CLINTON, N.Y. – Oswego Women's Hockey braved the snowy weather this afternoon and headed to Southeast to face off against the Hamilton College Continentals. A hot start from the Continentals caught the Lakers off guard early in the first period as they found their legs post winter break. As the second period got underway, the physicality increased, but Oswego stood their ground putting one through the legs of Hamilton net minder Teagan Brown, mounting a 1-0 lead heading into the 3^rd period. A connected effort throughout the final period would award the Lakers with another goal, securing a 2-0 shutout victory over the Hamilton College Continentals.
 
THE BASICS
Oswego 2 (7-0-1, 5-0-1, SUNYAC)
Hamilton 0 (3-6-0, 0-4-0, NESCAC)
Location: Sage Rink – Delaney Team Center| Clinton, N.Y.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
A hot start by the Continentals would catch the Lakers off guard in the opening minutes of the first period, but it did not take long for Oswego to find some rhythm at both ends of the ice. A couple long shifts for the Laker defenseman would allow Hamilton to keep possession of the puck on offense and get shots through to the net. A handful of good rushes generated by both ends of the Oswego bench would give the Lakers some solid scoring chances, but all would be rejected by opposing net minder Teagan Brown. As the first period clock began to tick down, the physicality of play increased, but neither team would end the period with a goal.

After a brief intermission, the tables would turn as the Lakers tilted the ice in their favor by controlling the pace of play and executing on breakouts. A panicked Hamilton squad gave Oswego plenty of time and space to find each other on offense. Just under 6 minutes into the second period, a puck chipped out of the Lakers' defensive zone by Tilly Pethrick would find the stick of Graduate Student Rachel Corbett who would take it into the Continentals' zone and lay a heavy shot on Brown. The loose puck in the crease would be buried by Ashlyn McGrath who broke through on hard net drive. For the rest of the period, play would continue to be a back-and-forth battle as both teams fought to be the next on the scoreboard. An illegal body check by Sophia Kyrkostas, would be followed by a retaliation hit on sophomore Erika Parenti, sending both Grace Puskar and Kyrkostas to the box for the start of the 3^rd period.

With matching penalties, the beginning minutes of the third period would start 4-on-4. With some extra space on the ice, the Lakers maintained position for most of the time until play returned to regular 5v5 strength. Although trailing 1-0, Hamilton did not let up, keeping heavy pressure on in the corners and picking up multiple rebounds in the crease. A connected effort by Oswego in the final minutes would disrupt Hamilton's systems, forcing them to pull their goalie. A wide shot by Cuora Sullivan would be picked up and taken down the ice by Ashlyn McGrath who put it in the empty net, securing her second goal of the night at the 18:57 mark. Lexi Levy stood on her head tonight in net, earning a shutout with an outstanding 35-save performance. After tonight's victory, the Lady Lakers remain undefeated this season and are currently ranked 8^th in national polls.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Oswego Women's Hockey will have a week to recoup before roadt ripping up to Plattsburgh, N.Y. to face off conference rival SUNY Plattsburgh in a two-game series. Both competitions will be played at Ronald B. Stafford Ice Arena, with the first starting at 4:00 PM on Friday, January 10^th. Go Lakers!