ELMIRA, N.Y. — This week’s Elmira College Athlete of the Week Awards have been doled out to a pair of ice hockey players, as sophomore forward Connor Powell ’20 of the men’s team and senior goaltender Kelcey Crawford ’18 of the women’s team were both recognized for their outstanding achievements on the ice.
Powell paced the Soaring Eagles with five points by registering an assist on five of Elmira’s six goals scored in a pair of home contests last week. On Tuesday, November 21, in a 5-3 loss to a one-loss SUNY Potsdam team, the second-year skater from Merrimack, New Hampshire, dished out an assist on all three EC goals. He had a hand in a pair of power-play goals, including one in the third period off the stick of fellow sophomore Matthew Cuce ’20 that tied the score at 3-all. Powell’s three assists are a new single-game best, while he tied his previous career high with a trio of points.
On Saturday, November 25, Powell helped spark a thrilling 3-2 come-from-behind victory over No. 4/4-ranked SUNY Geneseo at the Murray Athletic Center. He assisted on both the game-tying and game-winning goals late in the third period. His first helper was a beautiful pass from deep in the EC defensive zone that found Nick Ford ’20 in stride on the opposite blue line, setting up Ford for a breakaway goal with just 2:12 remaining in regulation. In the final moments of the contest, Powell connected with classmate Spencer MacLean ’20 for the game-winner, a deflection that snuck through the five-hole of the Knights’ goalie with 0.9 seconds left on the clock.
The 5-foot-10-inch forward leads the United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) in assists (11), while ranking second in points (14), power-play points (8) and power-play goals (3). The Soaring Eagles will look to Powell to manufacture more offense in a pair of UCHC games weekend, beginning with a 7:00 p.m. home bout against Chatham University on Friday, December 1, at the MAC.
Crawford turned in a remarkable performance for the No. 3/3 nationally-ranked EC women’s ice hockey team over the weekend. The fourth-year netminder was crowned the Most Valuable Player at the 2017 UNO Classic Tournament, after leading the Purple and Gold to a pair of wins against top-10 opponents at the Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena in Plattsburgh, New York. In perhaps the busiest weekend of her career, Crawford turned away a combined 95 shots in wins over No. 6/6 Middlebury (4-1) and the reigning national champions, the No. 2/2 Plattsburgh State Cardinals (4-2).
In her first start against the sixth-ranked Panthers, the Purcellville, Virginia, native posted 33 saves on 34 shots. The only goal Crawford surrendered in the opening round of the UNO Classic was a 5-on-3 power-play tally in the second period. Despite allowing her first power-play goal of the year, she was the backbone for a penalty kill unit that held Middlebury scoreless on four of its five extra-skater chances on Saturday night.
The highlight of the weekend for the Soaring Eagles was a 4-2 triumph over their bitter rivals, the Cardinals of Plattsburgh State. The four-time defending NCAA Division III champs, who entered the tournament ranked second in the nation, had won seven in a row against Elmira dating back to the 2014-15 campaign. However, EC used a record-setting effort from Crawford to shock the Cards on their home ice. The senior goalie made an incredible 62 saves on Sunday night, including a game-high 23 in the second period and 22 in a third-period shutout.
Crawford broke the previous single-game saves record – held by Lisa Marshall ’14 (56) – by six. She also surpassed Marshall (904) on the career saves chart, moving into fifth-place all-time with 957 career stops. On the national leaderboard, Crawford leads all Division III goalies in save percentage (.970) and is third in goals-against average (0.83).
The No. 3/3 nationally-ranked Soaring Eagles will look to continue their unbeaten streak this weekend, when EC heads to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for a two-game set against Chatham University. The first of two UCHC contests is scheduled for Friday, December 1, at 7:00 p.m.
