PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A three-point night from senior Taylor Woods lifted Cornell women’s hockey to a 4-2 win over Brown and an important two points in ECAC Hockey play Friday night at Meehan Auditorium.
Cornell (10-12-4, 6-9-4 ECAC Hockey) broke through on the power play late in the first period. Junior Brianna Veerman came down the right wing and found senior Jess Brown, who flicked a low shot past Bears goaltender Monica Elvin for her team-leading 12th goal of the season. Cornell is now 5-0-2 when Jess Brown scores.
The Big Red doubled its lead just 1:30 into the second period, as freshman Lenka Serdar slid a pass to Woods in the right circle, and Woods ripped a slapshot past Elvin. Freshman Micah Hart started the play back in the Cornell defensive zone for the second assist, making the Big Red 8-0-1 when Hart records a helper.
Cornell went to the penalty kill shortly after, but held the Bears off the board and in fact held possession in Brown’s end for an extended period of time shorthanded.
Junior Hanna Bunton generated another man-down chance midway through the frame, breaking in on Elvin, but Elvin was there to make the stop and the two slid into the net, knocking it off its mooring.
With the teams exchagning penalties for much of the middle frame, the Big Red netted its second power-play goal of the evening late in the second period. Senior Cassandra Poudrier took a shot from the point, and the rebound ricocheted off Elvin, popping up into the air. Woods settled it down, leaving it in front of senior Anna Zorn at the left post, and she popped it in short-side for her second of the year and a 3-0 Cornell lead.
Brown got on the board 2:13 into the third when Hunter Davis capitalized on the Bears’ own man-advantage situation.
Woods pushed the lead back to three with 8:40 to go, netting her second of the night, stealing the puck at the Cornell blue line and beating a Brown defenseman one-on-one, before sending a shot into the top corner over Elvin’s shoulder.
Brown (3-20-3, 1-16-3) got one back less than a minute later, when Woo caught a pass from the corner and snuck one past Malene Boissonnault. The Bears put up 15 shots in the third period, but Boissonnault stood tall to preserve her fifth victory of the season, finishing with 31 saves.
The Big Red put 41 shots on Elvin, including outshooting the Bears 18-9 in the second period.
Cornell travels to Yale on Saturday for a 4 p.m. puck drop against the Bulldogs at Ingalls Rink. The game will be simulcast on the Ivy League Digital Network and ESPN3.
