Jan. 11, 2014
 2 PENN STATE (4-17-2, 1-9-0 CHA) |
Box Score Pegula Ice Arena • University Park, Pa. • Attendance: 754 |  1 COLGATE (5-14-2, 2-8-0 ECAC) |
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Nineteen hours after dropping a heartbreaking 3-2 overtime game, the Nittany Lion women's hockey team returned fire in a 2-1 overtime win over Colgate on Saturday afternoon at Pegula Ice Arena.
Sophomore forward Hannah Hoenshell (Plano, Texas) capped an impressive weekend of play by playing the part of hero, assisting the game-tying goal and notching the first overtime win in Penn State (4-17-2, 1-9-0 CHA) program history. Senior goaltender Nicole Paniccia (Oakville, Ont.) was nearly perfect in net, stopping 39 Colgate (5-14-2, 2-8-0 ECAC) shots for her first victory of the season.
Down 1-0 after Taylor Volpe's third goal of the weekend midway through the second period, Penn State used a Hoenshell pass that deflected off Laura Bowman's (Minnetonka, Minn.) skate into the net to tie the score with 1:55 remaining in the frame.
Hoenshell collected a feed from Amy Petersen (Minnetonka, Minn.) on the left wing and fired to a rushing Bowman as the puck trickled past Raider goaltender Brittney Brooks. The goal was Bowman's sixth of the year, while Petersen and Hoenshell picked up assists No. 6 and 8 on the season.
The third period was a fairly even affair with Colgate earning a 10-7 edge in shots after owning the category 28-9 through the first two stanzas. In overtime, it was Petersen's defense that created Hoenshell's game-winning opportunity.
Petersen picked off a pass on the right-wing boards at the blue line and tossed the puck to her left as Hoenshell went one-on-one with a Raider defender. Hoenshell deftly handled the puck around the Colgate player and swung around Brooks for the game-winning goal, her third tally of the season.
The victory snapped a five-game losing streak and a six-game winless stretch. Penn State's last victory was a 4-1 triumph at Lindenwood on Nov. 23. For Paniccia, she broke a 21-game winless drought dating back to a 10-0 win over Chatham Jan. 4, 2013.
In a fast and physical game where only one penalty was called (Colgate's Hannah Rastrick at 7:57 in the first period), Colgate maintained the pace of play by firing 28 of the game's first 37 shots. Volpe cashed in on a Taylor Craig feed 10:24 into the second period that slipped over Paniccia's shoulder.
Penn State was 0-for-1 on the power play and dominated the faceoff dot, 32-10. Bowman was 11-2, while Sarah Nielsen (Edina, Minn.) was 10-1, Emily Laurenzi (Townsend, Del.) 7-5, Shannon Yoxheimer (Jackson, Mich.) 2-1 and Kendra Rasmussen (Sartell, Minn.) 2-1.
Defensively, the Nittany Lions limited Colgate's quality chances despite the shot disparity by blocking 16 attempts. Lindsay Reihl (Cheshire, Mich.), Stephanie Walkom (Moon Township, Pa.) and Taylor Gross (Colorado Springs, Colo.) led the charge with three blocks each, while Jordin Pardoski (Rochester Hills, Mich.), Jenna Welch (Austin, Texas) and Kelly Seward (Williamsville, N.Y.) stopped two shots each.
The Nittany Lions are off next weekend before returning to College Hockey America play at Syracuse Jan. 24-25 before their final non-conference game at Princeton Jan. 28.