Box Score
PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. - Teal Gove tallied a hat trick as the Plattsburgh State women's hockey team skated to a 5-0 win over Neumann in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Women's West Semifinal game Saturday at the Stafford Ice Arena. With the win the Cardinals improve to 24-0-2 overall and advance to the ECAC West Championship game on Sunday at 3 p.m.
Neumann was able to withstand a ton of pressure from the Cardinals' offense in the first period but Plattsburgh was finally able to break through wIth 1:20 remaining in the first period. Alyssa Parke sent a backhanded shot into the slot and Ali Vakos buried it to give Plattsburgh State a 1-0 lead. Caitlin Gilligan was also credited with an assist on Vakos' sixth of year.
The Cardinals made it 2-0 at the 12:27 mark of the second period when Gove deflected a blast from Parke at the point. About a minute and a half later, Neumann's Shannon Donnelly stopped a Bridget Balisy shot but Emma Rutherford was there to punch home the rebound to give Plattsburgh a three-goal lead at 14:03.
Trailing by three, the Knights had the opportunity to make it a game early in the third period when the Cardinals were whistled for back-to-back penalties. Neumann pulled its goaltender during the power play to set up a 6-on-3 advantage, but Plattsburgh was able to minimize the Knights' chances and keep Neumann off the board.
Gove completed her hat trick with a pair of goals in the third period. Her second of the night came on the power play at the 8:50 mark with assists from Jenny Kistner and Parke. The senior forward scored her 24th of the season with 4:57 left in regulation thanks to a lucky bounce in front of the net. Gove, who was positioned to the left of Donnelly on the goal line, threw the puck to the front of the net for one of her teammates but the puck hit a skate and traveled through Donnelly's legs for Plattsburgh's fifth of the evening.
Plattsburgh State finished the night with a 54-22 advantage in shots on goal, including a 21-8 margin in the first 20 minutes. The Cardinals went 1-for-5 on the power play, while Neumann was unable to convert any of its five power play chances.
Plattsburgh's Sydney Aveson stopped all 22 shots she faced to earn her eighth shutout and improve to 20-0-2 on the year. Donnelly recorded 49 saves in the loss for Neumann.
In addition to Gove's hat trick, Parke contributed three assists.
The Cardinals will face Elmira tomorrow to determine the ECAC Women's West Champion. Sunday's game will mark the eighth meeting between the two teams in the ECAC Women's West Final. Tickets for Sunday's ECAC Women's West Championship game are $5 for the general public and $3 for college students with a valid ID. The first 300 Plattsburgh State students to present a current college ID will be admitted for free. Ticket sales will begin Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at the Field House Box Office.
Elmira Takes Down Utica, 5-0, to Advance to ECAC West Championship
Box Score
After a scoreless 40 minutes, nationally-ranked No. 4 Elmira College scored five unanswered goals to defeat Utica College in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Women’s West Semifinals Saturday night at the Stafford Ice Arena.
The Soaring Eagles will play top-seed and tournament host Plattsburgh State Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. for the ECAC West Championship. Sunday’s game will mark the eighth meeting between the two teams in the ECAC West Finals.
With the win, Elmira improves to 21-4-1 on the year. Utica ends the 2012-13 campaign with a 16-9-2 record.
The Soaring Eagles had the better of the chances in the first period but Utica goaltender Jennifer Hamel stopped all 12 shots she faced in the first 20 minutes of play.
After outshooting Utica 22-11 through the first two periods, Elmira was finally able to get on the board with just 1:46 gone in the third. Tanis Lamoureux carried the puck deep into the Utica zone and was able to poke one past Hamel to make it 1-0 Elmira. A Caitlin Metcalf deflection put Elmira up by two goals at the 10:59 mark with assists from Samantha Curk and Brooke Wilgosh.
One minute later, Erin Watson put away a rebound to give the Soaring Eagles a three-goal cushion before Ashton Hogan and Ashley Ryan rounded out the scoring with unassisted goals late in the period.
Elmira finished the evening with a 35-19 edge in shots but went 0-for-4 on the power play. Utica went 0-for-3 with the extra skater.
Elmira’s Lauren Sullivan made 19 stops to earn the shutout. Hamel recorded 30 saves in the loss and finishes the year with a 10-6-1 record.
