PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. – Another chapter was added to the long, storied women’s hockey rivalry between Plattsburgh State and Elmira Sunday afternoon as the Cardinals rallied for a 4-3 win over the Soaring Eagles in the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Women’s West Championship Game at the Stafford Ice Arena.
The victory gives Plattsburgh State its second-straight ECAC Women’s West title and the fourth in program history. The Cardinals will also receive an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III Women’s Ice Hockey Tournament.
A fast-paced start to the game saw Elmira (21-5-1) with the better of the opportunities early in the first period. With a Plattsburgh State (25-1-1) power play winding down, a Cardinal turnover gave Ashton Hogan a short-handed breakaway but Sydney Aveson made a sprawling save with her left pad to keep Elmira off the board.
Later in the period, Elmira’s Lindsay Burrows missed a shot from the left point which allowed Chelsea VanGlahn to gather the loose puck and give the Cardinals a 3-on-1 opportunity. VanGlahn gave a pass to Giovanna Senese, who fired a shot from the slot into the left corner to give Plattsburgh State a 1-0 lead at the 9:04 mark of the first.
Elmira wasted no time retaliating as Tanis Lamoureux made a long pass to Ashley Ryan and Ryan beat Aveson with a goal off the backhand to tie it up at 1-1 just 55 seconds later.
Early in the second, Elmira goaltender Lisa Marshall denied shots by Tyne Gove and Jenny Kistner before Alyssa Parke buried a shot in the top right corner to put Plattsburgh State up by a score of 2-1 with 1:35 gone in the middle period.
The see-saw battle continued as Elmira knotted the score at 2-2 when Anna Tude scored a power-play goal off a rebound from Erin Weston at the 14:36 mark of the second.
With 3:41 off the clock in the third, the Soaring Eagles grabbed a 3-2 lead when Weston’s shot from the right point deflected off a Plattsburgh State defender and past the right leg of Aveson.
The Cardinals drew even at 3-3 when Allison Era dropped a perfect pass back to Shannon Stewart and Stewart ripped a shot past Marshall for her team-leading 16th of the season at the 7:03 mark.
