By Kimberly Peterson
CHESTNUT HILL – When a team outplays, out-skates, out-shoots, and out-checks another team, victory usually comes their way. Somebody must have forgot to tell that to Northeastern last Sunday, as they skated to a 3-3 tie against Boston College at Kelley rink.
Throughout the game, the Huskies (1-3-1) outshot the Eagles (1-3-1), 49-20. They beat them to every loose puck and out-skated them to the rebounds. Still, their own penalties proved to be their toughest opponent once again, as they accrued four in the latter stages of the game and watched their 3-1 lead slip away.
“We took four penalties in the third and that’s what killed us,” said NU coach Joy Woog. “It wasn’t any one penalty. It was eight minutes in the penalty box when we weren’t able to establish the dominance that we had in every other period.”
Through parts of the game, the Eagles looked like the children who play at Matthew’s Arena between periods. They were clustered as they attacked the puck, tripping over each other in the process. Despite all this, they were still able to strike first.
At 17:19 BC’s Heidi Seidewand took a quick shot from just outside the right-hand circle and buried it quickly behind NU junior goaltender Chanda Gunn.
The Huskies were unable to even the score until the second period at 3:52 when senior Pamela Pachal jumped on a rebound and slipped it past Eagle netminder Lisa Davis. Just minutes later, freshman Rebecca Paul gave Northeastern their first lead of the game on a quick pass from Kim Greene. Paul wasted no time after receiving the dish, and blasted a shot point-blank past Davis at 9:30, for her first goal of the year. The Huskies second line was responsible for two of the Huskies’ three goals.
“I think that Becky Paul is going to be a goal-scorer for us and we have thought that since the beginning,” said Woog.
Through the first two periods the Eagles were only able to muster a mere eight shots-on-goal. NU was able to bring momentum into the third, as the Huskies’ second line was once again able to contribute to their team’s score.
“I was just in the right place at the right time. We worked hard and that gave us two great periods,” said Paul.
Paul scored her second goal of the game at 16:30 of the third. On a great pass from freshman Theresa Ella, Paul slapped the puck in the left-hand side to give the Huskies a 3-1 lead
“That line is moving the puck, their passing to each other, they seem to know where the other is going, they read each other well, their smart players and they are playing great,” said Woog.
Northeastern watched their 3-1 lead slip away in the third. BC defenseman Genevieve Richardson was able to capitalize on an NU penalty as she fired a screened shot past Gunn at 8:04 to bring BC within one goal. With just a little over four minutes left in the third, the Eagles tied it up on a goal from Alania Clark. Clark came up the ice and slipped it into the net stick-side.
“We came out with a tie, it’s not a loss and it’s also not a win,” said Paul. “What I take out of a game like this is that we are going to win next time.”
The Huskies’ Theresa Ella was called on a roughing penalty with 1:31 left in the game, setting up the ensuing overtime period.
“We played two great periods and we started to play a great third, but when you take four penalties in one period it’s hard to keep any momentum going,” said Woog.
The Huskies take on the University of Connecticut next weekend in a home-and-home weekend series will begin at Matthews Arena Saturday, while Sunday afternoon’s affair takes place in Storrs, Conn.
