Boxscore

RYE, N.Y.  – Senior Holly Nonis (Brampton, Ontario/Saint Thomas Aquinas) will continue her collegiate career as she led the second-seeded Manhattanville women's hockey team with four points in an 8-1 victory over seventh-seeded Castleton State in the quarterfinals of the ECAC East Women's Hockey Tournament at Playland Ice Casino on Saturday evening. 

With the victory, Manhattanville (17-7-2, 13-4-1 ECAC East) will take on fifth-seeded UMass Boston, who upset fourth-seed Salve Regina, 3-2 (OT), on Saturday afternoon. The contest will take place at Kreitzberg Arena on the campus of top-seed Norwich University next Saturday. The Valiants split the season series with the Beacons, with both teams winning on their own home ice. More information on the game will be announced on GoValiants.com on Tuesday, including game time and broadcasting availability.  

Nonis finished the game with her second hat-trick of the season, as the Valiants completely dominated the Spartans with puck possession for most of the game. Freshman Haleigh Hutchinson (Allen Park, Mich./Honeybaked (TOEHL)) was also a top performer on the ice finishing with a pair of goals, while sophomores Mary Rose Morrison (Ridgefield, Conn./Connecticut Stars (MFYHL)) and Jessica Kehoe (Kemptville, Ontario/Nepean Wildcats (PWHL)) finished with three points each: Morrison dished out three assists and Kehoe added a goal and two helpers. Sophomore Sonia Occhionero (Montreal, Quebec/Kent School (Conn.)) gave the top line another pair of points with a tally and an assist, as the Morrison-Occhionero-Hutchinson unit finished with seven points and was a threat all game long.

Manhattanville finished the game with a 52-13 edge in shots and even denied the Spartans a shot in the second period (26-0). Although the Spartans were outplayed in the contest, netminder Amanda Hoy had a great game making 44 stops, including multiple point-blank saves. Manhattanville sophomore Emy Cote (Saint-Hubert, Quebec/Dawson College) made 12 saves and was only really needed in the first and third periods where she made six saves in each period.

The Valiants scored eight straight goals in the contest before Castleton broke the shut out midway into the final period on the power-play. Halfway into the opening frame Hutchinson gave the Valiants the 1-0 lead with Morrison and classmate Charlotte Hotaling (Southfield, Mich./Victory Honda) assisting at the 11:57 mark. The Valiants added two more goals in the next four minutes, as Kehoe found Nonis both times to give the Valiants a 3-0 lead after the first period.

Manhattanville increased its lead in the second period with four more tallies to take a 7-0 lead after outshooting Castleton State, 26-0. Hutchinson scored her second goal of the game with 18:28 left as Occhionero and junior Hannah Muskego (Neilburg, Saskatchewan/PWM Steelers (AMMFHL)) set-up the winger deep in the slot.  The Valiants took a 5-0 lead at the 7:49 mark as Morrison and classmate Katie Little (Victoria, British Columbia/Team British Columbia) found Nonis for her third goal of the game and eighth of the season on the power play.

The Valiants continued their run over the Spartans as junior Jackie Solomito (Sea Cliff, N.Y./Niagara University (CHA)) and sophomore Ella Hubley (Santa Monica, Calif./LA Selects) crashed the net with Hubley finally getting the puck over the line for her sixth tally of the year at 10:59. Kehoe finished the period with her fourth goal of the year as Nonis and classmate Jess Scioli (North Reading, Mass./North Reading) added assists at the 15:18 mark.

Manhattanville added one more goal before the end of the night as Occhionero put in a rebound off an original shot by Morrison at 10:16 to give the host an 8-0 advantage. Castleton finally got on the board late in the third period, as a shot from the point by Kaitlin Hayes was deflected by Laura Szwed at the side of the net for her 10th of the year.