The Oswego State women's ice hockey team (9-8-1, 8-4-0 ECAC West) recorded back-to-back shutouts for the second time in program history following the Lakers' 2-0 win over Buffalo State (5-11-1, 2-6-0) Saturday afternoon.
Bridget Smith (So., Hamburg, N.Y.) registered 18 saves to earn her third shutout and eighth win of the 2012-13 campaign.
The first period ended in a scoreless tie after the best scoring chance of the frame for either squad midway through the frame was thwarted when Smith stonewalled Nikki Kirchberger on a breakaway.
Oswego State took a 1-0 lead early in the second period at 3:28 when Melissa Seamont scored her seventh goal of the year. The play was set up by a Leslie Jarvis (Jr., Newmarket, Ontario) slap shot from the left point that was stopped by Buffalo State goalie Jordan Lee. However, Seamont was camping out at the left post waiting for the rebound and a wide open net to shoot at. Bianca Camillaci (Fr., Hilton, N.Y.) also earned her second assist of the series.
Trailing with one period left, Buffalo State came out strong early in the third testing the Laker defense. The Bengals gained a two-skater advantage for 1:35 as a result, but quickly negated the edge by committing a pair of their own penalties in a physical contest. As the period wore on, Smith came up with a series of saves to keep the visitors off the scoreboard.
Buffalo State called timeout with 3:36 remaining to set up a play, but Jarvis snuck a pass through the neutral zone to Megan Hagg (Jr., Pickering, Ontario). Hagg received the pass behind a Bengal defender and skated in unabated as she wristed a shot over Lee's blocker to give the Lakers an insurance goal with 2:20 on the clock. Olivia Boersen (Sr., Stratford, Ontario) also earned an assist.
After the goal, the Bengals tried to pull Lee, who finished with 25 saves for the extra attacker, but were unable to do so until less than 30 seconds remained as Oswego State maintained puck control in its offensive zone.
Oswego State previously posted back-to-back shutouts on Jan. 31-Feb. 1, 2009 in a pair of 1-0 wins over ECAC West opponent Cortland.
Both teams came up empty on the power play, as the Lakers were 0-for-7 and the Bengals were 0-for-6.
The Lakers remain at home next weekend when they host first-year program Stevenson at 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, Jan. 26 and 27. The series is also serving as Pink the Rink weekend. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to the games to help show their support in the fight against breast cancer.
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