After losing 3-1 last night, the Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey team (2-2 overall, 0-0-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference) turned the tables and shut out Providence College (3-1-0 overall, 1-0-0 Hockey East) in the second game of the home-and-home series.
Quinnipiac goaltender Abbie Ives stood tall in this game, stopping all 37 shots by the Friars. She made a couple of big saves during the game, especially on the penalty kill. As a team that typically doesn’t shoot much, it was abnormal for Providence to have as many opportunities as they did. Head coach Cassandra Turner admitted that Ives was a big part of the reason for the Bobcats’ success.
“Abbie Ives played such a great game today and she was there when we needed her. We had some pretty big breakdowns in moments and she did an excellent job,” she said.
It showed that the Bobcats played late last night. They came out slow in the first period, spending most of the time chasing for possession of the puck. Defensemen Allison Roethke and Kate MacKenzie both took penalties in the first five minutes of the game. Quinnipiac only tallied five shots on goal in the first.
“We started probably as poorly as we probably could in that first period. I don’t know that I’ve been apart of a period like that in a long time here,” Turner said.
Providence dominated the majority of the first, collecting six of the seven shots. Ives stood on her head in the first, stopping 15 shots on goal and great chances from Friar forwards Meaghan Rickard and Brooke Boquist.
“We knew that they like to shoot from everywhere,” Ives said. “That was really the only scouting report that I had was that they like to shoot from the wall which they ended up doing that a lot. For me, that just means to be ready for a shot at any time.”
Once again, Quinnipiac couldn’t find any momentum when the puck dropped for the second period. They struggled to get out of the defensive zone, while Providence skated with ease. Coming off a huge penalty kill with Abby Cleary in the box, the Bobcats found their legs. Kate MacKenzie rang a shot off the crossbar on the power play, then followed up with two more shots on Providence goaltender Madison Myers.
At 14:54 of the second, junior forward Randi Marcon got a good scoring chance on Providence goaltender Madison Myers. Sophomore Abby Cleary found the loose puck and buried the rebound in the back of the net for her second goal of the season to give the Bobcats the lead. Quinnipiac tallied the last 11 shots of the second period.
Cleary stood out amongst the Quinnipiac forwards. Not only did she score the game-winning goal, but she blocked a shot in the third period and had three of the Bobcats’ 29 shots on goal. Coach Turner praised Cleary for her success to start the season.
“Abby Cleary’s mindset has really grown and that is why I think you’re seeing what you’re seeing on the ice,” Turner said. “When she has successes and when she has failures, she’s ready to recover from them in a great direction and that is a really important skill in college hockey and it’s showing.”
Quinnipiac continued their great play into the final 20 minutes of the game. Ives made three huge saves early on, stopping Providence forwards Blair Parent and Neve Van Pelt and defenseman Whitney Dove in a scramble in front of the net. Co-captain Alicia Barry blocked two shots in the period, including a big shot from star Friar forward Christina Putigna, who lead Providence with 6 shots on goal in the game.
Despite a slow start, the Bobcats were able to come away with a big win and split the series with Providence.
“In the beginning of the year, so many teams are very fragile,” Turner said. “I think it was huge for us to get that first goal today and you watched it, you could see us transform. I think for us we just have to play from a more confident place where we’re believing in who we are.”
The Bobcats look to continue their strong play and skate to a win against Vermont (1-1 overall, 1-1 Hockey East) on Friday, Oct. 13 at the High Point Solutions Arena in Hamden, Connecticut.
