OSWEGO, N.Y. – No.5 Oswego Women's hockey returned to home ice for the first time this year to face off against the No.3 Amherst College Mammoths. With a national tournament spot hanging in the balance, both teams came out looking to make a statement in this top 5 matchup. An excited start from both teams would quickly turn play into a back-and-forth battle. An unsuccessful Laker powerplay and a goal scored by Amherst would leave Oswego trailing 1-0 heading into the 2nd period. The Mammoths wasted no time adding another tally to the scoreboard less than a minute into the second period and another one later on, extending their lead to 3-0. As the third period opened, the Mammoths added a fourth goal on a power play, securing a dominant 4-0 win over Oswego.
THE BASICS
Final Score:
Oswego 0 (11-2-1, 8-1-1 SUNYAC)
Amherst 4 (11-2-1, 4-1-1 NESCAC)
Location: Deborah F. Stanley Ice Arena | Oswego, N.Y.
HOW IT HAPPENED
An excited start for the Lakers would award them the opening faceoff win and possession, but it wasn't long before the Mammoths gained zone entry and showed why they are #3 in the country. A tripping penalty called against Amherst at the 10:00 mark would give Oswego the first turn on the powerplay, but an aggressive Mammoth penalty kill would keep the Lakers at bay. As play returned to even-strength, both teams traded scoring opportunities, but neither would breakthrough until Amherst defenseman Gretchen Dann took the puck down the left wall of Oswego's zone, netting the puck just under the glove of Lexi Lexy at 12:32. Undeterred, the Lakers returned a compilation of heavy shots and deceptive passing plays testing opposing netminder Natalie Stott, but would end the first period trailing 1-0 to the Mammoths.
Amherst came out firing on all cylinders in the early moments of the 2nd period, extending their lead to 2-0 just 0:54 seconds in. It took a moment for the Lakers to settle back in, but once they did, they were able to fight back with a handful of quality scoring chances. As the period got underway, the Mammoths continued to turn up the heat, applying heavy pressure on the Laker defensemen in the corners and attacking in transition. Oswego struggled to break it out of their zone holding them without a line change for a couple minutes. Amherst used Oswego's tired legs to their advantage, adding a third unanswered goal to the board at the 14:02 mark. A compilation of shots by the Mammoths on the following play would keep the Lakers on defense as the clock ticked down. Oswego would earn another power play advantage in the final minutes but would still head into the final frame scoreless.
As the third period opened, a tired Laker bench began to rely more on their physicality than their finesse, finding themselves in the box for 3 consecutive penalties, awarding Amherst multiple power play advantages. Gretchen Dann was the backbone of the Mammoths scoreline today, collecting a hat trick and a fourth goal for Amherst on their first powerplay with 11:53 to play in the game. Despite a persistent effort by the Lakers, they would unfortunately fall 4-0 to Amherst College.
WHAT'S NEXT
Oswego Women's Hockey will have a few days to gear up for another double-header this weekend against Manhattanville University. The Lakers will kick-off their Senior Day two-game series on Friday January 24th at 3:00 PM in the Deborah F. Stanley Arena.
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