Box Score
Schenectady, N.Y. – Coming off the heels of a 6-0 defeat Friday night, Union put forth a spirited and valiant effort against a relentless Brown team Saturday. However, a short-handed goal by Brown's Hayley Moore with just over eleven minutes left spelled the doom of the Dutchwomen, which dropped a 3-2 league match at Messa Rink. The loss dropped Union to 3-14-1 overall, 0-10-0 in ECACHL play.
Both teams were limited in scoring opportunities early as the defenses were dominant in the opening ten minutes of action. Brown seized the first serious scoring opportunity with 8:20 left in the period when freshman winger Kim McManus picked up a loose back from behind the left side of the net, circled around and slid a backhanded shot low across the ice. Union netminder Alex Zirbel (Clearwater, FL) was up the challenge, however, kicking aside the shot and preserving the scoreless tie.
A minute later the Dutchwomen stunned the Bears with a fortuitous bounce in front of the Brown net. Sophomore Linnea Edwardson (Duluth, MN) was centering the puck from behind the Bears' net when Ann Brophy intercepted the pass, but lost control of the puck and watched it ricochet just across the line for a Union goal. The 1-0 lead provided a jolt of adrenaline for the Dutchwomen, who quickly rattled off three more shots on Brown goaltender Stacy Silverman shortly after the goal.
Union nearly made it 2-0 when Josie McDermott (Unadilla, NY) picked up the puck near mid-ice and fired off a breakaway shot that caught Silverman's left shoulder and caromed safely away from net at 16:25. Brown sought the tying goal two minutes later when Moore gained control of the puck behind the Union net and came up on the right side of Zirbel for a low wrist shot that the freshman snuffed to hold the Dutchwomen's 1-0 lead.
The second period started with a flurry of offensive action, as Brown's Kathryn Moss re-directed a shot from Moore off the left post just 35 seconds into the period. Margaret Ramsey then missed just wide when she rebounded a Lindsey Glennon shot a minute into the period for the Bears. After the miss, Union moved the puck down the ice into the Brown zone where Maeve Kehoe (Chelsea, QUE) and Elise Nichols (Pittsfield, MA) were turned away from point blank range by Silverman.
The Bears continued to apply the pressure until they cracked the Union defense at 3:48 on a goal by Keaton Zucker, who deposited a Moore pass high and just inside the left post for the equalizer. The game remained tied at 1-1 until Ashley Kilstein (Cherry Hill, NJ) slapped home a rebound with 9:08 left in the middle period to give Union the 2-1 lead. Kate Gustafson (Kenora, ONT) and Kehoe were credited with assists on the play.
Union, which was out shot 23-17 through two periods, nearly made it a two-goal advantage when Dale Chaput's (Burlington, ONT) breakaway backhander was knocked away by Silverman, who then scrambled to turn away a follow-up shot by Gustafson at 12:55. Brown managed the final scoring threat of the period when Heather Lane slipped behind the Union defense with 2:05 left in the period and skated into the zone. The Bears' center was met by a charging Zirbel, whose instincts paid off as she was able to cut off the angle and cover a blast from Lane to sustain the 2-1 lead heading into the intermission.
At the start of the third period the Bears turned their goaltending duties over to sophomore O'Hara Shipe in hopes of keeping Union off the scoreboard in the final stanza. The move paid dividends as Brown once again evened the score at 2-2 just under four minutes into the third period when Zucker blasted home her second tally of the game. Moore also chipped in her second assist of the game on goal. With the game tied the Bears continued to crank up the defensive pressure until with just over eleven minutes remaining Moore was the beneficiary of that Brown effort. The right winger swiped a Union pass in the offensive zone, made a quick move and netted the unassisted, short-handed game-winner for Brown (9-8-2, 7-2-1) at 8:47.
Katelyn Aitcheson (Stratford, ONT) nearly converted a blast from outside the blue line with 8:10 remaining, clanging the puck off the left post past the outstretched Shipe. However, Aitcheson's near miss turned out to be Union's best scoring opportunity of the period, as the team's other two third period shots were unable to break Shipe's guard, who picked up her sixth win of the season.
Brown out shot Union 33-19 on the game, as both teams capitalized once on the power play. The Dutchwomen finished 1-for-3 on the advantage, while the Bears went 1-for-4.
Union will take to the ice again next Friday, January 27, as they host ECACHL foe Dartmouth for a weekend double-header.
