The No. 6 Northeastern women’s hockey team (16-6, 12-1 HE) fell to the Boston University Terriers (7-11-3, 5-6-2 HE) 2-1 in a physical first-round Beanpot match. Just as last year’s semifinal game set an attendance record, this year’s saw the largest crowd at a women’s hockey game at Walter Brown Arena, with 2,281 attendees.
“Good game,” said head coach Dave Flint in the press conference. “Exciting game to watch. Obviously disappointed on the losing end … We had our chances.”
BU struck first four minutes into the game, courtesy of freshman forward Lexie Bertelsen, sending Northeastern into disarray.
The Huskies continued to play sloppily and lose confidence, letting BU’s offense get down the ice, losing faceoffs and struggling to get the puck in the net until their captain tightened it up.
Senior forward and captain Lily Shannon received a pass from senior defender Kristina Allard from behind the net, battling through her defender to get the puck past BU’s junior goaltender Mari Pietersen.
The Huskies played more disciplined following the equalizer but still failed to capitalize on the power plays. In the first power play, Northeastern took three shots, and in the second, the team took none.
On the opposite end, the Huskies held BU down on its power play when graduate student forward Jaden Bogden was sent to the box for cross-checking.
Northeastern’s defense held strong throughout all 65 minutes of the game and two of BU’s three power plays. Sophomore goaltender Lisa Jönsson collected 32 saves compared to junior goaltender Mari Pietersen’s 35.
Northeastern came out of the tunnel a different team. With good hits and smart passes, it was only luck that was not on its side. Senior forward Lily Brazis and sophomore forward Éloïse Caron both had plenty of chances, but they were either wide or in the hands of Pietersen, who had 12 saves in the period.
The team still struggled with faceoffs, winning two compared to the Terriers’ nine in the second half alone.
“We got annihilated on faceoffs,” Flint said. “That’s a big part of the game. You can’t get a position on the puck. Offensive zone, you can’t run any plays. Defensive zone, you get a position and run more plays.”
The third period was the most evenly matched between the teams, with the shots going back and forth.
Despite the teams being evenly matched, tensions flared after several missed calls. At its worst, freshman forward Stryker Zablocki was thrown into the board headfirst. Another low point was when senior defender Jules Constantinople mimicked a diver as she explained to the ref that her “trip” was a “dive.”
“It was physical,” Flint said. “Probably a little more physical than it probably should have been. But they let it go, and that’s the way the game went. It was a good battle.”
The third period passed with no changes to the score, sending the game to overtime and leading DogHouse fans to take off their shirts.
Shannon lost the faceoff against senior forward Lilli Welcke, giving BU the first shot in the extra minutes. Every faceoff in overtime was won by a Terrier.
Constantinople was quick to send her own shot in, but it was saved by Pietersen.
The momentum shifted when the referees called Bogden for slashing, giving BU four players to Northeastern’s three. After five missed shots, senior defender Maeve Carey slapped the puck in over Jönsson’s pads, ending the game and Northeastern’s hopes for a fourth consecutive Beanpot title.
The team will play the consolation game Jan. 20 at 4:30 p.m. in TD Garden against Boston College. The Huskies already faced BC twice this season, sweeping them 3-1 and 4-2.
BU will take on Harvard after the Crimson beat the Eagles 2-1 Jan. 13. The teams met Jan. 3 in the 2026 Friendship Series in Belfast, Northern Ireland, where BU won 3-2.
