Women’s D-III weekend picks Nov. 16-17

Elizabeth Bauer of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (Shane Opatz Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo/Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo)
Elizabeth Bauer leads Wisconsin-Eau Claire’s offense. (Shane Opatz Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo/Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo)

Friday, Nov. 16

Southern Maine vs. Plymouth State
Southern Maine has the home-ice advantage, and I think that will help lift them past Plymouth State. The team’s records so far this season are very similar, so I expect this game to be close. Southern Maine 3-2

Friday-Saturday, Nov. 16-17

University of New England vs. Morrisville
University of New England is having a great start to their season. Winning their first four games with exactly four goals in each contest, the Nor’easters are not having trouble scoring. Morrisville is having a good start as well with only one loss on their record. Like University of New England, they have not found any trouble in finding the back of the net. Morrisville seems to have too much firepower to let University of New England steal a game this weekend. University of New England 3-1, 4-3

No. 4 Hamline vs. No. 9 Gustavus Adolphus
Hamline has yet to lose a game this season, keeping the point spread just within one goal when playing a competitive team. Gustavus Adolphus’ record so far has got to be disappointing due to the fact that each victory was barely won, except for their last win against St. Olaf. It is clear that they are in a rebuild mode, still learning and trying to fill the holes from losing their senior class last year. Gustavus could potentially steal a game from Hamline, but I don’t see it this weekend. Hamline 4-0, 2-1

Adrian vs. St. Scholastica
It’s no secret Adrian is having a hard time scoring this year; however, what team in the NCHA is not having that problem? St. Scholastica seems to be slowly gathering some offensive strength, which is consistent with what was projected. However, I don’t think it’s enough to beat Adrian, but I do think it’s enough to hold them off from completing the sweep. Adrian 3-0, Tie 1-1

No. 5 Middlebury vs. Trinity
This game is a hard pick since we haven’t seen either team play yet this season. Even though Middlebury is young, Trinity is extremely young with 11 freshmen on their roster. Middlebury has a history of success, and I think it’ll be too much for Trinity to take a win this weekend. Middlebury 4-1, 2-1

Cortland vs. Oswego
I like Oswego’s start to their season with a 4-0 start. The Lakers closed out an important conference matchup last weekend, and this weekend will be no different. Every conference point is important and needed. The Lakers seem to have no problem winning the important matchups. Oswego 5-0, 4-2

Nazareth vs. Stevenson
This game will be interesting to watch as we will get a chance to see how Nazareth holds up against a good team. I would love to see Nazareth win a game, although I don’t see it happening their first weekend against a team like Stevenson. Stevenson 4-1, 3-2

Saturday, Nov. 17

No. 7 Wisconsin-River Falls vs. No. 10 Wisconsin-Eau Claire
Wisconsin-River Falls seems to have an offensive prowess this year, averaging 5.2 goals per game. Wisconsin-Eau Claire has the home-ice advantage, but look for a team like Wisconsin-River Falls to take that away from the matchup. Wisconsin-River Falls 5-2