Courtesy of Hamilton Athletics
CLINTON, N.Y. - Hamilton College's Michaela Giuttari scored with 2.8 seconds left in the third period and lifted the Continentals to a 4-3 victory against the Williams College Ephs in a 2020 NESCAC Women's Ice Hockey Championship quarterfinal on Saturday afternoon at Hamilton's Russell Sage Rink.
The Continentals (16-8-1 overall), who are the fourth seed for the NESCAC championship, will travel to Middlebury College to play the top-seeded Panthers in a NESCAC semifinal at 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 7.
In a thrilling third period, Hamilton came out with redemption and outshot Williams 13-6. The Continentals tied the score at 3-3 with 1:52 remaining. Missy Segall won the faceoff in the Ephs end and passed it to Nancy Loh '22 who was wide open on her left and put it in glove side for her 10th goal of the season.
In the final 10 seconds, Loh took a shot that bounced back to Giuttari at the blue line. Giuttari took a slap shot that got blocked and Segall passed the puck back to Giuttari who buried it for her 10th goal of the season.
Williams (12-9-4) took a 1-0 lead 10:32 into the first period.
Sidney Molnar made a diving save and directed the puck to the Hamilton defense behind the net but Williams forwards Kelly McCarthy and Maddie Tix rushed the puck and fed it to Meghan Halloran who was open in front to send it in for her 13th goal of the season.
The Ephs scored again with 1:13 left in the first period to make it 2-0.
The Continentals tried to clear the puck from their zone but Delaney Szlezyngier stole it away and sent it to CC Wallin behind the net who found Emily Batchelor out in front. Batchelor took the shot and the puck bounced off Molnar's glove and went in for her first goal of the season.
Hamilton got on the board 1:04 into the second period when Maddie Hong recorded her fourth goal of the season.
Hyla Mosher passed the puck to Abby Kuhns who took a slap shot from the blue line and Hong tipped it in.
Halloran scored again for Williams at the 6:20 mark in the second period for a 3-1 lead.
Halloran won the puck in the corner in their end and banked it off the boards. Wallin picked up the puck and passed it back to Halloran who skated it down from center ice through two Hamilton defenders and scored from the left circle with a wrist shot.
Hamilton made it 3-2 at the 8:46 mark in the second period.
Segall took a shot from the point that deflected off Allie Curry and Mya Berretta backhanded it in for her sixth goal of the season.
Hamilton outshot Williams 42-29. Molnar made 26 saves while the Ephs goalie Chloe Heiting recorded 38.
Molnar is third in the NESCAC with a .750 winning percentage, sixth with a 1.56 goals against average and seventh with a .925 save percentage.
Giuttari is tied for the team lead with 10 goals, leads the NESCAC in defender scoring and game-winning goals and is fourth overall in points with 25.
