ALLSTON, Mass. — With two minutes remaining in the third period of the 2024 Women’s Beanpot first-round matchup between No. 11 Boston College women’s hockey and Comm. Ave. rival No. 15 Boston University, the Eagles trailed 3–2 and were desperately searching for their first goal since the opening period.
At the 1:46 mark, Sammy Smigliani won a faceoff in BU’s defensive zone and the puck made its way to Kara Goulding, who rattled off a shot toward the net. Standing in front of the net was Katie Pyne, who deflected the puck past the goal line to knot the game at 3–3.
“I thought it was great, you know, to be able to battle back when you’re down, especially as time is ticking away there, I thought the poise of our team at that moment was great,” BC head coach Katie Crowley said.
BC forced an overtime period with the score, but despite the Eagles taking eight shots in the five-minute frame, the game ultimately headed to a shootout, where the Terriers (9–10–3, 7–8–2 Hockey East) knocked off BC (12–7–4, 11–3–4) with a score on their third attempt.
“Obviously, we would have liked to have been on the winning end of it, but BU played hard and played us well and were able to put more in than we were,” Crowley said.
The Terriers established two early leads in the first period, but couldn’t shake BC.
BU’s Sydney Healey got the scoring started just over two minutes into the tilt when she fired a backhanded shot through Grace Campbell’s legs. The Terriers held the lead for all of a minute, though, as Sammy Taber, the Eagles’ leading point scorer, answered the call.
With 16:52 left in the period, Caroline Goffredo intercepted a BU shot and quickly sent a lead pass to Taber, who was already racing down the ice. Taber gathered the puck and fired a wrister from just outside the crease that beat BU’s goaltender Callie Shanahan.
With just under 10 minutes left in the first period, the Terriers struck again. This time, Luisa Welcke shoved the puck into the net for another close-range goal, leaving three Eagles laying on the ice in the process.
Just as before, though, the Eagles responded. Goffredo picked up a goal of her own just moments after a faceoff by sending a rocket into the top right corner of the goal to make it 2–2, just 1:35 after BU took the lead.
“I love the way we responded, you know, pretty quickly after their goals there,” Crowley said. “That was nice. And, you know, we just couldn’t pop one in to get ahead of them.”
BC had a chance to take its first lead of the game after the referees tacked Alex Law with a five-minute major for contact to the head with 2:24 left in the opening frame. But the Eagles missed their chance to put the pressure on the Terriers.
“Our PK just takes it as an opportunity every time, and I think it’s that mentality that allows us to be consistent,” BU head coach Tara Watchorn said. “We want to go on offense, we want to play aggressive, and we hope to generate momentum from every PK.”
The scoring for both teams stalled in the second period, despite BU launching a barrage of shots late. Campbell kept the Terriers at bay with a string of five saves and sent BC into the third period tied up. Campbell totaled 30 saves in the contest.
“I thought she was phenomenal for us,” Crowley said of Campbell. “I mean, there were times we had breakdowns, and she was able to make huge saves for us. She’s an unbelievable goaltender, and I don’t think she’s gotten the credit that she deserves.”
That tie did not last long, though, as the Terriers reestablished their lead 1:36 into the third. BC once again found itself chasing from behind, and despite back-to-back power plays, it was not until Pyne’s clutch-time goal with under two minutes remaining that the Eagles tied the game.
The overtime period showcased an intense 3-on-3 with both teams fighting for a spot in the championship game. Campbell made multiple game-saving stops that kept BC in contention, but neither squad could put the game away.
“Obviously I thought it was a great hockey game … back and forth, everyone had chances,” Crowley said. “I mean that overtime, I mean if that’s not a proponent for 3-on-3 in overtime, I don’t know what is. Just a fun hockey game to be a part of.”
A scoreless overtime period required a shootout to decide the winner, and BC missed its first two attempts, which allowed the Terriers to get another chance. Lilli Welcke took the puck at center ice and danced her way toward Campbell. Welcke successfully baited her and swept the puck home. Smigliani could not pot the redemption opportunity, and the Terriers advanced to the championship game.
