MORRISVILLE, N.Y. (December 2, 2017) – Putting together a team defensive effort more reminiscent of the last two seasons, the Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team held Morrisville State to just 15 shots on goal on Saturday afternoon. Freshman forward Haley Parker (Londonderry, N.H.) scored in each of the first two periods at the Morrisville State IcePlex, and a pair of third-period insurance markers sealed a 4-1 Ravens victory and a 1-0-1 weekend for Franklin Pierce.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 5-6-1 and has its longest unbeaten streak of the year, at three games (2-0-1). Morrisville falls to 7-4-2 with the loss.

The teams would trade goals in the opening period. Franklin Pierce opened the scoring at the 8:42 mark. Parker won a battle against a pinching defenseman at the Franklin Pierce blue line and took off with the puck through the neutral zone. In possession on the left-wing side, she led a 2-on-1 into the offensive end with sophomore forward Meg Gilbride (Braintree, Mass.). Parker slipped a pass over to Gilbride, who snapped a shot from the right circle. The initial save was made by Morrisville State freshman goaltender Karoline Årvik, but Parker finished off the rebound as the fell to the ice at the left post, for her third goal of the season.

Morrisville State answered at 18:33 to forge a 1-1 tie before the first intermission, on a similar play. With the teams battling for possession near the left point of the Franklin Pierce offensive end, junior forward Maria deWilde chipped the puck off the boards, past a pinching defenseman and took off down the ice. Streaking down the right-wing side, deWilde led a 2-on-1 into the offensive end as sophomore forward Maddison Devlin joined the rush. However, it would be deWilde who did the work herself, as she snapped a shot from the right circle and cleanly beat Franklin Pierce senior goaltender Madison Murray (Berkley, Mich.) for her second goal of the campaign. Junior defensemen Ciara Lark and Kim Hughes were credited with assists on the play.

Franklin Pierce took the lead for good with the only goal of the second period, at 9:31. Freshman forward Nicole Amato (Billerica, Mass.) led a rush into the offensive end down the left-wing side. She carried the puck all the way into the corner and darted behind the net. Exiting the area behind the cage on the right-wing side, she slipped a pass out front to senior forward Alex Brolsma (Bloomington, Minn.), who was stymied from point-blank range by Årvik. Parker was on the scene at the top of the crease as well though, and was able to clean up the rebound to put home her second goal of the afternoon. It marked Parker's first collegiate multiple-goal game.

Franklin Pierce outshot Morrisville State 10-3 in the second period, as the Ravens were on their way to a 25-15 advantage for the game.

The Ravens tacked on a pair of insurance markers in the third period to create the 4-1 final. The first came at 11:13, on a strong individual effort by freshman forward Marissa Massaro (Brockton, Mass.), who scored for the third time in as many games. Massaro took a pass from Amato in front of her own net, chipped it past a Morrisville State forward in the slot, and then chipped it past freshman defenseman Chyne Kennedy to get into the neutral zone. Massaro then turned on the afterburners down the right-wing side. Sophomore defenseman Taylor Finnie attempted to move over to cover for Kennedy, but she was bested by Massaro's speed. While being hassled from behind by Finnie on what was now a breakaway, Massaro cut into the slot and roofed a wrist shot for her third goal of the year.

Franklin Pierce tacked on an empty-net goal at 19:45 to cap the victory. Morrisville State barely had time to get Årvik to the bench, and definitely did not have time to get the extra attacker into the play, before sophomore forward Kelsey Holmes (Warwick, R.I.) chipped the puck out of the zone and found freshman forward Emily Kramer (Rockville, Md.) in the neutral zone. Kramer carried the puck inside the blue line on the left-wing side and snapped it into the empty net for her first collegiate goal.

Murray (4-2-0) finished with 14 saves against 15 shots to pick up the win in front of the Franklin Pierce net. In the other crease, Årvik (7-4-2) stopped 21 of 25 shots and took the loss for Morrisville State.

The Ravens return to the ice on Friday, Dec. 8, when they return home for the final time in the semester, to host Plymouth State. Opening puck drop is set for 7:30 p.m. at Jason Ritchie Ice Arena in Winchendon, 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).