Box Score

TROY, N.Y. – Junior Janine Duffy (Toronto, ON/National Sports Academy) scored with just 3:25 remaining to force overtime and Quinnipiac University held on for a 3-3 tie over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in ECAC Hockey action on Saturday. The draw puts the Engineers at 11-7-3 overall and 6-2-2 in league play while the Bobcats improve to 3-18-4 and 2-7-4 in ECAC Hockey.

RPI's Whitney Naslund (Bloomington, MN/Bloomington Jefferson), who scored the game's first goal, picked up her second tally of the night at 6:14 of the final frame to give the homestanding Engineers a 3-2 lead. Her shot, which went top-shelf into the left side of the net, came off a pass by rookie Alisa Harrison (Vienna, VA/Washington Pride). Junior Allysen Weidner (Wichita, KS/Shattuck St. Mary's) earned the secondary assist.

The lead was short-lived however as the Bobcats tied the game on Duffy's power play goal. Winning the face-off, Cole chipped the puck back to freshman Melissa Perry (Chelsea, MI/Little Caesars U-19) at the top of the far circle. Perry sent a cross-ice pass through the slot to Duffy, who lifted it past RPI netminder Sonja van der Bliek (Toronto, ON/Toronto Jr. Aeros) to send it to overtime.

Holding a 1-0 lead after the first period of play, the Engineers went up by two goals on a tally by rookie defenseman Sierra Vadner (Apple Valley, MN/Minnesota Thoroughbreds) at 9:56 of the second stanza. Sophomore Sydney O'Keefe (Prior Lake, MN/Prior Lake) earned the lone assist after feeding the puck from behind the net to Vadner to the right of Quinnipiac goalie Tia Wishart (Vancouver Isle, BC/Comox Valley).

The Bobcats mounted a comeback minutes later as senior Elyse Cole (Belleville, ON/Durham West Jr. Lightning) pushed in the rebound of a Duffy shot at 11:37. Stopping the initial shot, van der Bliek was unable to cover the puck, which got pushed just past her and in on the power play.

Quinnipiac tied things up with just seven seconds remaining in the frame after senior captain Trudy Reyns (Port Hope, ON/Durham West Jr. Lightning) corralled a pass by Duffy in the far circle and roofed it over the reach of van der Bliek for the team's second goal on the extra-man advantage.

Quinnipiac's Wishart made 22 saves in the contest, including 10 in the second period. For Rensselaer, van der Bliek stopped 29 shots with 11 coming in the second frame and 10 in the third. The Bobcats held a 32-25 edge in shots and went 3 for 6 on the power play. The Engineers were 0 for 4 with the extra-man advantage.

The game against the Bobcats was also Youth Hockey Day at the Houston Field House as a number of area youth hockey players showed up to catch the action.  Fans were treated to a number of on-ice activities and a raffle, in addition to a meet and greet with the Engineers players following the contest. 

Rensselaer is back on the ice next Friday and Saturday when they visit ECAC Hockey rivals Colgate and Cornell at 7pm and 4pm, respectively. The Bobcats return to action on January 27 when they host travel partner Princeton at 7pm.