The No. 7 Boston College women’s hockey team took the Beanpot title on Tuesday against Northeastern, a day after the men’s team won the same tournament. Goals from Taylor Wasylk, Meagan Mangene, and Melissa Bizzari helped the Eagles to lift the trophy over glove-strewn ice.
MVP and Bertagna Goalie Award
Senior forward Wasylk was named MVP of the Beanpot tournament, while goalie Corinne Boyles received the Bertagna Goalie Award for the most outstanding goalie of the tournament.
Through the course of the two Beanpot games, Wasylk recorded two goals and one assist. Her goal in the final proved to be decisive, as it helped BC maintain the lead from the first period on and kept Northeastern chasing. She intercepted the puck in the Northeastern third, swung onto her favored left hand, and fired the puck into the upper left corner of the net.
Boyles was given the task of keeping the lead that Wasylk made. Boyles made 25 saves on the night, recording a shutout, and even succeeded in making 12 saves in the last period of action.
“We were back on our heels a little bit, and we weathered the storm, so to say,” said head coach Katie King Crowley. “Boyles did a great job back there for us when we needed her in that third period.”
As a graduate student, Boyles was excited to take home the trophy in her last year of eligibility.
“This whole night has been awesome,” she said. “The team came to play. I watched the team win it my sophomore year, and this is the first time I have gotten the trophy in my hands on the ice when I was playing.”
Chloe Desjardins
Northeastern’s junior goalie Chloe Desjardins has made a habit out of coming up with big performances against BC. On Jan. 12, she recorded her career high in saves against BC, ending a 3-2 loss for the Huskies with 43 saves. In the Beanpot final, she had 27-but an important 27.
In the first period, Desjardins outlasted a relative shooting gallery with a seemingly constant forecheck from the Eagles leading to a lot of offensive pressure. Desjardins made 12 saves in that period, allowing one goal from Wasylk.
“She gave us a chance, and I came in after the first [period] and I told the girls, I said, ‘You know, it could be 3-0,'” said Northeastern head coach Dave Flint.
Desjardins spoke modestly of her performance for the Huskies.
“I was struggling myself at first with rebounds and stuff, not helping my team like I should help them,” she said. “But, that’s my job-to do my best and keep them in the game, and at the end, I did one mistake that didn’t keep them in the game.”
Desjardins managed to hold the score at 1-0, until about 10 minutes were left in the game. She let in two goals in the last 10 minutes.
“I don’t have any regrets,” she said. “BC played very well.”
In addition to giving BC trouble on this occasion, Desjardins has spelled trouble for Northeastern’s opponents throughout the entire Beanpot tournament. Her 27 saves were crucial in Northeastern’s first round upset of Harvard, at the time.
“We play differently in front of her, when they are confident in her,” Flint said.
