BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The last time Post University Women's Ice Hockey faced Stonehill College, it was the 2022-23 NEWHA Tournament at the Bridgewater Ice Arena where the Eagles fell in a double-overtime heartbreaker, 4-3.

On Friday night, Post University flipped the script on the team picked to finish third in the NEWHA Preseason Poll, using freshman forward Noa Farberman's first collegiate goal and a cushioning goal from junior defenseman Caisey Van Den Oetelaar to pick up their first win, first conference win, and snap an 0-6-0 start in the head-to-head matchup with the Skyhawks, with a 3-2 victory. 

THE BASICS

Post University 3, Stonehill College 2 

Post University (1-4-0, 1-0-0 NEWHA)
Stonehill College (0-5-0, 0-1-0 NEWHA)

HOW IT HAPPENED
For the first time this season, the Eagles would be the first on the board, taking the lead on a loose puck in front of junior goalie Hanna Zukow that found sophomore forward Maddy Noonan's stick before hitting the back right side of the net for the 1-0 advantage less than four minutes into the game. However, that advantage would be short-lived as senior forward Paige Whaley located sophomore forward Maddison Achtyl with just under four minutes left in the opening frame for the first of two power-play goals for the Skyhawks in the game to knot it up at one a piece.

A scoreless second period would heavily favor Stonehill College as they peppered senior goalie Grace Glasrud with 14 shots on net, all of which she would stop, while Zukow would face just three shots from the Post University offense. Additionally, the Eagles would have to go on the penalty kill once in the frame, holding the Skyhawks off the scoreboard while the opposition would have to halt three Post University power play attempts. 

The 1-1 tie would eventually be broken by Farberman just under six minutes into the third period as junior forward Hannah Luckman threw a pass from left to right in the offensive zone through the Skyhawk defense to locate Farberman for the one-timer into the top right side of the net. Exactly two minutes later, Oetelaar would light the lamp for the Eagles when freshman defender Dani Ammons squirted a pass to the junior and her fancy stick work helped lift the shot past Zukow for the two-goal advantage. 

Converting their second power-play goal of the day, it was Whaley getting the job done with 5:47 left in regulation to cut Post's lead in half as Achtyl and sophomore forward Alexis Petford teamed up on the assists. But the rest of the way, the Eagle defense would hold strong and nearly tack on another with freshman forward Jet Devlin on the empty netter before closing out the 3-2 win. 

BY THE NUMBERS

• Grace Glasrud earned her first win of the season, stopping 36 of 38 shots faced 
• In all, the Post University defense blocked 21 shots fired toward Grace Glasrud compared to only five for Stonehill College 
• The Post University penalty kill went 6-for-8 on the afternoon while the power play unit was 0-for-5 
• With the win against Stonehill, Post earned their first win in program history against the Skyhawks after dropping their first six matchups against them 
• This is only the second time in program history in which Post University has started 1-0-0 in conference play -- the last time they did so was the 2021-22 season when they started 2-0-0 with wins against Saint Michael's College at home 

WHO'S NEXT
Post University concludes its two-game trip to Stonehill College on Saturday afternoon for a 1:00 PM puck drop back at the Bridgewater Ice Arena in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. With their first win all-time against the Skyhawks on Friday, the Eagles now sit at 1-6-0 in the head-to-head matchup.