Penn State women’s hockey (12-8-3) traveled north to Rochester to face the RIT Tigers (0-21-2) this weekend and split a two-game series. Penn State came into the series following a 6-1 thumping by Cornell, while RIT hadn’t won a single game the entire season. 

The Nittany Lions managed to win handily in game one but couldn’t complete the sweep on Saturday. Here’s how it all went down. 

How It Happened

Game One

Penn State was dominant right from the start. Natalie Heising scored at 6:07 in the first period, with an assist by Alyssa Machado. The scoring continued for Penn State when Kiara Zanon scored an unassisted shorthanded goal at 17:24 in the opening sequence. The blue and white had taken a penalty less than a minute before Zanon’s goal. 

The offense continued its dominance in the second period, as two goals were scored. Natalie Heising scored her second goal of the game a little over halfway through the period, with assists by Alyssa Machado and Karley Garcia. Four minutes later at the 16-minute mark, Mya Vaslet scored a goal with an assist from Rene Gangarosa. Penn State had two power play chances during the period but did not capitalize on either one. 

In the third period, it was more of the same. Penn State’s dominance on both offense and defense continued. Anna Promersberger scored a goal with an assist by Olivia Wallin at 14:59 in the period. It was overall a very solid showing and bounce-back 5-0 win for the Nittany Lions.

Game Two

After a bit of back and forth offense, Penn State opened the scoring at 4:46 in the first period. Olivia Wallin put the puck in the back of the net thanks to assists by Anna Promersberger and Julie Gough. However, things did not come as easily to Penn State compared to Game One. RIT’s Megan McCormick scored a power play goal at 16:47 in the period with assists by Emma Roland and Hana Solinger. 

Penn State managed to take the lead back early in the second period. At three minutes into the period, Alyssa Machado broke the tie, with an assist by Mallory Uihlein. Although that was the only goal of the period, Penn State heavily outplayed RIT. By the end of the period, the Nittany Lions had out-shot the Tigers 39-17.

It was a closely contested game throughout the third period in terms of the score, although Penn State continued to dominate with the number of shots it took. But then, something strange happened. With 15 seconds remaining, RIT’s Abby Davies tied the game, sending it into overtime. The game ended as a 2-2 tie.

What’s Next?

Penn State’s season continues with another road series against Lindenwood on January 21 and 22. Puck drop for the two matchups is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. and 3:10 p.m., respectively.