It was a matchup between the best and the worst of Hockey East. The Eagles knew they could walk away with a win in order to keep their perfect season dreams alive. Hoping to make a jump in the league standings, Merrimack prayed for an upset. Unfortunately for the Warriors, their 15 shots to the Eagles’ 56 was not going to give them the boost they needed. The No. 1 Boston College Eagles (27-0-0, 15-0-0 Hockey East) defeated the Merrimack Warriors (4-22-1, 2-14-1) handily in a 4-1 victory.
Merrimack came out hot and put pressure on Katie Burt. Just seconds into the game, Katelyn Rae had a great look on goal. But Burt was there and robbed Rae right on the goal line, allowing BC to settle into the game and take control.
The Eagles dominated most of the first period on the offensive end, firing off 20 shots on goal. Haley Skarupa put the Eagles on the board with a clean top-shelf shot at 5:27 in the first. Seconds later, Warrior Annie Boeckers headed to the box for interference, giving BC its first power play opportunity of the night.
Kenzie Kent made Boeckers pay for her penalty when she snuck one past goalie Samantha Ridgewell to give BC a 2-0 lead. Then Makenna Newkirk sent one high into the net, giving the Eagles a 3-0 edge after one.
To open up the second period, the Warriors had 1:45 left on a cross-checking penalty, giving them a great opportunity to close the 3-0 gap. Felila Manu fired the puck toward Burt and a BC defender deflected it into the goal, making it a 3-1 game. For the remainder of the period, both teams went back and forth, but the goalies stood strong and denied each puck that came their way.
In the third frame, the Eagles were prepared to seal a league win to continue their streak. BC continually put pressure on Ridgewell, but nothing got past her. Halfway through the period, the score remained 3-1. Though they were ahead, the Eagles were still not satisfied.
Meghan Grieves fired the puck toward the net, allowing Kristyn Capizzano to sneak the rebound past Ridgewell to give BC a 4-1 advantage. The Warriors did not give up. They continued to push the BC defense, but to no avail.
With under a minute left, Merrimack had the biggest opportunity of the night with a 1-on-1 through the zone. Burt rejected Madison Morey’s comeback attempt, guaranteeing the Eagles a 4-1 Hockey East road victory.
Featured Image by Julia Hopkins / Heights Editor
