The #4 Middlebury women's ice hockey cut the lead in half with 1:20 remaining in Sunday's third period, but an empty-net goal sealed a 3-1 victory for #2 Amherst.

HIGHLIGHTS

• Britt Nawrocki blasted a bid between the faceoff circles at the 6:16 mark of the initial stanza, but Amherst goalie Natalie Stott slid to her right to deny the wrister.
• Amherst tallied back-to-back doorstep opportunities with 11:46 elapsed. Annabel Ruffin ripped a turnaround attempt that ricocheted off netminder Sophia Will's right blocker and toward the top-right corner of the crease. Tammy Zhu looked to tuck the puck inside the right post, but Will deflected the attempt away with her glove.
• After a Mammoth turnover, Avery McInerny raced up the ice and rifled a bid between the circles at the 16:57 mark. Stott snatched the puck out of the air to keep the contest scoreless after 20 minutes.
• The hosts grabbed a 1-0 lead with 2:34 expired in the second frame. Gretchen Dann fired a point-blank bid that Will denied, but the defender collected the puck and pushed it into the right side of the net.
• McInerny and Trinity Walsh created a 2-on-1 opportunity at 11:41. The assistant captain hustled into the zone and tapped a cross-ice pass to the rookie. Stott shifted to the left at the right time, stonewalling Walsh's chance.
• A hustle play by Kate Flynn nearly proved costly for the hosts less than a minute later. The forward picked off a pass and skated through the neutral zone, creating a 1-on-1 battle with Stott. Flynn had back-to-back sizzling attempts denied by the Mammoth goalie.
• Amherst extended its advantage with 14:57 remaining. Carlisle Brush collected a bouncing puck near the right post and fired it past a sprawled-out Will to make it 2-0.
• Middlebury kept the pressure up. Callia Ferraris fired a screamer from just outside the bottom faceoff circle at the 8:48 mark. Despite the traffic in front of her, Stott made the stop.
• The Mammoths had a power-play opportunity of their own with less than eight minutes remaining. The hosts fired three consecutive shots over an 11-second spanbut Will stood tall and denied each bid. 
• Middlebury pulled Will for an extra skater and cashed in with 1:20 left. An initial shot from Alyssa Frazier was blocked in front by a Mammoth defender and pushed toward the left post. Caroline Thomas collected possession and flipped it into the left side of the net to trim the deficit to 2-1.
• Amherst sealed the victory 23 ticks later via an empty-net goal from Maeve Reynolds for the final 3-1 decision.

NOTES

• Thomas tallied her team-leading 11th goal of the season and extended her point streak to four-consecutive contests.
• McInerny's assist puts her three away from 50 in a Middlebury uniform.
• Will stopped 34 shots in the contest.
• McInerny and Nawrocki each skated in their respective 100th career games.
• The programs met for the 71st time in women's hockey.

The Panthers stay on the road for a conference doubleheader against Bowdoin beginning Friday at 7:00 p.m.