No. 4 Penn State women’s hockey (21-4, 15-1 AHA) beat Syracuse (12-13-3, 8-8-2 AHA) 3-2 on Saturday afternoon at the Tennity Ice Pavilion.

With a pair of goals from Tessa Janecke and a strong defensive effort, Penn State held on for the road victory to complete the sweep.

How It Happened

The Orange won the opening draw to get things started, and Jordan Blouin generated the first chance early after firing a shot on goal, but Maddy Campbell was there to make the save.

Syracuse broke through only 3:13 into the game when Jackson Kinsker found the back of the net, giving Syracuse an early 1-0 lead. After pressure in the Penn State offensive zone, Grace Outwater finished a chance off feeds from Mikah Keller and Kendall Butze to even the game less than three minutes later.

GO with the backhand to knot us at one! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/1JXvuLeXb6

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

Emma Gnade was called for tripping at 11:28, sending Penn State to the man advantage. It took only 23 seconds for Janecke to bury a power play goal off the feed from Keller, giving Penn State its first lead of the afternoon.

Too much room for Tessa! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/gBtxaGItVe

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

The Nittany Lions saw a few more chances off the sticks of Katelyn Roberts and Abby Stonehouse. Still, Syracuse goalie Ava Drabyk kept it a one-goal game heading into the second period. Grace Tullock was sent to the penalty box for tripping at 5:14, and Maya D’Arcy scored just 30 seconds later to tie the game at 2-2.

Minutes later, Penn State would go back on the power play after Celia Wiegland was whistled for holding. The Nittany Lions couldn’t score on the man advantage, and after Mya Vaslet was called for slashing at 11:36, the Orange had the chance to take the lead. Syracuse got off three shots on goal, but Campbell turned them all away.

With 15:51 on the clock, Janecke notched her second goal of the game to give Penn State the lead back at 3-2. The unassisted goal capped off a strong push from the Nittany Lions late in the period.

She's not missing from there! #WeAre #HockeyValley pic.twitter.com/0ouUXmHXNW

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

The two teams traded limited chances through the first 10 minutes of the third period, with neither team able to keep pressure on. Penn State was sent to the penalty kill once again after interference was called on Campbell with 2:44 to go in regulation.

Syracuse looked to capitalize with the man advantage, but the Nittany Lions blocked multiple shots, and Campbell stood tall in net to keep the Orange off the board late. Syracuse had one final late push after pulling the goalie, but Penn State closed out the 3-2 win.

Takeaways

• Janecke was the difference maker, netting two goals, including the game-winning goal.
• Despite winning by just one goal, Penn State controlled much of the game, outshooting Syracuse 37-33.
• Campbell made 31 saves and shut down two-of-three Syracuse power plays.

What’s Next?

The Nittany Lions will travel an hour down I-81 to face No. 10 Cornell in a one-game series at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, January 26. The game can be streamed on ESPN+.