BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Penn State women's hockey team used a critical 5-on-3 penalty kill early in the second period and Natalie Heising's hat trick as part of four-unanswered goals to defeat RIT, 4-1, in the CHA first round Thursday evening at the LECOM HarborCenter.
Penn State (13-14-8) defeated the Tigers (12-19-4) by the exact same score a year ago in the opening round of postseason play.
Heising's natural hat trick included the go-ahead goal in the second period plus two more in the third period for her second-career hat trick and the first postseason hat trick in Penn State history.
Anna Promersberger netted the tying goal for Penn State in the second period. Shea Nelson had three assists all on Heising's goals while Brooke Madsen added a pair.
Chantal Burke stopped 27 shots in goal for the Nittany Lions.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Penn State kept play in the RIT zone for most of the period and led 15-10 in shots on goal after 20 minutes. RIT had one power play in the middle of the period, but Chantal Burke made three solid stops and then Rachel Weiss drew a holding call on a shorthanded breakaway to even the number of skaters on the ice 4-4.
Penn State had an abbreviated power play but couldn't find the first goal of the game. Then, with 34.7 seconds left in the first, RIT's Ellie Larson scored on a two-on-one to give the Tigers the advantage entering the first break.
The Nittany Lions had to weather a storm early in the second period as back-to-back penalties put RIT on a 5-on-3 for 1:09. Rene Gangarosa had a huge blocked shot and Burke made a pair of saves as the Nittany Lions killed both penalties to get back to even-strength unscathed.
Penn State used the energy from their big PK and ended up tying the game just minutes later. During a great offensive zone shift, Julie Gough worked the puck to the point for Izzy Heminger who shot it through traffic. Mikayla Lantto got a stick on it and it pried free to Promersberger who scored on the open net to tie the game, 1-1 at 7:57 in the second.
The Nittany Lions weren't done there as they continued to pressure RIT on the forecheck, resulting in a forced turnover and the go-ahead goal. Shea Nelson stole the puck and put it on net, and it was quickly followed up by Madsen and Heising, the latter of which buried the loose puck to give PSU the lead at 11:31.
The Nittany Lions put the clamps on in the third period by controlling the neutral zone and constantly putting the puck back into RIT's end. Then, with 5:36 to play, Penn State transitioned beautifully from defense to offense to pick up a big insurance goal from Heising.
After an initial clear from Nelson, Madsen made a great saucer pass to Heising charging the net and she pushed it past the goaltender to give Penn State the crucial insurance marker late.
Heising followed up with another goal from the right wing on the empty net with 39 seconds left to complete her second career hat trick and end the game, 4-1, for the Nittany Lions.
HEAR IT FROM THEM
Head Coach Jeff Kampersal
- "It was a great come-from-behind win for us. The 5-on-3 penalty kill early in the second period was a huge momentum swing. We worked smart, swarmed their net, and backchecked hard all night.
- "Natalie was flying today. Big time players show up in big time games."
Junior Natalie Heising
- On her go-ahead goal: "Shea made a great play to get the puck and put it on net…I didn't get to it at first but Brooke nudged it forward just enough to give me another chance at the empty net and it was good to put that one in.
- On her insurance goal in the third (second goal): "When we played [RIT] last, obviously it wasn't our best effort and they scored a lot on us on 2-on-1s. We wanted to get back at them with a few of our own, so when I saw Brooke take off, I knew I had to hustle to the net to be an option. She slid it over and I just knew I was going to put it away."
GAME NOTES
- Heising joins Laura Bowman as the only Nittany Lions to record multiple hat tricks in their career. Her last hat trick was scored Feb. 24, 2018 against Lindenwood at Pegula Ice Arena.
- With three assists, Shea Nelson tied the program record for assists in a game, joining teammate Mallory Uihlein who also accomplished the feat this season Nov. 29 at Vermont.
- Penn State has now won three-straight CHA First Round games, its longest streak in program history. The Nittany Lions are also 4-1 in their last five postseason matchups against RIT.
NEXT UP
Penn State gets a rematch with top-seeded Mercyhurst in Friday's first semifinal matchup at 12:30 p.m. Syracuse defeated Lindenwood in the other First Round game and will play Robert Morris in the other semifinal at 4:00.