SHELTON, Conn. (February 25, 2022) -- In need of just a weekend split to wrap up a share of the New England Women's Hockey Alliance regular-season title and the top seed in next week's tournament, the Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team will have to do it the hard way. After finding a tying goal early in the third at Sports Center of Connecticut, the Ravens gave up back-to-back markers over the next 3:18, as host Sacred Heart skated away with a 5-3 victory, snapping Franklin Pierce's program-record winning streak at 11 games.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 19-9-1 (15-4-0 NEWHA), while Sacred Heart improves to 15-3-2 (10-7-2 NEWHA). The two teams will wrap up the regular season on Saturday, with a 2:30 p.m. puck drop in Shelton.

The two teams wasted no time getting the weekend started, with three goals on the board in the first 13 minutes, and four in all in the opening period. Sacred Heart needed just 72 seconds to break the seal, as sophomore Paige McNeil had the finish on her 11^th goal of the season right out front.

Franklin Pierce needed until after the midpoint of the frame to respond, but did so with two goals in a span of just 25 seconds, on very similar-looking plays. At 11:59, junior Reece Diener (McKinney, Texas) worked the puck into the slot from the right side for freshman Lucy Hanson (Medina, Minn.), who chipped her second of the year over the shoulder of the goaltender and inside the left post. At 12:24, it was freshman Geno Hendrickson (Warroad, Minn.) who provided the setup from the right side for the team-leading 12^th goal of the campaign for junior Becca Kniss (Eden Prairie, Minn.).

Sacred Heart drew level at 2-2 before the period expired though. Franklin Pierce senior netminder Emme Ostrander (Westborough, Mass.) made two saves on the play against junior Alexa Ocel, but senior Anna Klein eventually cleaned up the rebound at the left post for her 14^th of the season.

After the busy opening stanza, Sacred Heart cashed in the only goal of the second frame, just 62 seconds after the intermission. Senior Kennedy Spiering had the shot on the play, and Ostrander got a big piece of it, but the puck snuck behind her and slipped over the goal line for Spiering's fifth of the season. Each team came up empty on a power play later in the period, and the Pioneers took a 3-2 lead into the third.

Franklin Pierce came out strong and forced its way to a bit of a fluke goal 71 seconds into the third. Junior Cassidy Jones (Stillwater, Minn.) looked to take a shot from the left circle. A Sacred Heart defender got her stick to the shot, but Jones wound up with her seventh of the season, as the puck popped up in the air, tipped off the outstretched glove hand of senior Frankie Sanchez and fluttered into the net.

Sacred Heart finally seized control of the contest though, with a pair of goals in a hurry, both of which came through traffic, and neither of which appeared to be seen by Ostrander until it was far too late. Senior Nicole Giudi struck first, from the right point for her eighth of the season, and the eventual game-winner, at 2:21. Her defensive partner, fellow senior Kelly Solak, followed up with an insurance marker from the top of the left circle, her ninth of the year.

Franklin Pierce got a late power play and got Ostrander to the bench for the extra attacker, but could not get anything going, and 5-3 stood as the final score. The five goals against was the most conceded by the Ravens since a 7-0 loss at home to Dartmouth on Dec. 7, a span of 12 games (11-1-0).

Ostrander (7-7-0) finished with only 19 saves against 24 shots and suffered the loss in the Franklin Pierce crease. Sanchez (11-13-2) stopped 26 of 29 shots at the other end of the ice to pick up the win.