Liberty University Club Sports
Indiana Tech
McLeod serves as catalyst for Lady Flames, who double up Indiana Tech, 4-2
1/23/2022 1:21:42 AM | Women's D1 Hockey
As it did in the second game of a home sweep of Indiana Tech at the LaHaye Ice Center in October, Liberty University’s ACHA Division I women’s hockey team netted two late goals to break open a tie in Saturday night’s rematch with the Warriors, pulling out a 4-2 victory at the SportOne/Parkview Ice House in Fort Wayne, Ind.
The top-ranked Lady Flames (18-0), who extended their winning streak to 33 dating back to last season when they won their third consecutive ACHA DI national title, outshot the first year but fourth-ranked Warriors (16-6-1) by a 47-11 count.
Graduate defenseman and alternate captain Dana McLeod, the reigning ACHA Division I Player of the Year, assisted Liberty’s first two goals and score its third, with two of them coming on the power play, to spark the Lady Flames’ attack.
Liberty capitalized on a power play goal with 36 seconds left in the first period when McLeod set up graduate forward and head captain Vanessa DeMerchant for a wrist shot from the top of the left circle for a 1-0 lead.
Liberty went back on the power play early in the second period only to allow the Warriors to net the equalizer shorthanded when Dakota Bowler stole a puck inside her own blue line and charged down the middle of the ice before beating sophomore goalie Amanda Storey one-on-one through the five hole at the 17:27 mark.
McLeod assisted the go-ahead goal with 2:10 remaining in the second when her shot from the right point was deflected in by sophomore forward Carly Glover for a 2-1 advantage.
However, Indiana Tech proved pesky and retied the contest at 2-2 with 13:50 to go in the third when leading scorer Isobel Pettem-Shand stole the puck behind the cage and sent a pass to Bowler in the right crease for a point-blank putaway past Storey.
But once again, with the Lady Flames on the power play, McLeod delivered, this time with a shot from the high slot through traffic in front from Glover that found the back of the net for what proved to be the game-winner with 7:17 remaining in regulation.
Finally, with 2:54 to go, Glover netted an insurance goal with a breakaway steal from Megan Yakiwchuk near the Lady Flames’ blue line and finish through the five hole of Warriors goalie Mackenzie Addley.
The Lady Flames are off next weekend before hitting the road again to play a three-game showcase in St. Louis hosted by Lindenwood University, the team it defeated for its third consecutive national title last spring. It will be Liberty’s first of three trips to St. Louis in a span of six weeks as they will also play the Feb. 25-27 Women’s Midwest College Hockey (WMCH) and March 15-19 ACHA DI National Championship tournaments there.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
