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After receiving a pass from Sydney Morrow in the right offensive faceoff zone, Colgate’s Allyson Simpson searched for a teammate. Simpson found Kristýna Kaltounková right in front of the net. After the initial shot was saved by Syracuse’s Allie Kelley, Kaltounková finished the rebound to open up the scoring less than three minutes into the first period.

In a battle between Colgate’s efficient power play offense against Syracuse’s strong power kill, it was the power play that won early on. Kaltounková’s goal was the first of 12 for Colgate (18-3-1, 9-1 ECAC) who defeated Syracuse (4-14-2, 1-6-1 College Hockey America) 12-0. After over a month’s rest, the Orange did not fare better than its last outing — a 9-0 loss to the Raiders on Dec. 5.

A dominating offense for Colgate controlled possession throughout all three periods, registering 65 shots on goal against two Syracuse goalies in the victory.

The troubles for Syracuse started less than two minutes in, when Marielle McHale got called for tripping. The penalty led to the first goal by Kaltounková.

The Orange couldn’t find any offense after Colgate opened up the scoring, while the Raiders peppered Kelley with shots. Kelley held strong for nearly three minutes, until Dara Greig got the puck 10 feet in front of the goal. A beautiful backhand finish as Greig skated towards the right side put the Raiders up 2-0 just over five minutes into the first.

After domination by Colgate’s offense, Syracuse finally got a shot on goal. But Syracuse, like in the first matchup, struggled to match the speed of the Raiders and could not put together sustained offensive possessions.

After a timeout just over 12 minutes into the first period, Colgate started flexing its true offensive domination with a nearly three-minute long possession in its offensive zone. But the Orange held strong, keeping the score at 2-0 until just over a minute left in the first.

After some controversy over whether Kelley had the puck or not after a save, the refs did not blow their whistles, which led to an open puck for Kaia Malachino to the left of a scuffle in front of the net, which put Colgate up 3-0.

At the end of the first period, Syracuse only had one shot on goal while the Raiders had 23. The Orange were without Rachel Teslak, one of their top offensive threats, who was also out with injury in Syracuse’s last game before break.

Colgate set the pace early on in the second period, continuing to dominate in SU’s defensive zone.

Just over eight minutes into the period, Ella Belfry played a puck along the offensive blue line to Simpson. Moving along the boards, Simpson fired a shot on goal, where Greig was waiting to tip in her second goal of the day.

The offensive fireworks continued for the Raiders. With just over nine minutes left in the second, Kas Betinol received the puck from a misdirected pass off a Syracuse skate in front of the net. The senior easily scored her first of the day.

Less than five minutes later, Betinol again shot, this time from the left edge of the left faceoff circle, to put Colgate up 6-0. This would be the last shot Kelley faced, as backup goalie Amelia Van Vliet came in.

But even with a new face in goal, the struggles continued. With four minutes left in the second Morrow slapped in a shot from a few feet in front of the goal. This was the first shot Van Vliet faced and it went in, to make it 7-0. Soon after Simpson scored on a slapshot to make it 8-0.

The Orange had little time in the offensive zone throughout the second period, limiting any chances they had to get on the scoreboard. Meanwhile, Colgate piled on five goals off of 21 shots on goal in one of Syracuse’s worst defensive periods this year.

Things did not get much better for Syracuse in the third. The Orange committed three penalties and gave up four more goals as Colgate continued to dominate. Neena Brick scored two more to finish the day with four goals.

On the other side of the ice, Colgate put in goaltender Averill McCorkle for the first time this season. The junior only had to make three saves in the period to keep the Orange scoreless.

The Orange will try to get back on track as they open up CHA play this weekend with an away series at Mercyhurst. Syracuse is at risk of missing the CHA playoffs for the first time in program history, currently sitting at sixth place in the conference, with the top four teams making the semifinals.

Published on January 9, 2024 at 3:22 pm