NORTHFIELD, Vt. – Junior goaltender
Teagan Wilson (Salisbury, Mass.) made 30 saves, but No. 3 Norwich University skated past Plymouth State University, 5-0, in Little East Conference (LEC) women's ice hockey action at Kreitzberg Arena on Saturday afternoon.
The Cadets used a pair of first-period power-play goals to build an early lead before pushing the margin to 3-0 in the opening minutes of the second. Norwich, ranked No. 3 in the latest USCHO.com national poll, completed the weekend sweep with two insurance goals in the third period.
Plymouth State closes the regular season at 12-13-0 (6-12-0 LEC) and secures the No. 6 seed for the inaugural LEC Tournament, which begins next week. The Panthers will travel to No. 3 Southern Maine for a first-round matchup on Wednesday (Feb. 25).
Norwich improves to 23-2-0 (18-0-0 LEC), completing an unbeaten run through conference play. The Cadets will be the top seed for the tournament and will host the winner of No. 4 VTSU Castleton and No. 5 Keene State in the semifinals next Saturday (Feb. 28).
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 0, No. 3 Norwich 5
- Plymouth State (12-13-0, 6-12-0 LEC)
- Norwich (23-2-0, 18-0-0 LEC)
How it Happened:
- Norwich opened the scoring with a power-play strike at 12:10 of the first period.
- The Cadets converted on their second power-play opportunity of the stanza less than four minutes later to take a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
- The hosts added an even-strength goal less than two minutes into the second to extend the margin to 3-0.
- Norwich struck twice in a 30-second span in the third period to account for the final score.
By the Numbers:
- Freshman Claire Deis (Calgary, Alberta) recorded a team-high three blocked shots.
- Junior Erika Johnson (Salt Lake City, Utah) led the Panthers with five shots. Senior Katie Porrello (Milford, Conn.) added four.
- Wilson finished with 30 saves, reaching the mark for the fourth time in eight starts.
- Norwich went 2-for-3 on the power play, while Plymouth State was scoreless in three opportunities.
- The Cadets held a 35-19 edge in shots.
Up Next:
- No. 6 Plymouth State travels to No. 3 Southern Maine for the first round of the LEC Tournament on Wednesday (Feb. 25). Game time has yet to be announced.
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