Penn State Women’s Hockey Picks Up First Win at Pegula

Story posted October 19, 2013 in CommRadio, Sports by Jason Shawley

Penn State (2-3-1) outlasted Union College (3-4-0) with a 2-1 victory on Saturday and picked up their first win at Pegula Ice Arena, following a slow start to the season.

The Nittany Lions and the Dutchwomen split the two-game set with Union taking the first game of the series 2-1 on Friday evening.

Celine Whitlinger got the start in net for the Nittany Lions, her first in Pegula and third of the season. She was opposed by Shenae Lundberg who picked up the win Friday night for Union.

The first period was very back-and-forth, with neither team able to maintain any kind of an offensive attack. Both teams consistently turned the puck over at neutral ice.

The Nittany Lions picked up the first goal of the contest at 12:28 in the first period, on a goal by Jill Holdcroft. Lundberg was beat one-on-one by Holdcroft, when the Penn State forward froze the Dutchwomen goaltender with a move in front.

The Nittany Lions held that lead through the remainder of the first period. Penn State held Union to just one shot on goal through the first 20 minutes and were able to keep the Dutchwomen out of the offensive zone.

“We want to be a great team at both ends of the ice,” said Penn State head coach Josh Brandwene following the game. “We want to be a great team when we have the puck and we want to be a great team when we don’t have the puck.”

The second period began with more offensive opportunities for both teams, as Penn State continued driving to the net and Union was able to produce more shots on goal.

The equalizer came at 17:18 in the second period, when Courtney Turner put a rebound behind Whitlinger on a backhand shot. Panchuk and Norton assisted on the power play goal. The tie would stand heading into the second intermission.

The final period began with a lot more energy and offensive opportunites from both sides. Each team produced a lot of scoring opportunities by crashing the net and creating second chance shots.

Penn State broke the tie late in the third period on a power play goal scored by Laura Bowman. The goal came at 14:31 and also picking up points on the play were Jeanette Bateman and Amy Peterson. Though Bowman scored the decisive goal, she gave the credit to one of her teammates.

“I was so thankful that Jeannette had such an amazing shot from the point,” Bowman said about her linemate, Bateman. “I was just lucky to be there to hit it in.”

Penn State outshot Union with 33 shots on goal compared to just 20 for the Dutchwomen.

“I think we’re all a little on the tired side, but I gotta tell you I’m as proud of this team this weekend as I’ve been with any hockey team I’ve coached,” Brandwene said regarding his team’s performance. “That’s a hockey team that has grown up big time over a five or six day period.”

Penn State will take the ice again next Saturday as they host New Hampshire at the Pegula Ice Arena. Tune in to to ComRadio’s coverage of the contest starting at 7 p.m.

Jason Shawley is a senior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email jts5353@psu.edu.