Time had run out, and the score was still knotted at 3-3 as the women's hockey team found itself in its first overtime period of the season against St. Cloud State University.
"[Junior forward] Andrea [Kilbourne] and I sat in the hockey box thinking about how we could beat the Huskies," senior captain Abbey Fox said. "We were deciding whether or not we should play it safe or go for it. I said, 'Let's just go after it.' "
And that's exactly what the Tigers did Saturday at the National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn., where they earned a hard-fought 4-3 victory over St. Cloud (6-8-1 overall, 2-5-1 Western Collegiate Hockey Association). Along with Friday's 5-4 win, Princeton (4-5-1, 2-5-1 Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference) capped off a successful weekend and emerged from its rut. Scoring a total of nine goals, the Tigers have also brought an end to an offensive dry spell that plagued them during their last three games.
"The wins have definitely given morale a huge boost," head coach Jeff Kampersal '92 said. "St. Cloud's power plays were awesome. We played a little sloppy, but we were able to come back in the end."
Playing down to the wire in both games, the team proved that it has the endurance as well as the ability to play on the road. Prior to this weekend, Princeton's only wins on the season came on home ice.
"It feels really good to come home with back-to-back wins under our belt," Fox said. "We had a really great weekend. The wins have given us renewed confidence."
The opening period of Saturday's game went by almost scoreless until St. Cloud notched a goal with two minutes left on the clock. It extended its lead at the beginning of the second period with a goal at four minutes, 55 seconds. It was not until two minutes later that Princeton would record its first goal of the evening. Off a power play, Fox — assisted by Kilbourne and junior defender Aviva Grumet-Morris — brought the Tigers within one of St. Cloud at 7:10.
The Huskies would soon lose their lead early in the third period. With a power play shot from freshman forward Gretchen Anderson, assisted by Kilbourne and Fox, the score became knotted at 2-2.
The Huskies were back on top at 11:06 when freshman goalie Megan Van Beusekom allowed the puck to slide by. The Tigers, however, refused to let up, as they tied up the score once again with a goal from senior defender Laura Hays, assisted by Kilbourne. Neither team would manage a goal before the third-period buzzer sounded.
In the ensuing overtime period, the Tigers put no time to waste. The game was over within two minutes when Kilbourne, with assists from Anderson and freshman forward Susan Hobson, drove in Princeton's fourth goal and brought the Tigers a 4-3 win.
Friday, the Tigers found themselves in a similar situation. Unlike in many of their recent games, the Tigers beat their opponents in the race to clinch an early lead. At 9:39 into the first period, Fox lit up the scoreboard with the first goal of the game, off a power play assisted by Holmes and Kilbourne. St. Cloud responded seven minutes later on a power play of its own, sliding the puck past sophomore goalie Sarah Alquist.
The Tigers were unable to keep the Huskies back as they scored three goals in the second period. Princeton managed only one goal, from Anderson, in this stanza. The Huskies could not stave off the Tigers in the final period, however, as Princeton skated to victory in the third stanza. Kilbourne and Fox each had a hand in Princeton's three goals during this period. Princeton's deficit soon vanished as Kilbourne tallied back-to-back goals at 16:11 and 7:25.
Before the game could go into overtime, Holmes netted the game-winning goal at 17:41 as the Tigers edged past the Huskies with a 5-4 win.
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