predates NCAA governance in the sport. The Great Lakes Women's Hockey Association was formed by Mercyhurst University in Erie, Pennsylvania, the University of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio and Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, when the Title IX law protecting equity in sports was making major changes to women's athletics.
A Mercyhurst men's assistant coach since 1993, Michael Sisti, was named the inaugural head coach. As of the end of the 2019–20 season, he remains the only head coach in the program's history. Sisti had been a star forward for Canisius College, where he graduated in 1990.
Mercyhurst was immediately successful in the GLWHA. They were 23–6–0 in 1999–00. Most of their games were shutout wins, and scored 10 or more goals on six occasions.
In 2000–01 they were far less successful, going 14–16–3, playing more established programs.
In 2001–02, they saw great success again, with a 24–8–1 record, and the final GLWHA Championship.
College Hockey America through 2005–06
As the NCAA became the primary governing body of women's hockey, the conferences began to merge with existing men's conferences. The Mercyhurst men were part of the Metro Atlantic Conference, while Findlay and Wayne States' men's programs were in College Hockey America, which began organizing as a women's conference as well. The new CHA women's conference included Mercyhust, Findlay and Wayne State from the GLWHA, and Niagara University.
In the first four years of the conference, Mercyhurst dominated the competition. Within the conference, they were 38–1–3, winning every regular season, and every tournament. Their overall record was 102–29–13 for the same period. In the first two years of the conference, the CHA a smaller conference against much more storied conferences, like the ECAC and the WCHA. As a result, Mercyhurst did not receive a bid to appear in the NCAA Tournament. In 2005, the Lakers received their first bid, traveling to powerful Harvard University on March 19. The ensuing game was one of the most bitterly fought in tournament history, with Harvard prevailing 5–4 in the third overtime period. During that game, Mercyhurst goaltender Desirae "Desi" Clark set a single game save record of 78 stops.[3] That record still stands at the Division I level as of April 2020[update], the end of the 2019–20 season. In the following year, the Lakers had similar bad luck, this time losing to Wisconsin in 2 overtimes.
The CHA Conference saw some changes, as Findlay dropped their program in 2004, and the Robert Morris Colonials joining for 2005–06, after Quinnipiac joined for a single year (2004–05).
The Meghan Agosta years
By the mid-2000s Mercyhurst College (it would become Mercyhurst University in 2012), had several advantages in recruiting: The college itself, a small Catholic institution with very good academics; The success and graduation rate of its athletes; and, the overwhelming success of the team. The campus location near Lake Ontario was attractive to young women from Ontario, New York and Pennsylvania, a large pool of talent.
In 2006, the Lakers attracted Megan Agosta, perhaps the most sought-after talent in the NCAA. Even before attending college, she had won an Olympic gold medal at the 2006 Turin games with Team Canada. She became one of the best players of the decade in NCAA play.
Agosta would be the first ever freshman to be a top three finalist for the Patty Kazmaier Award.[4]
In 2007, Mercyhurst successfully recruited Vicki Bendus, who would win the 2010 Patty Kazmaier Award as the nation's top player, and was a top-10 finalist in the following year.
In addition, the Lakers recruited Katariina Soikkanen of the Finnish National team, as well as Angelica Lorsell and Johanna Malmstrom who played for the Swedish National Team. The Lakers also had four players on the roster who played on the Canadian Under-22 Team. Mercyhurst had two CHA First Team selections in 2006–07, one second team choice, the Player and Rookie of the Year, and four members of the All-Rookie Team.
With the addition of these players, in addition to a potent roster in totality, Mercyhurst achieved even more success.
During her college career, Agosta would score 157 goals and 303 points, both NCAA records. Her international play meant substantial time off from the Mercyhurst team, making these records all the more impressive.
The best year in Mercyhurst history came in 2009–10. In that season, the Lakers started the season with a record of 19 wins, 1 loss and 3 ties (Conference Record, 6–0–1). They were the top ranked team in the USA TODAY/USA Hockey Magazine poll for 14 consecutive weeks and were the unanimous choice with all 19 first-place votes eight times. Their only loss came in an October home split with Minnesota Duluth[5] until the Nation Championship game against Wisconsin on March 22, 2009, which they lost 5–0. It was the Laker's only NCAA Championship Game. During that season, Meghan Agosto took time away to participate in her second Olympic games, this time in Vancouver, Canada. She won her second gold medal and was named the Most Valuable Player in women's hockey in the Olympic Games.
Continued success in the 2010s
To date, the Mercyhurst program continues to be successful, if no longer dominant in the CHA conference. In 2013 and 2014, the Lakers appeared in back-to-back Frozen Four contests. These teams were led by forward Christine Bestland, a captain for two years, national recognition by USCHO. com, and two time MVP of the CHA conference.
Upon Bestland's graduation, Mercyhurst's successes were more modest, despite the leadership of forward Emily Janiga and defenseman Molly Byrne. The Lakers earned their record-setting 10th consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance in 2014.
In 2015, Mercyhurst failed to earn a berth in the national tournament, while still posting a 23–9–3 record and a regular season conference title. In the following year, the team returned to the tournament after a one-year hiatus.
From 2017 to 2019, the Lakers enjoyed success, but contended with rival CHA program Robert Morris for conference leadership. The 2016–17 team posted a 15–18–4 record, their first and only losing record since NCAA competition began in 2001–02, as of the end of 2020. Their 3rd place CHA finish was the lowest ranking in Mercyhurst history, but still good enough for the team to stay in the top tier of the conference.
Mercyhurst appeared in another NCAA tournament in 2018 and received a berth in 2020. The 2020 Tournament, however, was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Season by season results
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties
Won Championship
Lost Championship
Conference Regular Season Champions
League Leader
Year
Coach
W
L
T
Conference
Conf. W
Conf. L
Conf. T
Finish
Conference Tournament
NCAA Tournament
1999–2000
Michael Sisti
23
6
0
GLWHA
8
0
0
1st GLWHA
2000–01
Michael Sisti
14
16
3
GLWHA
5
1
2
1st GLWHA
Lost Championship vs. Findlay (2–1)
2001–02
Michael Sisti
24
8
1
GLWHA
8
0
0
1st GLWHA
Won Championship vs. Findlay (4–2)
2002–03
Michael Sisti
25
8
1
CHA
6
0
0
1st CHA
Won Semifinals vs. Wayne State (5–0) Won Championship vs. Findlay (1–0)
Did not qualify
2003–04
Michael Sisti
26
6
4
CHA
11
1
0
1st CHA
Won Semifinals vs. Wayne State (4–0) Won Championship vs. Niagara (3–1)
Did not qualify
2004–05
Michael Sisti
28
7
2
CHA
11
0
1
1st CHA
Won Semifinals vs. Quinnipiac (9–1) Won Championship vs. Niagara (4–1)
Lost First Round vs. Harvard (5–4 3OT)
2005–06
Michael Sisti
23
8
6
CHA
10
0
2
1st CHA
Won Semifinals vs. Robert Morris (9–0) Won Championship vs. Niagara (6–2)
Lost First Round vs. Wisconsin (2–1 2OT)
2006–07
Michael Sisti
32
2
3
CHA
11
0
1
1st CHA
Won Semifinals vs. Robert Morris (5–2) Won Championship vs. Wayne State (4–1)
Top single-season scoring record holders of the Mercyhurst Lakers, valid through conclusion of the 2020–21 season.[13][14][15] Table includes the top ten players in each statistic: goals, assists, points, and points per game.
Players listed only at the highest level of recognition attained in the year(s) noted (i.e. Top 3 Finalists are not also listed under Top 10 or Nominees, though they also reached those designations).
