Women’s D-III picks Nov. 22: No. 4 Wis.-River Falls hosts No. 6 Wis.-Eau Claire

Erin Connolly of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo)
Erin Connolly of Wisconsin-Eau Claire will be the key to her team’s efforts to beat No. 4 Wisconsin-River Falls. (Shane Opatz, UWEC Photo)

Friday, Nov. 22

No. 3 Utica at Nazareth
Utica looked fearsome in its opening three games. Nazareth will be a tougher test, but the Soaring Eagles will prevail. Elmira 4-1

Friday-Saturday, Nov. 22-23

Augsburg versus No. 6 Gustavus Adolphus (home-and-home)
Augsburg, though not ranked, beat No. 9 Hamline last weekend, so this is anything but an easy series for the Gusties. It wouldn’t surprise me if the Auggies won on home ice, especially since they’ve shown they can score in bunches. Augsburg 3-2, Gustavus Adoplphus 4-2

Amherst at No. 8 Middlebury
The Mammoths split last weekend at Hamilton. Middlebury, led by junior Madie Leidt, is looking to build on a strong opening weekend. I think home ice helps that quest. Middlebury 3-1, 4-1

Saturday, Nov. 23

No. 6 Wisconsin Eau-Claire at No. 4 Wisconsin-River Falls
Possibly the marquee matchup of the weekend. The Blugolds will look to continue their balanced scoring and get strong netminding from senior Erin Connolly, while the Falcons counter with sophomore forward Abigail Stow and junior forward Madi Nolan, and look to Sami Miller to keep the Blugolds in check. I like te Falcons on home ice. Wisconsin-River Falls 4-3