Colgate Secures Frozen Four Berth
HAMILTON – Sophomore forward Elyssa Biederman scored or assisted on all three Raider tallies as the No. 3 Colgate women's hockey team defeated No. 6 Cornell, 3-1, to seal the program's second-ever visit to the Frozen Four.
"It was a very interesting game, very unlike the last one I would say," head coach Greg Fargo said. "I thought we had a pretty good start in the first period. We liked our control of a lot of the play both territorially, possessions, and some of the chances."
Colgate scored first when Biederman rifled a puck to Kristýna Kaltounková from behind the net, which the senior powered home for her 26th goal of the season.
Bieds connects with Kalty and the Raiders lead! pic.twitter.com/xxcWE9jrop
— Colgate Women's Hockey (@ColgateWIH) March 16, 2024
The Raiders would go on to outshoot the Big Red, 15-7, for the remainder of the first period, but Cornell rebounded quickly in the second stanza with a goal from Kaitlin Jockims to knot the score at one.
After being outplayed for the majority of the middle period, the Raiders rebounded by dominating their offensive zone to open the third, forcing Annelies Bergmann to make a number of big saves down the stretch.
ECAC Rookie of the Year Emma Pais and Colgate captain Danielle Serdachny both had excellent scoring chances in the final frame, but Bergmann stifled both attempts to keep the game even.
With overtime looking imminent, Biederman fired a pass across the ice to Allyson Simpson at the top of the right faceoff circle. The fifth-year calmly corralled the puck and unleashed a rocket into the far corner of the net for her first game-winning goal of the season.
Simpy Snipe ?????? Raiders ahead with under three minutes to play! pic.twitter.com/ecFW7zjYdn
— Colgate Women's Hockey (@ColgateWIH) March 16, 2024
After Bergmann was pulled from net Cornell saw two clean looks in the final two minutes of play. Danielle Serdachny stepped up to block the first from Rory Guilday, while Kayle Osborne made her 19th save of the night to stymie the second attempt.
The defensive prowess culminated in Biederman getting out on a breakaway where she guided in an empty-net goal, sealing Colgate's first trip to the Frozen Four since 2018.
UP NEXT
The Raiders travel to Durham, N.H. where they will meet No. 2 Wisconsin on Friday, March 22. Fans interested in attending Colgate's Frozen Four matchup should fill out this form to request tickets in the Raiders' block of seats.
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