Score: Elmira College 2 – Williams College 1
Records: Elmira (10-1-0), Williams (5-3-0)
Location: Murray Athletic Center– Pine Valley, NY
 
Pine Valley, NY -- The second-ranked Elmira College women's ice hockey team rode the efforts of its starting netminder, Kelcey Crawford '18, to a 2-1 victory over visiting Williams College this afternoon at the Murray Athletic Center Ice Arena. Crawford made a season-high 23 saves, including one on a penalty shot late in the third period, to preserve the victory and extend Elmira's win streak to 10 games. EC's 10-game win streak is the second longest active streak in NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey.
 
Elmira wasted little time to put the game's first goal on the board, as Jessica Prance '17 netted her third of the season. The scoring play was setup at the point with a pair of quick passes by Phoebe Piku '16 and Rachel Grampp '18, which opened up Williams' defense, allowing Prance to position herself just outside the crease. With Prance in position, Piku fired a shot towards net before Prance redirected it into the cage to give the Purple and Gold a 1-0 lead 2:15 into the contest.
 
The Soaring Eagles added to its lead at the 9:08 mark of the second period thanks to a goal by Captain Olivia Nystrom '16. A long pass from EC's defensive zone during a Williams line change found Piku, who one-timed a pass to Ari Smith '18 in the neutral zone. Piku's swift pass, along with Williams' ill-timed line change, set up a two-on-one rush with Smith and Nystrom leading the way.
 
Smith carried the puck into the slot and sent a low wrist shot on target that was initially saved by Christina Cleroux. However, the rebound leaked out to the weak side directly to Nystrom, who punched the puck past a sprawled out Cleroux for EC's second goal of the afternoon.
 
Nystrom's tally held up through the second period, as EC carried a 2-0 lead, as well as a 17-to-11 advantage in shots, into the final intermission.
 
The momentum of today's contest seemed to rest with the Soaring Eagles, but that changed drastically at the 3:09 mark of the third period, when Michaela Levine cut the Elmira lead to just one. Levine turned what looked like a harmless possession into an Ephs goal, as she sniped the top right corner with a wrist shot just outside the left faceoff circle, beating Crawford glove-side for the score.
 
Levine's goal turned the tables in the third period, as the Ephs went on to outshoot the Soaring Eagles 13-to-8 in the period.
 
Despite a disadvantage in shots in the period, Elmira was able to hold onto its one-goal lead thanks to some superb goaltending by Crawford, who came up with a handful of big saves during the final stanza. One of her best saves of the night came on a one-on-none rush that saw Crawford deny Natalie Bernstein at point blank range.
 
However, on the Bernstein save, EC's Piku was called for minor penalty for throwing her stick in an attempt to disrupt the play. As a result, Williams was left with the decision to play the final 1:56 with an extra skater or to take a penalty shot. After a minute of consulting, the Ephs decided to go with the penalty shot and sent Bernstein to center ice to take the shot. Thankfully, Crawford once again proved why she is one of the nation's best, as she turned away Bernstein's game-tying attempt.
 
Following the missed penalty shot, Williams pulled its goalie for the final 1:56 in an attempt to tie the game but Crawford made four key saves during that time to hand Elmira its 10th straight victory.
 
In Their Own Words…
Head Coach Dean Jackson '03 on Elmira's performance this afternoon…
"I thought we played a solid game. I felt as though, when we played well, we dominated play. And then there were times when we made it difficult on ourselves and in turn allowed Williams to dominate us. I thought we had a lot of unforced errors, a lot of turnovers, in the neutral zone that created a lot of momentum shifts in favor of Williams."
 
Coach Jackson shares his thoughts on how the holiday break affected his team…
"It was a long break but we had a good week of practice. It's always good to have that break regardless to rest the soul and the mind a little bit. But considering we haven't played in almost a month, we actually played pretty well. Momentum shifts are going to happen over the course of the game and at the end of the day, Williams is a very solid hockey team. They are a team that competes every year in the NESCAC for a championship and every year they play us hard. They are a very good team and a well-coached team."
 
Coach Jackson's thoughts on Crawford's play between the pipes…
"Kelcey has really come up big for us over the course of the season, as well as Kyle Nelson '17. We have two really outstanding goaltenders but tonight Kelcey shut the door for us and she's certainly a calming influence for us back there. She never gets too high or too low. She's just real even-keeled, calm, and focused."
 
Coach Jackson talks about what today's win does for the team moving forward…
"We do hit the ground running in 2016 with Norwich and Amherst. It's the status quo on our end. We just have to continue to develop and learn from our mishaps and learn from our real positive things that happen over the course of a game. But we are going to have a good week of practice in preparation for Norwich and Amherst. Having a win today certainly sets the year off right and is a reason to feel good about ourselves."
 
Turning Point
Today's turning point occurred with less than two minutes to play in regulation, when Williams was awarded a penalty shot at the 18:04 mark of the third period. Leading by just one goal, all eyes turned to Williams' Bernstein, who was taking the penalty shot, and Elmira's Crawford who stood between the pipes. Crawford denied Bernstein on the penalty shot, one of 13 saves in the period for the second-year netminder.
 
Inside the Box Score

• Elmira held a slim 25-to-24 advantage in shots on goal.
• The two teams were called for seven penalties and a total of 14 penalty minutes (EC 3-6).
• Crawford and Cleroux both made 23 saves this afternoon.
• Piku led all skaters with two points, both on assists.
• Prance scored the game-opening goal 2:15 into the first period.
• Nystrom tallied today's game-winner 9:08 into the second period.
• Grampp and Smith were both credited with assists for the Soaring Eagles.

 
News and Notes

• Today's win marks the fourth time this season Elmira has skated away victorious in a one-goal game.
• Three of EC's last four wins have been by one goal.
• Elmira extends its win streak to 10 games.
• Elmira improves to 11-3-1 all-time in the first game of the New Year.
• Nystrom's game winner is her second of the season.
• Crawford has won six straight starts.
• Crawford's 23 saves are a season high.
• Piku's two-point performance is her first multi-point game of the season.

 
Up Next
Elmira returns to action next Saturday, January 9th, when the Soaring Eagles face 10th-ranked Norwich University in a rematch of the consolation game of the 2015 East-West Hockey Classic. The puck is set to drop at 3:00 p.m. at the Murray Athletic Center Ice Arena in Pine Valley, NY.