Strong start to the season for women’s hockey

Opening its season on the road, the women’s hockey team made a strong start to the 2015-16 campaign. The team travelled to Erie, Pa. to take down Mercyhurst College, going 2-0 in aFridayand Saturdaydoubleheader.

The Tigers (2-0 overall) found themselves engaged in a tight one to kick off their season as they edged by the Lakers (0-5-1) just 3-2. In the game itself, junior wing Morgan Sly got it going for the Tigers in the first period, taking the assist from freshman wing Karli Lund and junior wing Audrey Potts for the score. Skating up fast in the 2-on-1 opportunity, Lund hit Sly coming on the right side for the score. However, the Lakers’ Emily Janiga would neutralize the advantage, scoring with less than a minute to go in the first to tie the game up.

The Tigers came right back, as Sly, in conjunction with freshman wing Stephanie Sucharda, returned the favor to Potts and set her up for the goal under three minutes into the second period. Getting the puck from Sucharda, Sly would get past her defender to make a pass to just in front of the goalie, where Potts was ready for the score. However, the Lakers would come up with the late-period response, finding the back of the net with just a shade under 40 seconds to go in the period to knot the game up at two apiece.

The Tigers, however, ended up on top due to the work of senior wing Cristin Shanahan, who took the puck off assists from senior forward Jaimie McDonnell and junior forward Molly Contini to put the Tigers up for good.

For the following game, Lund would transition from making the assists to scoring herself. She got the Tigers going in the first few minutes, forcing the turnover, taking the puck up and sniping it into the right corner of the net for the unassisted goal.

Sly would also get in on the act, scoring off a deflected shot attempt by Shanahan right in front of the goal and putting the Tigers up 2-0. While the Tigers held a 2-0 lead with a little over 37 minutes left in the game, Mercyhurst did not exit without creating chances. Tiger penalties allowed Mercyhurst to get the edge it needed for a goal at the12:21mark in the second. However, Mercyhurst, despite having five power plays in the second period alone, was ultimately unable to capitalize and bring this game level.

With a successful opening weekend in the books, the Tigers turn to their first taste of Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference play. They will hit the road once more to take on the Yale Bulldogson Friday and the Brown Bearson Saturday.