UTICA, NY - The No. 13 Utica University women's hockey team wraps up regular season play with a pair of games against Chatham University on Friday, February 21 and Saturday, February 22. Friday is set for 2 p.m. at the ADK Bank Center (free admission) and Saturday is set for 3 p.m. at the Utica University Nexus Center. Friday's game is presented by the Don Litzelman Foundation.
Follow Along: Both games this weekend can be streamed
here. Live stats can be found
here.
Last Time Out: The No. 13 Utica University women's hockey team fell 2-1 in overtime against the Manhattanville Valiants on February 15 at the Playland Ice Casino.
Jordan Kowalski (Chicopee, MA/Westfield) scored Utica's lone gone while
Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer) made 18 saves.
Point leaders: Kowalski (one goal),
Riley Calhoun (New Hartford, NY/Plattsburgh State University (NCAA DIII)) (one assist).
It was a tight first period with both teams letting off nine shots each. Utica registered the first four shots on goal in six minutes of action, but Valiant goaltender Olivia Cimorelli made all four saves. The Pioneers combined for nine faceoff wins between
Angelina Garganese (Winter Springs, Fl/Florida Alliance) (one),
Kendall Best (Troy, MI/Troy HS / Belle Tire) (two),
Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) (two) and Kowalski (four). Eight players tallied at least one shot on net in the period as Manhattanville and Utica entered the second tied at zero. The Valiants drew first blood 9:43 into the second frame as Abby Mellen gave her team a 1-0 lead. With just under a second remaining on the clock, Kowalski wrapped around the net and snuck the puck past Cimorelli to tie the game at 1-1. Utica was relentless on the forecheck in the last two minutes which led to the goal. The Pioneers outshot Manhattanville 27 to 12 in the period along with winning 14 faceoffs compared to the Valiants 10. All but two skaters for Utica registered at least one shot through two periods of play. Both teams went scoreless in the third period. Cimorelli made 11 saves, keeping the Pioneer offense at bay. Utica and Manhattanville entered overtime tied at one. Manhattanville would find the back of the net with 2:38 left in overtime, taking a 2-1 win.
In the Polls: Utica ranks at No. 13 in the USCHO poll, one rank ahead of Nazareth's No. 14 rank.
https://www.uscho.com/rankings/d-iii-womens-poll/
Where We Stand: The Pioneers are the two-seed entering the UCHC tournament. Matchups will be decided after this weekend. For full postseason information please click
here.
In The Numbers: Six players totaled at least one point in the two games last weekend against Manhattanville (
Carly Stefanini (Framingham, MA/Brooks School),
Jordan Kowalski (Chicopee, MA/Westfield),
Kelsey Elliott (Attleboro, MA/East Coast Wizards),
Riley Calhoun (New Hartford, NY/Plattsburgh State University (NCAA DIII)),
Hailey Modlin (Phoenix, AZ/Boston Shamrocks) and
Tess Barrett (Tewksbury, MA/St. Mark's)). Kowalski posted one goal, one assist, 11 shots and 21 faceoff wins. Elliott scored one goal and one helper, both coming in the second game. Modlin posted 21 faceoff wins and one assist.
Greatness:
Angela Hawthorne (Santa Clara, CA/Meijer), the best goaltender in program history gets set for her final regular season games. In the last four games, Hawthorne averaged 1.25 goals against, logging 93 saves with a .949 save percentage. Hawthorne is currently 8th in the nation with an overall save percentage of .954. She also tied for 7th in the nation with five shutouts. Seven players on the team rank top 10 in the conference in total points.
About Chatham: The Cougars enter this weekend set with a 2-18-2 overall record and a 0-10-0 UCHC record. Morgan Black leads the way with 11 points off four goals and seven assists. Sophia Taylor leads Chatham with six goals off 31 shots. In goal, Samantha Brophy and Lindsey Batz each split time between the pipes. Brophy has a .911 save percentage and a 4.53 goals-against average. Batz sports a .881 save percentage and a 4.77 goals-against average.
Up Next: The Pioneers ready for the UCHC semifinals on March 1 at home with a time TBD.
