WILLIAMSTOWN, MA – An early 2-goal lead proved enough for the Ephs to tack on another home win, as they pulled ahead of Trinity 2-0 Saturday afternoon. The Ephs successfully killed off 4 penalties en route to the victory, and Eph netminder Chloe Billadeau (Chaska, MN) recorded an impressive shutout for the afternoon.
It was an all-Williams first period, as evidenced by the home teams' 14 shots on goal to Trinity's 5. Billadeau's net presence and the Eph defensive line kept the Bantam's from finding any sort of offensive rhythm in the opening 20 minutes.
Feeding off last night's strong showing, the Ephs got off to a quick start as they registered a goal early on to take a 1-0 advantage. 2:06 into the opening frame, Caitlin Conlon (Sudbury, MA) found Hadley DesMeules (North Pomfret, VT) in front of the goal. DesMeules slid the puck past Trinity netminder Alexa Pujol to notch her first college goal. Michaela Levine (Lititz, PA) also aided on the early tally.
The next best scoring chance for the Ephs came with just over 11 minutes to play in the first period. A 3-on-2 allowed Gabrielle Vukasin (Princeton, NJ) to find Sam Cutts (Kittery Point, ME), who had an opportunity to extend their lead to two. Pujol fended off the attack however, leaving it a one-goal contest.
It looked as if the opening frame would conclude with both teams holding each other at bay, but in similar fashion to last night, Williams came up strong in the final minutes. The Eph offense managed to notch their second goal of the afternoon with 2:19 remaining. Senior Sam Weinstein (Marblehead, MA) was set up by Cristina Bravi (Montreal, QC) and Cutts, as she found the back of the net with a shot from the high slot. Weinstein's goal would send the Ephs into the locker room with a solid 2-0 advantage.
Heading into the second period, an Eph penalty coming at the 15:10 mark gave the Bantams an opportunity to find their offensive groove. They failed to break through the penalty kill unit however, and Billadeau turned away the cluster of shots that came her way.
The second frame remained scoreless, despite multiple man-up opportunities for each side. With just under five minutes to go, the Bantams had their best look at getting on the board with a 4-on-3 advantage, but their offensive onslaught was kept at bay. Billadeau turned away all 12 bids that came at her in the middle frame.
The Ephs tested Pujol in the final minute of the period and managed to get a few looks, upping their shots on goal to 25 headed into the locker room. None were converted, leaving the contest at 2-0 in favor of the home team.
With Williams eager to up their lead and the Bantams looking to find their offensive stride, the opening five minutes of the final frame were characterized by much back-and-forth play and scoring chances for each team.
At the 12:28 mark, Eph freshman forward Levine made a nifty move, skating through the defensive line to get a shot off. Pujol was able to make the stop, but Levine's attempt contributed to the Eph's offensive momentum that would carry throughout the first 10 minutes of the frame.
It was the visiting team who took back the momentum just under the 10-minute mark. Similar to last night, Trinity tested the Ephs late in the game, refusing to let up despite trailing by two. The Bantam offense fired off a number of shots, but unlike last night, could not convert.
Time expired to give Williams their 6th win of the season.
Pujol finished the afternoon with 33 stops, while Billadeau, a stalwart between the pipes, recorded 26 saves and a shutout for the night.
Pleased with her team's performance, Head Coach Meghan Gillis remarked, "There were definitely times when Trinity put a lot of pressure on us, but we didn't crumble and everyone persevered and played the systems the way they were supposed to play them, and then we still generated some offensive chances."
She added, "The penalty killers did a great job. That was the group of Aimee Dennett, Eliza Noyes, Gwen Schultz, Perry McCarthy and Andree Heller. They did a great job not only in zone but on the forecheck as well, so that is great to see headed into NESCAC conference play."
Now posting an overall record of 6-3-0, the Ephs will look to make it a three game winning streak on Tuesday night when they face New England College on the road. Game time is 7pm.
