The Boston University women’s hockey team picked up six points this weekend after sweeping the Merrimack College Warriors in a home-and-home series. After only scoring one goal in their previous weekend series against the University of Maine, the Terriers did a complete 180, notching eight goals from seven different players and shutouts from two different goaltenders.
Friday’s matchup began with Warrior dominance in the first ten minutes of the first period, but was quickly overtaken by the Terriers. With momentum on the Terriers’ side, junior forward Courtney Correia put up the first tally of the game 11 minutes in, slipping a forehand-backhand goal past Warriors netminder Emma Gorski.
The second period opened up the floodgates for the Terriers. Less than three minutes into the period, freshman forward Lacey Martin tallied her first collegiate goal after a feed from senior forward Nara Elia. Halfway through the second, junior forward Kaleigh Donnelly was able to net the Terriers’ third of the night during the Warriors’ power play.
Correia rounded out the scoring for the second period in the last minutes, this time coming during a Terriers power play. The goal marked Correia’s third point of the night in her eventual four-point weekend.
Up four goals with twenty minutes to play, junior netminder Kate Stuart kept her composure, making a total of 19 saves in the first two periods.
“Kate Stuart played real solid, real well,” head coach Brian Durocher said in a press conference Friday. “[She] was controlling the puck, which is fantastic.”
The third period continued the previous lapse of Terrier dominance. Senior forward Jesse Compher, who had been off the ice for the last three games, was able to pick up junior defenseman Alex Allan’s clearing attempt and scored the Terriers’ fifth goal of the night — in the first 11 seconds of the period.
“[Compher’s] a high-end talent who can create openings that not everybody can,” Durocher said.
Compher continued to drive the last 20 minutes of the matchup with an assist to junior forward Mackenna Parker’s second goal of the season, furthering the team’s lead to 6-0.
The game was a true offensive win for the Terriers, who this season have struggled to score more than three goals a game. Stuart saved all 24 shots faced and secured her second career shutout with the win.
“I didn’t think that was our most artistic victory in the history of Walter Brown Arena,” Durocher said, “but a victory nonetheless.”
The Terriers headed to North Andover Sunday afternoon in an attempt to secure the sweep in the second half of the series.
In what turned out to be a slower-paced game, the Terriers were still able to notch two goals — the first coming five minutes into the first period. Junior forward Emma Wuthrich was able to score from an awkward angle after a carry by Correia, giving the Terriers a 1-0 lead that would go unchanged for almost 60 minutes of play.
Compared to Friday’s matchup, where there was a combined total of 12 penalties, Sunday’s game saw better discipline on both ends of the ice with only seven penalties between the two teams. Despite having multiple opportunities on the power play throughout the weekend, the Terriers were only able to capitalize once with Correia’s goal Friday.
After a scoreless second period, freshman forward Catherine Foulem secured the Terriers’ win with an insurance goal two minutes before the game’s end. Foulem’s first tally in the scarlet and white was an empty netter from behind the blue line and gave the freshman her second point of the weekend.
Senior goaltender Corinne Schroeder occupied the Terriers’ net Sunday, stopping all 18 shots she faced and completing a weekend of back-to-back shutout victories for the Terriers.
“In terms of the shutouts, I’m gonna give credit to two good goaltenders there,” associate head coach Liz Keady Norton said in a press conference Sunday. “I thought they played excellent both nights and you always have a chance to win when your goalie gets a shutout.”
With weekly schedule updates to come, the Terriers’ next series matchup is not yet arranged.
