Wildcats Pull Away For 3-0 Victory Over Salem State

SALEM, Mass. – Kaylin Garner (Eagle River, Alaska) netted a pair of third period goals as Johnson and Wales skated to a 3-0 victory over Salem State in a New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) matchup on Friday evening at Rockett Arena. The Wildcats improve to 4-1 and 2-1 in the NEHC while Salem State remains winless in conference at 0-3.

Johnson & Wales did not score on two-power play attempts in the first period as the teams skated to a 0-0 tie. The Wildcats held an 11-5 advantage in shots in the opening frame.

Madi Fox (Wilbraham, Mass.) put Johnson and Wales on top 1-0 at the 8:02 mark of the second period. With just four skaters on each side, Fox picked up a loose puck in the slot and beat goalie Kaia Hollingsworth (Methuen, Mass.) for the game's first goal. Johnson and Wales produced 13 shots on goal in the second, opening-up a 24-9 advantage after two periods.

Trailing 1-0 in the third, a turnover in the neutral zone gave Salem State a prime scoring opportunity as Carolyn Mahoney (Melrose, Mass.) skated in uncontested, but goalie Sofia Tamayo (Orland Park, III.) denied the chance keeping Johnson and Wales in front. Minutes later, the Vikings' Deanna Bosco (North Andover, Mass.) had a breakaway opportunity, but once again Tamayo was up to the task, preventing the game-tying goal.

Salem State pulled Hollingsworth  with just over a minute to go, and Garner capitalized with an empty-net goal with :07 seconds remaining to ice the game. Garner tacked on another score before the buzzer, off the faceoff, making the final 3-0.

Tamayo stopped 16 shots in the win, while Hollingsworth made 31 stops in the loss for the Vikings.