PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – The No. 4 Plattsburgh State women's ice hockey team scored three unanswered goals, all of which came in the second period, to defeat SUNY Cortland in a Northeast Women's Hockey League (NEWHL) contest Friday evening at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena to stretch its winning streak to 11.
Plattsburgh State is ranked at No. 4 in the DCU/USCHO.com Women's Division III Top-15 Poll.
After being outshot in the first period by a 13-9 margin, the Cardinals held the upper hand in the statistical category over the second and third periods, finishing with a 44-25 edge in shots on goal. Plattsburgh State was 1-for-3 on the power play, while Cortland was scoreless on one power-play chance.
Plattsburgh State rises to 19-2-0 overall (13-1-0 NEWHL) with the win, while Cortland falls to 15-5-0 overall (10-3-0 NEWHL) with the loss. The rubber game for the two teams to close out the league series occurs tomorrow at 3 p.m.
Cortland struck first, scoring 4:24 into the contest. First-year forward Fanny Aneborn spun and backhanded the puck toward the slot that bounced off a Cardinal defender's skate, and junior forward Jillian Hlasnick took a shot from the slot that graduate student goaltender Ashley Davis (Winterville, N.C./Northwood School) turned aside with a pad save. Sophomore forward Mia Hlasnick then banged in the rebound on the weak side for her 10th goal of the year.
Sophomore forward Lily Stumm (Cranberry Township, Pa./Pittsburgh Penguins Elite) put the Cardinals on the board 1:57 into the second. Graduate student forward Holly Schmelzer (East Amherst, N.Y./Niagara Jr. Purple Eagles) dug the puck out of the corner to sophomore forward Riley Calhoun (New Hartford, N.Y./Bishop Kearney Selects), and Calhoun passed to Stumm at the bottom of the left circle. Stumm then skated across the crease and beat the Cortland netminder high glove side for her first goal of the season.
At the 5:50 mark of the second period, the Cardinals took the lead for good, as senior forward Ivy Boric (Newport Beach, Calif./Anaheim Lady Ducks) scored on the power play. Junior forward Mae Olshansky (Wilmette, Ill./North American Hockey Academy) passed to graduate student forward Sara Krauseneck (Saginaw, Mich./Northern Cyclones) in the right circle, and Krauseneck fired a one-time shot that was saved. Boric was on the doorstep to bang in the rebound, beating the goalie blocker side.
Graduate student forward Nicole Unsworth (Milwaukee, Wis./East Coast Wizards) added insurance at 7:22 of the second period. Senior defenseman Sierra Benjamin (Palm Coast, Fla./Northwood School) passed D-to-D to first-year defenseman Su-An Cho (Madison, Ala./Florida Alliance), and Cho took a shot from the left point that Unsworth deflected in.
With just 3:42 to go, Cortland went on its first power play of the evening, putting a shot on goal before pulling the goalie in favor of the extra attacker with 2:24 left. The Red Dragons continued to pressure in the attacking zone with the skater advantage, but the Cardinal defense clogged the lanes, blocking two shots in the final minute of play.
Davis made 24 saves in the win for the Cardinals, while sophomore goaltender Molly Goergen turned aside 40 shots in the loss for the Red Dragons.