Revenge is best served cold. On ice.

After losing the second match of a pair with Pittsburgh last weekend at the Greenberg Sports Complex, the Penn State Lady Icers won't have to wait long for their chance to get back at the Panthers. They travel to Pittsburgh this weekend for a tournament that should prove to be electrifying.

The Lady Icers (10-4) are set to strap on their battle gear against Western Michigan (2-8-3) on Friday, Arizona State (2-1) in a Saturday night matchup, and Pittsburgh (3-5) in a rival confrontation on Sunday to cap off a demanding weekend.

After last Sunday's setback against Pittsburgh, Penn State is without margin of error for the rest of the season. To reach nationals and their eventual goal of hanging up a championship banner, it's time for the Lady Icers to focus and finish.

"We had a players only meeting," said freshmen Kristen Reed. "We talked about things that went wrong on the coaching end as well as for us individually. After our meeting we've been picking it up in practice."

Every time the Lady Icers have gotten a head of steam going this season, something has brought them down, stopping their fever. The Lady Icers are still dealing with leading goal scorer Andrea Lavelle's suspension for her part in a bench-clearing ruckus against Buffalo on Dec. 1. The senior has three more games to serve of her five-game punishment. The Lady Icers are most recently taking on the addition of five new players, and a revamped system with new lines on both the offensive and defensive side.

"We pretty much have to win all our games left," said freshman defender Stephanie Feyock. "We can't let Sunday happen again. The team is more focused."

Penn State will face three quality opponents this weekend. The Lady Icers will see Western Michigan for the second time this season on Friday night. In their first meeting the Lady Icers handled Western Michigan in a 6-1 steam-rolling. Although their record isn't exactly setting the world on fire, the Mustangs play in the black and blue Central division of the ACHA with strong teams like Michigan State and the University of Michigan.

Arizona State acts as a formidable opponent for the Lady Icers, as the two teams are not well acquainted. Arizona State features a dominating player in Gayle Shalloo. Shalloo can be flatout scary for the She-Devils, as she does almost everything for Arizona State. If Penn State can handcuff Shalloo, it should be able to win the game.

Although each game this weekend is equally important, some Lady Icers will be especially looking forward to their rematch with Pittsburgh.

"I want to get them back so bad," said Reed.

The Lady Icers are going to have to lay it all down on the table this weekend if they want to keep the dream alive of reaching the national tournament.

"I expect some hard-ass work on our part," said assistant captain Lauren Shaw. "And if that comes through, we're going to come through with three wins."