After starting the fall with two preseason wins, the Yale women’s ice hockey team continued its dominance this past weekend, crushing the Rochester Institute of Technology in two games.

Yale (2–0–0, 0–0–0 ECAC Hockey) had 14 different players register a point in the two games combined, complementing a 4–1 victory over the Tigers (1–7–0, 0–0–0 Atlantic Hockey) on Friday with an 8–2 drubbing on Saturday. Defender Taylor Marchin ’17 and forwards captain Krista Yip-Chuck ’17 and Phoebe Staenz ’17 netted two goals each against RIT, while Kara Drexler ’18 and Eden Murray ’18 both tallied four assists.

“We are really happy with the way we’re producing and what we’re creating offensively,” head coach Joakim Flygh said. “Our depth really showed, and it’s really exciting when we have that success.”

Yale began its regular season on a high note, scoring a pair of unanswered goals in the first period of Friday’s matchup. The first came on a snap shot from the left side by forward Jordan Chancellor ’19 that whistled past the shoulder of RIT goalie Terra Lanteigne. Forward Kirsten Nergaard ’20 scored her first career goal with six minutes left in the first period, doubling Yale’s lead to 2–0 off of assists by Drexler and forward Kaitlin Gately ’18.

Though the Bulldogs put nine shots on goal in the second period, Lanteigne saved each one to hold the Elis scoreless. Goalie Hanna Mandl ’17 matched her opponent’s defense with six saves of her own in the period to protect Yale’s two-goal lead.

Marchin put the Bulldogs on the board once more at the start of the third period, firing a slap shot into the net from near center ice on a power play at 7:59. The Tigers were able to score halfway through the third period after Mandl failed to secure a rebound in front of the net, but the Elis capped off the game with an empty net goal by Yip-Chuck at 17:31.

Yale owned a 50–18 shot advantage over RIT in the 4–1 win.

“Coming off of Friday’s win we definitely had a lot more confidence and knew we were in a good place setting foot on the ice on Saturday,” Mandl said. “The girls also did a great job sharing the puck, [and it] led to eight goals which is outstanding.”

It did not take long on Saturday for forward Laura Anderson ’20 to find the net on assists by Drexler and Chancellor, giving Yale the lead less than eight minutes into the game. After scoring just one goal in the opening period, the Bulldogs picked up the intensity in the second period, outshooting the Tigers 18–7 and putting away four goals.

Defender Julia Yetman ’19 scored the team’s second goal on a power play after RIT forward Reagan Rust received a hooking penalty. Marchin sent a cross-rink pass to Yetman who fired the long shot in.

Yale continued to lay on the offense shortly after Yetman’s goal. Staenz scored a goal right in front of the net off of a pass by Drexler from near center ice. After assisting her teammates earlier in the game, Marchin provided some scoring of her own with help from Murray and Yip-Chuck. The captain stole the puck at center ice and passed to Murray who eventually found a wide-open Marchin for the strike.

Forward Emily Monaghan ’18 had her time to shine three minutes after Marchin, scoring the fifth Bulldog goal on a pass from forward Courtney Pensavalle ’18 with less than 40 seconds to go in the second period.

With a 5–0 advantage entering the third period, forward Emma Vlasic ’19 reopened the scoring for the Bulldogs with her first career goal at 9:03.

“[Defender] Grace [Wickens ’18] got the puck at the point and had a high shot that I was able to get a stick on and then deflect into the net,” Vlasic said. “It was really nice to score my first goal and hopefully I’ll build off of that more this season.”

Yip-Chuck showcased her skills yet again, recording her third point of the game on a long shot from straight in front of the goal, while RIT was still unable to counter offensively.

The Tigers finally got on the scoreboard late in the third period. In a small scoring run for the team, forward Kathryn Kennedy and defender Taylor Thurston both scored on power play opportunities. Kennedy took advantage of an opening from center ice to score and Thurston followed by tapping in the puck from inches in front of the goal.

But RIT’s brief surge came far too late to change the game’s final outcome. Marchin found an open Staenz who scored on a quick pass to make the score 8–2 as the clock counted down.

“I think our quick playing pace really helped us on Saturday,” Vlasic said. “We have a fast team so we want to be moving our feet and creating space. That’s what will help us in our big games coming up this weekend.”

With the Yale’s ECAC schedule looming, Flygh expressed his confidence in his team’s ability, and said he believes that the team’s fitness and talent have shown in its first four games.

“We want to win championships,” Flygh said. “We’ll try be a top four team in our league; that’s an attainable goal. We want to keep on dancing and win the Ivy League Championship, and hopefully that leads to a National Championship.”

The Bulldogs barely missed a playoff berth at the end of last season, finishing ninth in the ECAC. The Bulldogs will look to continue their win streak in their first weekend of conference play at Ingalls Rink, facing Quinnipiac on Friday and Princeton on Saturday.

JANE MILLER
BRIAN YEO