On Saturday, Colby women’s hockey continued its recent record of strong postseason play, defeating Hamilton College 6-2 to advance in the NESCAC Tournament. The Mules had swept their two regular-season matchups with the Continentals, earning the right to host the playoff matchup.
The hosts applied offensive pressure from the opening faceoff, generating six shots before the Contintentals could manage even a single one of their own. When they did, Mules goalkeeper Ally Martinello `28 was up to the challenge, matching the shots with excellent saves. Martinello has been key to the Mules’ success this season, posting a .943 save percentage along with a 1.25 goals against average. Her efforts on the defensive side of the ice were rewarded by teammate Allie Corrieri `29, who opened the scoring with assists from Cailyn Murphy `28 and Beth Sinson `26. The lead was nearly doubled shortly after during another onslaught of Colby shots, but Hamilton goalie Teagan Brown saved each, contributing to the total of 39 that she would record by the end of the game.
The Mules went on a power play following a high-sticking penalty by Hamilton in the final minutes of the first period, and Molly Levebvre `27 made good on the opportunity, extending the lead to two, assisted by Corrieri. Hamilton made some desperate attempts on the Colby net in the final seconds of the period, but Martinello and the Colby defensive pairing stopped them all.
In the second period, the Mules were again on the offensive early, this time converting on a pair of their opportunities. They scored twice in the span of a minute, with Sophie Melsness `26 and Emily Olsthoorn `29 finding the back of the net in quick succession. When the Mules gained another power play opportunity following a hooking penalty on the Continentals, Hamilton was able to stop the onslaught, with Brown picking up three saves over the course of the two minutes. The Continentals were eventually able to break the shutout in the final minute of the second period when Lila Snow scored, and the game entered its second intermission with the score 4-1 in favor of the Mules.
The first half of the third period saw moments of opportunity for both sides, but a costly too many players on the ice penalty on Hamilton saw Colby head to another power play. Just as they did earlier, the Mules capitalized on the mistake, with Courtney Schumaker `26 recording a goal, assisted by Olsthoorn and Sinson. Later in the period, Hamilton pulled Brown out of the net in favor of an additional skater to chip away at the four-goal deficit, but Sophia Kennedy `26 put the game further out of reach with an empty-net goal. Brown then returned to the net, but the Continentals refused to quit, scoring a second goal in the closing seconds off the stick of Lilly Truchon. When the final horn sounded, the Mules came away with a 6-2 victory, setting them up for a semifinal contest against the number-one-seeded Middlebury College Panthers next weekend.
~ Matt Quealy `27
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