Utica, NY- The Utica University women's hockey team put on an offensive clinic in an 8-0 shutout win over the Arcadia University Knights in the team's regular season home opener on Friday night.
 
Cortney Staniszewski (Buffalo, NY/Niagara Jr. Purple Eagles) got the ball rolling with a goal at 8:18 for the Pioneers to jump ahead 1-0. About nine minutes later, the All-American Georgiana Santullo (Woburn, MA/Boston Shamrocks/Woburn High School) scored her first goal of her 2022-23 campaign to give Utica a 2-0 advantage after the first period. The team outshot Arcadia 17-3 over the first 20 minutes of action. 
 
In the opening 30 seconds of the second period, Erica Sloan (Potsdam, NY/St. Lawrence Steel) put the team up 3-0 on her second goal of the year with the help of Carly Stefanini (Framingham, MA/Brooks School) and Holly Silva (Boston, MA/Worcester Academy). Utica eventually went on to take a 4-0 lead into the third period after Hannah Keating (North Andover, MA/HPNA) scored her first goal of the year at 16:23 mark in the second. 
 
The team rattled off four more goals in the third off the sticks of Sloan, Santullo, Molly Pedone (Trinity, FL/Robert Morris) and Kaci Ryder (Shrewsbury, MA/WC Swans) as the team cruised to a home opening 8-0 win.
 
The Pioneers ended the game with a 40-19 shot advantage while taking 39 of 54 faceoffs led by Santullo's 16 and 11 by Maggie Rylott (Cobourg, Ontario/West Northumberland). Sloan finished tied for the team lead with four points on two goals and two assists while Stefanini had four points on four assists. Santullo tallied three points on a pair of goals and an assist. 
 
In goal, Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) made 19 saves including 16 over the final two frames. 
 
Utica (1-1, 1-0 UCHC) and Arcadia will meet again tomorrow at 2:30 p.m. at the Adirondack Bank Center.