PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Two goals early in the third period for UMass Boston Women's Ice Hockey propelled the Beacons to a big New England Hockey Conference victory, 2-1, Friday night over Plymouth State on the road.

With the Castleton University win over Johnson and Wales, the Beacons are currently still in the sixth spot for the NEHC Tournament which starts next weekend and are guaranteed to play on the road against a team to be determined.

THE BASICS

UMass Boston 2, Plymouth State University 1

UMass Boston (10-12-2, 8-7-2 NEHC)

Plymouth State University (3-18-1, 2-12-1 NEHC)

HOW IT HAPPENED
The first period would be a neutral zone battle for both teams as the two sides combined for 13 shots on goal with Plymouth State holding a slight 7-6 edge in the category. UMass Boston would have the lone power play of the opening frame but would be held off the scoreboard by freshman goalie Leah Bosch, as it would be a scoreless game after 20 minutes.

The offense in the second period would be controlled by the Beacons who outshot the Panthers 24-7 overall in shots while holding a 9-2 lead in shots on goal. Both teams would have a power play in which they would not be able to convert on, while UMass Boston would get a second power play that had just 15 seconds on it heading into the third period of a scoreless game.

Just 27 seconds into the final period, senior forward Hannah MacDougall would break the scoreless tie just after the power play expired when a touch pass from freshman defender Mia Boyd to sophomore defender Margeaux Butters led to a redirected shot from the sophomore that hit MacDougall's stick for the first goal of the period.

A little over four minutes later, UMass Boston would strike again when sophomore forward Ana Gustafson found junior forward Katie Wilbert open in front of junior goalie Amelia Julian for the one-timer that extended the Beacon lead to two goals, 2-0.

Plymouth State would not go quietly as a penalty to sophomore forward Liz Kramp led to a man advantage for the Panthers who capitalized with a goal from freshman defender Sanna Augustsson to cut UMass Boston's lead down to one. But the Beacon defense would stand tall in front of Bosch who over the final 10 minutes of the period faced just that one shot that went in as UMass Boston held on for the 2-1 victory.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Leah Bosch stopped 14 of the 15 shots she faced, nearly recording her second consecutive shutout in net
• Amelia Julian made 19 saves on 21 attempts from UMass Boston in her 59:16 on the ice
• Katie Wilbert led the way in the faceoff circle for UMass Boston, winning 11-of-16 faceoffs
• UMass Boston is now 5-0-1 in their last six games against Plymouth State

 
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston finishes the regular season on the road tomorrow afternoon at 3:00 PM against Castleton University. Meeting at the Clark Athletic Center back in January, the Beacons fell 3-2 to the Spartans after two early first period goals.