OSWEGO, N.Y. – Oswego Women's hockey donned their TEAL jerseys this evening as they hosted the William Smith Herons in their regular season home opener on Ovarian Cancer Awareness night. A back-and-forth battle of a game would leave the score at a 1-1 stalemate for the first and second periods. A determined third period start by the Herons would force the Lakers to find another gear on defense, as they struggled to break the puck out. A clutch powerplay goal in the 3rd for the Lakers would give them enough of a lead to pull out a mere 2-1 victory in their home opener. 

THE BASICS  
 
Final Score:  

Oswego 2 (1-0-0, 0-0 SUNYAC) 

William Smith 1 (0-0-1, 0-0 NEHC) 

Location: Deborah F. Stanley Arena | Oswego, N.Y.  

 
HOW IT HAPPENED  

A hot start for the Lakers wouldn't last long as William Smith would capitalize on an offensive change, notching the first goal of the game just 18:34. Oswego would play catch up in the following minutes, gaining back some offensive momentum. A few solid line rushes and shots on the net by the Lakers would test the Heron defense and starting goaltender Erin Murray. A penalty called against sophomore Erika Parenti would award William Smith a powerplay opportunity at the 11:50 mark, but they would be unsuccessful. Just a minute and a half later the Lakers would earn a turn of their own on the powerplay. A low shot in the slot by Parenti would generate a scrum in front of the William Smith net, where first year Elizabeth Cooley would put the puck through the legs of Murray, tying the scoreline up 1-1 at 8:34. In the remaining minutes of the period, play would turn into a back-and-forth battle but the score would stay deadlocked heading into the second.  

A brief intermission would give Oswego some time to reconvene, but William Smith would deny them their left-over powerplay time in the opening minute of the second period. A few unfortunate offside calls against the Lakers would throw a wrench in their offensive momentum but would stay persistent, winning faceoffs in the neutral zone and getting the puck deep in the Herons' zone. A cross-checking penalty on senior Simone Bednarik at the 10:06 mark would put Oswego at a deficit for a few moments but play returned to 4-on-4 even-strength after a hooking call called against William Smith. A handful of Oswego's offensive opportunities would just miss the mark, keeping the scoreboard tied 1-1.  

A determined start by the Herons would catch the Lakers on their heels, gaining offensive entry almost immediately and keeping Oswego in their zone for the beginning minutes of the 3rd period. With William Smith breathing down their necks, the Lakers struggled to break it out. As the clock ticked down, the Herons continued to dominate the pace and possession of the game, but an offensive surge by senior defenseman Rylee Preston created a turn on offense for Oswego around the 10-minute mark. An elbowing penalty by opposing forward Natalie May would give the Lakers a powerplay opportunity on which a strong low shot by Erika Parenti would deflect off the skate of a Heron defenseman into the bottom right corner of the net, making the score 2-1 at 8:33. William Smith would force the Lakers to find another gear in the final minutes of play, fending off back-to-back shots and passing plays to pull out a 2-1 win in their home opener.  

WHAT'S NEXT  

Oswego Women's Hockey will have a quick turnaround as they head to Geneva, N.Y. tomorrow afternoon for the second game of their two-game series against the William Smith Herons. Puck drop will commence at 7:00 PM in The Cooler.  

Written By: Matilda Pethrick 

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