UTICA, NY- The Utica University women's hockey team dropped a heartbreaker to nationally ranked No. 7 Nazareth College falling 3-2 in overtime in United Collegiate Hockey Conference competition Friday afternoon.
 
The Naz scored the game-winner with just 39 seconds remaining in overtime to capture its first regular season conference championship in program history.     The Golden Flyers improve to 23-1 (19-0 UCHC), while Utica drops to 20-4 (17-2 UCHC) on the season.  The teams will wrap up the series on Saturday at the Adirondack Bank Center.  Game time is 1:30 p.m.
 
The teams played an evenly matched opening period as each recorded 10 shots and goal and had multiple scoring chances, but the game remained scoreless after 20 minutes.  Utica came out flying in the second stanza and was quickly rewarded as Carolyn Whitney (Raleigh, NC/Milbrook School) put in her 14^th of the season just 1:08 into the second.  Maggie Rylott (Cobourg, Ontario/West Northumberland) and Nicole Flak (Middleton, MA/Boston Shamrocks) picked up assists on the opener.
 
Despite Utica getting the first goal, it was Naz that controlled play in the second, but sophomore Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) stood tall as she turned all 24 shots she faced in the period to keep the Pioneers on top.
 
Utica got an insurance tally at 8:39 of the third period when Erica Sloan (Potsdam, NY/St. Lawrence Steel) buried a breakaway opportunity for her 24^th of the season and her 50^th point of the year.  She becomes just the fourth player in program history to record 50 points in a single season.  Senior Georgiana Santullo (Woburn, MA/Boston Shamrocks/Woburn High School) picked up the assist on Sloan's tally.
 
Naz responded with exactly six minutes remaining in regulation when Abby Luth put in a feed from Mikenna Wiljanen.  Just nine second later, the golden Flyers tied it up as Nikolle Van Stralen put in a rebound off a shot from Hailey Redders to give Naz back-to-back short-handed goals.
 
With the clock winding down, it was Redders who played the overtime hero as she put in a rebound off an initial shot by Van Stralen.
 
Hawthorne finished with a career-high 49 saves, while her counterpart, Adrianna Brehm finished with 18 saves.