Some gotta win, some gotta lose …
Or they could tie, as we see on Saturdays in the CHA.
First win for the Friars
After seven straight setbacks, Providence hit the win column for the first time this year, rallying in the third period to defeat New Hampshire, 5-4. Trailing by two coming out of the second intermission, the Friars scored three times, including a pair of goals by Madison Sansone 39 seconds apart in the final 80 seconds. Brooke Boquist’s second goal of the day had pulled Providence within one earlier in the frame. Christina Putigna also scored, her first as a Friar.
Early on, UNH had the better of things. Amy Boucher put the Wildcats up early with a pair of markers. With the game tied at 2-2, Devan Taylor and Kate Haslett restored the two-goal lead for UNH.
First loss for Clarkson comes via Rensselaer
No. 4 Clarkson got off to a strong start on Saturday on the road at Rensselaer, taking a first-period lead on a Cayley Mercer goal while outshooting the hosts, 15-3. The Golden Knights seemingly had control of the subsequent frames as well, everywhere but on the scoreboard. The Engineers climbed back into the game on Lindsey Hylwa’s first goal of the season 12:43 into the second period, and they edged ahead when Mari Mankey converted a power-play rebound with just over seven minutes left in regulation. RPI goalie Lovisa Selander refused to allow any more production by Clarkson’s offense, as she finished with 45 saves.
Both teams had experienced different results on Friday. The Golden Knights cruised over Union, 6-0, while outshooting the Dutchwomen, 56-8, with Shea Tiley picking up the shutout. Amanda Titus and Kelly Mariani each knocked in a pair of goals.
Meanwhile, RPI couldn’t generate anything versus St. Lawrence, falling 2-0, as Sonjia Shelly denied all 16 shots by the Engineers. Kailee Heidersbach and Brooke Webster scored in the second and third periods, respectively.
Harvard takes over ECAC lead
Thanks in part to having played one more league game than everyone but Dartmouth, No. 9 Harvard rose to the top of the ECAC standings when it got a road sweep at Yale, 3-2, and Brown, 5-1. Versus the Bulldogs, Sydney Daniels got the Crimson off to a fast start 5:29 into the game, and Grace Zarzecki pushed the lead to 3-0 with two second-period goals. Phoebe Staenz started a comeback for Yale, but Eden Murray’s extra-attacker goal, coming with just 13 seconds to go, didn’t leave enough time for an equalizer. Brianna Laing made 26 saves to garner the win.
Daniels struck first against the Bears as well, and Lexie Laing, Audrey Warner, Briana Mastel, and Kate Hallet all netted their first goals of the year for the Crimson. Molly Tissenbaum took over in the Harvard net and made 22 saves. Sam Donovan scored Brown’s first goal of the season in ECAC action.
Eagles rule Commonwealth Avenue
No. 2 Boston College spotted host Boston University an early goal by Sammy Davis before running away with an 8-1 victory. Makenna Newkirk’s pure hat trick and five points from Alex Carpenter highlighted the rout.
How the rest of the top 10 fared
While the rest of the WCHA was idle, No. 6 Bemidji State moved into second place in the league when it ground out a road sweep at Ohio State. Bailey Wright’s first goal in a BSU uniform proved to be the decisive goal in Friday’s 2-1 win. Hanna Moher had given the Beavers an early lead, and Wright’s insurance tally in the third period was needed when Dana Rasmussen broke through for the Buckeyes with a late goal against Brittni Mowat, who finished with 21 saves. On Saturday, Emma Terres converted on a third-period power play to break a 1-1 tie. Kaitlyn Tougas sealed the 3-1 victory into an empty net. Lauren Miller and OSU’s Kendall Curtis traded second-period goals. Mowat saved 32 shots.
No. 7 Quinnipiac enjoyed a 44-22 shot advantage over Colgate, but when Ashlynne Rando stopped all of the Bobcats’ attempts, they had to settle for a 0-0 tie. Sydney Rossman got the shutout for Quinnipiac. The Bobcats’ offensive futility continued for the first half of Saturday’s contest versus Cornell, while Hanna Bunton put the Big Red on top. Then Nicole Kosta, Meghan Turner, and Taylar Cianfarano broke loose with three goals in five minutes to give Quinnipiac a 3-1 triumph, thanks to 19 saves from Rossman.
