Plattsburgh State 5, Gustavus 3 (Box)
MIDDLEBURY, Vt. – Despite taking a 3-1 lead into the game’s final period, the Gustavus Adolphus College women’s hockey team was not able to hold off the nation’s top team in Plattsburgh State University, falling 5-3 to the two-time defending national champion and current No. 1 Cardinals on Sunday afternoon at Chip Kenyon ‘85 Arena. The loss drops the Gusties to 3-3-2 overall and 1-3-0 against ranked opponents, while Plattsburgh State improves to an unblemished 9-0-0 on the season.
Plattsburgh State didn’t wait long to flex its muscles, as it got a goal just 5:41 into the first period from Andrea Ziesmann off assists from Melissa Sheeran and Courtney Moriarty to give the Cardinals an early 1-0 lead.
However, Gustavus did not back down, and Allison Eder-Zdechlik (Sr., Stillwater, Minn.) took advantage of a Cardinal turnover at the 9:22 mark to tie the game at 1-1. The goal kept Eder-Zdechlik’s hot streak alive, as the senior forward has scored at least one goal in the past five games, is riding a seven-game point streak, and leads the team and MIAC in points and goals with 11 and nine, respectively. Her nine goals also place her at fourth in the nation in that category.
In the second period, rookie defender Marina Chapman (South Haven, Minn.) gave the Gusties a one-goal lead when she skated the length of the ice off a Cardinal dump in and scored off her own rebound on a power play goal at 6:21. Nearly 10 minutes later, the Black and Gold struck again, when Katy Fuller (So., Minneapolis, Minn.) notched her second goal of the year when she put home an Allie Lewis (Jr., Kearney, Neb.) rebound to give Gustavus a 3-1 lead going into the third and final period.
However, in that third period, Plattsburgh State proved why it is the nation’s No. 1 ranked squad, and scored four goals between the 4:02 and 8:27 marks to give the Cardinals a 5-3 advantage that would hold for the remainder of the contest.
Amanda DiNella (Fy., Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.) suffered the loss between the pipes for Gustavus after allowing each of the five goals and making 28 saves in 49:39 of play. Lindsey Hibbard (Sr., Princeton, Minn.) came on in relief of DiNella and made six saves in 10:21 of work.
Gustavus’s next game will take place on Friday when it travels to St. Joseph, Minnesota for a 7 p.m. conference game with the College of Saint Benedict. The series will then return to St. Peter on Saturday, when the Gusties and Blazers meet at Don Roberts Ice Rink for a 2 p.m. matchup.