Seahawks tripped up by Spartans in semifinals

NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Castleton advanced to its second consecutive ECAC East Championship game with a 3-2 victory over the second-seeded Salve Regina University Seahawks on Saturday afternoon in Kreitzberg Arena.

The Spartans never trailed in the contest after taking an early lead, as Molly Howard, Anna Daniels and Brianna Keats scored one goal apiece to help Castleton improve to 14-11-2 overall. With the win, the Spartans will play in tomorrow's championship game against the winner of the Norwich vs. UMass Boston semifinal contest with the puck drop slated for 3 pm. The Seahawks, meanwhile, finish their season with a 16-9-1 record.

In the opening few minutes of play, the two teams traded shot after shot before Howard scored her third goal of the season to give Castleton an early lead. On a power play opportunity, Hannah Wright skated towards the top of the point and fired a shot on goal that Howard redirected past Colleen Marcik (Madison, Conn.), giving the third-seeded squad a 1-0 advantage at the 7:46 mark in the first.

The Spartans' lead didn't last long, however, as Salve Regina responded with a goal of its own just before the halfway point in the opening frame. Michelle Holmes (Goffstown, N.H.) stole the puck in the Seahawks offensive end and wristed a shot through traffic that beat Paula Stephens to bring the game back to level terms at one just 9:14 into the frame.

Castleton continued to battle, and at the 13:42 mark in the first, the squad reclaimed the lead when Daniels found the back of the net. After Hannah Rose's shot was blocked, Howard recovered the loose puck on the far wing and slipped a shot just underneath Marcik that Daniels tapped across the line to help the Spartans retake the lead, 2-1.

With less than two minutes remaining in the stanza, Howard had a chance to notch her second goal of the game when she skated away from the defensive line to create a breakaway opportunity. Unfortunately, her shot went just wide of the far post, as Castleton took a one-goal lead heading into the first intermission.

After 18:42 of scoreless play, Salve Regina broke the deadlock in the second period when Michaela Chiuccariello (Winchester, Mass.) netted her 12th goal of the year to make it 2-2. On a two-on-one break, Danielle Phalon (Stoneham, Mass.) delivered a pass across the crease that found Chiuccariello on the far wing, and the senior forward slotted the puck home to even the score at two with 7:36 remaining in the middle frame.

In the final period of play, the Spartans wasted little time to jump out in front, as Keats grabbed her ninth goal of the season just over two minutes into the frame to give the squad a 3-2 lead. At the 17:58 mark, Marcik pushed aside Lisa Kilroy's effort from the crease, but Keats was able to finish the rebound while falling down by the near post to give the third-seeded team its third lead of the contest.

Castleton held the Seahawks scoreless for the final 27:36 of regulation, including 1:20 where Salve Regina had a six-on-five advantage, to capture a 3-2 victory and secure its place in the ECAC East Championship Game for the second consecutive year.

In net, Stephens, who is now 9-5-1 on the year, turned in an impressive performance, stopping 23 of the 25 shots that she faced to hold the tenth-best scoring offense in the nation to just two goals. Her counterpart, Marcik, suffered the loss after allowing three goals with 19 saves.