Score: No. 2 Elmira College 6 – Neumann University 2
Records: Elmira (12-1-1, 7-0-0 ECACW), Neumann (3-10-1, 1-7-1 ECACW)
Location: Murray Athletic Center Ice Arena – Pine Valley, NY
 
Pine Valley, NY -- The No. 2 Elmira College women's ice hockey team dropped the puck on its final sprint through ECAC West play on Saturday afternoon when it welcomed Neumann University to the Murray Athletic Center Ice Arena for the first game of a weekend back-to-back. The EC offense struck early and often, tallying twice in each period en route to a 6-2 victory over the Knights.
 
Coming off a tie against nationally-ranked Amherst College earlier this week, which snapped the Soaring Eagles lengthy winning streak at 11, the Purple and Gold were intent on starting a new one in their return to ECAC West play. EC only got stronger as the game proceeded, firing a season-high 53 shots on goal, which included a single-period season-high 20 in the third period.
 
After a bit of a disjointed start for both teams, Elmira got things rolling at the 8:12 mark of the opening period. The Soaring Eagles made it a point of emphasis throughout the game of pinching their defenders down low in the offensive end. The strategy would pay off in EC's first goal.
 
Shannon Strawinski '19 worked a high cycle with blue-liner Erin Kishoni '18, with the latter swooping in behind the net. She was unmarked as she wheeled around the left post and whipped a wrister, which clanged off the right post and bounced back to the top of the crease. Olivia Nystrom '16 was opportunistic, swatting the puck past Neumann netminder Justina Mayr to break the scoreless deadlock.
 
The goal put Elmira on the front foot; as the home side went on to dominate possession for the rest of the period. EC broke through for a second tally just before the horn, as Louisa Lippiatt Durnell '18 fired home her first of two goals on the afternoon. Kishoni sent the puck down into the right corner boards to Maddy Jerolman '19. The freshman whipped a sneaky backhander to near post, which seemed to surprise Mayr, as she was cheating ever so slightly off the post. Lippiatt Durnell poked the loose puck just before it could be frozen for a stoppage, doubling the Elmira lead.
 
Elmira carried the momentum from the late goal into the middle period and waited little time in snatching firm control of the game. The Soaring Eagles continued to send bodies and pucks to the net and this time it was Lippiatt Durnell returning the favor to Jerolman, with the latter chipping a loose puck over the pad of Mayr to stretch the lead to three.
 
Neumann cut into the deficit over midway through the period, while working on the power play. Elmira goaltender Kelcey Crawford '18 made a couple solid stops earlier in the advantage; however, the Knights' Bek Lucas whipped a sneaky shot that caught Crawford unaware, nestling into the twine inside the right post to make it 3-1.
 
It took the Soaring Eagles just 55 seconds to respond, as Meg Lahey '19 fired home her first career collegiate goal to reestablish the three-goal lead. Meghan Fonfara '18 corralled a puck on the right-wing boards and sent a backhand pass up the wall to Lahey at the right point. She made a nice move to walk the line to her left, before wiring a wrister that eluded some significant traffic in front and found its way inside the left post.
 
The third period was dominated by the home side, as Elmira imposed its will on the undermanned Knights. Lippiatt Durnell chipped home her second goal of the game from the seat of her pants just over five minutes into the frame, while Kristin Chivers '19 added a five-on-three power-play goal with 32 seconds remaining. The goals sandwiched a Neumann tally from Megan Russelo, who won her own faceoff, before lifting a rising wrist shot just under the bar.
 
In His Own Words…
Head Coach Dean Jackson '03 on the team's performance…
"Coach Martalock and I were happy with our performance throughout the course of the game. I thought we did a lot of things we've been trying to target and work on over the last few weeks. It was nice to see the players execute. It helped us generate some Grade A opportunities."
 
Jackson on carrying over the Amherst performance into the game today…
"It certainly felt like we did have a nice carry over from Tuesday. We felt we played at a pretty good pace. We managed the puck well in all three zones. We're very happy with that."
 
Jackson on Lippiatt Durnell's performance…
"She certainly brought a lot of energy. She's a threat every time she touches the puck and every time she crosses the offensive blue line. It's great to see her line mates clicking with her too. All three of them are highly skilled and very quick. They're playing extremely well and are creating a lot of opportunities for each other. Its generating and maintaining momentum for our team and we're generating goals out of it."
 
Jackson on Lahey's performance…
"Meg is a first-year player who is starting to get acclimated to our brand of hockey. The progression that she has gone through since day one has been extremely positive. That's what we want out of our freshmen. First-year defenders have a little steeper learning curve in transitioning their game to the college level. We're really happy with her progress."
 
Jackson on getting ready for tomorrow…
"The players in the locker room know what is at stake. We don't have to say a lot to them to get them excited. They know how they are playing and they enjoy playing a competitive aggressive brand of hockey. I'm sure they will carry it over."
 
Turning Point
Elmira took firm control of the contest with two goals over a 1:22 span to end the first and begin the second periods. Lippiatt Durnell scored her first of two on the afternoon, just 35 seconds before the first intermission, while Jerolman knocked in a loose puck 47 seconds into the second period.
 
Inside the Box Score

• Elmira outshot Neumann 53-to-15 in the contest.
• Elmira tallied 15-plus shots in all three periods, including a season-high 20 shots in the third.
• Louisa Lippiatt Durnell '18 and Olivia Nystrom '16 each fired a game-high seven shots apiece.
• Elmira went 1-for-4 on the power play, while Neumann was 1-for-3 with the advantage.
• Kelcey Crawford '18 made 13 saves, while Neumann's Justina Mayr stopped 47 shots in the losing effort.
• The Soaring Eagles dominated the faceoff dot as well, going 46-for-60 in the game.
• Johanna Eidensten '16 was EC's top option, going 16-for-18 in the game.
• 11 Elmira skaters registered at least one point in the contest.
• Lippiatt Durnell led all players with three points on two goals and one assist.
• Jerolman and Nystrom each added a goal and an assist apiece.
• Freshman blue-liners Lahey and Chivers each added one goal.
• Strawinski, Phoebe Piku '16, Kishoni, McKenna Farole '16, Fonfara, and Sarah Hughson '18 each added one assist.

News and Notes

• With the win, Elmira moves to 32-0-1 all-time against Neumann.
• Elevating shot totals has been a point of emphasis for the Soaring Eagles after struggling to generate offense over the previous few games. EC entered the weekend 51-2-2 over the last three seasons when generating 25-plus shots in a game; however, Elmira more than doubled that total with a season-high 53 shots on goal.
• 11 Elmira skaters registered at least one point in the contest, which marked a season high for the team.
• Elmira allowed a power-play goal for the first time since November, just the fourth the team has allowed this season. The goal snapped a string of 20 straight successful penalty kills for the Soaring Eagles.
• Lahey tallied her first career collegiate goal.
• Lippiatt Durnell has been hot as wildfire over recent games. She registered a point for the third straight game, posting three goals and three assists over that stretch.
• Nystrom's first period goal was her ninth of the season, which set a new career high for a season.

 
Looking Ahead
Elmira concludes its two-game weekend set with Neumann University tomorrow afternoon. Opening faceoff at the Murray Athletic Center Ice Arena is again slated for 3:00 p.m.