POTSDAM, N.Y. -- Two of the nation's top-10 teams battled it out Friday night, as No. 4 North Dakota defeated No. 6 Clarkson 2-1 at Cheel Arena.
North Dakota (10-3-2) went a perfect 5-for-5 on the penalty kill, while Clarkson (12-4-2) successfully killed UND’s lone power-play chance of the game.
Josefine Jakobsen scored the opening goal and Lisa Marvin scored her first collegiate goal for the game-winner. Sophomore goaltender Shelby Amsley-Benzie made a season-high 26 saves for her seventh win of the season.
Clarkson started the game controlling the flow of play, as North Dakota struggled to get out of its defensive zone. However, Amsely-Benzie stood strong in net, turning away the early barrage of shots.
UND then quickly turned the tables and took over the game halfway through the first period. Within the final minute of play, Jakobsen made a few moves in the offensive zone to free herself from the CU defensemen along the boards. She fired a shot on net that caught Clarkson goalie Erica Howe off guard. The puck squeezed through Howe’s five hole, giving UND the 1-0 lead.
In the second period Clarkson came out looking to even the score, but UND responded with strong defense again. Unfortunately, a defensive error by UND gave Clarkson a breakaway in the final seven minutes of the period. Amsley-Benzie made the first stop on CU’s Carly Mercer, but with the puck sitting in the crease, Shelby Nisbet knocked it in to tie the game.
Both sides continued to play even through the next 20 minutes, as UND also had to kill off three penalties in that span. North Dakota finally found its go-ahead goal after freshman Susanna Tapani fired a shot from the point, which was redirected in by Marvin at the 13:37 mark.
A last ditch effort by Clarkson with an empty net failed to provide any extra defense as UND was able to keep the majority of play in the final minute down in the Clarkson end.
No. 2 Wisconsin 7, Bemidji State 2
MADISON, Wis. -- Senior Madison Packer made history during No. 2 Wisconsin’s 7-2 win against Bemidji State on Friday, scoring three goals to achieve the first hat trick in LaBahn Arena history.
After earning her first career WCHA Offensive Player of the Week award this past week, Packer tallied a goal in the second period and two in the third to claim her second career hat trick, the last of which occurred on Feb. 19, 2011, against Minnesota State. The effort brings her career goal total to 43 and career point count to 94, putting her in 19th place on the UW all-time point list.
Sophomore Courtney Burke also added fuel to the fire on offense, matching her game-high assist and point records with three assists for three points.
Junior Katy Josephs marked two goals and redshirt junior Brittany Ammerman and freshman Sarah Nurse each tallied a goal apiece.
Freshman Ann-Renée Desbiens guarded the goal for Wisconsin, making 14 saves to improve her season record to 5-0-0.
No. 5 Harvard 5, New Hampshire 0
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Looking to remain unbeaten for the eighth game in a row, No. 5 Harvard did just that and more Friday against New Hampshire in the Bright-Landry Hockey Center. The Crimson (9-1-1, 7-1-1 ECAC) handled the Wildcats (6-10-2, 2-3-2 WHEA) with ease 5-0 behind a potent offense and stellar goaltending from freshman Brianna Laing.
Hillary Crowe led the aggressive Crimson offensive attack, notching three points (2-1-3) herself, while Miye D'Oench bumped her team-high goal count up to six (6-5-11). Dylanne Crugnale (5-5-10) and Sydney Daniels (5-1-6) also got into the scoring mix, each tallying their fifth goals of the year.
Not to be outdone, however, Laing made her second career start and shined. She turned aside a career-best 29 shots to register her second shutout in as many games played. UNH didn't make it easy on her, firing away nine shots on power-play opportunities. Laing and the defense in front of her killed off seven Wildcat power plays, pushing the Crimson to an incredible season total of 58 of 59 on the kill.
