HAMILTON—There was no stopping the Colgate Women’s Hockey team this weekend, as they completed a perfect two game set with a 5-1 drubbing of #9 St. Lawrence Saturday at Class of 1965 Arena.
Colgate picked up where it left off from the night before, as the Raiders lead in shots in the early going and were able to cash in on a broken play midway through the frame.
On a dump-in behind the St. Lawrence net, Coralie Larose fought through and won the puck, then slipped it in front to a waiting Rosalie Demers, who easily netted her third on the season.
After a stellar performance Friday against defending national champion Clarkson, head coach Greg Fargo went back with Julia Vandyk in the net and she responded. She turned aside all 10 shots she saw in the opening frame, including a point blank one-time chance to maintain the Raider advantage.
After Vandyk’s brilliance in the cage, her classmate rewarded her.
Just seconds after a video review confirmed a no goal call, which would have tied the game, Colgate doubled up on their lead. Malia Schneider started the play at center when she worked a puck loose to Jessie Eldirdge. From there, Eldridge turned it to the high slot where Shae Labbe made no mistake for her ninth on the season and the 50th of her career.
The score remained 2-0 through 20 minutes of play, but Colgate was not content with their two-goal advantage in the second period.
Schneider continued her spectacular weekend when she worked a puck free to Eldridge in the attacking zone. Eldridge had a sharp angle near the goal line, but was able to find some space past Saints starting goalie Sonjia Shelly to make it 3-0.
The visiting Saints made it interesting in the third period, as Rachael Smith broke up Vandyk’s bid for a shutout when she banked one home on the power play.
After St. Lawrence got on the board, the Raiders settled in and the strong defensive play continued, as Vandyk ended up with 32 stops on 33 shots.
In the dying moments, fireworks exploded for Colgate, as back-to-back markers included a career milestone that was a long time in the making. Bailey Larson started to put the hammer down for the Raiders when her long range shot from the defensive zone went in on the empty net to put the game away at 4-1.
Just nine seconds later, Labbe won a faceoff to herself, swooped into the attacking end and fed Kendall Williamson in front, who finished for her first career tally.
When the dust had settled on a hectic finish, the Raiders had completed their second weekend sweep of the season after topping #3 Clarkson Friday.
Bottom Line
Colgate 5, #9 St. Lawrence 1
Facts & Figures
Schneider’s red hot weekend concluded with five points on one goal and four assists.
Shannon Ormel had a milestone of her own, as she played in her 100th career game Saturday.
Saturday marked the first time Colgate has swept its North Country foes since Dec. 4-5, 2015.
Williamson’s goal also marked her first career point as a Raider.
Vandyk’s superb weekend ended with 68 saves on 70 shots.
Eldridge finished the game with a +3 rating to boost her team-leading total to +13.
Labbe was the second Raider to reach 50 career goals this season, as Eldridge did it Nov. 9 at Robert Morris.
From the Source
Senior Goalie Julia Vandyk
“It feels great,” said Vandyk. “We really grew as a team this weekend. We were looking for this outcome and we stuck to our values and what we’ve been working on for the past couple weeks and it really showed on the ice.”
“We met as a group when we got back from the week off and had a really good meeting,” said Vandyk. “We got a lot of feelings out and we talked about where we want to go and what our team purpose is. From that, we really hit the nail on the head and went for it.”
On Thursday and Saturday’s games against Syracuse:
“It’s really important that we go out with a bang,” said Vandyk. “We don’t want to have a sour taste in our mouths going into the break, so we’re going to give it all that we have. Now that we can see how well we can play from these past two games, that has become the new standard for us.”
Sophomore Forward Kendall Williamson
On her first career goal:
“It was so surreal,” said Williamson. “It was crazy. I kind of blacked out in that moment. I was just so excited and to see my teammates come around me and celebrate from the bench…it was just amazing.”
“The locker room after the game was crazy,” said Williamson. “It’s an amazing feeling.”
On playing on the fourth line with Ormel:
“We keep each other positive constantly,” said Williamson. “No matter what our role is, we’re constantly cheering everyone on from the bench. We want to keep everyone high in spirit and when we get on the ice, we take advantage of the opportunity.”
Head Coach Greg Fargo
“This was a good weekend of growth for us,” said Fargo. “It was really rooted in the way that we played. We had a really good buy-in to execute our game plan on both nights and we didn’t waver much from that at all.”
“Our group was really well-composed,” said Fargo. “We just focused on the next shift and making the most out of each one. When you add up all those little wins over the course of two games, you like the results, no matter who you play.”
“We’re just focused on what’s in front of us,” said Fargo. “Certainly, you take a lot of positives from beating good teams, but more importantly than the outcome, it’s easy to see that we have a group that’s committed to playing the right way.”
On Vandyk’s play:
“It was a weekend of growth for her,” said Fargo. “She’s someone that has her eyes forward. We’ve all seen what she’s capable of when she’s playing like she did this weekend. She gives our team a chance to win every night and she battled really hard all weekend.”
Up Next
The Raiders play their lone midweek game of the season Thursday when they visit Syracuse. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. from Tennity Ice Pavilion.
