Gustavus Adolphus scored twice in a 26-second span late in the second period and held on for a 3-1 win over No. 7 Williams College at the Don Roberts Ice Rink.
The Gusties (6-3-2), playing their first game in three weeks, stayed close to the nationally-ranked Ephs (5-4-1) until goals by Josefin Pettersson, at 16:21, and Katie Deschneau, at 16:47 of the second period, gave Gustavus a 3-1 lead they would not relinquish.
Williams opened the scoring when Melissa Vandermyn deflected a shot by teammate Molly Wasserman past Gustavus goaltender Anne Kautzer at 4:40 of the first period. Gustavus tied the score at 1-1 on a goal by Laura Stypulkowski with assists from Josefin Petterson and Ann Katz at 5:57 of the first period.
In the second period, the Ephs came out strong and outshot the Gusties 8-1 in the first ten minutes of the period. However, an interference penalty on Williams’ Ellissa Popoff changed the momentum of the contest.
Gustavus took the lead for the first time in the game when Petterson knocked a rebound past Williams netminder Monelle Quevillon just 42 seconds into the power play for a 2-1 Gustie lead.
Just 26 seconds later, Deschneau broke loose at center ice and slipped the puck past Quevillon as she was being knocked to the ice by an Eph defenseman.
The Gusties managed only four shots in the period but scored on two of them while Kautzer came up big in the nets for Gustavus as she turned away all 10 Williams shots.
Pettersson, playing in her first game for Gustavus after transferring from St. Cloud State, had a big day as she scored one goal and added an assist for the Gusties. Katz also chipped in with a pair assists.
Williams College returns to Massachusetts with a 2-1 record on its short trip to the Midwest. The Ephs recorded a 2-1 overtime win over No. 5 UW-Stevens Point on January 2, followed by another 2-1 overtime win over No. 10 UW-River Falls on January 4. The Ephs have nine days off before returning to action, Jan. 14, at Middlebury.
Gustavus returns to MIAC play with an important home-and-home series against St. Mary’s, January 10-11. The series opens in St. Peter, Friday night before heading to Winona and St. Mary’s Arena for another 7:05 p.m. contest Saturday.
