Women’s Hockey: Terriers secure the win in first of home series against Maine

Featured image by Joe Eachus

By Lydia Murray

Boston University Women’s Ice Hockey (3-3-0, 3-1-0 HEA) didn’t bring their A-game on Friday afternoon, but it was enough to secure a 2-1 win over the University of Maine Black Bears.

A lackluster effort was the Terriers’ primary source of frustration. They peppered freshman goaltender Kiia Lahtinen, who was making her NCAA debut, with 38 shots but only managed two goals, which came about a minute apart in the first period.

“Not good enough,” Coach Tara Watchorn said. “Obviously, happy we were able to find a way to win, but this team can play way better than that. We had a lot of shots, but it sure didn’t feel like it. The message that we talked about is good offense is hard work, and how do you create better quality offense that’s goalie-proof, that sets the next line up for success, that builds momentum, and doesn’t hand the other team opportunities that they didn’t deserve.”

The Terriers were swarming early, but the Black Bears did a good job of boxing out and blocking shots. Still, Lahtinen had to make a few big saves in the first half to keep the game scoreless.

However, BU erased the goose egg at 12:14. The puck took a weird bounce and launched Julia Shaunessey and freshman Lola Reid on a 2-on-0. Shaunessey fed it to Reid right out front, and she stuffed it past Lahtinen to put the Terriers up one.

This opened the floodgates. Fifty-five seconds later, a big scramble in front of Lahtinen led to Luisa Welcke chucking the puck out in front of the goal, where her sister Lilli Welcke was waiting to fire it home to double BU’s lead.

The two-goal lead would not last long. Seventeen seconds later, Maine’s Danielle Brunette ripped a shot on goal, which deflected off captain Tamara Giaquinto and past goaltender Callie Shanahan to cut the Terrier lead back to one.

BU got a couple of power play opportunities late in the period, but no more goals were scored. The teams returned to their locker rooms with the Terriers leading 2-1 while outshooting the Black Bears 8-3.

BU was in control for most of the second period and forced Lahtinen to make several big saves to keep her team within one. Both teams took a turn in the penalty box, but the penalty kills remained strong. The most dangerous look came from Maine after some quick puck movement, but Shanahan was ready.

After peppering Lahtinen with 18 shots, the horn sounded to send the teams off, with the Terriers still leading 2-1 but now outshooting the Black Bears a whopping 27-7. However, Maine continued to do a good job of limiting BU’s second chances and high-danger opportunities.

It can be challenging for goaltenders to stay sharp when not facing many shots, but Shanahan focused on clearing her mind and remaining calm.

“It’s definitely tough not facing a lot of shots to stay in the game,” Shanahan said about the difficulty to stay sharp. “But I really try to keep my mind calm… and I just focus on the basics, try not to think too much and just play my game because thinking is not good.”

The Black Bears nearly tied the game twice early in the final frame. The first chance came when the puck leaked past Shanahan and sat exposed for a few seconds, but the Terriers swiped it to safety just in time. Then, a few minutes later, Sam Morrison stole the puck and was alone with Shanahan, who denied her with a heads-up save.

The third was Maine’s best period of the game, and they doubled their shot total, but it wasn’t enough to crack Shanahan again. They pulled Lahtinen with about 90 seconds remaining but still couldn’t find the equalizer. So, even without playing up to their standard, the Terriers kicked off the weekend series on a high note, downing the Black Bears 2-1 while outshooting them 38-15.

With a talented team and a belief that they can go far this year, Watchorn believes that this game taught the Terriers a valuable lesson in not underestimating your opponent.

“I think these games are actually going to show what we’re made of,” Watchorn said. “How can we take pride in every day, every practice, every game, every shift, and know that we’re going to bring our best? So, [it’s] a great lesson to learn right now.”

BU will face off against Maine once more this weekend for a 3 p.m. matinee matchup tomorrow, Oct. 19. The game will be available for streaming on ESPN+.