College Hockey Stats Box Score
MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – The No. 1 Plattsburgh State women's ice hockey team set the NCAA Division III record for overall winning streak with its 26th straight victory, as the Cardinals topped the No. 7 University of Wisconsin-River Falls, 3-1, on the opening day of the Panther/Cardinal Classic hosted by Middlebury College Saturday at Chip Kenyon '85 Arena.
The streak began with a 6-0 win over Buffalo State on Jan. 12, 2019 and included the Cardinals winning their fifth national title in six seasons (seventh overall). Plattsburgh State set the previous record when it won 25 consecutive games from Feb. 7, 2015 to Jan. 4, 2016.
Plattsburgh State rises to 8-0-0 overall with the win and faces off with No. 8 Middlebury in the Panther/Cardinal Classic championship game tomorrow at 4 p.m. UW-River Falls drops to 5-2-1 overall with the loss and squares off with No. 2 Adrian College in the consolation game tomorrow at 1 p.m. Middlebury and Adrian tied, 1-1, in overtime during Saturday's first contest, but Middlebury advanced to the championship game by prevailing, 1-0, in a shootout.
Junior forward Annie Katonka (Pittsburgh, Pa./Pittsburgh Penguins Elite) scored a goal and added an assist, while sophomore forward Nicole Unsworth (Milwaukee, Wis./East Coast Wizards) and senior defenseman Hannah Kiraly (Glendale, Ariz./Northern Cyclones) each tallied two assists.
Plattsburgh State excelled on special teams, going 2-for-5 on the power play while holding UW-River Falls scoreless on five power-play chances. The Cardinals were able to kill off 1:25 of a 5-on-3 power-play opportunity for the Falcons late in the second period. Plattsburgh State finished with a 31-26 edge in shots on goal.
The Cardinals scored the first goal of the game on the power play at 5:07 of the first period. Kiraly took a shot from the point that was turned away with a pad save, and Katonka gathered the rebound and took a shot that junior defenseman Erin McArdle (Macomb, Mich./Belle Tire) redirected into the top right corner of the goal.
At 7:28 of the first, Katonka scored her seventh goal of the season on a 5-on-3 power play to make it a 2-0 game. Kiraly took a shot from the left point that Katonka tipped, but the goalie came up with the save. Katonka then collected the rebound and found the back of the net. Unsworth was credited with the secondary assist on the play.
UW-River Falls cut the deficit to 2-1 with 14:35 gone in the first period. Sophomore forward Abigail Stow poked a pass to junior forward Callie Hoff in the slot, and Hoff scored high blocker side on a wrist shot. Senior defenseman Julia Stelljes picked up the secondary assist on the score.
Sophomore forward Taylor Whitney (Livonia, Mich./Little Caesars) scored high glove side at 5:30 of the second to add insurance to the Cardinals' cause. Unsworth sent the puck forward to Whitney from behind the goal line, and Whitney found the back of the net from the low slot. Freshman forward Ivy Boric (Newport Beach, Calif./Anaheim Lady Ducks) earned the secondary assist on the goal.
Neither team scored in the third period, though UW-River Falls pulled its goalie with 1:03 left in regulation to get an extra attacker. A hooking penalty assessed to the Falcons with 24 seconds left forced UW-River Falls to bring its netminder back in, and the Cardinals cruised to the 3-1 victory playing the remainder of the contest on the power play.
Freshman goaltender Lilla Nease (Lake Forest, Calif./Anaheim Lady Ducks) moved to 3-0-0 on the season, making 25 saves in the victory. Sophomore goaltender Sami Miller sustained the loss for UW-River Falls, turning aside 28 shots.