RYE, N.Y. – In a battle of two of the top teams in the conference, it was quality over quantity that led to a Manhattanville College women's hockey win over Utica on Friday night. Despite getting 25 less shots than the opposition, the Valiants made the most of their opportunities in the offensive zone to earn a 3-1 win, improve to 10-4-1 on the year and 10-1-0 in the conference, and hand Utica it's first loss in UCHC play.

Gabrielle Cox (Niverville, NY/Ichabod Crane High School) was the star of the night, getting involved in all three of the Valiants' goals. The junior scored twice and earned an assist as she now leads Manhattanville with 21 points on 11 goals and 10 assists this season.

It was a defensive battle through the early going, as 37 minutes came and went with zeroes still on the scoreboard for both teams. The chances were fairly even through the first period, with Utica holding an 11-8 shot advantage in the first 20. The second period, however, was a constant barrage of shots from Utica skaters, as the Pioneers held the puck in the offensive zone for an overwhelming majority of the period, recording 20 shots. While the Valiants defense hung tough in the face of the constant pressure, Georgiana Santullo finally broke through on the power play at 17:04 to put the visitors up 1-0.

Despite playing in their defensive zone for most of the period, the Valiants made the most of one of their few chances in the second just 20 seconds later, as Cox picked up the rebound off Grace Felicio's (Holden, Mass./Wachusett Regional) shot to fire it in to the open net. Taylor Ham (Saugerties, N.Y./Millbrook School) was also credited with an assist on the tying goal.

Cox struck again 66 seconds into the third, collecting a pass from Tia Martignetti (Wilmington, Mass./Boston Junior Eagles (EHF)) in the open ice and beating the Utica defenders to put the Valiants on top. Kerry Carr (New Hartford, N.Y./Millbrook School) added an insurance tally at 7:23 in the period, scoring just six seconds into the power play from Felicio and Cox.

Franny Gerardi (Yonkers, N.Y./Selects Academy) made her 2022 debut in net, picking up right where she left off in the first half of the season. The junior goaltender earned her seventh win of the season with a 41 save performance. Gerardi drops her goals against average down to 2.39 while her save percentage on the year sits at .928.

The Valiants were 1-for-3 on the power play on the night, recording four shots on the attempts. The Pioneers went 1-for-2 with the skater advantage, logging seven shots. Faceoffs were even at 24 apiece, with Felicio leading the way for the Valiants with 11 wins.

Up Next
These two teams are back at it tomorrow with puck drop scheduled for 3 p.m.

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