Coming just three seconds away from recording their first-ever point against the No. 1 University of New Hampshire on Saturday and an easy victory over the University of Vermont yesterday have given the Boston University women’s hockey team reason to believe they have turned a corner after their early-season struggles.
After losing an overtime heartbreaker to UNH on Saturday night, BU (4-9-2, 2-3-0 Hockey East) responded with a gut-check 3-0 win over Vermont yesterday at Walter Brown Arena.
Saturday in Durham, N.H., the Terriers just missed out on a golden opportunity to earn a point and shake up the national rankings. BU entered the game as a heavy underdog against the top-ranked team in the country. The Wildcats (14-2-0, 8-0-0) had already registered two wins over the Terriers this season, but BU brought its ‘A’ game to the Whittemore Center, taking a lead into the third period before finally falling 3-2 in overtime.
Junior Laurel Koller netted the game’s first goal 11:38 into the first. UNH provided the equalizer midway through the second, when senior Sadie Wright-Ward redirected a shot from the point past BU goaltender Allyse Wilcox (41 saves). BU gained a 2-1 advantage into the third when freshman Jillian Kirchner centered the puck to classmate Lauren Cherewyk, who buried the puck past UNH goalie Kayley Herman (8 saves) at 18:09.
BU’s lead wouldn’t last long, however, as the Wildcats tied the score at 4:33 of the third on a goal from sophomore Micaela Long. Wilcox left a rebound in front of the net, which Long knocked in.
As the Terriers held on in overtime and were battling their way to an apparent tie, a defensive breakdown left senior Jennifer Hitchcock open to nail the game-winner with just three ticks left on the clock.
It could have been a crushing defeat for the Terriers, but BU coach Brian Durocher pointed to the obvious positive — the Terriers held their own against the best team in the nation.
“We played a good third period and New Hampshire gets one goal against us,” Durocher said. “We played a dynamite overtime. We make a little mental breakdown with 10 seconds left and we don’t get out of there with a point.”
After the tough loss to UNH, the Terriers came back strong against Vermont (4-9-1, 0-6-1) yesterday. With Cherewyk serving a penalty for checking, BU got on the board 7:58 into the contest with a shorthanded goal. Kirchner brought the puck up the left side and sent a pinpoint cross to junior Gina Kearns, who slotted a shot past UVM goalie Kristen Olychuck’s five-hole.
“After the game [Saturday] night, everyone was heartbroken,” Kirchner said. “Losing in overtime, everyone was dwelling on the game from [Saturday]. We realized that we needed to get pumped up for the Vermont game.”
Kearns nearly potted her second goal of the period on a breakaway. The BU co-captain slid the puck through the legs of a UVM defender, regained possession and deked twice before wristing a shot toward Olychuck’s five-hole that the goalie blocked.
An uneventful second period gave way to arguably the Terriers’ best period of the season, as they scored two goals on 15 shots. Ten minutes and fourteen seconds into the period, Kirchner gathered the puck off a faceoff in the high slot and sent a wrister past Olychuck’s stick-side. Junior Caroline Bourdeau picked up a helper on the play.
“I was definitely a little relieved. My heart was pumping when it was 1-0. That second goal was a big relief,” Kirchner said.
The Terriers struck again with 53 seconds remaining, this time on a pass from junior Erin Seman that senior Stephanie Armstrong sent into the net.
Wilcox gave another excellent performance, turning aside all 21 Catamount shots for her first shutout of the season. It’s a hot streak that the Terriers will want their netminder to carry into their next game Thursday against No. 10 Boston College at Walter Brown Arena.
“[Yesterday] was your setup game that was by no means a ‘gimmie,'” Durocher said. “We’ll take the win and try to move forward from here.”
