Hartford, Conn. (December 8, 2023) - The Golden Bears headed to Hartford, Connecticut, on a three-game win streak. They took on the Bantams of Trinity College in a non-conference Friday night hockey game. The Bantams would net a goal in the first, two in the second, and two in the third period of play to win the game 5-0.

Records:

• Western New England: 5-3-2 (5-2-1)
• Trinity College: 4-3-1 (0-3-1)

How it Happened:

With Kayla Ireland in net for the Golden Bears and Hannah Leclair on the other end of the ice in net for the Bantams, the game got underway. Marta Mazzocchi won the opening faceoff for the Bantams. Trinity started the game by having seven of the first nine shots. Then, 7:55 into the opening period of play, the Bantams went on the power play. After almost a minute on the power play, the Bantams found the back of the net. Jenny Guider found Annika Dyczkowski with a pass. Dyczkowski sent the puck at the net and hit the post before Paige Kehoe found the puck and sent it past the WNE goalie. The score was 1-0, Bantams. The play would start to go back to more back-and-forth action. However, the Bantams would end the opening period of play with five of the final six shots. At the first intermission, the Golden Bears trailed the Bantams 1-0. The Bantams had ten shots on goal to the Golden Bears' three. 

Marta Mazzocchi won the opening faceoff of the second period of play for the Bantams. After three shots in a row from Trinity to start the second period of play, the Bantams took the puck into the WNE defensive zone. Martina Exnerova pushed the puck to Paige Kehoe, who skated down the right side of the ice. Kehoe would center a pass to Jenny Guider, and after 3:56 into the second period of play, the Bantams were up 2-0, with Guider sending the puck into the upper-left corner of the net. The Bantams would keep the pressure up, and the Golden Bears would try to respond. However, at the 7:17 mark into the middle period of play, the Bantams were back on the power play. The Bantams had four shots during the power play, with two saved by Ireland. Then, the Bantams were called for a penalty, and the Golden Bears would have the advantage after the teams quickly skated 4-on-4. The Golden Bears had one shot during their power play, but no save had to be made. The teams would go back and forth before Trinity had four shots in a row, with the fourth shot resulting in their third goal of the game. Anne Levia sent a shot towards the net. It was deflected back to Martina Exnerova, who arched a shot up and over the WNE goalie and into the back of the net. The Bantams led 3-0. Shortly after, the Golden Bears went on the penalty kill. Trinity had four shots on the power play, with two being saved by Ireland. After the power play, Trinity had three more shots, and the period ended. The Golden Bears trailed the Bantams by three and were outshot 16-3 in the second period of play.

The third period of play started with Zoe Galanoudis winning the opening faceoff for the Golden Bears. However, Marta Mazzocchi found Emma Robertson, who would get the puck to Lillian Cassidy, and Cassidy would score. The Bantams had the 4-0 lead after 12 seconds in the third period of play. Then, just over two minutes later, the Bantams found the net one last time. Marta Mazzocchi would get the puck, skate in, and net the fifth and final goal for the Bantams. That goal was unassisted. The Bantams had the 5-0 lead. The Bantams kept the pressure up by having the next five shots with three shots on Ireland, and each was saved. WNE would have sparks of offensive time; however, the Bantams would follow that up with more pressure by having more and more shots on goal. Ireland would make each save. Then, with 4:28 left in the game, the Golden Bears had another power play opportunity. The team had two shots during the power play and one shot on Leclair, which was saved. The Bantams had the final two shots of the game, and the final horn sounded. The Golden Bears would fall to the Bantams by a score of 5-0. The shots on goal favored the Bantams 37-10. Hannah Leclair made all ten saves for the Bantams and earned a shutout victory for the team.

Inside the Crease:

• WNE headed to Hartford, Connecticut for a game with the Trinity College Bantams.
• Paige Kehoe scored the game's opening goal 8:49 into the first period of play. Annika Dyczkowski and Jenny Guider were credited with the assists. The Bantams had the lead 1-0. 
• Jenny Guider netted the second goal for the Bantams 3:56 into the second period of play. Paige Kehoe and Martina Exnerova had the assists. The Bantams led 2-0.
• Martina Exnerova scored the third goal for the Bantams with 4:48 left in the second period of play. Anne Levia was credited with the assist. The Bantams now led 3-0.
• Lillian Cassidy scored the fourth goal for the Bantams twelve seconds into the third period of play. Emma Robertson and Marta Mazzocchi assisted the goal. The score was 4-0 Bantams.
• Marta Mazzocchi had the fifth and final goal of the game for Trinity College 2:18 into the third period of play. The goal was unassisted and made the game 5-0.
• Kayla Ireland had 32 saves.
• Hannah Leclair had ten saves and earned the shutout victory.
• Trinity College beat WNE 5-0.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will be back in action on Saturday, December 9, 2023, at 7:30 PM when they host the Suffolk University Rams at the Olympia Ice Center.
• The Bantams will be back on the ice on Tuesday, January 2, 2024, at 6:00 PM, when they head to Northfield, Vermont, to take on Norwich University.