ASTON, Pa. - In a wild, back and forth affair Saturday afternoon, the "never say die "Neumann University women's ice hockey team picked up a thrilling 7-6 victory over Alvernia University in United Collegiate Hockey (UCHC) action.
 
Katelyn Brown was absolutely sensational in the victory, putting on a dominant display with five points (2 g, 3 a) en route to eclipsing the 100 point plateau for her career. She is just the fourth player in program history to reach the milestone. Jeannie Padden also continued her torrid scoring pace with a three point afternoon (1 g, 2 a), while Sid Squires also added a goal and an assist. Alexa Lamplugh earned her second straight win in goal, making 17 saves.
 
Aiming to complete a weekend sweep in Saturday's series finale, the Knights would face an uphill battle from almost the opening whistle. In what would become a trend throughout the contest, Neumann fell behind early and was forced to fight its way back. Alvernia scored just 2:12 into the first frame to jump out to a 1-0 lead and put the hosts on the back foot. The Knights stormed right back though, answering two and a half minutes later with a goal off a deflected point shot from Mikaylee Henhawk to level things at one apiece.
 
The teams continued to trade goals as the game moved to the midway point of the period. The Golden Wolves pushed their way back in front at the 7:42 mark, but for the second time in the period, Neumann retaliated with an equalizer. Brown created the goal after working her way behind the Alvernia defense. Her initial attempt was saved by the Golden Wolves goaltender, but a gaping net awaited Squires on the rebound and the junior forward made no mistake as she lit the lamp to make it 2-2 with 10:50 left to play in the first.
 
The game looked to be heading to intermission still tied, but Alvernia had other ideas. The visitors tallied twice in the final minute and a half of the frame to stun the Knights and take a 4-2 lead heading to the second stanza.
 
Most teams would struggle to find the resolve to claw their way back into a game like this, but in the minds of this resilient group of Knights, the hosts had Alvernia right where they wanted them. The Knights got back to within a goal in the first two minutes of the period, as Claudia Trionfo finished off a fantastic passing sequence from Brown and Padden to make it 4-3. The score would remain that way until late in the period, when Brown blitzed the Golden Wolves for a pair of goals just 40 seconds apart. The senior forward tied things up with a beautiful backhand deke and finish off a feed from Padden at 14:49, then gave the Knights their first lead at 15:29 as she ripped home a wrist shot over the Alvernia goalie's shoulder to make it 5-4. The visitors would not go away though, showing their own moxie by tying the contest up 13 seconds after Brown's second goal to make it 5-5 moving to the third.
 
The air seemed to leave the building early in the final frame, as Alvernia again found the back of the net to take their fourth lead of the matchup at 6-5 with 15:32 left to play. For the fourth time in the game though, the Knights would not be denied. The hosts played in the Golden Wolves end for the majority of the period and were rewarded with a game-tying goal from Kyleigh Prance at the 7:37 mark. Squires was the catalyst for Neumann's sixth goal of the afternoon, circling the offensive zone before finding a wide-open Prance for a slam-dunk goal at the back-post to make it 6-6.
 
The Knights wouldn't stop there. Again using a quick strike attack, Neumann scored the eventual game winner just 31 seconds after Prance's marker. Brown capped off her history making day with her fifth point of the night, playing a perfectly weighted saucer pass over an Alvernia defender's stick on a 2-on-1 to a streaking Padden, who made no mistake to give the Knights a 7-6 lead with 12 minutes to play. The hosts held on from there, killing off a late penalty and limiting the Golden Wolves to just three third period shots as they skated to the thrilling 7-6 conference win.
 
Neumann (3-2–1) will get back to the ice next Friday, March 12th when it plays host to Elmira College. Puck drop is scheduled for 4:00 PM.