Defenseman Ainsley MacMillan’s first goal of the season at 12:42 of the second period was the winning goal as No. 8 Northeastern won at Maine, 3-1. Maddie Hartman and the Black Bears’ Brooke Stacey scored in the game’s first seven minutes; Christina Zalewski sealed the win in the third stanza. Brittany Bugalski turned away 33 Maine shots.
Taylor Woods and Cornell knocked No. 10 Princeton from the unbeaten ranks on Friday, 2-1. Woods’ short-handed goal at 18:44 of the third period tied the score, and she potted the winner with only 21 seconds left in the frame. Paula Voorheis made 20 saves to earn the victory. Kiersten Falck tallied for the Tigers back in the first period.
Princeton rebounded on Saturday to edge Colgate, 3-2. After Annika Zalewski gave the Raiders an early lead, the Tigers rallied with two Karlie Lund goals sandwiched around one from Kelsey Koelzer. Shae Labbe cut the lead in half in the third period, but Kimberly Newell, who finished with 32 saves, wouldn’t allow an equalizer.
Other action
BU opened the week on Tuesday by thumping Yale, 7-1. The Terriers got a big night from its line centered by Maddie Elia, who poured in a hat trick and added an assist. Right wing Rebecca Leslie scored twice and assisted three times, while Rebecca Russo had five helpers. Erin O’Neil stopped 29 of 30 shots before giving way for the debut of Ashlyn Aiello.
Dartmouth shut out Brown, 4-0, with Robyn Chemago stopping all 22 shots. Laura Stacey scored twice, and the Big Green also got goals from Kennedy Ottenbreit and Alyssa Baker.
Yale denied Dartmouth a weekend sweep when the Bulldogs fought back from a two-goal deficit to earn a 3-3 tie. Eden Murray scored the tying goal with 2:50 remaining after Brittany Wheeler had pulled Yale within one. Mallory Souliotis scored earlier for the Bulldogs, while Dartmouth got goals from Lindsey Allen, Kate Landers, and Brooke Ahbe.
Kailee Heidersbach scored the winning goal a minute into the second period to lift SLU over Union, 2-1. Brooke Webster of the Saints and Jamie Smith exchanged first-period goals. Melissa Black made 54 saves in a losing effort.
Mercyhurst took three of four points at Penn State in a series where goals were in short supply. The Lakers edged the Nittany Lions on Friday, 1-0, with Kathy Donohue scoring the only goal at 17:54 of the second period. Sarah McDonnell’s 23 saves made a hard-luck loser out of Celine Whitlinger, who made 29 stops. PSU’s Shannon Yoxheimer struck first at 4:51 of the third period on Saturday, but Brooke Hartwick answered seven minutes later. McDonnell and Whitlinger preserved the 1-1 stalemate.
Syracuse also had a three-point weekend, defeating Lindenwood, 3-1, before settling for a 1-1 tie. Melissa Piacentini made the score 2-1 at 6:31 of the third period on Friday, and then assisted on Nicole Ferrara’s empty-net goal. Stephanie Grossi had helpers on both goals. Jenn Gilligan made 24 saves to get the win. Nicole Hensley got the start for Lindenwood on Saturday and stopped all but one of 40 shots. She earned a tie when Shannon Morris-Reade scored with 2:21 left in regulation. Grossi had given the Orange a lead 7:36 into the game.
Robert Morris got the full sweep at RIT, winning 4-0 and 6-3. Jessica Dodds made 29 saves in her shutout on Friday. Maggie Lague, Mikaela Lowater, Brittany Howard, and Rikki Meilleur found the net, with the first three each adding one assist. Tied 2-2, the Colonials exploded with four goals in five and half minutes of the third period, including two by Maeve Garvey, to post Saturday’s win.
Connecticut got a goal from Brittany Berisoff and a 23-save shutout by Elaine Chuli to squeeze by Merrimack, 1-0.
One goal by Marisa Maccario wasn’t enough for the Huskies on Sunday. New Hampshire got tallies from Cassandra Vilgrain and Amy Schlagel to earn freshman Kyra Smith her first win with 21 saves.
