It wasn't Bush v. Gore or even Florida St. v. Oklahoma. Yet, there was a No. 1 vs. No. 2 battle that took place this weekend in women's ECAC hockey.

Dartmouth, ranked No.1 in Division I, defeated No. 2 Minnesota 4-0 in a victory that gives the Big Green

some breathing room at the top of the charts.

Dartmouth 4, Minnesota 0

Dartmouth goaltender Meaghan Cahill posted her second shutout of the year as No. 1 Dartmouth (10-0-1, 8-0-1) overwhelmed No. 2 Minnesota (11-4-1, 10-1-1 WCHA) 4-0 in the teams' first meeting of the season. Cahill recorded 30 saves and received help from freshman Sarah Clark, co-captain Jennifer Wiehn, and juniors Lydia Wheatley and Lauren Trottier, all who scored goals before the third period in the Big Green romp.

Northeastern 3, Princeton 1

Northeastern forward Kathleen Savino scored the game-winning goal midway through the third period as the Huskies (10-2, 7-1 ECAC) went on to defeat Princeton (4-6-2, 2-6-2) for the second time this year, 3-1.

Savino's goal, putting Northeastern up 2-0, just squeaked between the goalpost and Princeton goalie Megan Van Beusekom's glove. The Huskies, ranked No. 8 in Division I, scored a power-play goal with 7:32 remaining in the second period to get on the board

first.

The Tigers cut the lead to one on an Abbey Fox goal near the start of the third period, but Northeastern sealed the victory on an empty netter with three seconds left.

Providence 2, Yale 0

A vastly dominant Providence College squad (11-2-2, 7-2-2) dominated Yale (1-11-0, 1-9-0), cruising to a 2-0 triumph. In a game ruled by newcomers, freshman forwards Darlene Stephenson and Gayle Shalloo each scored on Yale's fellow frosh goaltender Amy Quinlan to give the Friars the victory. Providence next plays on Jan. 7 against Wisconsin in the first round of the Lake Placid Tournament.

Maine 4, Wayne State 0

Perennial hockey stalwart Maine (7-7-0) skated by little known Wayne State (3-13-0) 4-0 on Saturday night, bringing the Black Bears' record back to .500.

Maine scored three times in the third period to break open a close 1-0 contest.

Maine outshot Wayne State 46-8, overwhelming the Warriors as the game wore on. Cailee Heggestad, Tracy Caridade, and Karen Droog all scored third period goals as Maine ran away with the victory. The Black Bears next square off against Yale on Jan. 6, while

Wayne State is off until Jan. 15 against Findlay.

Brown 3, Niagara 0

Playing Niagara (7-8-1) in a rematch from the night before, Brown (6-3-2) prevailed over the Purple Eagles 3-0 in a win that can be directly credited to captain Kathleen Kauth.

The Brown senior scored all three Bears' goals in the victory, snapping a

four-game winless streak. Kauth scored one goal in each period, her third (and hat-trick clinching) tally coming with 13:06 remaining in the final period.

Jumping directly out of the penalty box, Kauth received a pass from Kim Insalaco that led to a one-on-one

showdown with Niagara netminder, Tania Pinelli. Kauth faked right and Pinelli was fooled, allowing the captain to easily slide the puck by the goalie's pad for the score.

Brown 4, Niagara 4

Brown could only muster a tie with Niagara on Friday, as the two teams played to a 4-4 deadlock.

For Niagara, junior Brooke Bradburn scored all four goals, a career-high. Brown's Kristy Zamora recorded a hat-trick of her own as the two teams battled into overtime.

In the extra session, Brown outshot Niagara 3-1, but Purple Eagles' goalie Tania Pinelli turned back all three to secure the tie. Niagara outshot Brown overall, 36-31.

Brown trailed 4-3 with only forty seconds left in regulation, until Meredith Ostrander knotted the game at four after Brown pulled their goaltender, Pam Dreyer, giving the Bears an extra skater during the final minute.