DURHAM, N.H. - Senior captain Kira Juodikis (La Salle, Ontario) scored 39 seconds into overtime to lift the University of New Hampshire women's hockey team to Thursday night's 4-3 victory against Merrimack College at the Whittemore Center at Key Auto Group Complex.
Juodikis finished with a goal and an assist, as did sophomore Sydney Leonard (St. Bonifacius, Minn.). Junior Kelly Harty (Billerica, Mass.) and sophomore Julia Cabral (Lee, N.H.) both recorded two assists.
Grad student Sara Boucher (Burlington, Ontario) and junior Alyson Hush (Scarborough, Ontario) scored UNH's other two goals.
Sophomore goaltender Sedona Blair (Eden Prairie, Minn.) made 14 of her 26 saves in the second period.
Michaela Littlewood, Maria Lindberg and Abby Poitras each scored a goal for Merrimack and goalie Calli Hogarth was also credited with 26 shots, including two in OT.
UNH moves to 14-14-1 overall and 10-12-0 in Hockey East while Merrimack is now 7-19-3, 4-15-3.
UP NEXT
- UNH and Merrimack face off again Feb. 8 (6 p.m.) at Lawler Rink.
- The Wildcats' next home game is Feb. 14 (6 p.m.) for Blue Out BU against Boston University. The 'Cats will wear their blue jerseys and fans are encouraged to also wear blue.
- 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
- UNH stormed out to a 3-0 lead with an 11-6 shot advantage in the opening 20 minutes.
- Harty chipped the puck off the left half-boards to Leonard, who had an open lane to the net and snapped a shot under the crossbar to give the Wildcats a 1-0 lead at 8:46. Callista Printz (Buffalo, N.Y.) earned the secondary assist.
- Boucher scored 46 seconds later to quickly give the 'Cats a 2-0 lead when she used a Merrimack skater as a screen and blasted a shot from the top of the right circle into the upper-left corner. Cabral initiated the scoring sequence with a pass from center ice ahead to the blue line for Juodikis, who slipped the puck to Boucher..
- Hush collected Leonard's pass from the left faceoff dot, advanced across the top of the crease and lifted a backhander inside the right post to give UNH a 3-0 lead at 14:23. Harty was credited with the secondary assist.
SECOND PERIOD
- Merrimack built momentum in the second period and scored the only goal of the stanza on Littlewood's tally at 2:03.
- The visitors generated a 15-5 shot advantage in the middle stanza.
THIRD PERIOD
- The Warriors struck early and then midway through the final frame to level the score, 3-3, and force overtime.
- Alone in front of the net, Lindberg's shot trickled past Blair and across the goal line to trim the deficit to 3-2 at 1:46.
- Poitras scored the game-tying goal at 10:02.
OVERTIME
- UNH controlled the opening faceoff in the extra session and Sadie Makokis (St. Albert, Alberta) sent a stretch pass along the right boards that Cabral skated onto and she carried the puck into the offensive zone.
- Juodikis' first shot from low on the left side was stopped by Hogarth but the 'Cats maintained possession and Cabral's shot from the high slot was also turned aside by Hogarth.
- Juodikis corralled the puck in the left circle and advanced to the high slot, where she blasted a shot under the crossbar with Makokis setting the screen in front.
UNH NOTEBOOK
- This was Harty's first career multiple-assist game and also her first multiple-point game.
- Cabral also recorded her first career multiple-assist and multiple-point game.
- Leonard matched her personal best of two points; this marked her first one-goal, one-assist game.
- Leonard scored her first goal of the season and fourth career.
- Juodikis has seven multiple-point games this season and 25 career.
- She has 92 career points (56 goals, 36 assists) in 128 games.
- Boucher scored her 75th career goal - seventh in her first year as a Wildcat.
- She has recorded a point in six of the last seven games with two goals and five assists in that span.
- Makokis finished with a team-high three blocks.
- Chavonne Truter (Uxbridge, Ontario) led the 'Cats with six faceoff wins.
- UNH is now 3-1-1 in overtime this season.
- This is the second consecutive game that ended 4-3 in OT; the Wildcats were edged by that score Feb. 1 at Providence College.
GAME NOTEBOOK
- UNH finished with the 30-29 shot advantage.
- Merrimack had a 31-19 edged in faceoffs and recorded 11 blocks in comparison to the Wildcats' seven.
- New Hampshire went scoreless on four power plays and was a perfect 2-for-2 on the penalty kill.
SERIES NOTEBOOK
- UNH has a 19-7-4 lifetime record against Merrimack that includes 9-3-2 on home ice.
- The Wildcats skated to a 5-3 win at MC on Jan. 10.
- Five of the last seven meetings have gone into overtime.
JERSEY AUCTION
- The UNH women's hockey team is auctioning limited-edition blue jerseys to the general public through Feb. 15 (10 p.m.).
- A portion of the winning bid for each jersey goes directly to that student-athlete.
- Go online to tinyurl.com/WHOCjerseys to view available player jerseys and place a bid.
