ERIE, Pa. — A season sweep of the Mercyhurst Lakers is something that no College Hockey America team has accomplished in the league’s history, which dates back to 2002.
The Lakers kept that streak intact — just barely — by coming from behind to tie Robert Morris 3-3 on Saturday.
But the No. 7 Colonials were still able to complete the first unbeaten season against the Lakers in conference history with a 3-0-1 mark.
The Colonials and Lakers are notoriously not very fond of one another on the ice, and that makes the way the season has gone that much sweeter for a couple of Colonials.
“It feels awesome,” junior Amanda Pantaleo said. “We’re not their biggest fans, and they’re not ours. They’ve always been a great team. To play this well against them it actually means a lot. It finally feels good to shut them down.”
The teams struck early in this one, with a Sarah Hine shot beating Robert Morris goaltender Jessica Dodds just five minutes into the first frame. Brittany Howard directed a puck from the slot behind Lakers goalie Sarah McDonnell for her 15th on the season a mere 2:02 later.
The Colonials took the lead in the second period when Pantaleo picked up a Maeve Garvey rebound just outside the crease and shot it past a sprawling McDonnell. Brooke Hartwick would capitalize just two minutes later, beating Dodds and tying the game.
Later in the second, a series of penalties and events would unfold, and the Colonials were granted an extended power-play — including two five-on-three advantages. During the second of those, first-year forward Jaycee Gebhard found a loose puck and scored her NCAA-leading seventh power play goal.
But the Lakers wouldn’t go away and they got a goal from captain Paige Horton to tie the game at 2:56 of the third period.
DOUBLE DODDS DARE
Jessica Dodds makes a save in the second. — BRIAN MITCHELL
For the first time all season, the Colonials skated the same goaltender out in consecutive games the same weekend. Dodds started back-to-back games for the team for the first time since Feb. 19 – 20, 2016 against RIT. She has a record of 8-0-5 with a .922 save percentage after the tie.
“It feels pretty good,” Dodds said of pulling double duty. “The past couple years that I’ve been here I’ve played most of the games. It feels pretty good knowing that whatever happens on the Friday night I can go out there and rebound on Saturday.”
Head Coach Paul Colontino felt like it was time to give someone a chance to take the reigns down the stretch run.
“We’ve been moving though our season with both goalies and as we come down the stretch, one of them has to emerge as the starter,” he explained. “I thought Dodds had a hell of a game the first night and then backed it up tonight with another great night. It’s the time of year that the bench gets shorter and the same occurs with the goalies.”
The opportunity to not just get the chance to play two games in a row, but to attempt something special against the Lakers, who Dodds has seen for four years, wasn’t lost on the netminder..
“They’re always a great rivalry.” she said. “They lost a couple of really good players last year, but they bring it every time we play against them. We wanted to get the win obviously, but a tie isn’t the worst thing.”
PANTALEO STAYS HOT
Amanda Pantaleo scores her goal in the second. — BRIAN MITCHELL
Pantaleo’s go-ahead goal early in the second period was her tenth of the season and ninth in eleven games. It’s coming at an eventful time for the Colonials, as opponents are starting to pay a little more attention to the top line.
“Its huge. In the second half of the season, you need depth from your lower offensive lines and you need it from your defense,” Colontino said. “If you want to win more games, you have to score goals. When more people contribute, your odds go up. It’s been fantastic, they’ve been developing some great chemistry out there.”
Pantaleo echoed her coach’s sentiments.
“It felt good to get the monkey off my back after the first half,” Pantaleo said. “It’s always good to get a second line contributing. We got lines set and chemistry from certain girls that hadn’t played together”
COLONIALS NOTES
Coupled with the tie against Mercyhurst and Syracuse’s victory over Lindenwood on Saturday, the Colonials are now heading into what might be the biggest weekend of the season.
Only two points separate the top teams in the CHA, and the Robert Morris and Syracuse are slated to face off next weekend at the Tennity Ice Skating Pavilion in Syracuse. Face-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. on Friday and 3:00 p.m. on Saturday.
