Merrimack Sweeps Syracuse Women’s Ice Hockey after a 4-0 Triumph

By Andrew Della Piana | @dellie_5

The forecheck in hockey can sometimes be a lost art. Dumping the puck in deep time and time again, can make life extremely difficult for your opponent. That’s exactly what Merrimack did in a 4-0 over Syracuse today. The Warriors kept the legs turning in the offensive zone and made life extremely difficult for the Syracuse defenders. While SU suffered its second setback in as many days, head coach Britni Smith was really proud of how her defensive line played. 

“I thought we did a good job. Again, looking at today from yesterday there were huge improvements. That’s what this time of year is about, just making sure we’re getting better every day. Yes, we were outshot again tonight, but I thought there were some serious improvements in the game.” 

On a positive note, SU held Merrimack to 20 less shots than they did yesterday. A big part of that was blocked shots. Grad student Alexandria Weiss had 2 today, 4 for the weekend, and she said her team really prides themselves on getting in front of the puck.

“Whenever someone is making a blocked shot, we’re all screaming on the bench, trying to get pumped up. Those are huge, if they don’t block it, that’s in the back of the net and also gives us lots of energy because a blocked shot can lead to a possession change. Yeah, we really pride ourselves on blocking shots.”

While the Warriors did spoil the home openers for the Orange, the ‘Cuse still feels they have a lot more work to do to play its best hockey. Syracuse can do that on Friday, when they head to Troy, NY to start a home-and-home series with RPI. Puck drop for Friday is set for 6:00 o’clock and 3:00 o’clock for Saturday.