Third period rally not enough for Syracuse Ice Hockey in its second loss to Mercyhurst

By Ben Chadwick | @BChad214

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Syracuse Women’s Ice Hockey (7-16) was dominated by Mercyhurst (11-11-1) for almost the entirety of its 4-2 loss, but there’s emphasis on the “almost”. The Lakers had nearly 30 more shots on goal than the Orange in their win. Heading into the third period, Mercyhurst held a 2-0 lead and had 33 shots on goal compared to SU’s 13. But ‘Cuse Head Coach Britni Smith’s locker room speech lit a fire under her squad. 

Not even a minute into the third period, star Syracuse forward Bryn Saarela lasered in her ninth goal in the past nine games. The grad student leads the team with 12 goals on the year. Freshman Peyton Armstrong assisted the goal with a beautiful pass from behind the net. Around midway through the period, the Orange struck again. Fellow freshman Stella Costabile fired a shot in for the first goal of her Syracuse career. The game stayed tied until disaster for ‘Cuse occurred in the final three minutes. 

Lakers’ forward Julia Schalin found the five-hole between Allie Kelley’s pads to take the lead and tack on her second goal of the night. Then with a 6 on 5 and just 20 seconds left, sophomore Sofia Nuutinen floated the puck into the empty net for her second goal of the game as well.

Syracuse has now lost 11 of its last 12 matchups with Mercyhurst, drawing once two years ago. It’s the seventh time the Orange have been swept in a series this season, and the second straight. 

Syracuse’s next matchup is on Tuesday at 6 p.m. when it hosts Cornell in the Tennity Ice Pavillion.