By David F. Pendrys [Checked against official box score.]

HAMDEN, CT-The two ECAC teams with the smallest distance between them met on Saturday afternoon and the Quinnipiac Bobcats pulled off a decisive 6-3 victory over the Yale Bulldogs who were starting their season with this game.. In goal for Quinnipiac was Sydney Rossman, and for Yale, Hanna Mandl.

At 9:44 Quinnipiac’s Nicole Kosta found herself to Mandl’s left at the net. She got the puck and backhanded it across the goal and into the opposite corner to put QU on the board. The lone assist went to Nicole Connery. Yale didn’t take that long to strike back. At 13:16 Krista Yip-Chuck of Yale was at the edge of the zone. She shot it hard over Rossman’s right shoulder. The assist went to Taylor Marchin.

With a Bulldog in the box, QU commenced the power play. Kosta took the puck and skated to the center. She launched it over Mandl’s right shoulder into the top left corner of the net for a 2-1 QU lead. Cydney Roesler and Melissa Samoskevich had assists on the power play goal.

The first period would end with the 2-1 score in tact. QU had 6 shots on goal to Yale’s 3.

In the second, it would take about six minutes plus for T.T. Cianfarano to score assisted by Melissa Samoskevich. Samoskevich stole the puck from Yale in the corner of their zone and sent it out to Cianfarano who skated in and shot it up and into the corner of the net from a good position.

After killing off a penalty of their own Yale went on a power play, but only succeeded in hitting the cross bar.

Much later at 15:26, Yale’s Jordan Chancellor intercept a Quinnipiac pass in the Bobcat zone, she sent it to Emily Monaghan who was in a position to beat Rossman to bring the score to 3-2.

Quinnipiac responded when Samoskevich stole the puck from Yale as they were trying to move out of their end, the surprising development led her to b part of an essential 3 on 1, she passed it out to Emma Woods who passed it to Cianfarano who sent it back to Samoskevich in front of the net and she lightly sent it past the keeper for a 4-2 lead.

The second period would soon wrap up with the score as it was, Quinnipiac had 15 shots to Yale’s 14, though with better results. In the third Yale attempted to get back into it, but it would not go their way. A little after six minutes in the puck slid right to the door to the QU bench as Nicole Connery was stepping on to the ice. She took it, skated a little and teed up a big slapper from the point which rocketed past Mandl for the fifth Bobcat goal.

QU struck yet again at 11:20 when Raquel Pennoyer passed it across the goal mouth to Kosta, who passed it right back to Pennoyer who sent it to the gap that had been created when Mandl slid to deal with the threat of Kosta.

The Bulldogs kept fighting, though their only goal came late when Krista Yip-Chuck shot it off Rossman and Janelle Ferrara hit the rebound in at 18:15.

The end result would be the QU victory of 6-2. Shot differential was 26 to 21. Mandl made 20 saves, and Rossman made, 18. Quinnipiac won 28 faceoffs and lost 27, Yale vice versa. Kosta won 10 faceoffs and lost 11, Woods won 7 and lost 4. Yip-Chuck won 11 and lost 8, Eden Murray won 8 and lost 4.

Quinnipiac is now 4-0-1, and Yale is 0-1-0

Other notes. (A not exhaustive list of some of the other plays in the game from what I noticed.)

QU reported that both Samoskevich and Cianfarano have had a point in every game this season.

QU’s Connery had a blocked shot in the 2^nd.

Yale’s Courtney Pensavalle stole the puck and cleared it as Kosta broke in on a drive.

QU’s Cianfarano and Woods nearly connected on another scoring attempt it was close. Cianfarano would later skate in close, but lacked a good angle on the goal.

Yale’s Kaitlin Gately had a steal that led to a scoring chance with Ferrara.

While killing a penalty, Yale’s Kara Drexler was among the players getting it cleared.

On their own penalty, Kosta cleared it after Emma Greco disrupted a Yale chance.

In the second Rossman had a sequence where she had to make a few spectacular saves in succession.

In the third Lindsey West had a blocked shot.

Also in the third Yip-Chuck and line-mate Phoebe Staenz had a break on goal, passing to each other, but it was thwarted by Rossman. Later Yip-Chuck dived for a puck to keep it in play and it ended up with Staenz though Cianfarano eventually ended up with it.

Kosta had a blocked shot as well.