No. 9 Big Green Drop Championship to Cornell
| Scoring Summary | |
|---|---|
| 1st - 06:42 | Karpenko, Chelsea (Cornell) |
| 2nd - 07:18 | PP - Karpenko, Chelsea (Cornell) |
| 3rd - 06:54 | Hughes, Hayley (Cornell) |
| Dartmouth | Cornell |
|---|---|
|
G:
N/A
A: N/A Sh: Amanda Trunzo - 3 Sv: Lindsay Holdcroft - 25 |
G:
Chelsea Karpenko - 2
A: Hayley Hughes - 2 Sh: Rebecca Johnston - 6 Sv: Amanda Mazzotta - 14 |
| TEAM STATISTICS | Dartmouth | Cornell |
|---|---|---|
| Power Plays | 0 for 6 | 1 for 5 |
| Shorthanded Goals | 0 | 0 |
| Penalties (min) | 5 (10) | 6 (12) |
| Shots on Goal | 14 | 28 |
| Face Offs Won | 30 | 28 |
ITHACA, N.Y. — Lightning doesn't strike in the same spot
twice very often, and the ninth-ranked Dartmouth women's hockey
team found out the hard way on Saturday. After defeating
second-ranked Cornell three weeks ago, the Big Green tried to take
down the powerhouse again in the ECAC Championship, but lost 3-0.
The loss dropped Dartmouth to 22-11-0 overall and Cornell improved
to 30-2-1.
"We are a team that capitalizes on other team's mistakes," said
senior captain Katie Horner (Brooklyn Park, Minn.) "And when you
play a team that doesn't mess up very often, it is hard to find
anything to capitalize on."
Junior Chelsea Karpenko, who was named the tournament's most
outstanding player, led the Big Red by scoring the team's first two
goals and put the game out of reach. The last time the Big Green
beat Cornell they used the power play to their advantage, but the
Big Red were ready this time. Dartmouth finished 0-for-6 with an
extra skater and never could find a rhythm on offense.
"They probably have two of the best defenseman in the country, and
probably two or three of the best forwards too," said Head Coach
Mark Hudak. "I said at the beginning of the year that Cornell is
that team you might beat once or twice out of 10 times if you do
everything right. Three weeks ago we were able to do that, and in
this game, they were really on their game."
Cornell scored the first goal of the game after a relentless attack
in the first six minutes. After a couple of quick passes from
senior Hayley Hughes and junior Amanda Young, Karpenko skated
through the congestion in front of the net and beat freshman
Lindsay Holdcroft (Pittsburh, Pa.) on the right side.
The Big Red had multiple other chances to score in the first but
couldn't get past the Big Green defense. Dartmouth committed
back-to-back penalties midway through the opening frame and looked
to be in serious trouble down two skaters. Holdcroft made a couple
diving saves, and the team killed both penalties to escape the
first period only down, 1-0. Holdcroft made eight saves in the
first with Cornell outshooting the Big Green, 9-5.
It was more of the same in the second period with the Big Red being
the aggressor and Dartmouth not being able to take advantage of
power play opportunities. Cornell stretched its lead to 2-0, 7:18
into the second period when Karpenko scored her second goal of the
contest. On the power play, Hughes took the puck from behind the
net, and passed to sophomore defenseman Laura Fortino at the top of
the left face off circle. Fortino made a quick pass to Karpenko on
the right side who beat a sliding Holdcroft for the score.
The two teams traded penalties and failed power play opportunities
the rest of the period. Each squad committed three penalties in the
session with only Cornell taking advantage going 1-for-3. Dartmouth
put more shots on goal in the second frame then in the first, but
Cornell still outshot the Big Green, 8-7.
In the third period, the Big Red added another insurance goal off
the stick of junior Catherine White. Hayley had the puck behind the
net, and fired a quick pass to White who was at the top of the
crease. White flicked the puck into the back of the net for
Cornell's third and final goal.
Dartmouth finished with 14 shots, while the Big Red took 28.
Holdcroft made 25 saves, and was named to the ECAC all-tournament
team. In the physical contest, Cornell committed six penalties for
12 minutes and the Big Green had five for 10 minutes.
The Big Green will now have to wait and see if they will make the
NCAA tournament. They were on the bubble coming into the contest
and it will depend how the other conference tournaments play out to
see if they receive a bid.
"We had a really, really great year," said Hudak. "I told the team
we put ourselves in a really good position to play in the NCAA's,
and now some of those things are out of our control and we hope we
get a chance to practice on Monday."
The NCAA tournament selection show will be streamed online on
ncaa.com at 6:30 p.m on Sunday. The eight teams making the field
will be announced and the bracket will be released at the
conclusion of the show.
