Women’s Hockey Ousts Norwich With OT Win

Last Saturday, March 9, the Middlebury women’s ice hockey team played in the quarterfinals for NCAA tournament against Norwich University. The Panthers put up an outstanding fight and 60 minutes of  regulation play ended in a 2-2 tie. After 14:28 of overtime play, Katie Sullivan ’15 tapped in the game-winning goal to advance her team to the Frozen Four.

Middlebury will now travel to Superior, Wisc. this Friday, March 15, to take on Plattsburgh in the national semifinals.

“You have to beat the best teams to consider yours the best; we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy road to a national championship,” said Lauren Greer ’13. “But we’ve played Plattsburgh twice this season, and have lost both times, and we know that neither of those times we’ve put in a full 60 minutes of hard play. Third time is the charm. We know we have to score first, and we know any opportunities we get – and there will be few – we have to capitalize.”

Norwich took control of the game early in the first period. The Cadets scored two goals in the first 20 minutes of the game to Middlebury’s one. The first goal from the Panthers was Sullivan’s assisted by Greer.

The second period remained uneventful with no goals by either team. However, the game turned into an exciting battle when Middlebury scored at the 15:32 mark to tie the game. Sullivan contributed her second goal to the game with another assist from Greer. The two proved to be quite a dynamic duo throughout the competition.

With a tie game, the two teams headed into overtime. The first 14 minutes of play were a constant back-and-forth effort from both sides of the ice, however, and neither team could put in a goal.

At the 14:08 mark, Norwich earned a checking penalty, giving Middlebury an opportunity to score with a player advantage. Within the first 20 seconds of the power play, Sullivan tapped in her third goal of the game to win it for the Panthers. Katie Mandigo ’16 and Heather Marrison ’13 assisted Sullivan’s goal, and the Middlebury team poured onto the ice in celebration of their victory and advancement to the semifinals.

Throughout the game, Middlebury totaled only three penalties, one shy of Norwich to give them two extra minutes of power play time. The two teams were extremely close with shots on net, with Middlebury recording 28 to Norwich’s 29.

Annabelle Jones ’15 had a very strong game in goal, saving 27 goals in the game. Sullivan was awarded first star recognition while Annabelle Jones ’15 earned second star.

“The Final Four is exactly where we want to be; making it here has always been a goal for our team, and especially after last year,” said Greer. “This year we get a chance to avenge that loss against Plattsburgh (the same team) in higher stakes: the winner gets to play in the national championship game, and we have the chance to upset an undefeated team. We’re the underdogs, just like we were against Norwich.”

“Last week we wanted to win so we could have another week playing together,” said Greer. “This week it’s about leaving it all out on the ice – this is as far as our season goes, but we want to be the ones playing in the national championship game. We want the chance to say we’re the best team in the country.”