PHOTO BY JUSTIN HAWK/ DAILY FREE PRESS STAFF
The Boston University women’s hockey team scored a win on the road against the University of New Hampshire in the first leg of a home-and-home series Friday night at the Whittemore Center, followed by a second triumph Saturday afternoon.
Both the Terriers (15-10-6, 10-8-4 Hockey East) and the Wildcats (11-17-2, 9-11-2 Hockey East) took turns boasting the lead throughout the first game, but the Terriers’ final goal went unmatched as they pulled through in the end with a 4-3 victory.
Freshman defenseman Abby Cook got the scoring underway for BU with a goal just two minutes into the first period, assisted by senior forward Maddie Elia. BU head coach Brian Durocher was impressed with the way his team displayed dominance from the beginning.
“The Terriers came out of the gate pretty well in the first period,” Durocher said.
The Wildcats closed the gap with a goal of their own halfway into the period, scored by junior Amy Schlagel on a power play with help from junior Julia Fedeski and sophomore Marie-Jo Pelletier. Junior forward Rebecca Leslie pushed the Terriers back into the lead with an unassisted goal at 13:21 to close out the period.
New Hampshire found the back of the net one minute into the second period during yet another power play opportunity, as Schlagel and Fedeski paved the way for Pelletier to force the Wildcats into another tie with the Terriers.
The game was not tied for long, as the Wildcats stole the lead just two minutes later with an unassisted goal scored by freshman Meghara McManus.
“It was a tough start to the second period,” Durocher said. “We drew a penalty, and they came down on the initial rush, found the wide person, and tapped it in. Not long after, we had a turnover … and [they made] a beautiful shot from the far left side.”
The Terriers, however, made the second period their own when they not only leveled the score once again, but eventually surpassed the Wildcats to set the final score to 4-3. Halfway into the period, freshman forward Natasza Tarnowski scored off assists from the forward duo sophomore Sammy Davis and senior Samantha Sutherland. The Terriers’ and the game’s final goal came from Sutherland shortly after on a power play, as Cook and junior forward Nina Rodgers allowed for the forward to capture the lead for good against New Hampshire.
Although it was a scoreless final period, the Terriers were able to control an impressive amount of rebounds to maintain their lead on the Wildcats and pull out the win.
On Saturday, BU claimed victory once again, completing its sweep of the Wildcats at Walter Brown Arena.
Junior forward Victoria Bach opened the first period with a goal in the second minute assisted by graduate student forward Mary Parker, which was her 19th goal of the season for the Terriers.
“[The first goal] is really important,” Durocher said. “A lot of times, this game is a sprint to three. Whoever gets to three has a chance to win in this game. The first [goal] means a lot and it puts the other team on the heel.”
As was the trend in Friday night’s game, the Wildcats returned with a goal on their end scored by Schlagel, assisted by Fedeski and junior Carlee Toews, to bring the score to 1-1 entering the second period.
Leslie gave the Terriers another lead with her second goal of the weekend. This was quickly followed by BU’s third goal of the game, scored on a power play by senior defenseman Alexis Crossley with help from Elia and Leslie.
New Hampshire found the back of the net on a power play as well, as Pelletier scored the Wildcats’ second goal, assisted by Schlagel and senior forward Jonna Curtis, to bring the score to 3-2.
The Terriers snuck two pucks past sophomore goaltender Hilary Cashin in the last three minutes of the final period. Bach scored the first, increasing her goal count to 20 this season. Bach is the second Terrier in program history to score 20 goals in three consecutive seasons. Just 30 seconds later, Leslie passed the puck to Elia, who scored on an open net to earn the Terriers a 5-2 win over the Wildcats.
“We’ve got to just keep getting better,” Durocher said, “and if there’s one thing we can improve next week that will help us get to the playoffs, then let’s go do it.”
