Women’s Hockey: Four unanswered goals pushes Terriers to 20 wins on the season in victory over Providence
Featured image by Spirit Veron
By Mel Mastela
Boston University Women’s Hockey (20-9-1, 17-5-1 HE) completed the season sweep over Providence College (17-10-3, 13-8-2 HE), scoring four unanswered to win the game 4-1.
With this victory, the Terriers became the first team in Hockey East to reach 20 wins on the season.
“I think the biggest thing always is it’s not linear,” Coach Tara Watchorn said. “You get excited to keep stacking and upgrading and building, and sometimes it’s you gotta take a step back and realize, okay, what actually was the value in every step that we took.”
Both teams entered the game on the front foot, generating high-scoring opportunities, but it was the Friars who outshot the Terriers 12-7 at the end of the opening period.
It was Providence who got on the board first, as Reichen Kirchmair crashed the net, sneaking the puck past goaltender Mari Pietersen.
The Friars kept momentum going, dancing around BU’s defense. Pietersen came up big at the end of the second, denying Providence on the breakaway.
“In terms of us generating our own game plan and our own momentum, I feel like we were a little bit disconnected,” Watchorn said after being asked about the difference in play between the periods. “And then we just fought momentum from there…and then the third period kept it simple.”
The Terriers finally got on the board as Sydney Healey poked the puck past netminder Hope Walinski for the equalizer.
BU kept rolling as Kaileigh Quigg and Alex Law found Maeve Carey in the slot, who shelved one into the crease to give the Terriers a 2-1 lead, potting the game-winning goal and her first as a Terrier.
“Amazing…” Carey said of how she felt about her first goal with the team. “I just was going for the net and [Law] made a beautiful pass over, and I just stuck my stick out there and tipped [it] off and went in.”
BU found themselves in the box on a penalty call shortly after, but Law intercepted a pass and streaked down the ice, netting a shorthanded goal for a 3-1 lead.
The Friars pulled Walinski for the extra attacker with just over three minutes remaining, but Healey dumped the puck into the empty net for her second of the night, capping off the Terriers’ 4-1 victory.
“They stuck together and found a way to win at the end of the day,” Watchorn said. “Really proud of how they controlled the environment, composed themselves, and found a way to have fun and get it done.”
BU will continue Hockey East play as they prepare for a weekend series at UNH. Puck drop against the Wildcats is set for Friday, Feb. 14, at 6 p.m., with streaming available on ESPN+.