No. 9 Ephs earn 2-1 overtime win over No. 11 Plattsburgh State in NCAA First Round

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - First-year forward Savana Littlewood of the No. 9-ranked Williams College women's ice hockey team scored the game-winning goal 3:18 into the first overtime period Saturday afternoon, as the Ephs defeated No. 11-ranked Plattsburgh State, 2-1, during the first round of the NCAA Division III Tournament at Lansing Chapman Rink.

"I am so proud of our team and the way it came together in the third and overtime to get a huge win," said head coach Meghan Gillis.

The Ephs (18-4-5, 9-3-4 NESCAC) will compete at No. 1-ranked University of Wisconsin-River Falls (27-1-0, 11-1-0 WIAC) during the NCAA Quarterfinals on Saturday, March 21, at 4 p.m. Eastern Time at Hunt Arena in River Falls, Wisconsin. Williams recorded its second-ever NCAA win in program history Saturday against Plattsburgh and will be making its third appearance in the quarterfinals of the national tournament.

Senior goaltender Erin Pye stopped 28-of-29 shots by the Cardinals (20-7-1, 12-1-1 SUNYAC), as she improved to 15-4-4 on the season by registering a .966 save percentage. The Third Lake, Illinois, native made 15 enormous saves in the second period to keep the Ephs within striking distance going into the third.

The Cardinals opened the scoring at the 5:19 mark of the second period, as Bailey MacKellar found the back of the net. Williams evened the game at 1-1 with 17:34 remaining in the third, as sophomore Charlotte Fetherston cruised through the neutral zone, fired a shot and blasted the rebound into the back of the net.

Williams killed off a Cardinals' power play that ranged from the end of the third period to the beginning of overtime. Once play resumed to 5-on-5, Littlewood and sophomore Annie Gallagher gained entry into the offensive zone and executed a give-and-go play. Littlewood then fired the game-winning tally from the left faceoff circle into the top right corner of the net, as the Ephs' crowd erupted and Williams punched its ticket to the quarterfinals.

Plattsburgh held a 29-24 advantage in shots and the Ephs won 34-of-53 faceoffs, as senior Leah Rubinshteyn went a perfect 10-0 in the circle. Sophomore Zoe Rosenberg and Fetherston finished with five and four shots on goal, respectively. Williams went 3 for 3 on the penalty kill.