Senior defender Meghan Maguire’s power-play goal, just 19 seconds into overtime, gave St. Lawrence a 4-3 win over Mercyhurst on Saturday. The win improved St. Lawrence’s record to 2-0 as it completed a weekend sweep. Mercyhurst dropped to 2-3.
“It was very exciting,” said Maguire. “I picked up the puck off the boards and got one between her pad and arm. It might be my first-ever game-winner. I’m not known for my scoring.”
Both teams took only 11 minutes, 30 seconds to score as many goals as they did in 60 minutes Friday night.
The Saints got on the board quickly as freshman forward Ricki-Lee Doyle scored just 38 seconds into the game. The Lakers tied the game about seven minutes later on a power-play goal by sophomore Jessica Dillabough.
St. Lawrence scored the final goal of the period at 11:33 when junior Shannon Smith scored from senior Maguire and junior Amanda Sargeant.
The second period had very little continuity as six minor penalties were whistled by referee Joel Morawski in the period’s final 14 minutes. The only goal of the period went to St. Lawrence’s Marshall on a power play at 6:12, just five seconds after Mercyhurst was penalized for obstruction-hooking.
Mercyhurst rallied to tie the game in the third. Junior forward K.C. Gallo scored on a power play at 50 seconds, and junior forward C.J. Ireland followed suit with an even strength goal at 8:29. The Saints killed off a two-player advantage of nearly 1:40 later in the period that proved crucial as the contest
progressed.
Both teams had excellent scoring chances in the game’s final minute. With the Lakers penalized for hooking at 19:15, Ribble stopped a point blank shot and Mercyhurst sophomore forward Lyndsay Barch was denied on a breakaway by St. Lawrence sophomore goalie Rachel Barrie. That set the stage for Maguire’s heroics in overtime.
Saints coach Paul Flanagan was happy to get out of Erie.
“Mercyhurst gave us everything they had,” Flanagan said. “We could easily be leaving 0-2. I thought killing the 5-on-3 in the third period was a huge momentum swing for us. Still, we know we have a lot of work to do.”
Mercyhurst is now 0-5-1 against the Saints in the last three years.
Head Coach Michael Sisti said his team is slowly but surely getting to the big time.
“We are literally inches away,” he said. “We lost two one-goal games to a great hockey team. It won’t get any easier because we have to get ready for Minnesota next Friday. Minnesota won the national championship two years ago.”
Mercyhurst outshot St. Lawrence 33-31. The Lakers were 2-of-7 on the power play. The Saints finished 2-of-8.
