The Women’s Hockey Team took on a formidable early season challenge over the past mid-semester break as they squared off against the number 3 ranked Boston College Eagles. The two game series at Appleton resulted in a loss and a tie for the Saints, however, the Saints were able to hold their own against the nationally ranked Eagles.
On Friday night, the Saints gave everything they had. After a scoreless first period and successfully killing off four power play opportunities for Boston College, the Eagles were given an advantage after a Saints penalty late in the second period. After an initial save made by Senior Goaltender Carmen MacDonald, Boston College was able to capitalize on a fortunate rebound and net the first goal of the game. This gave the Eagles momentum going into the third period as they were able to score a second goal making the score 2-0. The Saints rallied, however, putting pressure on the Eagles defense and goaltender and eventually broke through on the score sheet when Junior Kailee Heidersbach was able to force a turnover and get the puck to teammate Junior Jenna Marks and score her first goal of the season and bring the Saints to within one. With a late push and many shots on goal, the Saints tried to stage a comeback, however, it was a little too late and the buzzer sounded with a final score of Boston College 2, the Saints 1.
Saturday afternoon, the Saints again faced the tough nationally ranked opponent. Looking to get a win and even the weekend series against the Eagles, the Saints started off the scoring midway through the first period when Senior Captain Kayla Raniwsky scored her first goal of the season with assists from Senior Amanda Boulier and Junior Dominique Korakianitis. The goal gave the Saints the first lead of their weekend series against Boston College. The tables turned quickly, however, when the Eagles were able to capitalize on two scoring opportunities within a minute of each other and took a 2-1 lead midway through the second and into the final frame of the game. With time running out in the third period of regulation, the Saints caught a late break accompanied by some favorable refereeing when Boulier was able to score with 4:08 left in the third. After controlling a rebounded shot by First Year Kennedy Marchment, Boulier was able to sneak the puck in past the Eagles net minder. Although the goal was initially ruled as a “no goal,” the referees reviewed the scoring play on replay and eventually ruled in favor of the Saints giving credit to Boulier for the game tying goal. The final buzzer sounded with a score of 2-2.
The tie against Boston College gave the Saints a well-deserved point in the standings as they look next to square off against Robert Morris University.