CAMBRIDGE, MA - The Union College women's hockey team kicked off their ECAC Hockey slate in a big way Friday night, going on the road and defeating Harvard by a score of 3-1.
 
The win marked Union's first victory in their ECAC opener since 2017, when they defeated Brown, and the first win in their first ECAC road contest of a season in program history.
 
Less than eight minutes into the contest, senior Meredith Killian fired a shot from the right point with five bodies between her and Harvard goalie Alex Pellicci. By the time Pellicci saw the shot the puck was halfway to the net, and the shot beat her just inside the far side post for Killian's first goal of the season.
 
Harvard tied the game up with four minutes left in the opening period. On the power play, Shannon Hollands punched in a Zoe Boosamra rebound past a lunging Sophie Matsoukas to bring the game to 1-1.
 
Union responded on a power play opportunity of their own before the first period horn, as first-year Maddie Leaney gave the Garnet Chargers back the lead. Working from the top of the left circle, Leaney took one push to the dot, dished it to senior Emily King on goal line extended, and got it right back from the captain on the drive to the net to finish home her fourth goal in the last four games.
 
The middle period was a quiet one, only seeing 11 total shots on goal, with eight of them coming from Union.
 
Harvard made an extended push in the third, registering a period-high 12 shots. All 12 were pushed away by the junior Matsoukas, who made an impressive stop on a clean breakaway by Gabi Davidson Adams, Harvard's leading returning goalscorer from a year ago, to retain Union's lead. Davidson Adams pushed a loose puck past first-year Kendal Davidson just inside the right point at Union's defensive blueline, and carried the puck across the front of the crease before firing a backhand shot on Matsoukas, who made a show-stopping save with her blocker to preserve Union's lead.
 
With less than five minutes in the contest and Union in dire need of an insurance goal with the momentum shifting to the home side, Union again took advantage of a power play. Sophomore Amanda Quan was stationed directly in front of Pellicci for the 5-on-4, and after Kendal Davidson's shot was blocked by a Harvard defender between her and Quan, Quan took one swoop of the puck with her backhand and put it past Pellicci to put Union up a pair.
 
Quan also picked up an assist on Killian's goal for her first two points of the season and her first career multi-point game.
 
Harvard wouldn't go away quietly, and went up two players with the goalie pulled and a Union penalty with 1:19 left. Matsoukas would continue to stand tall in the Union net however, stopping four shots in the final 79 seconds to finish off the game. The Ottawa, Ontario native would finish the night with 23 saves.
 
The Garnet Chargers went 2-for-4 on their power play opportunities in the contest, while killing off Harvard's two opportunities. Union also won the faceoff circle, 29-26, lead by big nights from senior Celeste Beaudoin (15-24) and King (12-23).
 
Union has now won consecutive games against the Crimson for the first time in program history, and makes it a three-game point streak dating back to the tie the two teams played to last November.
 
Union will continue on their ECAC Hockey opening road trip Saturday, looking to sweep the conference opening weekend since that noted 2017 season when they visit Dartmouth for a 3:00 contest.