ERIE, Pa. - Senior captain Kira Juodikis (LaSalle, Ontario) recorded a goal and an assist and sophomore Sedona Blair (Eden Prairie, Minn.) made a season-high 37 saves to lift the University of New Hampshire women's hockey team to Tuesday night's 3-1 win against Mercyhurst University at Mercyhurst Ice Center.
Blair recorded 12 saves in the first period, 10 in the second and 15 in the third to record her eighth win of the season.
Junior Alyson Hush (Scorborough, Ontario) and senior Marina Alvarez (Center Moriches, N.Y.) scored UNH's other goals.
MU goalie Magdalena Luggin was credited with 24 saves, including 11 in the second stanza. Sofia Nuutinen scored the Lakers' goal.
UNH extended its winning streak to four games to improve to 10-5-1 overall while Mercyhurst is now 6-9-1.
UP NEXT
- UNH and Mercyhurst face off again Nov. 27 (2 p.m.).
- The Wildcats' next home game is Wednesday, Dec. 4 (6 p.m.) against Northeastern University.
- UNH women's hockey group opportunities and individual game tickets are available online at UNHWildcats.com/BuyTickets or by calling the ticket office at (603) 862-4000 or e-mailing unh.tickets@unh.edu.
FIRST PERIOD
- Juodikis gave UNH an early 1-0 lead with an unassisted goal at 2:57. She intercepted a pass at center ice, skated down the slot for a breakaway, pulled the puck to her backhand and lifted a close-range shot under the crossbar.
SECOND PERIOD
- Hush scored her second power-play goal of the season to extend the Wildcats' lead to 2-0 at 11:34. Callista Printz (Buffalo, N.Y.) initiated the scoring sequence with a breakout pass from the defensive zone to Hush, who carried the puck through the neutral zone. Hush sent a pass to the right circle for Juodikis, who slipped a return pass to Hush behind the goal line. Hush moved out to the right faceoff dot and snapped a wrister through Juodikis' screen inside the far post.
- Blair made four of her 10 second-period saves in a 20-second flurry by the Lakers. She denied Vanessa Upson at 13:52 and again at 13:58, then Blair denied Mary Kromer off that rebound. Printz blocked the next shot attempt and Blair turned aside another shot off the stick of Megan McKay at 14:12 to preserve UNH's two-goal lead.
THIRD PERIOD
- Blair kept the Lakers out of the scoring column with three saves in the fifth minute of the third period, when she stopped Nuutinen, Julia Schalin and Chantal Ste-Croix.
- UNH generated a 2-on-1 rush midway through the final frame, but Luggin slid across the crease to stop Courtney Lilley (Wakefield, Mass.) at the left post.
- MU responded with four more shots on goal in the 12th minute, but Blair once again turned aside every chance to keep the score 2-0.
- Nuttinen lifted the home team within 2-1 at 13:10 of the third period on a shot through traffic from the slot.
- Mercyhurst continued to pressure, but Blair turned aside Makayla Javier and then Nuutinen off the rebound at 15:01.
- The Lakers pulled Luggin in favor of an extra skater with 49 seconds remaining.
- UNH effectively trapped MU in the neutral zone, however, which created an opportunity for Alvarez to gain possession near center ice and advance to the blue line before depositing a shot into the open net with three seconds on the clock. Chavonne Truter (Uxbridge, Ontario) won the puck off the boards to Alvarez to earn an assist.
UNH NOTEBOOK
- Blair extended her shutout streak to 163 minutes, 31 seconds before yielding Mercyhurst's third-period tally.
- The reigning Hockey East Stop It Goaltending Goaltender of the Week entered the game off consecutive shutouts of Holy Cross and Vermont.
- Juodikis has 49 career goals.
- She has three multiple-point games this season and 22 career.
- Juodikis has tallied a point in five of the last seven games.
- Truter has recorded a point five of the last six games and in 8 of 10.
- She recorded a team-high seven faceoff wins.
- Printz, the reigning Hockey East Defender of the Week, had a team-high three blocks in addition to her assist.
- Andi Calderone (Kirkland, Quebec) matched those three blocks and was the only skater with a +2 plus/minus rating.
- UNH has scored a power-play goal six consecutive games it has had at least one power play opportunity. The 'Cats are 7-for-19 (36.8%) in that span.
GAME NOTEBOOK
- Mercyhurst finished with a 38-27 shot advantage and 29-17 edge in the faceoff circle.
- UNH went 1-for-3 on the power play and the Wildcats' penalty kill was a perfect 2-for-2.
- The Wildcats blocked 17 shot attempts and the Lakers had 14 blocks.
SERIES NOTEBOOK
- UNH has a 6-4-1 lifetime record against Mercyhurst.
- Although the series began back in the 1999-2000 season, these programs had not faced off since Dec. 8, 2007 - a 5-2 Wildcat road win.
