{"id":3620,"date":"2016-03-19T00:13:06","date_gmt":"2016-03-19T04:13:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nsnsports.net\/?p=3620"},"modified":"2016-03-19T00:13:06","modified_gmt":"2016-03-19T04:13:06","slug":"womens-hockey-cardinals-advance-to-ncaa-title-game-top-panthers-5-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nsnsports.net\/blog\/article\/womens-hockey-cardinals-advance-to-ncaa-title-game-top-panthers-5-3\/","title":{"rendered":"Women’s Hockey: Cardinals Advance to NCAA Title Game, Top Panthers 5-3"},"content":{"rendered":"
Courtesy Middlebury Sports Information<\/p>\n
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Plattsburgh, NY. — The Middlebury women’s hockey team suffered a 5-3 loss to top-ranked Plattsburgh State in an NCAA semifinal game played in Stafford Arena. The host Cardinals (28-1) advance to the NCAA Championship game on Saturday night against Wisconsin-River Falls, while the fourth-ranked Panthers (21-5-3) will take on Elmira in a third-place contest at 3:30 p.m. Julia Neuburger<\/a> was stellar in net for the Panthers, making a career-high 36 saves.<\/p>\n Middlebury went on the power play 3:08 into the game, but the Panthers were unable to get on the board despite a good chance early. Shortly after the power play expired, the Cardinals went on a power play of their own, capitalizing just as it expired at the 7:26 mark. Karen Hudson scored her fifth of the season, one-timing a pass in the slot after a feed from the corner by Muna Fadel.<\/p>\n The Cardinals had another power-play opportunity at the 9:48 mark, but were unable to take advantage. Just 14 seconds after her penalty had expired, Middlebury’s Jessica Young<\/a> scored her 12th of the season to tie the game at 1-1 with 7:58 remaining in the first period. Janka Hlinka<\/a> fed the puck ahead to Young on the left wing, who made a great move past a defender before snapping a shot into the far corner of the net.<\/p>\n Plattsburgh State found itself shorthanded 15:07 into the period, but Middlebury was unable to take the lead. The Panthers’ best chance came on a feed from Young to Maddie Winslow<\/a>, but Winslow’s shot from point-blank range was denied by Cardinal netminder Camille Leonard (21 saves). The period ended in a 1-1 tie with Plattsburgh State holding a 13-7 shots advantage.<\/p>\n The hosts wasted little time going back on top in the second period, as Kayla Meneghin stuffed in her own rebound for her 23rd of the year at the 1:08 mark. She nearly made it a 3-1 game three minutes later, but her breakaway attempt went high.<\/p>\n The Cardinals took a 3-1 lead at 5:36 when Fadel scored her fourth of the season on a hard wrister from the slot after a feed from Meneghin.<\/p>\n Neuburger kept it a 3-1 game with a pair of nice saves at the 12:50 and 13:10 marks just before a Plattsburgh power play began. Neuburger came up big once again on the ensuing power play, making a big glove save on a blast from the left point by Megan Delay.<\/p>\n The Cardinals scored their first power-play goal of the game at 16:10, when Bridget Balisy picked the top-left corner of the net for her 13th of the season. Plattsburgh State struck again just 59 seconds later when Giovanna Senese and Melissa Sheeran worked a give-and-go, with Senese converting her 12th of the season for a 5-1 lead.<\/p>\n