PITTSBURGH, Pa. – The Neumann University women's ice hockey team took home a much-needed win in United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) action on Wednesday afternoon, picking up a 3-0 shutout victory over Chatham University.
Helen Cooney was spectacular in net for Neumann during the win, stopping all 33 shots to pick up her second shutout of the season. Three different Knights scored in the victory, including
Braeden Ott,
Jackie Schneider and
Katelyn Brown.
After travelling across the state for a much earlier start time than usual, Neumann came out a bit sluggish to start the game. The Cougars outshot the Knights by a count of 15-5 in the first frame, but luckily for the visitors Cooney was outstanding early. Aided by a strong penalty killing unit, Cooney and the Knights killed off two Chatham power plays and kept the game scoreless heading to the second.
Neumann found its skating legs as the second stanza began. The Knights generated four second period power plays and broke the scoreless deadlock midway through the frame on the man-advantage. Ott fired home off a feed from
Claudia Trionfo at 11:50 to give the visitors a 1-0 lead. Neumann then doubled its advantage shortly after that. Less than two minutes later, Schneider found the back of the net to give the Knights some much needed insurance heading into the third period.
Chatham looked to find a way back into the game in the third period, but Cooney was again the difference in keeping the two-goal lead intact. The net-minder made 10 saves in the final frame and
Katelyn Brown tacked on another insurance marker midway through the period as Neumann skated home with the 3-0 win.
With the win, Neumann (6-16-0, 5-9-0 UCHC) now sits just one point back of Stevenson University for the final playoff spot in the UCHC. The Knights will take on the Mustangs in a crucial home and home series this weekend that could decide the team's playoff fate. Neumann will host Stevenson on Friday at 7:00 PM before heading to Maryland on Saturday for a rematch versus the Mustangs.
