Syracuse shut out by No. 10 Quinnipiac in 4th straight loss

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Quinnipiac forward Zoe Uens sprinted into the offensive zone leading to a three-on-one chance for the Bobcats in the third period. Rather than pass the puck to a teammate for an easy goal, she took it to the Syracuse net herself.

All in one movement, Uens released a bullet that zipped past the shoulder of Syracuse goalie Allie Kelley. The tally grew Quinnipiac’s lead to 4-0, putting the game out of reach for the Orange.

In its first-ever contest at M&T Bank Arena, Syracuse (2-4-0, 0-0-0 Atlantic Hockey Association) was shut out for the first time this season by No. 10 Quinnipiac (5-2-0, 0-0-0 Eastern College Athletic Conference). The Orange struggled to possess the puck through much of the game, leading the Bobcats to outshot them 45-7 shots on target. The loss extended SU’s losing streak to four games.

Quinnipiac controlled the pace of play for almost the entire first period. Using a strong forecheck, the Bobcats repeatedly forced the Orange to cough up the puck in their own zone.

Working the puck on the outside of the offensive zone along the boards, the Bobcats tested Kelley early on. Using shots from the slot area as well as deflecting the puck toward the net, Quinnipiac amassed five shots on goal in the first five minutes.

Although Kelley turned aside the handful of shots she faced early on, Syracuse’s defenders began to show signs of fatigue. As the Bobcats kept applying pressure, the Orange were forced to repeatedly dump the puck out of their zone while they scrambled to get fresh legs on the ice.

After sustained offensive pressure, Quinnipiac finally broke through with a power play goal courtesy of a tip-in by Maddy Samoskevich. Shortly after the tally, the Bobcats struck twice in 48 seconds to balloon their lead to 3-0. Quinnipiac finished the period leading Syracuse 17-1 in shots on target.

In the second period, Quinnipiac kept the ice titled in its favor, but SU’s defensive adjustments limited the Bobcats’ ability to knife through the neutral zone off the rush. Still, the Orange were again outshot by a large margin as their offense couldn’t get going.

Meanwhile, Kelley remained solid in net with 14 saves in the period after allowing three goals in the opening frame. Although she faced numerous high-danger shots from the Wildcats for much of the second period, her efforts gave the Orange an opportunity to generate what would be their best and only notable offensive chance in the game at the other end of the ice.

After its forecheck stole the puck along the boards, Syracuse finally established an offensive possession just over halfway through the second period. Charli Kettyle received the puck as she danced along the blue line and gave Quinnipiac goalie Felicia Frank her first true test of the game.

Frank turned aside the shot through traffic, but the rebound bounced off the boards and onto Heidi Knoll’s stick. Knoll quickly fired the puck toward the net but Uens leaned in front of her to block the shot before it could reach the net.

SU’s offense would generate two more shot attempts as the period went on, but Uens rejuvenated the Bobcats’ attack with a goal off the rush. The tally grew SU’s deficit to a nearly insurmountable 4-0 hole going into the third period.

Entering Friday’s matchup, the Orange possessed the nation’s second-best power play that had converted on 4-of-9 opportunities so far in 2024. However, the unit failed to convert on both player-advantage opportunities that it was given in the final frame and also combined for no shots across the two chances.

A goal for Syracuse would have marked its first against Quinnipiac since Oct. 20, 2012, but its scoring drought against the Wildcats would not end in Friday night’s contest.

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