HAMILTON—Jessie Eldridge and
Malia Schneider were locked in for the Colgate Women's Hockey team Saturday afternoon at Class of 1965 Arena in a 4-2 victory over Syracuse.
After a defensive minded opening 19 minutes of play, Syracuse was able to break through for the first goal, while shorthanded. In a pattern similar to Thursday's matchup in the Salt City, the Raiders had a swift reply.
Off of the ensuing faceoff, Colgate won the draw back to
Coralie Larose. From there, she sent it far side of the ice to
Jessie Eldridge, who sent it to
Malia Schneider into the offensive zone. After winning a loose puck battle, Schneider slid a quick shot on the ice from the left faceoff dot that beat Orange goalie Maddi Welch to knot the game at one.
The Raiders picked up the pace in the second period, as they outshot Syracuse 14-6 and they were rewarded for it. While on their fourth power play of the game, Schneider and Eldridge combined for another marker.
Tanner Gates worked the puck to the right faceoff circle, then Eldridge slid a pass across the ice that was one-timed into the back of the net by Schneider for her second power play marker of the afternoon.
The score stayed at 2-1 to conclude the second period, but it wouldn't stay that way for long thanks to (you guessed it) Eldridge.
While shorthanded, Eldridge wrestled a puck away from an Orange player in the neutral zone and worked her way in from the left point. She ducked through another defender and then lifted a perfect backhander that just tucked under the bar for her team-leading 13th goal of the season.
The Orange responded three minutes later to bring its deficit back down to one. From there,
Julia Vandyk and the Raider defense stepped up to lock down another victory. Vandyk ended the evening with 23 saves for her ninth win of the year.
Bailey Larson added an empty net goal to lock up the 4-2 victory. Eldridge earned a secondary assist on the tally to conclude her six-point weekend.
Bottom Line
- #10 Colgate 4, Syracuse 2
Facts & Figures
- Eldridge previously had 38 multi-point games in her career (including eight three-point games), but had never previously had four points in a game.
- Schneider now has three career two-goal games.
- Larson has now scored three empty net goals this season.
- Olivia Zafuto led the Raiders in blocked shots with four and added an assist.
- The Colgate power play was red hot against the Orange in their two-game series. The Raiders finished 4-for-12 over the stretch.
- Vandyk is now on a personal four-game winning streak.
- Colgate is now unbeaten in an even 70 games when leading after two periods. That streak dates back to Feb. 2015.
From the Source
Sophomore Forward
Malia Schneider
- "We had a good game," said Schneider. "We wanted to finish 2018 off strong and we did that."
- "We didn't have the start we wanted, but we came together after the first period," said Schneider. "After that, we came out well in the second and third. The coaches are happy and we're happy with how we regrouped."
On playing on a line with
Jessie Eldridge and
Shae Labbe:
- "A big thing is that we talk so much on and off the ice," said Schneider. "The chemistry is awesome. Jessie assisted on both my goals and Shae had a huge impact tonight as well."
On having momentum going into the holiday break:
- "It's huge," said Schneider. "We played three very good teams here at the end and it's awesome how we performed both weekends. It's awesome how we're ending this part of the year."
Head Coach
Greg Fargo:
- "Tonight was a really hard fought game," said Fargo. "Syracuse showed a lot of pushback after Thursday's result and we were forced to match that. Overall, we got better as the game went on."
On the team's ability to respond after giving up goals:
- "Momentum is a funny thing," said Fargo. "There are times in a game where both teams grab momentum and our response to a negative event has been really good. That's a testament to our leadership and our bench and wanting to do something about it."
- "Break is important because it allows us to get away from the rink for a little bit and get away from school," said Fargo. "We're past the halfway point in the season and it's a large body of work. For the most part, I'm really pleased with the growth out of the group. If you look at where we started and where we are today, there's a lot of growth."
- "It's nice to finish the first half on a really great note," said Fargo. "Hopefully we can carry that forward and find ways to get better as the season goes on."
On
Jessie Eldridge's play:
- "Her line has been really good," said Fargo. "She's just a player that can change the momentum in a game. She has a great line to work with and they're feeding off of each other right now."
Up Next
The Raiders have completed the 2018 portion of their regular season schedule. They will not return to action until Jan. 5 for the first of two games at Mercyhurst in Erie, Pa.
