Box Score BOSTON, Mass. – Junior
Erin Dice (Ashburn, Va.) potted her first goal of the season as the Nichols College women's ice hockey team fell to UMass Boston 3-2 in Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) East action Saturday evening at the Clark Athletic Center.
Sophomore Sara Alonardo's (Wilmington, Mass.) goal at the 9:14 mark of the third period pushed both the Beacons overall and conference record back above .500 as they now sit with a 9-8-4 overall, 6-5-2 in the ECAC East. The Bison fall to 6-13-0, 3-8-0 in the conference. Friday's loss also marked the fifth straight to the Beacons as UMass swept the regular-season series.
Alonardo's marker, which marked the fifth of the year, came when the sophomore poked the puck past senior
Tori Gianformaggio (Huntington Beach, Calif.) to make a two-score game at the time. Nichols would answer back with one minute 28 seconds left on an extra attacker.
Senior
Talia Hohmann (Marina, Calif.) pushed in her second goal of the year to make it 3-2. The Bison would close out the contest on the extra attacker, but were unable to get the equalizer past senior netminder Kailyn Burke (Franklin, Mass.).
After a scoreless first period, the Beacons got on the board at 13:20 of the second, when junior forward Samantha Fallon (Pembroke, Mass.) tallied her eighth goal of the year off of assists from freshman Jane Morrisette (Pembroke, Mass.) and sophomore Kristen Embrey (Highlands Ranch, Colo.).
The Bison did not trail long however as Dice tied it at 1-1 just over two minutes later, as she deflected a shot past Burke.
Looking as if the teams were going to go into the second intermission tied at one, senior Alexandra Karlis (Parker, Colo.) pushed UMass back out in front on a perfectly placed redirect with 46 seconds left in the period. Senior Kayla Kiernan (North Smithfield, R.I.) fired a shot from the point with Karlis positioned perfectly in front of the crease. Timing it just right, Karlis deflected the puck past Gianformaggio as it hit off the bottom the crossbar and landed in the back of the goal. Also getting the assist on the huge play was junior Jenny Currie (Chelmsford, Mass.).
The Beacons led the contest in total shots 45-26. Both teams were unable to score on the power-play, with the Bison finishing 0-for-4, while UMass went 0-for-2.
Gianformaggio was handed her seventh loss (5-7-0) despite making 42 stops. Burke improved to 6-4-1 on the year, as she finished with 24 saves.
The Bison host Southern Maine tomorrow at June Rockwell Levy Rink at 4:40 p.m. The Beacons return to action tomorrow when they travel to Salve Regina University for an 8 p.m. conference game.
Contributions from UMass Boston Sports Information
