No. 12 Penn State women’s hockey (7-4-1) traveled to St. Charles, Missouri, and swept Lindenwood (0-6-0) in their two-game pairing this weekend.

Winning the first game 4-3, the Nittany Lions grabbed the lead in the second period and didn’t let it go. In game two, the Nittany Lions won big in a 7-0 shutout, thanks in part to a hat trick from senior Courtney Correia.

Game One

The Nittany Lions won the opening draw and game one was underway in a hurry as Penn State took the opening shots of the tilt. Lindenwood goalie Julia Maguire was active early, turning away five shots in quick succession.

The Nittany Lions’ luck turned, however, as after tallying 13 shots to zero, Penn State went on the penalty kill on a Maeve Connolly interference call. Lindenwood capitalized on the advantage and went up 1-0 off the stick of Rachel Goff.

Penn State struck back two minutes later, as Alyssa Machado scored on a wrap-around move.

Let's take a at Machado's goal shall we? #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/2WjQw16Yco

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

Both teams traded possessions for the rest of the period and the first period ended 1-1.

The second period began with another penalty kill situation for the Nittany Lions, as freshman phenom Tessa Janecke was caught slashing. Morgan Neitzke completed the power play for Lindenwood with 10 seconds left on the advantage, burying the puck and setting the score at 2-1.

The Nittany Lions again went man-down midway through the second, but this time, they generated offensive pressure despite the missing player. Janecke scored the shorthanded goal as she was getting tripped and knotted the game up at two apiece.

We'd say that goal was ! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/Bwrlz9SN7A

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

The Nittany Lions rallied behind the shorthanded surge, peppering Maguire throughout the rest of the second period. Izzy Heminger was able to find an unsettled puck as it rebounded across the crease and lifted it into the net for the first Penn State lead of the match.

3:32 | 2nd: While we're in the media lets take a look at Heminger's goal! pic.twitter.com/FVRWRqPJbM

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

The third period saw plenty of early opportunity for the Nittany Lions, but they were unable to cash in on any of their 12 shots in the opening five minutes. Goalie Josie Bothun was called upon to keep the lead in the middle of the period, as she blocked a barrage from Lindenwood and denied Sarah Davies the game-tying goal.

Penn State extended its lead to 4-2 as Olivia Wallin scored from the circle with a sniper shot up close.

Here's a closer look at Wallin's goal! pic.twitter.com/2CmJlvRSZs

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

Lindenwood scored again with 30 seconds to go, but it was too little too late and the game ended 4-3 for the Nittany Lions.

Game Two

Penn State once again got off to a running start in its second match of the weekend, controlling the game early and dominating possession. The pressure finally cracked Maguire as Janecke finished a slick wraparound to put the Nittany Lions up 1-0. Then, Correia took the puck off of the center ice face off and tucked it away for another Nittany Lion goal and set the game at 2-0.

Lindenwood was able to fend off Penn State for the rest of the first period, and the game went to intermission. The Nittany Lions looked to strike again in the opening minutes of period No. 2, as Correia found her way into the low slot. Maguire was able to turn away the first shot, but Correia scored on the rebound opportunity for her second goal of the night.

17:22 | 2nd: Correia scores her second goal of the game to put the Nittany Lions ahead 3-0! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/c559fOj3vl

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

After killing a penalty with ease, allowing zero shots to its opponents, Penn State once again led the charge late in the second period. Correia tripled down on the breakaway after the feed from Eleri MacKay and was able to elevate the puck into the top-left corner of the net and score her third goal of the game for the hat trick.

The Correia-Janecke goal-scoring connection played out for the second time, as just a minute later, Janecke wheeled the puck to the point and was able to unload a howitzer through traffic and put the Nittany Lions up 5-0.

4:09 | 2nd: Tessa Janecke scores her second goal of the game to put the Nittany Lions ahead 5-0! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/iJtfMqwt0x

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) October 29, 2022

Before Lindenwood could escape the period, the onslaught continued with a minute to go in the second, as Olivia Wallin found the back of the net for the second time in the series and sealed the period at 6-0 in favor of Penn State.

The Nittany Lions maintained constant offensive pressure early in the third, and after turning away nine consecutive shots, backup goalie Natalie Ferenc conceded one last goal to Penn State, as Julie Gough finished the box score for the night at 7-0.

Takeaways

• Penn State’s penalty woes continued during the series’ first game, taking seven penalties. The Nittany Lions’ kill rate is still extremely high, but they’ll be trying to maintain discipline as they continue their conference schedule.
• Freshman Tessa Janecke continues to be a star for Penn State. She recorded her third and fourth multi-point games this weekend.
• Goalie Josie Bothun continues to be the rock for the team in net and secured her 15th career shutout. This security in the goal allows for the aggressive and dynamic style of defense and penalty killings that the Nittany Lions are thrive on.

What’s Next

The Nittany Lions return home for another CHA conference series against Mercyhurst this upcoming weekend. First puck drop is set for 3 p.m. on November 4.