Orange Draw RIT in Rochester

Saturday, February 8

Rochester, NY

6 PM

Syracuse University

10-12-2, 8-4-2CHA

RIT

9-16-3, 2-11-1CHA

OT 1

Syracuse

RIT

2/8/2020 9:30:00 PM | Ice Hockey

Box Score

ROCHESTER, N.Y. - The Orange fought down to the final second but couldn't get the win against College Hockey America opponent RIT Saturday night in Rochester, N.Y. Syracuse (10-16-2, 8-4-2 CHA) and the Tigers (9-16-3, 2-11-1 CHA) tied 2-2 to close out the series. The Orange's goals came from Emma Polaski and Abby Moloughney.

"We had a lot of energy and we threw everything but the kitchen sink at them," head coach Paul Flanagan said. "Fifty-nine shots last night and 63 today, that's pretty amazing offensive production. This was a playoff-type game and their goaltender was fabulous both nights.

"I thought Allison [Small] did a really good job and made some great saves and had things under control, but the defensive players have to be there to help her," Flanagan added. "We let our guard down for that little sequence when they scored and it cost us. We can't dwell on this now though. We have to look forward and get ready for Lindenwood, but there were a lot of good things that happened."

How it happened:
Both sides started off strong and worked to get shots on net early. Orange netminder Allison Small earned the starting nod and made multiple timely saves to keep things even, her first notable effort coming midway through the first period on a cross ice pass down low. Small made one last highlight-reel save with a minute left as she was falling back to keep the score even.

The tempo picked up in the second period as both teams settled into an offensive rhythm. Lauren Bellefontaine stole a puck in the offensive end of the ice and came knocking on the door, but she couldn't complete the wrap around and sent her chance wide. 'Cuse controlled the puck throughout the period and had multiple breakaway opportunities, two notable ones coming from Victoria Klimek and Savannah Rennie. Klimek lost her handle at the final moment after forcing the goalie to make a play, and Rennie's was shut down at the goal line. With seconds left in the second, freshman Mae Batherson sent in a shot from the blue line that was tipped by Polaski at the top of the crease to put the Orange up 1-0 after 40.

The third period was a wild affair start to finish that featured Syracuse registering 19 shots and the Tigers putting up 10. RIT broke the shutout midway through the period when Jaymee Nolan slotted a wrister high blockerside on Small, tying the game at 1-1. The Tigers went up 2-1 a minute later when Nolan again scored, this time collecting a rebound to Small's right and sliding it past the pipe. It looked as if RIT would take the game until Moloughney settled a rebound and sent it high glove side on Terra Lanteigne to knot things at 2-2 with three minutes to spare.

A period of overtime followed and 'Cuse spent plenty of time in front of the goal mouth, but Lanteigne shut the door to get the draw.

Tonight largely came down to the goalies playing their role. Small made 27 stops, and Lanteigne turned away 61. Both teams converted on the power play too.

Up Next:
The Orange are back at Tennity next weekend to host Lindenwood Friday and Saturday. The puck drops Friday at 7 p.m., and Saturday's action starts at 3 p.m. Both contests are available to stream via Cuse.tv. Friday is I Heart Hockey Night, and 'Cuse is celebrating Women in Sports Night on Saturday, along with the final day of the NHL 20 tournament. Chicken tenders will also be available.

For complete coverage of Syracuse ice hockey, follow us on Facebook (Syracuse Women's Ice Hockey), Twitter (@CuseIce) and Instagram (@CuseIce).