Forward Sophie Veronneau ’20 tallied her first ever goal as a Bulldog when the Yale women’s hockey team took on Rensselaer Saturday, but the tying score was not enough to overcome the Engineers, as the Elis fell 2–1 in the overtime contest on the road.

Both teams entered Saturday’s game boasting wins from the previous night. The Bulldogs (5–9–3, 3–6–1 ECAC Hockey) beat Union 2–0 while RPI (7–14–1, 4–6–0) topped Brown 4–3 in its first win since November. But despite the recent success, for the first two periods of play neither Yale nor RPI managed to find the back of the net until late in the third, when both teams scored and regulation ended in a 1–1 tie.

After a slow start for the Elis and the Engineers, Yale gained steam and outshot its opponent 5–2 during the second period. Yet the Bulldogs’ offensive surge came alongside a handful of penalties. Even when shorthanded, Yale successfully kept RPI out of the net with help from goaltender Tera Hofmann ’20 who recorded a total 18 saves in the game.

As the third and final period of play at Houston Field House began, the game remained scoreless. However, a penalty called on defender Eden Murray ’18 during the eighth minute provided RPI with a power play opportunity and subsequent goal. During the five-on-four advantage for the Engineers, Jaimie Grisgby scored her first of two goals for the day. Just over a minute later, Yale answered with a goal of its own. Veronneau’s tally was assisted by Murray and forward Krista Yip-Chuck ’17 after Veronneau and Murray stole the puck from RPI during an attempted clear.  

Despite outshooting the Engineers 11–7 in the third period, Yale could not come up with another goal and the game was forced into extra time. In the five-minute overtime period, RPI goalie Lovisa Selander saved six shots behind a more aggressive Engineer offense. The game-winning goal came after a series of quick passes among RPI players which landed the puck right in front of Sabrina Repaci. The forward missed her shot, but Grisgby grabbed the rebound and fired in a second shot which made its way past Hofmann to finalize the score at 2–1 with just 48 seconds left on the clock.

The Bulldogs continue their season on the road Friday Jan. 13 against No. 3 Clarkson.