By Taylor Massey, QBSN Staff Writer
The women’s ice hockey team clinched its second win of the season in game two of the weekend series against the Maine Black Bears. They defeated Maine 5-2, each goal coming from a different Bobcat.
“We had a lot to learn from last weekend,” senior captain Regan Boulton said. “I’m really proud of us. We got the sweep and that’s really important.”
Following a 6-1 loss to the Bobcats the night before, Maine was looking for a comeback. It startled Quinnipiac early with a questionable goal.
Jennifer More collected a rebound from Brittany Dougherty’s shot and turned it up into the crossbar. It was difficult to see whether or not the puck crossed the goal line, but the referees did not hesitate to make the goal call.
It seemed that Maine would hold onto the 1-0 lead at the end of the first, but with less than two minutes left, Erica Uden Johansson (Sundsvall, Sweden) got the Bobcats on the board.
Kelly Babstock (Mississauga, Ontario) fought for the puck and managed to clear it to Uden Johansson who was heading for the net. Uden Johansson went one on one with Maine goalie Meghann Treacy and swiftly lifted her shot over Treacy’s shoulder. The goal tied the game 1-1 at the end of the first.
Into the second period, the Bobcats did not take long to capture the lead. Nicole Connery (Newmarket, Ontario) got lucky with a bounce for a goal. A slap off her stick ricocheted off Treacy’s pad and into the net.
Soon after, Breann Frykas (East. St. Paul, Manitoba) would extend the lead on a power-play goal. Babstock would add another assist, finding Frykas in front who snuck in a one-time shot past Treacy. After taking a quick 3-1 lead, the Bobcats refused to give it up.
“Our second power-play has produced, I think as many goals this year as we had all last year,” head coach Rick Seeley said. “So that’s great to see.”
Nicole Brown (Oshawa, Ontario) and Brittany Lyons (Canton, Mass.) pounced on another power-play opportunity early in the third. Lyons was in the right place at the right time for the puck to tip off her and in for another goal.
Maine made one last late-game surge off the stick of Tori Pasquariello. A scramble in front of the net left Bobcat goalie Chelsea Laden (Lakeville, Minn.) reaching for the puck. Pasquariello got to it first and Laden was unable to recover quickly enough.
In the final minutes, the Black Bears pulled their goalie and Babstock couldn’t resist the empty net. On a breakaway, she easily found her way between the posts for the final point of the game.
Overall the Bobcats outshot Maine 36 to 21 and Laden turned away 19 shots for her first win of the year. Quinnipiac advances to 2-1-1 for the season while the defeat drops Maine to 0-2.
“Everything was a lot better than last week, but everything can get a lot better,” Seeley said. “The efforts there and they want to improve.”
Next up the team travels to Syracuse in hopes of extending its two-game win streak. The Bobcats play Syracuse on Oct. 19 and 20, in their first series on the road.
