HERSHEY, PA- The Utica College women's hockey team picked up where it left off as the Pioneers cruised to a 5-0 win over host Lebanon Valley College in UCHC Conference action Saturday afternoon to earn the series sweep.
 
Utica has now shutout its opponents in three straight games.  The Pioneers (12-3, 9-1 UCHC) momentarily move into first place in the conference standings and look to carry their momentum into a showdown at UCHC foe Nazareth College next weekend.  Friday's game is scheduled for 6 p.m. while Saturday's faceoff will be at 2 p.m.
 
For the second day in a row, the teams were scoreless through 20 minutes.  Junior Olivia Hirschy (Fort Wayne, IN/Culver Academies) opened the scoring at 8:41 with her seventh of the season off assists from classmates Ricki Haab (Stowe, VT/Stowe) and Kyra Borsoi (Brossard, Quebec/Holderness). 
 
Junior Rebecca Brown (Steamboat Springs, CO/Norwich University) found the back of the net with her second of the weekend at 14:10 of the first.  Kirsten Johnson (Brockville, Ontario/RSL Midget Thunder AA) and Taylor Dion (Colchester, VT/Boston Shamrocks) were credited with assists on the insurance tally.  The Pioneers weren't done as sophomore Katrina Cornick (Mason City, IA/Rocky Mountain Roughriders) put home her third of the year at 17:22 of the second stanza, assisted by Brown.
 
Utica continued its third period dominance as the Pioneers scored a pair of goals in the final frame, the first coming just 25 seconds into the period by Hirschy and the second coming with just one second remaining thanks to a goal by Elizabeth Dohner (Highlands Ranch, CO/Colorado Selects).  Hirschy's second of the day was once again assisted by Haab and Borsoi, while Dohner's shorthanded tally was assisted by Lexi Stanisewski (Lawrence, MA/Boston Shamrocks).  UC has now outscored opponents 25-1 in the third period this year.
 
Sophomore Ryann Stripp (Holland Patent, NY/Clinton Warriors) turned aside all 12 shots she faced to earn her first career shutout, while her counterpart, Jill Moffat had 57 saves in the loss.