Women’s Ice Hockey Downed at Holy Cross, 6-1

WORCESTER, Mass. (October 25, 2017) – After remaining competitive throughout Friday night's season opener, the back end of the home-and-home series got away from the Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team at Hart Center on Wednesday night. Senior forward Emily Lissner and junior forward Danielle Doherty went for two goals each as Holy Cross dealt the Ravens a 6-1 defeat.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 0-2-0, while Holy Cross improves to 2-2-1.

Holy Cross piled up a 20-4 advantage in shots in the first period, en route to a 37-14 advantage for the game. The Crusaders also struck twice in the opening 20 minutes to take a lead they would never relinquish. Doherty opened the scoring at the 11:45 mark, as she banged home a rebound for her first goal of the season. Freshman defenseman Allison Attea had the original shot on the play, while junior forward Maeve Reilly added an assist as well.

Another rebound, at the 18:59 mark, doubled the lead to 2-0 before the intermission. Sophomore forward Sarah Stevens took the original shot, which was saved, before Lissner slipped the follow-up chance into the left side of the net for her first goal of the campaign. Junior forward Amanda Kewer picked up an assist on the play as well.

The Crusaders stretched the lead out to 4-0 over the first 12 minutes of the second period, as Doherty and Lissner each finished off their respective two-goal nights. Doherty struck just 3:06 into the middle stanza, as she was set up by Reilly and junior forward Julie Matthias. At 11:55, it was Lissner's turn again, with Stevens and Attea each picking up their second assist of the night.

Franklin Pierce got on the board later in the frame to cut the gap to 4-1. Just after a power-play expired, sophomore forward Meg Gilbride (Braintree, Mass.) put away her first goal of the season, off of assists from freshman forward Haley Parker (Londonderry, N.H.) and sophomore defenseman Bridgette Prentiss (Buffalo, N.Y.).

Holy Cross cashed in a pair of goals in the final period to create the 6-1 final. Just 85 seconds into the frame, freshman defenseman Antonia Matzka netted her first goal of the season, with assists credited to junior forward Sam Girard and senior forward Kara Violette. Later, in a 4-on-4 situation at 13:46, junior defenseman Tori Messina tallied her first of the season as well, unassisted.

Freshman goaltender Kelly Turney (Fort Gratiot, Mich.) made her collegiate debut in net for Franklin Pierce and made 31 saves, but also surrendered the six goals, to take the loss (0-1-0). Freshman netminder Julie Pelletier (2-0-1) stopped 13 of 14 shots at the other end of the ice to pick up the win for Holy Cross.

The Ravens return to the ice on Saturday, Oct. 28, when they travel to Becker. Opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. at Worcester Ice Center in Worcester, Mass.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce women's ice hockey apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).