Box Score

NEW HAVEN, Conn. – Despite a 1-1 tie at Yale, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's hockey team clinched a spot in the upcoming ECAC Hockey Playoffs, their first since the 2006-07 season.  The Engineers are now 13-13-4 and 8-8-3 in conference play while the Bulldogs improve to 9-15-1 overall and 5-12-1 in ECAC Hockey. 

RPI moved into sole possession of seventh place in the ECAC Hockey standings with the tie and now have 19 points, one point ahead of Cornell, which lost to Harvard, 5-2 on Friday.  The Engineers can be seeded as high as fourth, but no lower than eighth.  Rensselaer faced then-top seed Dartmouth in the 2006-07 playoffs, falling 2-0 in the best of three against the Big Green. 

Locked in a 1-1 battle after the first three periods of play, Yale tried to gain the upper hand in the overtime session. Outshooting the Engineers, 3-2 in the five minute stanza, the Bulldogs were unable to get past RPI netminder Sonja van der Bliek (Toronto, ON/Toronto Jr. Aeros), who made several key stops.

RPI had a chance to win it in sudden death as well after junior Whitney Naslund (Bloomington, MN/Bloomington Jefferson) ducked around a Yale defender for a breakaway attempt, but Bulldogs goalie Jackie Snikeris (Downingtown, PA/Connecticut Polar Bears) made a spectacular glove save to preserve the draw as time expired.

A number of solid opportunities came for both squads in the opening period, but Snikeris was up to the challenge, turned aside all nine RPI shots she faced to keep it scoreless through the first 20 minutes.

But it was the visiting Engineers who took control in the second stanza as Dunlop tallied her sixth of the season at 4:20. Off a pass from rookie Sierra Vadner (Apple Valley, MN/Minnesota Thoroughbreds), Dunlop slid between two Yale defenders for a quick shot five-hole of Snikeris. Freshman Amanda Castignetti (Anchorage, AK/Shattuck St. Mary's) was credited with the secondary assist.

RPI held that 1-0 lead until the 6:28 mark of the final period when rookie Heather Grant (Toronto, ON/Toronto Jr. Aeros) found the puck in a pile-up in front of the RPI net. Taken deep into the zone by junior Berit Johnson (Wayzata, MN/The Blake School), the puck came loose in the crease around van der Bliek and Grant slid it in for the equalizer.

Despite holding a 7-3 advantage in the shots in the third period, RPI was unable to grab the go-ahead goal, sending the game into sudden death overtime.

In goal for the Engineers, van der Bliek stopped 16 shots while Snikeris made 19 saves. Both Yale and Rensselaer, which held a 20-17 shot lead, went 0 for 5 on the power play in the game.

RPI is back on the ice on Saturday afternoon when it takes on Brown in Providence (4pm). Yale, which has 11 points, is still in the hunt for a playoff berth as it hosts Union tomorrow afternoon, also at 4pm.