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Six seconds into the second period, Syracuse captain Tatum White committed a slashing penalty. 29 seconds after the penalty expired, White committed a cross-checking penalty, once again heading to the box.

Lindenwood capitalized on the second man-advantage, gaining a 3-1 lead.

Syracuse (3-10-1, 0-5 CHA) wasn’t able to recover from its poor start to the second period, falling to 4-3 loss to Lindenwood (5-8, 2-3 CHA). Two second goals in the second period from the Lions, handed Syracuse its sixth straight loss and the eighth straight without a win. SU is 0-5 to start College Hockey America play after going 6-9-1 in the league last season.

Despite trailing 2-1 entering the second period, Syracuse was coming off one of its best periods of the season. The Orange finished the opening period with more than double Lindenwood’s shots.

In the first nine minutes of the second period, the early success all came crashing down. The Orange committed three penalties and allowed two goals in the middle frame. The damage was largely done in the beginning of the period.

White’s two penalties set the stage for the Lions’ powerplay unit. Syracuse’s power play unit was more efficient than Lindenwood’s on the night, scoring two goals on four opportunities. However, it was the timing of the Lions’ sole power play goal that extended their lead.

Trailing by one, White went to the penalty box less than a minute after exiting it.

On the powerplay, Lindenwood was relentless in its attack, not allowing SU to clear the puck. Morgan Neitzke provided the Orange with problems on offense. Neitzke entered Friday night’s game as the CHA goal and points leader.

After a failed SU clearance, Neitzke secured the puck in the center of the offensive zone, quickly skating to the left wing. She then wristed a shot low to Syracuse goalie Allie Kelley’s glove side. Kelley made the initial save with her left pad, but forward Sarah Davies sat along the doorstep, backhanding the puck past Kelley to double the Lions’ lead.

Staying out of the penalty box was an issue for SU in the second period sequence that would decide the game.

“We talked about the importance of staying out of the box,” Syracuse head coach Britni Smith said following the loss. “With three in the second period, that’s the period that killed us.”

Syracuse answered back with a goal of its own three minutes after Lindenwood’s third. However, just 35 seconds later, Lindenwood once again stretched the lead to two in large part to Neitzke.

Neitzke drove down the left side of the ice in a two-on-one situation with Sydney Rarick on her right. She looked off Rarick and fired the puck past Kelley for the fourth Lindenwood goal of the day and second in four minutes.

The fourth goal against Kelley in the first 27 minutes of the game prompted a goalie change for the Orange. Kelley allowed four goals on nine shots and for the first time all season, Kelley wasn’t in net for SU.

“She shows up every single night for us but tonight wasn’t her not,” Smith said. “We unfortunately couldn’t have her back in those situations so a little switch up and Amelia did great.”

When Amelia Van Vilet entered the game less than halfway through the second period, SU trailed 4-2. Although Van Vilet had yet to play this season and has played very little throughout her Syracuse career she was exceptional, keeping the Orange in the game after a difficult start.

Van Vilet saved all 14 shots she faced in her over 32 minutes of play. For the usual backup goalie, Van Vilet knew was ready for the opportunity.

“You just have to prepare as if you are a starter,” Van Vilet said. “You always have to be locked in and prepared.”

Van Vilet’s impressive effort allowed Syracuse to have a chance to battle back in the final 30 minutes. Although the Orange trailed 4-2 at the end of the second period, the team played a strong first period to begin the game.

SU dominated offensive zone time in the first period and totaled 17 shots on net to Lindenwood’s 7. The Orange were unable to capitalize very much in the period as Lindenwood goalie Natalie Ferenc saved 16 of the 17 shots.

In the third period, SU came out strong. Syracuse once again held the puck more and made a push to get back into the game. With 30 shots in the period, the Orange tripled the Lions’ total.

With the goalie pulled and a Lindenwood penalty, Syracuse used a six-on-four advantage to get within one goal. Rachel Teslak wristed a shot over Frenc to make it 4-3. As time winded down with the net remaining empty, SU couldn’t tie the game.

For Syracuse, the misplays and lack of discipline in the first 10 minutes of the second period were too much to overcome.

“The first and third were good periods for us,” Smith said. “Our second period has been our worst period this season and it showed again tonight and really cost us.”

Published on November 17, 2023 at 11:15 pm

Contact Aiden at: amstepan@syr.edu | @AidenStepansky