Women’s D-I picks: Jan. 11

Thanks to guessing both Northeastern games right, I retook the lead from Arlan in our race for the yearly six pack. Last week, I went 10-3 (.769) to improve to 126-49-19 (.698), while Arl
an went 8-5 (.615) to fall to 125-50-19 (.693). We’ve got some very interesting PairWise games this weekend, so let’s pick them!

Friday, Jan. 11

Quinnipiac-Dartmouth
Candace: The Bobats continue to get momentum for a big clash with Harvard. Quinnipiac 4-2
Arlan: The Bobcats carry a five-game winning streak into the new year. Quinnipiac 5-3

Clarkson-Brown
Candace: Rattray and Ambrose are back. Bad news for the Bears. Clarkson 4-1
Arlan: Brown takes its new-found offensive might for a spin against Clarkson’s suddenly-leaky defense. Clarkson 3-1

St. Lawrence-Yale
Candace: Second-half surge continues. St. Lawrence 4-1
Arlan: The Bulldogs always seem to be playing some team with considerably more talent. St. Lawrence 5-2

Princeton-Harvard
Candace: The Crimson continue to make Princeton pay for beating them a year ago. Harvard 5-1
Arlan: After shutting out Harvard last season, Princeton has allowed 28 goals in the four subsequent meetings. Harvard 5-1

Friday-Saturday, Jan. 11-12

Syracuse at Mercyhurst
Candace: The Orange have the potential, but the Lakers get it done. Mercyhurst 4-2, 5-2
Arlan: The Orange have been one of the surprise teams, and it wouldn’t shock me if they won, particularly in the first game. Mercyhurst 1-0, 3-1

North Dakota at Minnesota
Candace: North Dakota will put a scare into Minnesota, but the Gophers get the sweep. Minnesota 3-2, 3-2
Arlan: The last team to defeat the Gophers, North Dakota, gets the first chances to do so in 2013. Minnesota 2-1, 4-2

Ohio State at Wisconsin
Candace: I have a feeling this will be a split, and Nate Handrahan might even use this as motivation, but I don’t want to get the nights wrong. Wisconsin 3-2, 3-1
Arlan: Despite poor start, the Badgers were one of the country’s five best teams by December. Wisconsin 2-1, 3-2

Providence at Rensselaer
Candace: Have to go with the hotter team right now. Who would have thought that would be RPI? Rensselaer 3-2, 4-2
Arlan: Back in November, Providence would have been the big favorite. Rensselaer 4-3, Providence 2-1

Saturday, Jan. 12

Quinnipiac at Harvard
Candace: A big clash, with the home team eeking out the win. Harvard 3-2
Arlan: The two teams went toe-to-toe in the first meeting, but Quinnipiac just couldn’t score, a common problem versus the Crimson. Harvard 3-1

Clarkson at Yale
Candace: The Elis are just the opponent Clarkson needs after dropping two last weekend. Clarkson 4-1
Arlan: Yale has had much better performances this season, but only one win in its last dozen games. Clarkson 4-3

St. Lawrence at Brown
Candace: If Brown could score, this would be an interesting game. St. Lawrence 3-1
Arlan: Crucial points needed by both Saints and Bears. St. Lawrence 4-1

Princeton at Dartmouth
Candace: Princeton is mercurial, and so is Dartmouth. Go with home ice. Dartmouth 3-1
Arlan: Tigers give Big Green fits at least once a season, so this one likely goes to OT. Dartmouth 4-3

Vermont at Boston College
Candace: The Eagles continue to fly. Boston College 5-1
Arlan: Catamounts hung tough against BU, but the Eagles have been at another level. Boston College 7-3

Cornell at Northeastern
Candace: Northeastern needs a defense. Cornell 4-1
Arlan: The Huskies are allowing five goals per game thus far in 2013. Cornell 6-3

Saturday-Sunday, Jan. 12-13

Boston University at Maine
Candace: Even Brittany Ott can’t succeed by herself. Boston University 4-1, 5-1
Arlan: Maine’s road sweep of BU seems like longer than 12 months ago. Boston University 3-1, 6-2

Sunday, Jan. 13

Cornell at Boston College
Candace: Possibly the biggest game of the weekend. BC has been hotter. Boston College 5-3
Arlan: Eagles are looking like they will never lose again, meaning they probably will. Cornell 4-3

Wednesday, Jan. 16

Northeastern at Boston University
Candace: The Terriers continue to keep pace with BC. Boston University 4-1
Arlan: Northeastern has yet to win against another Boston team this season. Boston University 4-2