Down by two goals at the start of the third period, Boston College women’s hockey needed a goal to keep the possibility of a comeback alive.
Gaby Roy seemed to be the difference maker the Eagles’ offense needed. After receiving a pass from Abby Newhook, Roy faked a New Hampshire defender and fired the puck into the top right corner of the Wildcats’ net.
But BC would not be able to hold onto this one-goal differential—or tie the game up. With 4:17 left to play in the third period and New Hampshire on a power play, Kira Juodikis launched the puck past BC goaltender Grace Campbell as UNH fans chanted in Conte Forum.
Coming off a 3–1 loss to New Hampshire (17–15–2, 14–11–2 Hockey East) the night before, the Eagles (14–13–7, 13–9–5) were handed a similar fate on Saturday afternoon and ultimately lost 6–4 to the Wildcats. The loss marked BC’s fourth straight.
“Yeah, tough one,” BC head coach Katie Crowley said. “We fought a little bit harder than yesterday but gave them a few too many offensive chances that they were able to capitalize on, so obviously not the way we wanted to end our regular season, especially one that I thought was pretty good, especially in the first half.”
BC’s offense began to heat up during the first period of its final regular-season matchup. After a New Hampshire goal less than two minutes into the game, BC responded 47 seconds later with a Sammy Taber goal. Skating rapidly down the ice, Taber shot the puck past the Wildcats’ Sedona Blair, marking the 12th goal of her freshman season.
About six minutes later, Newhook scored her 10th goal of the season off a Sidney Fess assist, bringing the Eagles to a 2–1 lead over New Hampshire, but that would not last for long.
UNH’s Annie Berry’s shot slid past Campbell and into the back corner of BC’s net, tying the game 2–2 with 7:23 remaining in the opening frame.
“I think we need to be a little more battle ready at times,” Crowley said. “You know, I thought we were a little bit better at it today, but for a full 60 minutes, we need to be hungry.”
During the second period, UNH’s offense controlled the game. Within 10 minutes of the second frame, the Wildcats managed to increase their lead to 4–2. With 3:03 left in the second period, Shea Verrier delivered another goal for the Wildcats to bring the score to 5–2.
Following a late second-period goal from Katie Pyne with 2:28 left to play, the Eagles concluded the second frame down 5–3 to the Wildcats.
“This team has the potential to score a lot of goals and to be very offensive,” Crowley said. “I think that was their mentality going into the third period. We were just finding ways to score goals and trying to create traffic in front, and you know, find ways to score that are different than what we have been doing.”
Roy’s goal less than three minutes into the final frame of the game kept BC in the game.
“I think it was an exciting third period,” Crowley said. “I thought for the most part, maybe excluding a few minutes here and there, we battled pretty hard in this full game.”
Another goal from Juodikis in the last five minutes of the game stretched the Wildcats’ lead to two, sealing a 6–4 win.
As the Eagles enter the postseason, Crowley believes the team’s morale will motivate them through playoff play.
“This team, I can’t say it enough, and I’ve said it a lot this year, but they’re always having fun and they’re always fighting for each other,” Crowley said. “And I think that’s the biggest thing that this team does and can do as we get into playoff time.”
Despite the loss in BC’s last regular season matchup, Crowley remains optimistic about what the team is capable of achieving in the playoffs.
“But I do think our team, you know, I think they know how good they are,” Crowley said. “And I think we have the potential to be a really good, really good team and to make a playoff run here, regardless of the last couple of weeks. I am excited for the opportunity and I think our players will be excited for the opportunity as well.”
