CASTLETON, VT -- A three-goal outburst in the final period helped the Ephs secure a commanding 4-0 win over non-conference opponent Castleton on Tuesday night.
Williams started out fast in the opening frame, controlling the puck and peppering Castleton goalie Paula Stephens with a flurry of shots. The Ephs would record 12 shots, 10 of which came in the first 10 minutes, to Castleton's three. Despite their offensive dominance, Stephens managed to keep Williams at bay for the first 20 minutes of play. The Williams defense also refused to budge, allowing the Spartans to see very few opportunities. The contest remained scoreless at the first intermission.
Headed into the middle frame, the Williams defense remained impenetrable and refused to let the Spartans find any offensive rhythm. Castleton would not get a shot off until midway through the period.
It was not until the second half of the middle frame when both sides saw glimpses of scoring chances. However, strong goaltending from both ends kept the score deadlocked at 0.
It looked like the contest would remain knotted up heading into the locker room, until a Castleton penalty at the 19:24 mark shifted the momentum into Williams' favor. With the clock winding down, Kristen Tubbs found the back of the net with 15 seconds remaining in the second frame. Tubbs' goal, her tenth of the season, was set up by Christina Bravi and Gabrielle Vukasin and sent the Ephs into the intermission with a 1-0 advantage.
Entering the final frame, the Ephs took their small lead and ran with it, tacking on another goal at the 8:10 mark. Bravi, aided by Tubbs notched Williams' second goal of the game.
Feeding off the momentum generated by Bravi's tally, the Eph offense remained relentless. Only a minute and nine seconds later, Williams struck again to increase their lead to three. The third tally came from Aimee Dennett. Dennett's goal, set up by Hannah Systrom and Caitlin Conlon gave Williams a commanding 3-0 lead at the 9:19 mark.
The Ephs kept Stephens under siege and registered a fourth goal with 7:05 remaining in regulation. Ally Ensor, aided by Conlon registered her first goal of the season to finalize the score at 4-0.
The period concluded just as one-sided as it began, the Spartans unable to find any holes in the Williams defense. Stephens would finish the night with 31 saves, while Chloe Billadeau turned away 10 bids in the 53:13 she played. "Chloe didn't see much come her way, but she stepped up when she needed to and made some good stops," commented Head Coach Meghan Gillis.
Rachel Nguyen entered the net for the Ephs for the remaining 6:47 and made 6 stops.
Looking ahead, the Ephs (7-7, 3-3 NESCAC) will face a string of NESCAC opponents in their final ten games of the season. Gillis remarked, "Today's game was great preparation for the next ten NESCAC games to come." Williams will take on their fourth NESCAC opponent of the season, Colby, in back-to-back games this weekend. Friday's contest begins at 7pm in Lansing Chapman Rink.
