Women's Ice Hockey: Greenwood scores two in Union rout

“My feelings [about this weekend] are mixed,” head coach Jeff Kampersal ’92 said. “We played well Friday. [Saturday] we played well in spurts.”

Princeton looked like it would mount a comeback in its matchup against Rensselaer (10-5-2, 6-1-1) after digging itself into a 3-1 hole in the third period. The Tigers had 16 shots in the final period and climbed back into the game when Rensselaer right wing Whitney Naslund committed a tripping foul. During the ensuing power play, junior left wing Melanie Wallace deflected a slapshot by sophomore defenseman Sasha Sherry over the glove of Engineer goalie Sonja van der Bliek. Wallace’s goal, which came seven minutes, nine seconds into the third period, tightened the score to 3-2.

Princeton kept the pressure on in the waning minutes and seemed to be in good shape after killing off a checking penalty by senior forward Christine Foster. The Tigers found their golden opportunity at 17:02, when Rensselaer right wing Sydney O’Keefe received a two-minute minor penalty for checking. This mistake allowed Princeton to pull senior goaltender Kristen Young and create a six-on-four situation. The Engineers, however, stood firm against Princeton’s strength in numbers. Van der Bliek made several excellent saves, and the Tigers missed rebounds that could have been knocked in easily.

“We got some pucks to the net,” Foster said, “but we couldn’t put them in.”

The game started well for Princeton. Freshman forward Danielle DiCesare knocked in the puck at 5:54 in the first period, giving Princeton an early lead. The Tigers’ lead was short-lived, as the Engineers tied the game at one on a goal from Naslund two minutes later.

What ultimately doomed the Tigers was the second period, during which Rensselaer scored two goals to take a 3-1 lead that proved insurmountable. The Engineer attack started at 2:21 with another goal from Naslund. Rensselaer added a goal from center Alisa Harrison with less than a minute remaining in the period. The two-goal lead allowed the Engineers to tighten their defense and play conservatively in the final period, during which they took only eight shots.

“Rensselaer played the entire 60 minutes,” Kampersal said. “They deserved to win.”

The outcome was much different Friday against Union (2-15-1, 0-8-0), the doormat of ECAC Hockey. Sophomore defenseman Laura Martindale scored on a one-timer from DiCesare at 1:04 in the first period. Martindale’s goal was eventually the game-winner thanks to Young’s shutout performance in the crease.

Only 10 seconds after Martindale’s goal, DiCesare knocked in a rebound to make the score 2-0. Barely a minute into the game, the Tigers already had a two-goal lead, and Princeton did not let up. At 7:51, the Tigers increased the lead to three on a rebound from senior forward Annie Greenwood.

The onslaught continued in the second period. Greenwood scored her second goal of the game at 7:33 on the power play. She and Martindale both ended the blowout with two goals and an assist. Freshman center Paula Romanchuk added her team-leading seventh goal of the season at 18:54. Martindale ended the scoring at six with only two seconds left in the period.

The Dutchwomen did not put up much of a fight, and Young had an easy day. In her 40 minutes of play, Young turned away only five shots before giving way to freshman goalkeeper Rachel Weber.

The Tigers have two games left before the holiday break, both at Minnesota-Duluth the weekend of Dec. 13, and will not enjoy home-ice advantage again until Jan. 30. In the meantime, Princeton plans to devote special attention to its power play, as a failure to convert in man-up situations likely cost the Tigers a win on Saturday. Rensselaer played a physical game and received seven penalties. Instead of making the Engineers pay for their play by scoring during the advantages, Princeton let Rensselaer slide, scoring only once in its seven power-play opportunities.