BRIDGEWATER, Mass. (March 1, 2025) – The Stonehill College women's hockey team's comeback attempt came up short on home ice in game two of its best-of-three New England Women's Hockey Alliance (NEWHA) Quarterfinal series against Saint Anselm College, falling 4-3 on Saturday night. With the loss, the Skyhawks' record moved to 14-18-5, while the Hawks improved to 11-18-7.

Highlights

• As a team, Stonehill outshot Saint Anselm 51-39, marking the third time this season the Skyhawks have recorded at least 50 shots on goal.
• Senior co-captain Josie Mendeszoon and first-year defender Seina Spadone each scored their third goals of the season.
• Junior Gracie Sacca found the back of the net for her 10th goal overall and third power-play goal of the year.
• Sophomore Peyton Wise, graduate student Maeve Connolly, and junior co-captain Sydney Russell each registered assists.
• First-year goaltender Alexsa Caron made 35 saves in net for the Skyhawks.
• Junior Brooklyn Schneiderhan and senior Tyra Turner led the Hawks' offense, each contributing multi-point games with a goal and an assist.
• First-year Lucy DeCoteau and senior Audrey Jackson scored their eighth and 13th goals of the season, respectively, for Saint Anselm.
• Junior goaltender Ava Hills earned the win in net, stopping 48 of 51 shots faced.

How it Happened
Saint Anselm wasted no time in opening the scoring, jumping to a 2-0 lead just six minutes into game two of the NEWHA Quarterfinal best-of-three series. Turner put the Hawks on the board at 3:04, sneaking a point-blank shot under the pads of Caron and across the goal line. Less than three minutes later, at 6:05, Schneiderhan wristed a shot over Caron's glove on a breakaway, extending Saint Anselm's lead to two goals.
 
The Hawks added to their advantage just 2:23 into the second period when DeCoteau capitalized on a pass from first-year student Nicola Forth, burying her eighth goal of the season to give Saint Anselm a 3-0 lead. Stonehill responded late in the period, cutting the deficit to 3-1 when Mendeszoon fired a shot through the skate of Hills and into the net at the 19:40 mark, providing the Skyhawks with some momentum heading into the break.
 
At 5:17 in the third period, Saint Anselm regained a three-goal lead when Jackson scored her 13th goal of the season. However, less than a minute later, Spadone answered for the Skyhawks, blasting a shot from the far-side faceoff circle over Hills' blocker and under the crossbar to trim the deficit to 4-2.
 
With 7:10 remaining, Stonehill's power play struck when Sacca unloaded a one-timed slap shot from Russell, beating Hills to bring the Skyhawks within one goal at 4-3. Despite holding Saint Anselm to just four shots on goal in the final seven minutes of regulation, Stonehill could not complete the comeback. Saint Anselm held on for a 4-3 victory, forcing a decisive game three in the NEWHA Quarterfinal series on Sunday.

Up Next
Stonehill (14-18-5, 13-10-5 NEWHA) returns to action tomorrow night at 6:30 PM for game three of its best-of-three NEWHA Quarterfinal series against conference rival Saint Anselm College at the Bridgewater Ice Arena.
 
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