WINCHENDON, Mass. (November 13, 2021) -- A night after piling up the shots but struggling to finish, the Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team was more efficient at filling up the net on Saturday night at Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. The Ravens scored three times in the first and never looked back, on the way to a 5-0 win over Saint Michael's in New England Women's Hockey Alliance play. Sophomore Emilie Prive (Morrisville, Vt.) scored twice and added an assist for Franklin Pierce, while sophomore Jenna Ruiz (Webster, Wis.) and junior Katelyn Brightbill (Silver Spring, Md.) each contributed a goal and two assists apiece.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 6-4-1 (3-1-0 NEWHA), while Saint Michael's remains winless at 0-7-0 (0-6-0 NEWHA). The two teams will wrap up the four-game NEWHA season series with a weekend set at Saint Michael's in early February. The Purple Knights will also return to Franklin Pierce for a non-conference series the first weekend of January.

After Friday night saw a scoreless first two periods, it was a three-goal first for the Ravens on Saturday night. Ruiz opened the scoring at 11:55, as she finished off a scramble out front at the right post for her fifth of the season, while both Prive and Brightbill picked up assists. Later, in a delayed-penalty situation, junior Bethany Ross (Canton, Mich.) sent the puck ahead to Ruiz on the breakout, and then Ruiz sprung Brightbill into the offensive end on a partial breakaway. Brightbill would finish off her second of the year on the rush at 16:34.

Franklin Pierce would convert on the ensuing power play as well, at 17:24. Junior Ava Kison (Eau Claire, Wis.) worked the puck to freshman Geno Hendrickson (Warroad, Minn.) on the right side, and the latter then sent it up top for junior Stefanie Caban (Fitchburg, Mass.). Caban let fly from there, and her shot was saved by sophomore Leah White, but Hendrickson pounced on a juicy rebound in the right circle to bury her second goal in as many nights.

After a scoreless second, Prive popped her pair in the third to finish off the 5-0 victory. First, Brightbill worked the puck to the left side for Ruiz, who sent it back across to Prive for the finish on the right side, at 2:04. Prive would later add her third of the season on an individual effort at 14:32, after she forced a turnover in the neutral zone. She led a 2-on-1 into the offensive end on the left side as Ruiz joined the rush, but Prive took care of business herself, as she walked out front and put away a backhand.

Sophomore Suzette Faucher (Middleton, Wis.) turned aside all 10 shots on her goal to pick up the win (4-1-1) and her second shutout of the season. Franklin Pierce now has three shutouts in its last four games.

At the other end of the ice, White (0-3-0) finished with 34 saves against 39 shots in the losing effort for Saint Michael's.

The Ravens will travel to Post for a pair of NEWHA games next weekend, on Nov. 19-20. Game time is set for 4 p.m. on Friday and 3:30 p.m. on Saturday at Sports Center of Connecticut in Shelton, Conn.