BOX SCORE

TROY, N.Y. – Behind a two goal afternoon from Eleeza Cox and a 12-save performance from goalie Kelly O'Brien, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's hockey team skated to a 3-0 shutout of Union College at the Houston Field House. With the win – RPI's third in its last four games – the Engineers move to 8-16-4 and 5-9-2 in league play. The Dutchwomen slip to 4-20-4 and 2-12-2 in ECAC Hockey.

It marked the second straight victory and third shutout of the season for O'Brien, who improved to 5-9-1 after stopping six shots in the first period, five in the second and one in the final frame.

Fresh off a goal and two assists in Friday's contest, Cox kept the momentum going in today's game as she scored her third goal in as many games at 10:22 of the opening period.

Junior Andie Le Donne earned the lone assist after she shot the puck cross-ice in the RPI zone to Cox at the Engineers bench. The rookie center quickly navigated into the Union end, deking around a defender before backhanding a shot in five-hole at the right post on Dutchwomen netminder Shenae Lundberg.

The Dutchwomen produced several chances in the opening frame, with an offensive surge coming from Jeannie Sabourin. The junior battled through several RPI skaters to get a shot off directly in front of O'Brien, showing off her stick handling skills. However, the rookie goaltender remained solid in net.

With an Engineer penatly called at the 4:51 mark, senior Lauren Hoffman, senior Emilie Arseneault and freshman Bryanne Panchuk attempted to enliven Union's offense before heading to the locker room. With Rhianna Kurio added to the mix, the junior sent a pass to Hoffman from the right circle. The senior quickly wound up for a slap shot from ten feet back, but O'Brien dove in front of the puck to deny her.

After a close middle period – which saw Rensselaer hold a 7-5 edge in shots – Cox built the home team's lead with her team-leading 12th tally of the season. The goal came with just 26 seconds left in the second period as freshman Taylor Mahoney sent a pass from the top of the near circle through the slot to Cox, who banged it in past Lundberg at the left side.

Despite the goal, Union's defense came up big in the period as they successfully killed off an RPI 5-on-3 advantage mid-way through the frame. Sophomores Ashley Johnston and Maddy Norton continuously blocked shots throughout the second period, helping the Dutchwomen make a total of 26 blocked shots during the game.

In the final stanza, Lundberg proved outstanding for the Dutchwomen, stopping all 22 shots she faced as the Engineers held a 22-1 shot margin. She made key stops late in the frame as sophomore Jordan Smelker fired one from point blank and senior Sierra Vadner barreled in for a shot at the rebound.

Rensselaer capitalized at the 18:13 mark on a shorthanded tally by Smelker. After a late penalty on the Engineers, Union pulled Lundberg in favor of the extra-skater and a 6-on-4 chance. Smelker made a heads-up play, intercepting the puck and speeding past several defenders for her 10th of the year.

Both teams were 0-for-6 on the power play, while the Engineers outshot the Dutchwomen by a 37-12 margin. Lundberg made 34 stops for Union, including seven in the first period, six in the second and 21 in the third for a .944 save percentage.

The Dutchwomen return to the ice next weekend when they travel to Colgate and #2 Cornell on Friday (7pm) and Saturday (4pm), respectively. RPI is also in action next weekend at Colgate and Cornell.