FAIRFIELD, Conn. – The No. 5 seed Saint Anselm College women's ice hockey team ended their season with a 3-0 loss in the NEWHA Semifinals to No. 2 seed Sacred Heart on Wednesday night. The Pioneers were able to find a goal in all three periods, including two goals on the power play, as they punched their ticket to their second-ever NEWHA Championship. Saint Anselm concluded the season with an overall record of 12-19-7, with a 10-11-7 record in league play.
Score: Saint Anselm 0, Sacred Heart 3
Records: Saint Anselm (12-19-7), Sacred Heart (20-14-3)
Location: Fairfield, Conn. (Matire Family Arena)
Date: Wednesday, March 5th, 2025
Attendance: 204
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- The game began evenly with each team generating five shots on goal during the first 10 minutes of the opening period.
- The Hawks fired nine shots over the next four minutes, but it was the Pioneers who scored the first goal. After a save at the defensive end by goaltender Carly Greene, Isabella Chaput poked the puck ahead to Bria Holm, who won the race down the ice and rifled a wrist shot into the top left corner of the cage, giving Sacred Heart an early lead.
- Saint Anselm ended the period with a 20-11 shot advantage, but still trailed at the end of the first, 1-0.
- Sacred Heart came out strong to open the second period, firing three shots on goal in the first minute, one of which rattled the pipe.
- The first penalty of the game was called with 9:32 remaining in the second (a two-minute minor for tripping), giving Sacred Heart a power play opportunity. Just 50 seconds into the power play, Olivia Laroche fired a shot from near the blue line that was saved, but bounced straight into Sami Bowlby, who quickly sent the rebound into the back of the net to extend the Pioneers' lead to 2-0.
- Saint Anselm had their own power play chance two minutes later after the Pioneers were called for tripping. The Hawks fired three shots on goal, but were unable to score.
- Sacred Heart finished the period with a 17-12 shot advantage and, more importantly, a 2-0 lead heading into the final period of play.
- Just two minutes into the third period, a tripping penalty gave Sacred Heart another power play. With only five seconds remaining on the advantage, a shot from the blue line was deflected down by Alyssa Antonakis. The puck fell wide of the goal, but landed perfectly on the stick of Grayson Limke, who buried the rebound into the open net to extend the lead to 3-0 for the Pioneers.
- With just under three minutes remaining in the game, a roughing penalty put Saint Anselm on the power play. They registered two shots on goal before another roughing call just 37 seconds later, which shifted the game to 4-on-4.
- Both teams had opportunities to score in the final minutes, but neither capitalized as Sacred Heart secured a 3-0 victory, advancing to face Long Island (LIU) in the NEWHA Championship.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Saint Anselm held an 86-65 advantage in total shots, including a 50-40 edge in shots on goal.
- Senior Tyra Turner (Andover, Minn.) led the Hawks with 11 shots on frame, while senior Audrey Jackson (Shoreview, Minn.) was second on the team with six shots on net.
- Sacred Heart found the back of the net once in all three periods.
- In the faceoff circle, the Pioneers held a narrow 39-38 advantage (.506). Antonakis led the way for the home team, winning 14 of her 23 draws for a 60.9 percent success rate. For the Hawks, freshman Lucy DeCoteau (Canton, N.Y.) posted the team's best faceoff percentage, winning 12 out of 22 (54.5 percent).
- Defensively, Sacred Heart blocked 19 shots compared to Saint Anselm's 12. Laroche led all skaters with five blocks for the Pioneers, while freshman Justyce Ohlgren (Rogers, Minn.) paced the Hawks with three blocks.
- On special teams, Sacred Heart went 2-for-3 on the power play. It was only the second time this season they have scored multiple power-play goals in a game, which they also did during this year's NEWHA Quarterfinal series against Assumption.
- Holm netted the game-winning goal in the first period, her second of the season and fifth overall. Bowlby and Limke also scored, with assists coming from Antonakis, Chaput, Laroche, Kate Helgeson, and Kailey Smith.
- Greene recorded a career-high 50 saves in the shutout victory, surpassing her previous best by five. On the other end, Saint Anselm's junior netminder Ava Hills (Pembroke, N.H.) finished with 37 saves.
- Saint Anselm now holds a 30-14-5 record against Sacred Heart, but remains winless (0-2) against the Pioneers in postseason play.
- The Hawks dropped to 5-2 in NEWHA Semifinal games, having reached this stage in every NEWHA tournament to date.
- Sacred Heart advances to its second ever title game, and its first since the inaugural tournament during the 2017-18 season.
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