Box Score Williamstown, MA -- Three power play goals for the Ephs gave Williams a 3-2 win over the William Smith Herons for their second win of the series.
After starting last night's game with an early penalty on Williams putting the Ephs a player down, "We wanted to come out ready to play." said Eph head coach Meghan Gillis.
The Ephs accomplished just that. Taking advantage of a penalty on William Smith for tripping put Williams on the early power play in the first period. Williams players crowded the net making it hard for William Smith goalie Erin Murray to find the puck. At 2:11, Brynne Puppe passed to Robin Kitazono at the point who fired it in through a screen in front of Murray taking the early 1-0 lead.
Later in the 1st period, Maddie Tix and CC Wallin worked to get the puck out of the neutral zone. Tix's pass connected with Wallin who shot it off Murray's pads. Tix found the rebound and the puck got behind Murray's pads, but she managed the Heron goalie to turn it away before it got into the net.
William Smith came back aggressively and the Ephs defense was tested. At 15:54, Anna Krajewski came into the Herons' offensive zone on a mission and deked it around freshman goalie Amanda Lackman, evening the score 1-1.
Toward the end of the second period, a tripping call sent William Smith's Ava Cornforth to the box giving Williams another chance to score on the power play. The Ephs tried to get bodies in front of Murray. Meghan Halloran found the puck in front of the net through the traffic and launched it top shelf at 19:00 giving the Ephs a 2-1 advantage
William Smith responded one minute later at 20:00. William Smith's Emma Faso caught Williams players off guard right before the buzzer. She shot the puck between the Lackman's pads making the game 2-2 going into the third period.
Coming off that late William Smith goal in the second, Williams needed to come out strong in the third period. "We knew we were playing inconsistently and forcing the puck around, so we had to get back to playing our game," noted Gillis.
William Smith came in hungry for a goal in the third period as well, generating pressure on the Ephs. They connected their passes well in their offensive zone, but the Williams defense played composed and blocked up their shots. Even when William Smith came in with a two-on-one and tested Lackman, the first year goalie turned away the shot and successive rebounds.
The game became a five-on-three when two William Smith players went to the box, midway through the period. The Ephs awaited the right opportunity, patiently moving the puck at the point. Brynne Puppe, Meghan Halloran, and Brianna Hill took shots with teammates waiting on the doorstep, but the Herons penalty kill proved to be strong.
Just as the power play ended, Williams went numbers up again. The Ephs took advantage of the power play opportunity taking the 3-2 lead with goal from Ellia Chiang who was ready on the post to pounce on Avery Dunn's rebound at 11:16.
"Special teams was definitely the difference maker today," added Gillis. "It came down to special teams with our power play scoring all three goals, and our penalty kill stopping all of [William Smith's] power play chances especially that five-on-three."
Despite the 3-2 score, the Ephs offense dominated the game outshooting the Herons 42-19. Williams goalie Amanda Lackman played her first game of the season and recorded her first win with 17 saves. William Smith netminder Sydney Murray turned away 39 shots.
Williams will play their first game of the new year against the Bowdoin Polar Bears at 3pm on January 1st in Lansing Chapman Rink.
