Dec. 15, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - By Tyler Feldman, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State women's hockey team (10-7-3, 5-4-1 CHA) may be in its third season as a Division I program, but after sweeping No. 6 Mercyhurst (17-4-2, 7-3-0 CHA) over the weekend at Pegula Ice Arena, the Nittany Lions mean business.
Following a 2-1 upset over the Lakers Friday night, the Nittany Lions carried momentum into Saturday afternoon's THON game by winning again, 5-3.
"This team is so resilient," said head coach Josh Brandwene. "Playing the number six team in the country, we never wavered and stuck with the game plan. That was a big time effort from our hockey team."
Junior goaltender Celine Whitlinger has the star in Friday's contest, making 36 saves to preserve the one goal victory.
"She definitely kept us in the game," said freshman defenseman Bella Sutton. "There were a lot of amazing saves she made that I have no idea how she did."
The top line consisting of Minnesota trio Caitlin Reilly, Amy Petersen and Laura Bowman had a stellar weekend.
In the first game, Petersen received a drop pass from Bowman who then buried the biscuit top shelf to give the Nittany Lions a 1-0 advantage.
"Laura really did all of the work," said Petersen. "She made a nice play and beat two defenders, and all I had to do was hit it home."
Then 62 seconds later Sutton pushed Penn State's lead to two goals when, while on the power play, she fired a hard, low shot from the high slot past the glove of Mercyhurst net minder, Amanda Makela.
Top CHA goal scorer, Emily Janiga, cut the Penn State lead in half 17:24 into the third period, but it was too little, too late as the Nittany Lions managed to hold on for the upset.
"Incredibly proud of this hockey team," said Brandwene. "We had a solid first period and we built on it and got better in the second. We had excellent special teams play, and we never wavered in the third, no matter what they threw at us."
Earlier in the week, Petersen talked about how Saturday would be more than just a game because of THON day. With that being said, it's no surprise that Petersen and the top line put on a show for the 1,257 fans and THON children in attendance.
Thanks to a hat trick from Laura Bowman, the Nittany Lions were able to bring out the brooms.
Bowman's second goal of the afternoon turned out to be the game-winner. After stealing the puck in the neutral zone, the sophomore assistant captain skated down the right side and wristed a shot towards Makela. Initially seen as a save, the puck managed to trickle through Makela's five-hole and cross the goal line to give Penn State a 4-3 lead with 1:44 remaining in regulation.
"I honestly thought [Makela] had it," said Bowman. "I was kind of disappointed, but then [the fans] started cheering. I didn't see it go in until [the fans] cheered."
Despite trailing 2-0 early in the first period, freshman goaltender Hannah Ehresmann calmed down in net to turn away 26 shots.
"I just made sure I focused on each of the next shots, played my own game, and kept with the process," said Ehresmann.
The Nittany Lions cut the two-goal first period deficit in half after Bowman tallied her first goal of the game 4:21 into the first frame.
Then it was freshman speedster Caitlin Reilly who redirected a Kelly Seward shot from the point to tie the game at two.
Hannah Bramm gave the Nittany Lions a 3-2 advantage 4:11 into the third period after netting a power play goal on a hard wrist shot past the blocker of Makela.
Bowman secured a hat trick on an empty net goal following a center ice faceoff win with 3.1 seconds remaining in regulation.
Notable for the Nittany Lions over the weekend was the continued formidable special teams play. While going 2-for-6 on the power play, the Blue and White managed to hold the Lakers to 0-for-6 on the player-advantage.
"This sweep shows just how far we've come," said Petersen. "It shows just how far we've come in our third year as a D1 program. It shows that we're capable of doing anything we set our minds to and we can if we work together as a team."
With the program being so young, many "firsts" are still being crossed off the list. This past weekend not only included Penn State's very first win over a ranked opponent, but it also consisted of its very first sweep of a ranked and conference foe.
With finals week and the holidays upcoming, Penn State will take a three-week break before returning to action Jan. 3 and Jan. 4 at home versus Ohio State.