BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Syracuse ice hockey team came out with a vengeance in the College Hockey America quarterfinals. A hat trick by redshirt junior Brooke Avery, the first of her career, propelled the Orange to a 5-1 victory over RIT. Syracuse will face Mercyhurst in the semifinals on Friday, March 2 at 4 p.m. The game can be followed along through live stream (here) or live stats (here).
“I liked the way we played in the first period, not only because we scored goals and generated some offense, but also fundamentally we were doing things really well,” said head coach Paul Flanagan. “I think we set the tone not only for the rest of the game today but also hopefully heading into tomorrow. We have to be sound fundamentally and do the little things really well so that was encouraging.”
HOW IT WAS DECIDED
The Orange drew first blood early as Avery took a pass from senior Alysha Burriss, who was planted behind the net, and buried the puck top shelf. Just over halfway through the first frame, sophomore Savannah Rennie took a redirected pass from freshman Emma Polaski and beat a sprawling RIT goalie glove-side.
With just under five minutes to go in the first and playing a man-down, Burriss stripped an RIT defenseman, creating a 2-on-1 opportunity for the Orange. A quick pass to Avery and a wrister by the redshirt junior into a wide-open net put the Orange up 3-0 at the end of the first period.
Avery kept the momentum going for the Orange just a minute into the second period, picking up a loose rebound and finding the back of the net to snag the hat trick. RIT notched their only goal of the game halfway through the frame to cut the deficit to three goals at the second intermission.
Redshirt sophomore Lindsay Eastwood got the Orange defense on the board with a snipe from the blueline, extending the Syracuse lead to 5-1, a result that would remain the same through the end of the game.
OF NOTE
Avery’s hat trick is the first hat trick for an Orange since current senior Stephanie Grossi notched three goals against Lindenwood on Feb. 19, 2016. Three goals (and three points) is a new career-high for the redshirt junior. Her second goal was also the first short-handed goal of Avery’s career.
Burriss notched three assists in the outing, marking her fourth multi-assist game of the season. The senior now sits in fourth for career points (94) and in sixth for career assists (54). Burriss paces the team in points this season with 25 (seven goals, 18 assists).
Syracuse is now 3-1-0 when playing the Tigers in the CHA Tournament. The Orange also boast a 3-1-0 record in the quarterfinals round of the Tournament.
UP NEXT
The Orange are back in action on Friday when they take on Mercyhurst in the CHA Seminfinals. Puck drop is slated for 4 p.m. at the HarborCenter.
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