Box Score
TROY, N.Y. – Junior Julie Aho (Ann Arbor, MI/Birmingham Rangers) tallied two goals and added an assist to lead Rensselaer to its first conference victory, a 5-1 win over Quinnipiac in ECAC Hockey action. The Engineers improve to 3-9-0 overall and 1-2-0 in league play. The Bobcats fall to 2-8-0 with a 1-5-0 mark in the ECACHL.
Quinnipiac jumped out to an early 1-0 lead at the 5:25 mark of the first period, off a goal by sophomore defenseman Nicolette Leone (Trenton, ON). On the power play, Leone corralled a pass from classmate Kristin Emerick (Stamford, CT), putting the puck past RPI goalie Ashley Mayr (Burnaby, BC) for the goal.
Rensselaer tied the game less than five minutes later with a power play marker of its own by freshman forward Allysen Weidner (Wichita, KS). The goal marked her team-leading fourth goal of the season. Classmate Whitney Naslund (Bloomington, MN) and sophomore Melissa Boik (Allen Park, MI) earned the assists on the tally at 9:52.
The Engineers would make it 3-1 in the second stanza on two quick goals within 18 seconds of each other. Aho would tally her first of the night, off an assist from senior captain Sarah Daniel (Calgary, AB), at 14:13 before junior Brooke Thompson (Rochester, NY) scored to give Rensselaer the two-goal advantage. Thompson, who has now tallied a goal in each of her last three games, was assisted by Weidner and Naslund on the goal.
Aho netted her second goal of the game and the season at 8:15 into the third period after stealing the puck on a failed pass attempt by Quinnipiac from its own face-off circle. It was a short handed effort for Aho, who set up freshman Laura Gersten (Queensbury, NY) for the fifth Engineer goal at 17:59 to wrap up the scoring.
Mayr posted 29 saves in the win for Rensselaer while her counterpart senior Laura Brennan (White Bear Lake, MN) stopped 16 shots in the loss for the Bobcats.
Rensselaer returns to action tomorrow afternoon at nationally-ranked Princeton (4pm). Quinnipiac is also in action tomorrow when it hosts Union (4pm).
