GENEVA, N.Y. – The William Smith College ice hockey team dropped a non-conference contest 7-0 to Division II Franklin Pierce at The Cooler this afternoon. The Ravens used a strong second period to collect the victory.
Franklin Pierce (9-2-1) jumped out to a 1-0 lead with 16 seconds remaining in the first period. Colleen Doucette knocked home her own rebound to give the Ravens the lead. Karsyn Baker broke up the play at her own blue line and fed a pass to Doucette, who broke in on William Smith goalie Emily Spencer. Spencer made the initial save but could not stop the rebound attempt.
William Smith (4-7-2) had some of its better scoring opportunities five minutes into the game. Sophomore Krista Federow fired a shot off of the crossbar with the Herons on the power play. First-year’s Laura Rollins and Rachael Barry had scoring chances turned aside by Geneseo goalie Shannon O’Neil during the power play as well.
The Ravens offense erupted for four goals in the middle period. Michelle Holmes doubled the lead at 1:53 of the stanza. Sarah Shells, Alex Brolsma and Haley Arnold also scored for Franklin Pierce. The Ravens tacked on two insurance goals in the third period for the final margin.
Following a timeout at 15:03 of the third period, Hedi Droste sent an outlet pass to Maura Mulligan. Mulligan broke into the offensive zone all alone and was hauled down from behind by a Raven player. On the ensuing penalty shot, she deked O’Neil out of position but was not able to get her backhanded shot past O’Neil.
Franklin Pierce held a slight 37-34 advantage on the shot chart. The Ravens were 2-of-5 on the power play while the Herons came away empty on their three chances.
In goal, Spencer made 30 saves for William Smith while O’Neil made 34 saves in the shutout.
The Herons will return to the ice next weekend when they travel to the North Country to face the two-time reigning national champion and current No. 1 Plattsburgh.?
