TROY, N.Y. – Facing a two-goal deficit in the third period, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) women's hockey team came-from-behind to even things up in the first seven minutes of the final stanza and hold on for a 3-3 tie against the University of Vermont on Friday at the Houston Field House. The Engineers are now 0-2-1 overall, while the Catamounts are 0-0-1.

The Engineers picked up the intensity in the final period, battling back from a 3-1 deficit after 40 minutes of play to tie the game at 3-all. Junior Jill Vandegrift (St. Paul, MN/Minnesota Thoroughbreds) made it a one-goal game (3-2) just 12 seconds in, skating the puck to the Vermont blueline off the opening faceoff. Her shot from the left point ricocheted off the leg pad of Catamounts goalie Roxanne Douville (Beloeil, PQ/College Edouard-Montpetit) and in.

Junior Katie Daniels (Rockton, IL/Chicago Mission) pulled things even at 6:29, after she collected the puck at the top of the slot from Andie Le Donne (Toronto, ON/Durham West Lightning) at the far point and sent it through traffic and in for the equalizer. Her goal, which came on the power-play, sent the game into overtime.

Despite a number of chances by both squads in the extra session, neither could capitalize as each goaltender stood its ground to secure the draw.

Vermont took the game's first lead, as senior Teddy Fortin (Brunswick, ME/NAHA) scored at 8:06 of the first period. Corralling a pass from junior Chelsea Rapin (Walled Lake, MI/Walled Lake), Fortin wristed the puck over the shoulder of RPI goalie Sonja van der Bliek (Toronto, ON/Toronto Jr. Aeros) for the 1-0 advantage.

Rensselaer pulled things even at the 14:27 mark after senior captain Kendra Dunlop (Granum, AB/Warner Hockey School) stuffed the puck past Douville at the corner of the far post on the man-advantage, but the visitors regained the lead less than three minutes later after Celeste Doucet's (Memramcook, NB/Ridley College) shot slipped past the glove of van der Bliek and into the right corner for the 2-1 lead.

The Catamounts tallied the lone goal in the second period as defenseman Breanne Sundquist's (Avondale, AZ/Ontario Hockey Academy) shot from the top of the right circle rifled in over the shoulder of the RPI goalie and snuck in just under the crossbar at 14:53.

Rensselaer, which held a 39-20 edge in the shots, saw van der Bliek stop 17 shots in the draw. Douville, who had a number of outstanding stops in the game, posted nine saves in the first period, 13 in the second, 10 in the third and four during the overtime session for a game total of 36 stops.

The teams will meet again on Saturday at the Houston Field House, face-off is at 4pm.