NCAA hockey: UWRF women get shot at third straight D3 title
Wisconsin River Falls’ women’s hockey team earned a shot at their third straight Division III championship by beating Amherst College, 3-1, on Friday at Hunt Arena in River Falls, Wis. Alexa Niccum, Megan Goodreau and Madison Kadrlik scored goals, and Jordan O’Kane stopped 30 shots as the Falcons earned their third Frozen Four victory in as many years. The Falcons (29-1-0) will meet Nazareth (27-1-1) in the national championship game Sunday.
Puck drop is set for 3 p. m. at Hunt Arena.
The power play has been the Falcons’ bread and butter all season, scoring at a remarkable 45 percent clip, and Niccum and Goodreau scored 5-on-4 goals to put the Falcons up 2-0 early in the second period. Goodreau set a Division III single-season record with her 18th power play goal, surpassing the mark set by Elmira’s Cassidy Delainey in 2015. She set up Niccum on the power play for the Falcons’ first goal, then finished a passing sequence from Sophia Hess and MaKenna Aure to put the Falcons up 2-0 early in the second period.
Later in the period, Kadrlik scored an even-strength goal off her own rebound for a 3-0 lead. “I call her ‘Captain Automatic’ because she never misses a shot,” Falcons coach Joe Cranston said of Kadrlik, “and when she does miss a shot, she gets the rebound. ” Amherst (21-3-6) avoided a shutout with a third-period power play goal by Maeve Reynolds.
Natalie Stott stopped 30 shots for the Mammoth, who gave up three goals for the first time this season. Stott leads the nation with a . 632 goals-against average.