AMHERST, Mass. - Amherst College first-year netminder Natalie Stott stopped two breakaway opportunities to help the Mammoths blank Hamilton, 2-0, in an NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Tournament Semifinal in front of a capacity crowd of 1,080 at Orr Rink.
The Mammoths (26-3-0) will host Gustavus Adolphus (26-3-0) in the national championship game at Orr Rink Sunday at 3 p.m. Tickets will be sold at the door (cash only), starting at 2 p.m. Hamilton closes out its record-setting season with a 22-6-2 mark. The 22 wins are the most in program history and the Continentals advanced to the national semifinal in their first NCAA Tournament appearance.
- Amherst came out flying, creating several scoring opportunities, including a pair of power-play opportunities, in the first period and outshooting the Continentals 9-2, but could not solve Hamilton goaltender Evie Sheridan.
- The Mammoths struck quickly in the second period, scoring nine seconds into the frame to take a 1-0. Maeve Reynolds won the opening face-off at center ice and senior Carley Daly swung around the left wing and picked up the puck. Daly cut through the bottom of the right face-off circle and firing a quick shot on Sheridan, who made the initial save. However, the rebound squirted out to the left, where Reynolds one-timed the rebound into the bottom left-hand corner of the goal for the lead.
- With 11:03 left in the second period, after Hamilton's Abby Kuhns put a shot on goal that was blocked by Amherst's Leslie Schwartz. Hamilton's Abby Smith flicked a backhand off the loose puck that Stott got a piece of but could not control and a scrum in the crease resulted in a 10-minute video review by the officials. Eventually a penalty shot was awarded to the Continentals as a puck was covered in the crease by a Mammoth skater.
- Hamilton All-American Nancy Loh took the penalty shot for Hamilton, pitting one All-American versus another (Stott.). Loh skated in and deked to her right, trying to beat Stott to her left. But Stott was too quick and shut down the left-hand corner Loh was looking for, stretching to make a pad save.
- After the penalty shot, the Continentals continued to pressure and Amherst was assessed three penalties in the final 12:11 of the period but was able to kill off each one.
- The score stood at 1-0 entering the third period, and Hamilton had a chance to tie the game 1:45 into the period while on the penalty kill. Abby Smith poked the puck out of her own zone and won a race to the loose puck for a one-on-one opportunity with Stott. Smith fired a low shot that headed to the right-hand corner of the net. But Stott stuck out her right pad for the save and the rebound shot off into the corner.
- Hamilton had its final power play with 5:45 remaining. The Continentals got off three scoring chances, but could not find an equalizer..
- After a timeout with 2:01 remaining, Hamilton pulled Sheridan off the ice for the extra attacker with 1:40 left and 18 seconds later, Schwartz controlled the puck just inside the blueline and threw a pass off the board up to Rylee Glennon along the right boards. Glennon fired a shot from just over the Hamilton blueline for an empty-net score that iced the win and sent Amherst to the national championship.
- Amherst's last appearance in the Division III National Championship Game came in 2010.
- Amherst finished with a 31-18 shot advantage. Sheridan finished with 29 saves for Hamilton while Stott was credited with 18 for the Mammoths.
- The shutout was the Mammoth's fifth consecutive clean sheet and the 14th of the season for Stott which ties an NCAA Division III single-season record.