Williamstown, MA -- Connecticut College's (4-1/3-1 NESCAC) three goals in the first period and two goals in the third period gave them the momentum to beat Williams (2-4/1-3 NESCAC) 5-1 game this afternoon.
At 3:34, Galen Kilfeather came flying down the left wing and found space to send the puck up ice to Melanie Conca who took the puck at the t right crease getting Eph goalie
Amanda Lackmann to commit to the near post before putting the puck on her back hand and sliding the puck inside the far post and giving the Camels the early 1-0 lead.
The Ephs didn't let Conn's early momentum stop them from creating offensive pressure.
Ellia Chiang and
Kelly McCarthy worked the puck up the ice and sent pucks deep and on the net looking for an opportunity to score. Camel goalie Abby Wieczorek continued to hold strong making it difficult for the Ephs to find any open space between the pipes.
Connecticut College struck again putting the Camels up 2-0. The Camels fired off shots on Lackmann and created chaos in front of the net blocking up Lackmann's vision. Kelly Mathews sent a shot off from out wide. Lackmann dove to make the save and before she could get back to her feet, Sydney Frank found the puck at the slot and lifted it underneath the crossbar for a goal at 9:36.
The Camels built on their momentum. Conca broke away from the Ephs defense at center ice and skated in close on Lackmann using her stickwork to move the goalie off center and sneak the puck in on the right post and give Conn a 3-0 advantage at 11:45.
The Ephs responded just five seconds later after the puck drifted into the slot after a faceoff.
Christina Halloran raced into the offensive zone with her defenders trailing and sent the puck past Wieczorek's left pad at 11:50 to cut the Camels lead to 3-1.
"It was good to try and change the momentum in our favor," said Eph head coach
Meghan Gillis about Halloran's goal. "It was just good upperclassmen leadership by her to try and make something happen and make a sway in the game."
With under four minutes to go in the first period, the Ephs found themselves on the power play when Kylie Smith was sent to the box for an interference penalty. Just thirty seconds later, Kilfeather took another interference call making it a 5-on-3.
Delaney Szlezyngier and
Paige Galle remained at the blue line and ripped shots from up top while the rest of the Ephs swarmed the net looking for the rebounds. The Ephs were unable to secure a goal.
Just 26 seconds into the second period, the Ephs had another 5-on-4 opportunity, when Alana Burns was given a roughing penalty. Williams organized and patiently waited for a clear shooting lane.
Quinn Dawson ripped a shot from the point, forcing Wieczorek to cover up the puck.
Williams continued to battle throughout the second period. After keeping the pressure on Wieczorek and skating around with the puck looking for a good angle,
Claire Murphy found an opportunity to take a slapshot where
Kelly McCarthy waited on the doorstep, but Wiecxorek dove for the puck before McCarthy could get her stick on it.
At 8:30, Szlezyngier was called for tripping. With the Camels numbers up, the Ephs
Leah Rubinshteyn still took a shorthanded attempt taking a slapshot from the top of the right circle, but the puck flew out wide.
The Ephs took another penalty at 16:58, sending Rubinshteyn to the penalty box for a slashing call. Williams kept the pressure on the Camels out wide and killed off the penalty to get back to even-strength for the last minute of the period.
At 4:31 in the third period,
Maddie Zack was called for hooking making the Ephs shorthanded. Conn swarmed the net after Serena Seiple sailed off a shot. Lackmann didn't waver blocking up the opportunity. Casey Chesner waited at the crease and tried to tap it in, but Lackmann made a dive for the puck denying the attempt.
Less than a minute after the penalty expired, Galle was given a tripping call and giving the Camels an extra skater. Seconds after the penalty ended and the Ephs were back at even strength, Conca found the puck through chaos that piled up in front of the net and pushed it over the red line to extend the Camels lead to 4-1 at 9:57.
The back-to-back penalties were tiring for the Ephs. "Despite the penalty killing being good, it is just wearing down the players all of the time," said Gillis.
With 4:42 to go, Kelly Matthews sent the puck up to Rylie Griffith who sent off a shot through a crowd to send the Camels up 5-1.
On the night, the Ephs managed to get 16 shots on net, while the Camels fired off 39.
Amanda Lackmann and
Erin Pye both spent time between the pipes and denied 30 and 4 shots respectively, while Abby Wieczorek shut down 15.
Gillis was optimistic about her team's resilience, explaining "We just have to be ready to bounce back and be ready for NESCAC play in the new year."
Williams will play their next game on Tuesday, December 6th against Nazareth College in a non-conference game at home in Lansing Chapman Rink.
