While students were enjoying their spring break, the No. 8 Boston University women’s hockey team made an unpredictable postseason run all the way into the first round of the NCAA Tournament, where they lost to No. 1 Mercyhurst College, 4-1, on Saturday. The Terriers ended the 2009-10 season 17-9-12 overall and 10-6-5-3 in Hockey East, the fewest losses in program history.
The Lakers (30-2-3, 14-1-1 College Hockey America), ranked No. 1 in the country for the majority of the season, used a strong first period where they outshot BU 10-2 and tallied two power-play goals to end the Terriers’ postseason hopes. Sophomore defenseman Tara Watchorn scored BU’s lone goal.
Senior goalie Melissa Haber made 29 saves, but in the end the Mercyhurst offense was too much for the Terriers, who were outshot 33-18.
Few had expected BU to make it to the NCAAs, but the unranked Terriers found themselves in the Hockey East Championship in Providence, R.I. against the No. 7 University of Connecticut (21-9-7, 10-5- 6-1 Hockey East) on March 7. Haber stifled the Huskies, saving 25-of-26 shots, and the game was tied at one apiece entering the overtime session.
Offense came from two surprise sources in the championship game.
Freshman forward Kathryn Miller jammed in a rebound past UConn goalie Alexandra Garcia for her second goal of the year to give the Terriers the first period lead. The Huskies evened up the score in the second when senior Michelle Binning crashed the net and put the loose puck past Haber.
Less than 10 minutes into overtime, Watchorn fired a slap shot from just inside the blue line that snuck through traffic in front of the net and beat Garcia in the top right corner of the net for just her second goal of the year.
“One person got knocked down in the mid-slot and a UConn defensemen cut right in front of their goalie to pick someone up on the other side at the most appropriate time for Boston University,” said BU coach Brian Durocher. “A real bullet of a shot found the top corner. It was the type of shot if the goalie has a clear look they probably would get nine out of ten times, yet with the screen it was awful timely for us and it was a ticket to a championship.”
The underdog Terriers first defeated the No. 5 University of New Hampshire Wildcats (19-9-5, 13-6-2 HE) in the conference semifinals to reach the championship game.
Defense and Haber’s strong goaltending was the key to a 4-0 victory for BU. Haber and the Terriers’ defense held HE’s No. 1 offense at bay, giving up only 17 shots on goal, while the BU offense did its part with three of its four goals coming in the third period.
“Early in the game UNH had a couple good chances, and it seemed we might have gotten a little bit of good fortune,” Durocher said. “After that we seemed to get our feet in the ground and really tightened it up defensively and only gave them 17 shots. Shutting out UNH for the only time all year was the story of the game. I credit the team playing a great defensive game not just Melissa Haber standing on her head.”
Senior forward Laurel Koller scored the game-winning goal 58 seconds into the second period, while the Terriers were shorthanded. The score would remain 1-0 until the third period when junior forward Jillian Kirchner gave BU an insurance goal, and senior forward Melissa Anderson put the game away with two late goals, one with an empty net.
Haber was named the Most Valuable Player of the Hockey East Tournament, stopping 42-of-43 shots in two games. In only their fifth year as a Division I program, the Terriers won their first HE Championship and got their first ever bid into the NCAA tournament.
“We won a Hockey East Championship which is huge,” Durocher said. “We made it to the NCAA Tournament and we finished second place in the league via a tie for second. It just continues the escalation of the program in a big way.
“We expected to be competing for a championship, and I’m happy to say we were, and elated to say that we accomplished that goal in only the fifth year. Most of the credit, if not all goes to the young ladies that were playing with this program. They persevered and had conviction at the beginning to join us in a belief that BU and the administration and Brian Durocher would allow them to play in big games and they certainly did over the last three years.”
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