On Saturday afternoon, Brown and Quinnipiac skated to a 2-2 tie.
When all was said and done, Brown goalie Katie Jamieson made 48 saves in the effort and was the reason that the game was so close.
“[Jamieson] was incredible,” said Brown head coach Amy Bourbeau. “The goaltenders in general lead our team. She was out of the net, she was aggressive, and we were able to build off her energy tonight.”
Quinnipiac had 50 shots on goal compared to Brown’s 13.
“It’s tough to outshoot a team 50-13 and come out with a tie,” Quinnipiac head coach Rick Seeley said.
Brown’s offense was slow to arrive to Hamden as Quinnipiac’s Victoria Vigilanti only needed to make two saves in the first period. The Bears’ lone chance was one of their best of the game on a pair of shorthanded chances in the final seconds of the opening period.
A giveaway in the neutral zone supplied Sarah Robson to find some space in the offensive zone. She shoveled a pass to Jessica Hoyle, who ripped a shot just in front of the QU net. Vigilanti made the save, but the rebound popped free where Robson had a chance of her own. Robson never had enough time to roof the shot over the pads of Vigilanti.
Brown got on the board first at the 9:25 mark of the second period on a floating shot from the point. Jennifer Nedow fed Shannon Flatley at the left point. Flatley wristed a slow floater on net that beat Vigilanti high on the glove side. Vigilanti was screened by a number of skaters in the slot as she never reacted to the shot.
The Bobcats answered back with 3:19 left in the second period on a snipe from Kelly Babstock. Melissa Perry’s original shot from the right point was blocked down near the right circle where Shelby Wignall picked up the loose puck. She sent a pass into the slot where she connected with Babstock.
Babstock picked her shot as she went top shelf just under the crossbar on Jamieson’s glove side.
Brown regained the lead 8:57 into the third period on a hustle play from Brittany Moorehead. Once again, it was Robson that got the offensive chance started as she ripped a shot on Vigilanti near the right circle. The rebound deflected off Vigilanti’s right leg and into the slot where Moorehead tapped it into the open net.
“We work hard all the time just going hard to the net and getting up in the play,” said Bourbeau. “It is good to see on that goal that the things we work on in practice are showing up in the game.”
Quinnipiac tied the score again just two minutes later on a tip from Wignall in the slot. Regan Boulton rifled a shot from the left point that Wignall tipped in the slot. The puck deflected off her stick and past Jamieson. Much like the first goal against Vigilanti, Jamieson never made a move until the puck was in the back of the net.
Jamieson was tested even more in overtime as she faced 11 shots in just five minutes. With 2:21 left to go in the overtime, Babstock was tripped on the left wing by Paige Pyett. QU’s power play yielded several opportunities in the slot, but Brown was quick to jump on any rebounds.
“Brown was great on those loose pucks,” Seeley said. “We never got any clean rebounds and that’s a testament to how hard they played around their net.”
Vigilanti only faced 11 shots in the entire game and none in the overtime period.
On the weekend, Brown’s goaltending gave up just three goals. After the play of Aubree Moore last night against Princeton, Bourbeau admitted that this is a tandem she likes.
“Both of them have been doing a solid job,” said Bourbeau. “They support each other very well in practice and this kind of play is what we are shooting for this year.”
