After nearly every skater had left the ice following BU’s 4-0 loss to UConn Friday night, graduate defender Nadia Mattivi skated around, taking in the last few moments on her team’s senior night.
Despite the outcome of the game, the senior class is still grateful for the opportunity they had to celebrate all their work over the last four years.
“It’s so special playing at Walter Brown, playing with these people,” senior forward and Terrier captain Madison Cardaci said following Friday’s game. “I think it was just a really special night, and we enjoyed it even though we took the loss, but, yeah, we helped each other out.”
Though UConn never surrendered a lead to the Terriers, the game was even up until the final period before the Huskies tacked on two more goals. UConn just narrowly edged out BU in the final shots-on-goal count, leading 30-26 by the final horn.
“Definitely not the outcome we wanted. Wish we had a few more points to our name coming out of this game, but the promising thing is there’s no doubt in my mind we can beat that team,” BU head Coach Tara Watchorn said postgame.
UConn scored its first with a goal from sophomore forward Kyla Josifovic, giving the Huskies a 1-0 lead with 16 seconds left in the first period. Junior forward Brianna Ware beat Mattivi to the puck along the left board, skating towards Shanahan’s goal and flipping it to Josifovic just as she stumbled to the ice.
A quiet first period followed without much of any fanfare, as the Huskies kept their 1-0 lead heading into the first intermission. The Terriers played a stifling physical game against UConn, holding them to five shots on goal in the frame, but the one mistake proved critical.
“I think we got hemmed in there for that one shift, but other than that, we started to take it to them midway through the first and felt really good about how we finished that period,” Watchorn said.
BU led in shots on goal 9-5 in the period but wasn’t creating many quality scoring chances out of those shots.
Ware got on the scoresheet again with a goal that gave the Huskies a 2-0 lead two minutes into the second period. Senior forward Kathryn Stockdale fed Ware the puck from behind The Terriers’ goal who then shot it from the left circle and into Shanahan’s net.
The Terriers got their lone power play of the second period after a holding call against Stockdale with six minutes left.
Ahead of tonight’s game, BU ranked in the middle of the pack nationally in power-play percentage this season with 18.27%. Still, Watchorn felt good postgame about her team’s performance on the power play in Friday’s game.
“I think the first power-play unit that we had out there with the Welckes got some grade A opportunities, and an unfortunate bounce there off the faceoff for our second unit,” Watchorn said. “I think that could have led to maybe a little bit more possession, but an unfortunate bounce.”
Despite the early let-in, the period was a very strong one from Shanahan who delivered nine saves to keep the game in reach for BU.
“She just keeps playing great for us,” Watchorn said. “She keeps us in games and another good game for her.”
As the third period began, the Terriers were whistled for their first penalty of the night — a slashing call against senior defender Andi Calederone. Catherine Foulem almost got BU on the board with a breakaway-shorthanded chance, but UConn’s Tia Chan came up with a big save.
Chan, who ranks 8th in the nation in save percentage, had a great night for the Huskies with 26 saves.
UConn extended its lead further in the third period with a goal from senior forward Jada Habisch and an empty-netter from sophomore forward Megan Woodworth.
The impact of the 2024 class, which was honored prior to Friday’s game, is made clear when looking at the starting lineup the team went with — Mattivi, Cardaci, Foulem, Julia Shaunessy and Lacey Martin. That group of seniors has contributed 82 points to the Terriers this season.
“It’s just so incredibly awesome to get to spend every single day with them for the past four years,” Cardaci said of her senior teammates. “The little moments just in the apartment or around the rink at practice every day — those are the biggest moments that we’re gonna take for our lifetime.”
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