Potsdam, NY – If the opening exhibition is a harbinger of things to come, opponents of the Clarkson University Women’s Hockey team could be in for a tough time when facing the Golden Knights. The Green and Gold peppered the Ottawa Senators PWHL squad with 54 shots in a 7-3 victory Saturday afternoon at Cheel Arena.
The Knights recorded 17 shots in the first period and took very little time getting on the scoreboard. After the initial shot was stopped by Ottawa goaltender Erica Howe, the puck rattled out to the top of the goalie crease where an alert Meg Omand (Cold Lake, ALB) came sliding in to tip the puck into the net for a 1-0 Clarkson lead. Classmate Gabrielle Kosziwka (Limehouse, ONT) earned the assist.
Though Ottawa trailed in shots in the first period, its offense was working as well. At the 8:11 mark, the Senators tied up the score 1-1 with a power play goal. After the puck found its way out to the point, a quick pass was sent to Jamie Lee Rattray, who delivered a one-timer from the top of the right circle. Assists went to Emma Fillman and Jennifer Nedow.
Just two and a half minutes later, Clarkson scored on a power play chance of its own when Dominique Thibault (L'Original, ONT) scored her first, albeit unofficial, goal as a Golden Knight. Melissa Waldie (Newmarket, ONT) made a quick move in front of the goal and flipped a pass to Thibault at the side of the net, and the senior transfer didn’t miss, giving Clarkson a 2-1 edge at 10:26. Senior captain Britney Selina (Thornhill, ONT) also assisted.
Goals came fast and furious at the start of the second period as the Knights took a 3-1 lead at the 3:02 mark of the middle frame as Selina skated in along side of the right circle and flipped the puck over the goalie’s glove side. However, Ottawa responded with a goal of its own just 20 seconds later with a strong rush culminating in a score from Monika Leck. The rest of the third period was all Clarkson, however, as the Knights owned a 20-3 edge in shots, resulting in two more goals. Waldie connected from Selina at 13:36 for a 4-2 Knight edge, and the Green and Gold closed out the period with a score in the final minute when sophomore Juana Baribeau (Amos, QUE) blasted a shot from the middle of the left circle.
The third period was relatively quiet until the final portion of the period. Skating a player down, Dominique Thibault picked up a loose puck on a break away and deposited the puck top shelf on a backhand to make the score 6-2 at 13:24. On the same power play, the Senators came back at 14:03 with a goal from Kelsey Gunn. The Knights remained unsatisfied with their offensive production and scored once more with just over three minutes to go when Selina scored her second goal of the game, with Brittany Mulligan (London, ONT) also earning her second assist of the contest.
Junior goalie Lauren Dahm (Baldwinsville, NY) made nine stops through two periods for the Knights, and Kelsey Neumann (China Grove, NC) came on to make two stops in the final frame. Howe stopped 32 shots through the first two stanzas before being relieved by Allison Raganold in the third, who made 15 saves.
