#5 Colgate Headed to Fifth-Straight Championship
ITHACA, N.Y.— No. 5 Colgate used a two-goal second period to power past No. 7 St. Lawrence, 4-2, in the ECAC Hockey Semifinal Friday night inside Lynah Rink. After the game was delayed by two hours due to the other semifinal going to triple overtime, the Raiders started hot with three unanswered goals before surviving a late Saints rally and punching a ticket to their fifth-consecutive ECAC Hockey Championship.
"What a night," head coach Stefan Decosse said. "In the ECAC, there's always something. We had to push back the start time a couple hours with the game before but I'm super proud that through that our focus remained steady. I'm very proud of the way we showed up today. The first 40 was phenomenal. We know St. Lawrence is a good team and wasn't going to give up, and they didn't. But I'm just incredibly proud of our steadiness and unity through those stormy moments."
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Sophomore Madeline Palumbo's 10th goal of the season beat St. Lawrence's netminder glove side just inside the near pipe to put Colgate ahead 1-0.
- Sophomore Emma Pais doubled the advantage with a tap in goal after first-year Alexia Aubin expertly threaded a puck between two Saints on a breakaway.
- Halfway through the second stanza, first-year Georgia Sambrano sniped her second goal of the season to extend Colgate's lead to three.
- St. Lawrence stormed back with a pair of goals less than two minutes apart with over eight minutes remaining in the third, but an empty-net goal from junior Elyssa Biederman iced the win for the Raiders.
GAME NOTES
- Colgate moves to 12-3 versus ranked opponents this season, and is 22-8 in the ECAC Hockey playoffs since 2015.
- The Raiders sealed their fourth-consecutive season with 30+ wins.
- Senior goalie Hannah Murphy broke the program record for most wins in a season with her 26th win of the campaign.
- Sambrano earned the first game-winning goal of her career in the win.
UP NEXT
No. 5 Colgate (30-7, 19-4 ECAC) meets No. 3 Cornell (23-4-5, 16-2-4 ECAC) looking for its record-breaking fifth-straight ECAC Championship tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. inside Lynah Rink.
Latest Women's Ice Hockey
- Kaltounkovå Garners CCM/AHCA All-American HonorsMINNEAPOLIS – Fifth-year forward Kristýna Kaltounková was selected to the CCM Hockey and American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) second-team All-American squad, announced Saturday at the Ridder Arena, site of the 2025 Frozen Four.
- #5 Colgate's Comeback Falls Short at #4 MinnesotaMINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – A few more minutes on the clock may have been all that was needed, but No. 5 Colgate's valiant comeback effort ran out of time in a 3-2 decision at No. 4 Minnesota in the NCAA Women's Hockey Regional Final on Saturday afternoon inside Ridder Arena.
- Raiders Take Main Stage in MinneapolisHAMILTON – The No. 5 Colgate women's hockey team will face off against No. 4 Minnesota in the NCAA quarterfinals on Saturday afternoon at 3 p.m. ET. The winner punches their ticket to the Frozen Four in Minneapolis, Minn. to face off against the victor of the other quarterfinal contest between No. 1 Wisconsin and Clarkson or Boston University.
- Biederman Earns Forward of the Month HonorsDANBURY, Conn. – Junior forward Elyssa Biederman was named as the ECAC Hockey Forward of the month after logging nine points and helping the Raiders to a 5-1 record in February.
- Women’s Hockey Draws Minnesota in NCAA TournamentHAMILTON – The NCAA Women's Ice Hockey Championship released its tournament field and pits No. 5 Colgate (30-8-0, 18-4-0) against No. 4 Minnesota (28-11, 19-8-1) on Saturday. Puck drop from Ridder Arena is 3 p.m. ET on Saturday, March 15.
- Colgate Falls in ECAC FinalITHACA, N.Y. — No. 5 Colgate could not corral No. 3 Cornell Saturday night, falling in the ECAC Championship inside Lynah Rink, 5-1. Sophomore Kaia Malachino scored the lone goal of the contest for the Raiders who will regroup for the first round of the NCAA tournament to be played next weekend.
