MANCHESTER, N.H. - Five different players scored for the Hawks as the Saint Anselm College women's ice hockey team posted a 5-2 victory over the Saints of the College of Saint Scholastica Friday afternoon in the first day of the 2012 Saint Anselm College Invitational.  With the victory, the Hawks improve to 7-4-0 overall while maintaining their 4-4-0 record within ECAC Women's East play.  The Saints drop their third contest of the season (8-3-1) and continue to possess a 7-2-1 record within Northern Collegiate Hockey Association play.

Aly Zappen (Huntington Beach, Calif.) scored what would prove to be the game-winning goal at 19:13 of the second period, lifting the Hawks to a 3-1 lead late in the middle stanza.  Traveling from right to left behind the net, Rosemarie Giarrusso (Royal Palm Beach, Fla.) skated to the left wing face-off dot where she left the puck for Molly Corl (Georgetown, Mass.).  The defenseman sent a cross-crease feed to Zappen who slid the puck around the sprawling Saints goaltender for the strike.

Tiffany Herron (Clinton Township, Mich.) scored her team-leading ninth goal of the season to open the scoring at 9:39 of the first period, placing Saint Anselm in front by a 1-0 score.  Defenseman Angela Zevnik (Greenfield, Wisc.) fired a puck on net that was collected by Herron in front of the net.  Upended by a defender at the top of the crease, Herron flipped the puck in from her stomach past Saints goaltender Sheridan Friesen for the score.  Zappen, who initiated the play from down below the goal line, was credited with an assist on the play.

Courtney Winters (Swampscott, Mass.) scored her seventh goal of the season, granting Saint Anselm a 2-0 lead at 2:08 of the first period.  From below the goal line, Herron sent a pass up to Sami Tatu (Waterford, Mich.), positioned within the right face-off circle.  A powerful blast near the face-off dot was tipped at the top of the crease by Winters, forcing the puck top-shelf past Friesen for the strike.

Andi Foss (Elko, Minn.) scored her third goal of the season at 11:09 of the third period, extending the Saint Anselm lead to 4-1.  Jacqueline Bouchie (Belmont, Mass.) forced a turnover in the neutral zone and the overturned puck found its way onto the stick of Foss.  Splitting the defenders, Foss skated down the slot and beat Friesen by shooting the puck into the lower-left portion of the cage.

Kathryn Picarello (West Roxbury, Mass.) scored her third goal of the season, an empty net goal at 18:47 of the third period, to secure a 5-2 victory for the Hawks.  On a wrap-around from behind the vacated Saint Scholastica cage, Picarello was able to fight through traffic for the strike.

For the Saints, Briget Cojocar and Alex Blair recorded goals in the losing effort.  On the afternoon, Michelle Fischer, Jordan Klimek and Jana Henry were the only three Saint Scholastica players to record a positive plus-minus rating.

Hawks goaltender Amy Zappen (Huntington Beach, Calif.) collected her fifth victory of the season (7-4-0), turning aside 12-of-14 shots on goal.  Friesen posted the loss in her team's defeat, halting 24-of-28 shots on net. 

Saint Anselm was 2-for-5 on the power play.  Saint Scholastica was 0-for-6 with the extra skater.

NOTABLES:  Including this evening's victory, Saint Anselm has a 2-0-0 record all-time against the Saints of the College of Saint Scholastica…The Hawks have not lost in regulation dating back to Nov. 19, 2011, a 6-0 defeat at the hands of nationally-ranked Norwich University…Forwards Tiffany Herron and Courtney Winters each recorded a goal and an assist, maintaining their tie for first place on the team with 13 points…Forward Rosemarie Giarrusso has recorded at least a point in her last four games, posting two goals and four assists for six points (2-4=6) during that span...In the first game of the tournament, Salve Regina University posted a 6-3 victory over the College of Saint Benedict.

The Hawks return to action Saturday, Jan. 7 as they take part in day two of the 2012 Saint Anselm College Invitational, facing off against the College of Saint Benedict in a 4:00 p.m. contest at Thomas F. Sullivan Arena. Stay up-to-date with the latest news, including game previews and recaps, directly from the Saint Anselm College athletic department by friending us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/STAHawks) and following us on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/STAHawks).