PROVIDENCE, R.I. - A solid overall performance from Colgate women's hockey helped the Raiders take down Providence by an impressive 6-2 decision here on Saturday afternoon.
With the victory Colgate remains unbeaten on the early season, making this the best start for the Raiders in the
Greg Fargo era.
The Raiders came out strong in the first period, netting three goals. Sophomore
Annika Zalewski started the scoring a little over seven minutes into play.
Kaila Pinkney then picked up the first goal of her career halfway through the period, before
Megan Sullivan continued the scoring, put Colgate up 3-0 minutes later.
The Friars picked up the pace but Colgate still found the back of the net once in the second frame. Sullivan tallied her second of the contest halfway through the period.
Providence tried to mount a comeback with two goals in the third period when Brooke Boquist snuck in the Friar's first goal past
Ashlynne Rando just minutes into the final frame. Then with just under five minutes remaining, Danielle Hardy tallied a second Providence goal off assists from Boquist and Christina Putigna to cut the score in half at 4-2.
Colgate's
Jessie Eldridge made sure that the Friars stayed down though when she added two goals in the closing minutes of the game to secure the victory. Her first goal came in the 17th minute when she poked the puck past the skate of goalie Madison Myers.
With less than a minute remaining, Eldridge got the puck in front of the goal and dodged Myers yet again to come up with her second of the contest, making the final score 6-2.
Rando recorded 22 saves in the contest, including a goal-saving stop 10:34 into the contest when the Friars intercepted the puck. The play started when Putigna and another Providence attacker were pressuring Colgate in its own defensive zone. The Friars collected the puck and slid it over to Putigna, who one-timed a shot on frame. Rando made a brilliant glove save, however, to keep it out of the goal.
On the Providence side Sarah Bryant and Myers split time between the pipes, recording five and 20 saves respectively.
The Raiders have a quick turnaround as they travel to Connecticut on Sunday to face off with the Huskies at 2 p.m. UConn is coming off a 4-3 victory over Syracuse on Saturday. Live stats available at start.
Bottom Line • Colgate 6, Providence 2
Won-Lost Records• Colgate improves to 3-0-0 on the early season.
• Providence falls to 0-3-0.
Key Raider Info• Zalewski led the Raiders with five shots on goal. Eight Raiders recorded two or more shots on target, while three others had one shot each.
• Sullivan and Eldridge each tallied two goals in the contest. The two goals from Sullivan were her first of the season.
• Sullivan, Eldridge, Labbe,
Lauren Wildfang and
Bailey Larson led the team in points with two apiece.
Raider Goals • 1st period: Zalewski, unassisted; Pinkney, assists to Wildfang and Labbe; Sullivan, assist to
Shelby Perry.
• 2nd period: Sullivan, assists to Larson and
Breanne Wilson-Bennett.
• 3rd period: Eldridge, Labbe and Wildfang; Eldridge, assists to
Shannon Ormel and Larson
Facts & Figures• The Raiders were 1-for-7 on the power play, while the Friars were 1-for-4.
• Colgate outshot Providence by a margin of 31-24.
• Nine players recorded points in the contest for Colgate.
• Rando had 22 saves in the contest, bringing her career save total up to 1,954.
From The Source•
Head coach Greg Fargo (on his overall thoughts from the game) "I'm really proud of our team for how they prepared and how locked in we were to start the game. After two weeks off, our group was ready to compete and that showed on the scoreboard after the first period."
"It was another honest effort by our team. You can point out a lot of individuals for their quality play but everyone played a part today. Special teams was strong and we got some key stops when we needed them. A good team win today and tomorrow will be a solid test for us."
Up Next • The Raiders are back in action tomorrow (Sunday) at UConn. Puck drop is scheduled for 2 p.m.
• Live stats will be available at the start of the game.
