ELMIRA, N.Y. – The Elmira College women's ice hockey team is back in the New England Hockey Conference semifinals, as the Soaring Eagles will host Salve Regina University. Saturday's contest between the Soaring Eagles and Seahawks is scheduled for 3:00 p.m. at the Murray Athletic Center.
 
The Soaring Eagles finished second in the NEHC regular season standings and will host the #3 seed Salve Regina University Seahawks after defeating No. 7 Castleton last weekend in the quarterfinals 3-1. Anna Lugge '27 provided a pair of goals for the Soaring Eagles in the win against Castleton on Saturday, as Elmira rallied from a 1-0 deficit in the second period. Emily Lenzen '24 capped the scoring with an empty-net goal in the third period, while goaltender Sara Sevcikova '28 made 10 saves on 11 shots.
 
Elmira will look to avenge a pair of losses during the regular season against Salve Regina. The Seahawks recorded a 3-1 victory and a 1-0 victory on January 24-25 at their home rink. The two meetings were the first ever between the Soaring Eagles and Seahawks after Salve Regina joined the NEHC this season.
 
The Seahawks advanced to the semifinals after recording a 2-0 shutout on Saturday against No. 6 seed Southern Maine. Salve Regina broke a scoreless tie 44 seconds into the second period with a power-play goal from Ashtyn Bringardner. Emily Wroblewski provided an insurance goal for the Seahawks in the third period, while goaltender Taylor Hannafan made 17 saves.
 
Goaltending will be the main storyline on Saturday, as Sevcikova boasts an NEHC-leading 1.01 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage, which ranks fifth. Sevcikova got the nod for Elmira in the January 25 meeting, as she made 14 saves on 15 shots. For the Seahawks, Hannafan is third in the NEHC with a 1.26 goals-against average and leads the conference with a .953 save percentage. Hannafan recorded both wins against Elmira and finished the two-game series with 75 saves on 76 shots.
 
TICKET INFORMATION:
The Elmira College Department of Athletics will offer free admission to all New England Hockey Conference tournament games played at the Murray Athletic Center. A donation box will be available at the ticketing table, with proceeds to help offset all ice hockey postseason travel costs.
 
GATE TIMES:
Gates will open one (1) hour before scheduled game time. For the women's game against Salve Regina, gates will open at 2:00 p.m.


NEHC QUARTERFINAL RESULTS (WOMEN):
#8 Albertus Magnus at #1 Norwich – Norwich won 6-1
#7 Castleton at #2 Elmira – Elmira won 3-1
#6 Southern Maine at #3 Salve Regina – Salve Regina won 2-0
#5 William Smith at #4 UMass Boston – William Smith won 4-1

NEHC SEMIFINAL SCHEDULE (WOMEN):
#5 William Smith at #1 Norwich – 3:00 p.m.
#3 Salve Regina at #2 Elmira – 3:00 p.m.