No. 4 Penn State women’s hockey (20-4, 14-1 AHA) got the better of Syracuse (12-12-3, 8-7-2 AHA) in a 4-1 game on Friday night in Syracuse, New York.

With goals by four different players and a two-point game by Nicole Hall, the Nittany Lions get their 20th win of the season and bounce back in conference play after dropping their last game against Mercyhurst.

How It Happened

Penn State started the game with the third line on the ice, and Mya Vaslet won the opening faceoff. The first shift was a good one for the Orange, getting the first two shots of the game, neither of which beat Nittany Lion goalie Maddy Campbell.

After some back and forth, Danica Maynard had back-to-back great looks just over eight minutes into the game, but was unable to break the tie.

Penn State controlled much of the middle part of the period, with a flurry of shots being unloaded on Syracuse goaltender Maya D’Arcy, the last of which opened the scoring off a shot by Grace Outwater.

GO sends a rocket into the top corner for the lead#WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/6V6G11Gms1

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) January 16, 2026

Not much action remained in the opening period, with the Nittany Lions taking their one-goal lead into the locker room.

The second period started with a bang. Vaslet fired one from the slot off a rebound to double the Penn State lead just 20 seconds into the middle frame.

Right time, right place for Mya to fire this one home! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/VOGT266e3f

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) January 16, 2026

Shortly after, Nicole Hall was sent to the box for boarding, and the Nittany Lions’ penalty kill would get their first action of the night. It was back to even before the Orange could muster more than a single shot on net.

Despite the kill, Penn State found its lead cut in half after a goal by Heidi Knoll six and a half minutes into the second.

Knoll would be called for tripping just a couple of minutes after her goal to give Penn State a chance on the power play. A busy kill for D’Arcy, but she stood strong after facing five Nittany Lion shots to get the game back to even.

Less than a minute later, Penn State would get another opportunity on the man-advantage after a Syracuse cross-checking minor. This penalty was less eventful, and the Nittany Lions only managed a single shot that was turned away by D’Arcy.

No further scoring occurred in the second, despite a good look by Maddy Christian in the final minute.

The Nittany Lions would go on the kill again early in the final period as Tessa Janecke was sent to the box for hooking. The advantage for Syracuse would be cut short after an interference penalty on Rachel Walsh, sending the game to four-on-four.

While no goals were scored on four-and-four, Penn State extended its lead to two just 11 seconds after Walsh came out of the box. Kendall Butze scored the goal through traffic for her second of the season.

This one finds its way through to push the lead! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/xXUo5cv1c4

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) January 17, 2026

With under 10 minutes remaining, the Nittany Lions would get yet another turn on the power play. Again, Penn State only tallied a single shot, and the game stayed at 3-1.

Outwater was called for interference with under four minutes remaining, but Janecke iced the game 35 seconds into the kill for the short-handed goal on an empty net.

Taya with a great poke right on the blue line and Tessa hits the net from distance to put this one away! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/eMm40vGv8d

— Penn State Women’s Hockey (@PennStateWHKY) January 17, 2026

The goal would seal Syracuse’s fate, as they failed to generate any more chances, and the Nittany Lions would go on to win 4-1.

Takeaways

• The Nittany Lions dominated offensively, outshooting the Orange 40-14.
• Not a good day for either team’s power play, with Penn State going 0-4 and Syracuse going 0-3 and giving up a short-handed goal in the third period.
• A diverse scoring day for Penn State, with four different goal scorers and eight players with a point.

What’s Next?

Penn State will look to sweep Syracuse on Saturday, January 17, at the Tennity Ice Pavilion. Puck drop is scheduled for 3 p.m., and the game is set to be streamed on FloHockey.