HENNIKER, N.H. –UMass Boston Women's Ice Hockey kicked off New England Hockey Conference play on the road versus New England College on Friday night, coming back from a 1-0 first period deficit to defeat the Pilgrims, 3-1, earning their first conference victory of the 2022-23 season.

THE BASICS

UMass Boston 3, New England College 1

UMass Boston (2-0-0, 1-0-0 NEHC)

New England College (2-1-0, 0-1-0 NEHC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

Capitalizing on a 5-on-3 advantage with time winding down in the first period, the Pilgrims drew first blood just 13 seconds after the second penalty was issued to the Beacons. Winning an offensive zone face-off, freshman forward Olivia Lindberg made the quick pass to senior forward Cassie Kelly to give New England College the 1-0 lead heading into the second.

Freshman forward Emily Hansen would knot the game-tying goal just under three minutes into the second period. Coming seconds after the Beacons came off the power play, sophomore defender Margeaux Butters crossed a pass in front of senior goalie Hannah Podvey. Knocking the puck down quickly, Hansen fired on Podvey for her first collegiate goal.

Butters would end up netting the eventual game-winning goal later on in the second period when freshman forward Adrianna Crepaldi's pass was redirected to the stick of Butters. Firing from near the left side circle, the sophomore's shot found its way by Podvey for UMass Boston's second goal of the contest.

The Beacons would give themselves some breathing room in the third period, when two quick passes in front of Podvey by Hansen and sophomore forward Liz Kramp resulted in sophomore forward Allie Reifler scoring her first goal of the season with 15:02 left in the third period, putting UMass Boston ahead by the eventual final score of 3-1.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Freshman goalie Leah Bosch made her first collegiate start for the Beacons, stopping 22 of the 23 shots placed on net by New England College
• Hannah Podvey finished the evening for the Pilgrims with 37 saves on 40 shots on goal by UMass Boston
• Four different Beacon players recorded an assist while two of them in Margeaux Butters and Emily Hansen tallied a goal in the box score
• The UMass Boston penalty kill was five-for-six on the evening against the Pilgrims

WHO'S NEXT
The Beacons cap off their three-game road trip before returning to Barry T. Ice Rink next week for their 2022-23 home opener on Saturday afternoon. UMass Boston will take on Norwich University in a New England Hockey Conference matchup with puck drop slated for 3:00 PM.