No. 8 Quinnipiac 4, Union (N.Y.) 2
HAMDEN, Conn. -- Eighth-ranked Quinnipiac topped Union (N.Y.) 4-2 in an ECAC Hockey matchup at High Point Solutions Arena at the TD Bank Sports Center on Friday. With the win, Quinnipiac improves to 13-2-5 overall and 4-2-4 in ECAC Hockey while Union drops to 5-10-0 overall and 2-5-0 in league play.
Shiann Darkangelo scored twice for her second multiple-goal game in her past three outings, and now holds the team lead with 13 goals on the year. Kelly Babstock set up both of Darkangelo's goals to give her 99 career assists while she also scored her 88th career goal late in the game.
Cydney Roessler had two assists in the Bobcats' win. Anna Borgfeldt scored for the first time since Oct. 18 and goalie Chelsea Laden improved to 11-2-5 on the year with a 15-save performance against the Dutchwomen.
No. 9 Boston University 6, Minnesota-Duluth 5
BOSTON -- Sophomore Sarah Lefort had two goals and an assist, including the game-winning goal, to help lead No. 9 Boston University to a 6-5 victory against Minnesota-Duluth on Friday night at Walter Brown Arena.
BU (13-3-1) entered the third period with a slim 3-2 lead before tallying twice in the first two minutes. After Lefort made it 6-3 with 7:52 remaining in regulation, Minnesota-Duluth (7-7-1) scored twice in a span of 1:04 to cut the deficit to one. The teams combined for six third-period goals.
Lefort has been fantastic of late for BU, scoring six goals in the past three games and factoring on the Terriers’ past two game-winning goals. Her third-period tally ensured the Terriers were the first victor in this two-year-old series after the teams skated to a pair of ties last season in Duluth.
Senior captain Louise Warren, sophomore Rebecca Russo and freshman Samantha Sutherland each had a goal and an assist while freshman Maddie Elia also lit the lamp for BU.
Senior Kerrin Sperry stopped 35 shots in her second consecutive 35-plus save performance. Despite allowing five goals, Sperry has still not given up more than three even-strength goals in any game this season.
No. 10 Robert Morris 2, Rochester Institute 1
PITTSBURGH -- In a battle of College Hockey America's top two teams, Robert Morris outlasted Rochester Institute 2-1 on Friday night.
With the victory, Robert Morris (15-3-1, 7-1-1 CHA) matches its win total from last season when it finished 15-15-3. The victory also extends the Colonials' season-high unbeaten streak to eight games, and moves their winning streak at 84 Lumber Arena to five games.
After shots from freshman forward Brittany Howard and senior assistant captain Thea Imbrogno rang off the pipe, RMU would find the back of the net with a power-play goal 7:12 into the first period. Senior captainKristen Richards carried the puck into the offensive zone and passed it off to Howard, and then she fired a shot that was saved by RIT (9-8-1, 4-2-1 CHA) goaltender Ali Binnington. However, the rebound trickled to Imbrogno, who buried the puck for her seventh goal of the season.
The Tigers tied it up a little more than five minutes into the second period. Mackenzie Stone forced a turnover and passed it up the ice to Kourtney Kunichika. Kunichika skated down the ice to create a 2-on-1 advantage, and then passed it to Celeste Brown, who beat freshman goaltender Jessica Dodds top-shelf.
With five minutes and change remaining in the period, the Colonials held a 5-on-3 advantage with Brittany St. James and Lindsay Grigg sharing a seat in the penalty box. Before the public address announcer could announce Grigg's penalty, Howard gathered a pass from Imbrogno and rifled a slap-shot that beat Binnington over her right shoulder. The goal was Howard's team-leading 11th of the season and also gave the freshman her ninth career multi-point performance.
With 1:35 remaining, the Tigers called a timeout to draw up a play in hopes of tying the game. However, Dodds stood tall to make one last save, and junior defenseman Kelsey Gunn blocked a shot to seal the game.
RMU's penalty kill unit successfully defended four penalties and extended its streak to 26 consecutive kills. The Colonials haven't given up a power-play goal since Nov. 15 against Lindenwood.
Dodds made 18 saves -- including nine in the final 20 minutes -- to improve her unbeaten record to 12-0-1.
