Women’s Hockey: BU kicks off weekend series vs. Merrimack with dominant win

By Owen Gund

The Boston University Terriers (3-3-0) shook off their recent scoring struggles and cruised to a 6-0 victory over the Merrimack College Warriors (1-12-0) on Friday afternoon at Walter Brown Arena. 

“Overall, I told the team I didn’t think that was our most artistic victory in the history of Walter Brown Arena, but a victory nonetheless – one that included goals being scored, which has been a little bit of a trying challenge.” BU head coach Brian Durocher said.

Junior forward Courtney Correia got things started with a beautiful goal, where she snuck behind the defense, took a pass from junior assistant captain Kaleigh Donnelly, and roofed a backhander past Merrimack sophomore netminder Emma Gorski.

The Terriers headed to the locker room with a 1-0 lead at the end of the first period.

The highlight reel goals did not stop there. Just over two and a half minutes into the second period, freshman forward Lacey Martin doubled BU’s lead.

Martin gained the blueline with some speed and danced around Merrimack defender Grace Karunakar with a nifty toe drag before beating Gorski with a wrist shot to the short side. The goal was Martin’s first collegiate goal, and it came during a game where 11 different Terriers got on the scoresheet. 

After Martin’s goal, BU was able to put the game out of reach thanks to a strong performance on special teams.

Donnelly made it 3-0 when she stole the puck shorthanded, drove towards the net on a breakaway, and banged home her own rebound after initially getting stopped.

With a minute to go in the period, Correia potted her second of the game, redirecting a pass from junior forward Emma Wuthrich on the power play to make it 4-0. Freshman defender Julia Shaunessy picked up her first collegiate point with the secondary assist.

Heading into this game the Terriers had scored just once out of their previous seventeen power play attempts.

After the game, Durocher said that he has been pleased with the team’s ability to possess the puck and create opportunities on the power play. For this reason, Durocher expects to see his team start to convert more on the power play.

“If you’re going to continue to possess the puck and make good decisions, that’s all you can ask for as a coach,” Durocher said.

BU’s jolt in offensive production was certainly bolstered by their co-captain, senior Jesse Compher, who returned to the lineup after missing the past three games.

Compher tallied a shorthanded goal 11 seconds into the third period to give BU a 5-0 lead. She later registered an assist on junior forward Mackenna Parker’s late, 6-0, tally. Freshman forward Catherine Foulem notched her first collegiate point with the secondary assist on Parker’s goal.

https://twitter.com/PatDonn12/status/1357814724390506504?s=20

On the game, Compher notched seven shots on goal. Correia noticed a big difference in BU’s offense with Compher back on the ice, making her presence known.

“It was awesome having her out there,” Correia said. “She is a workhorse. She just goes out there and really sets the pace for our team.”

“She’s a great leader and she works hard every single shift and that’s what we need.”

Durocher also praised his captain’s performance, calling her “a high level talent who can create openings that not everybody can.”

Defensively, the Terriers were not tested much, but sophomore goaltender Kate Stuart stopped all 24 shots she faced to secure her second career shutout.

The Terriers will now head up to North Andover, where they will face Merrimack again on Sunday afternoon at 12 p.m.

Featured Image: Junior forward Courtney Correia skates in on a breakaway before scoring in a win against Merrimack at Walter Brown Arena on Feb. 5, 2021. Photo by Patrick Donnelly.

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