Box Score

HAMDEN, Conn. – Sophomore Chelsea Illchuk's (Lockhart, MB/Balmoral Hall) breakaway shot at 8:46 of double overtime slid between the pads of the RPI netminder to give Quinnipiac a 2-1 victory over Rensselaer in game one of the ECAC Hockey Quarterfinals. The Bobcats, who now lead the best-of-three series, 1-0, improve to 19-8-8 with the victory. The Engineers fall to 14-14-6 overall.

After a scoreless opening period, the visiting Engineers got things going on the power play as senior Allison Wright (Oakville, ON/Oakville Ice) tallied her 12th goal of the season at 14:33. Positioned at the right goal post, Wright collected a cross from rookie Taylor Horton (St. Thomas, ON/Bluewater Hawks) and one-timed it into the upper right corner. Sophomore Alisa Harrison (Vienna, VA/Washington Pride) earned the second assist.

Quinnipiac pulled things even in the third period as senior Kallie Flor (Farmington, MN/Farmington) notched her own tally on the power play at 14:32. Taking an initial shot at the RPI netminder, Flor found her own rebound and buried it for the equalizer. Picking up the assist was freshman Felicia Vieweg (Port Orange, FL/East Coast).

Neither team was able to capitalize in the first overtime session as RPI junior Sonja van der Bliek (Toronto, ON/Toronto Jr. Aeros) and All-ECAC Hockey First Team goalie Victoria Vigilante (Woodbrige, ON/Mississauga Jr. Chiefs) made stellar saves at each end to force a second 20-minute overtime.

Despite high intensity and a number of chances for the Engineers, the Bobcats were able to turn the tides in their favor mid-way through the second overtime as Illchuk collected a pass from freshman Kristen Eklund (Barrington, MA/Massachusetts Spitfires) and skated in on a breakaway for the game-winner.

Vigilante came up stellar in the game for Quinnipiac, stopping 40 of the 41 shots she faced. In addition to six first period saves, she stopped eight in the second and 12 in both the third period and the combined overtimes. van der Bliek made 33 saves in the contest, including five in the first period, seven in the second and third stanzas and a combined eight stops in the overtime sessions.

Both squads return to action on Saturday with a 2pm face-off at the TD Bank Sports Center. The game is a must-win for Rensselaer, which looks to keep the series going in to Sunday. For Quinnipiac, it can wrap up the series, and advance to its first semifinals appearance in program history with a win. The game will be broadcast live on 91.5 FM, WRPI, and online at www.wrpi.org.