Photo by Kirubel Tesafaye ’21
Upstate New York’s marquee sport, ice hockey, has once again returned to the center of attention across the state as competition at the rink becomes vital to life in the tundra of the Northeast. The Hamilton women’s hockey team has proved it is capable of excellence on the ice, posting an impressive record through the first two weeks of January. The Continentals boast an undefeated 6–0 record against NESCAC opponents, carrying a solid 9-3-1 overall record into the rigorous conference stretch lasting from mid-January until the season’s end in mid-February.
The Continentals cruised into winter break on a high note, with a 3-0 win over SUNY-Oswego on Dec. 8. Hamilton thrived with a man advantage, scoring all three goals on the power play against the Lakers. Missy Segall ’21 opened the scoring with under five minutes remaining in the first period, rifling home a one-timer from Andrea Rockey ’19 in the slot. Teagan Blackwell ’19 doubled the Hamilton lead with under one second remaining in the first period, her first goal of the 2018 season. Kate Piacenza ’21 slotted a rebound past the Oswego goal- tender 11:38 into the second period to close out the scoring. Hamilton goalie Sam Walther ’18 stopped all 16 shots she faced to tally her third shutout of the year.
The women’s hockey team returned to action on Jan. 5, when the team traveled to Burlington, VT for the Trader Duke’s Ice Hockey Classic, hosted by Saint Michael’s College. The Continentals opened the weekend with a match-up with Plymouth State.
Despite outshooting the Panthers 49- 14, the game resulted in a 1-1 over- time tie. Sammy Johnson ’20 made her first start between the pipes for the Continentals, making 13 saves behind the talented Hamilton defense. Caro-line Knop ’18 scored the lone goal for Hamilton in a short-handed situation. A blocked shot by Knop on the penalty kill created a two-on-one where Knop was able to poke a rebound past the Panthers’ goalie from a Segall shot. Plymouth State came up with several key blocks in the overtime period to preserve the tie.
The following day, Jan. 6, the Continentals returned to their winning ways with a 6–1 blow- out against Southern Maine. The Huskies got out to a strong start, scoring with less than a minute re- maining in the first period to gain an early 1–0 advantage. However, the Continentals quickly caught fire thanks to a power play goal by Rockey 4:01 into the second period to level the score. Michaela Giuttari ’20 and Mairead Carey ’18 added goals of their own in the period, with Karina Sirabian ’21 picking up assists on both goals. The Continentals did not ease off the gas pedal in the third period, scoring three more goals in the fi- nal three minutes of the game by Segall, Giuttari, and Maddie Beitler ’21.
Hamilton suffered a setback on the road against SUNY-Potsdam on Jan. 9, ending a five-game un- beaten stretch for the team. Segall continued her hot streak on the offensive end with a first period goal off the feed from Knop and Timary Malley ’20. Unfortunately, the early lead would not hold up, as Potsdam was able to score early in the second and pulled ahead of Hamilton on a goal by Brenna Wilson 2:47 into the final period of play. Potsdam goalie Samantha White slammed the door shut to preserve the 2–1 victory.
The Continentals returned to Russell Sage Rink for a double-header against the Trinity Bantams, aiming to preserve a perfect NESCAC record following sweeps of Colby and Williams. The conference foes battled through a scoreless first period, but Hamilton was given a man advantage early in the second period thanks to a tripping penalty on the Bantams. Piacenza collected a re- bound from a Knop shot and slotted a backhander past Trinity’s goalie to jump out to a 1–0 lead. The Continentals doubled their lead when Madie Bologa ’21 netted her first collegiate goal off a dish from Giuttari. Segall made it 3–0 on the power play off the feed from Blackwell, scoring her sixth goal of the young 2017–18 campaign.
Beitler again capitalized on the power play to extend the lead to 4–0. Walther closed out the game with ease, stopping all 16 shots she faced in the game to clinch yet another shut out.
Hamilton would triumph over the Bantams again the following day, but required overtime to preserve their unbeaten conference streak. The dominant Continentals’ defense, which is holding opponents to less than a goal per game, flexed its mus- cles against Trinity, playing the NESCAC rivals to a stalemate through 60 minutes of regulation play. With just 10 seconds remaining in overtime, Rockey intercepted a Trinity clearing attempt and sent a pass to Giuttari in the slot. Giuttari took on several Bantams’ defenders before beating the Trinity goalie glove-side to capture the sudden-death victory. Walther posted her second shut out of the weekend by saving 20 Trinity shots.
Walther made it three straight shutouts on Jan. 16, in a 3–0 non-conference win over Morrisville State. Segall took sole possession of the team lead in scoring on Tuesday with her first period goal off a Bologa assist 15:33 into the game. Rockey doubled the lead in the second period, while Sirabian added a goal of her own on a pass from Jade Alvillar ’18.
The undefeated 6–0 start to the conference schedule has Hamilton sitting firmly in first place atop the NESCAC rankings. The Continentals strongest area has been on the defensive end, where they lead the NESCAC with just 0.85 goals allowed per game, allowing just 11 goals in 13 games. Hamilton has shown tremendous discipline by having the lowest penalty minutes per game in the conference, and has excelled on special teams by killing off 97 percent of opponents’ power plays.
Segall is tied for fourth place in the NESCAC with seven goals this season and is second in the conference with four power play goals. Giuttari leads the Continentals with 12 points this winter including six goals and a team-leading six assists. Walther is dominating the NESCAC goaltending statistics, leading the conference with just 0.83 goals allowed per game and a .967 save percentage.
The Continentals will put their undefeated NESCAC record on the line again this weekend with a trip to Middletown, CT for a Friday, Saturday double-header against Wesleyan on Jan. 19–20. Wesleyan is winless in NESCAC competition but has forced four ties against conference opponents due to their stout defense and strong goaltending. Following the series against Wesleyan, Hamilton will return home for two games against a talented Middlebury team sport- ing a 4–1–1 conference record.
