PINE VALLEY, N.Y. --  The No. 3-nationally ranked Elmira College women's ice hockey team kept is unblemished record intact on Saturday afternoon, as the Soaring Eagles led wire-to-wire in a 7-0 drubbing of United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) rival William Smith.

With the win, Elmira improved to 3-0-0 (3-0-0 UCHC) on the season. The loss marked the first of the year for the Herons, who moved to 5-1-0 (2-1-0 UCHC) overall.

The Soaring Eagles established themselves early in the contest, striking for a pair of quick goals just minutes into the game. William Smith's Julianna Gong was whistled for hooking just over a minute in, setting up a power play for Elmira. After working the puck around the offensive zone to collapse the Herons' PK-setup, Sydney Harris '21 slid a pass to Emma Crocker '21 in the slot. Crocker flicked the puck to Devyn Gilman '21 on the left side of goal, who made quick work of the chance with a tap-in to make it 1-0.

Elmira wasted little time doubling its lead. Holley Riva '23 potted her fourth goal of the year just nine seconds after Gilman's tally. Gilman won the faceoff at center and sent the puck back to Kiana Melvin '20. The senior saw Riva surging forward and sent a leading pass that brought the freshman into the offensive zone.  The rookie did the rest to push EC ahead, 2-0.

Another power-play chance swung the momentum firmly in the Purple and Gold's direction, as Tristen Tolan '21 cashed in with the extra skater. Tolan tipped in a shot from Eliza Beaudin '22 for her first goal of the contest.

A penalty-laden second period halted the Soaring Eagles' scoring barrage. Bella Hanson '21 and Harris picked up two quick penalties, forcing EC to kill off a 5-on-3 power play. Despite the pressure, Stephanie Martin '22 stood tall in net and the special-teams unit kept the Herons at bay to preserve EC's 3-0 lead. Martin ended the period with 13 saves to keep William Smith off of the board.

The Purple and Gold rediscovered their scoring touch in the final 20 minutes of play, as they punched in a quartet of goals. Jess Adams '21 opened the scoring in the final frame, as the junior redirected a powerful shot from Jenny Heath '22 past William Smith's Olivia Williams. Melvin made it 5-0 a little over four minutes later, when the senior powered home a shot on the power play.

As EC continued to set up camp in William Smith's defensive zone, Beaudin eventually broke through for her fifth goal of the season. The puck was swung high to Amanda Zenstein '22, who made a quick pass to Tolan. The junior sent the puck into Beaudin's path and the sophomore did the rest. With seven seconds left on the clock, Tolan solidified her three-point outing with a breakout goal off a pass from Crocker to seal the 7-0 victory.

In His Own Words….
Head Coach Tim Crowley on the team's performance in today's win…
"I thought we played really well today, everybody chipped in. Stephanie (Martin) gave us some big saves in the second period and we responded with a better third to close it out."

News and Notes

• EC outshout the Herons, 36-20.
• Elmira went 3-for-6 (50%) on the power play, while William Smith was 0-for-3 (0%).
• The Soaring Eagles have emerged victorious in their last five meetings against the Herons.
• Elmira has posted three consecutive shutout victories for the third-straight season.
• Beaudin posted her team-leading fifth goal of the season.
• Tolan (2g-1a), Beaudin (1g-2a) and Melvin (1g-2a) all finished with three points.
• Melvin's goal was her first of the season.
• Ariella Haas '22 posted her first point of the 2019-20 campaign with an assist.
• Crocker, Beaudin, Tolan, Gilman and Melvin have produced multi-point efforts in all three of Elmira's games. 

Up Next
The Soaring Eagles open up a four-game road trip on Friday, October 22, when they travel to Rochester, New York, for a UCHC tilt against the Golden Flyers of Nazareth College. Puck drop is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.