FINAL SCORE: Vermont 4, Boston College 3
BURLINGTON, Vt. – Vermont (4-4-1, 1-0-0 HEA) opened Hockey East play with a 4-3 victory over Boston College (4-5-0, 3-1-0 HEA) on Friday afternoon from Gutterson fieldhouse during the team's first ever Catamount Classroom Game presented by Community Bank. Over 1,400 students from all around Chittenden Co. were in attendance to watch the Catamounts secure their first conference win of the season over Boston College.
 
 
RELATED LINKS
Box Score
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COACH'S QUOTE
"Great win in front of a huge, enthusiastic crowd today that made it such a special experience for our team," said Head Coach Jim Plumer. "I want to thank Krista Balogh and the entire marketing team for making it such a special day for the school children who attended and for both teams. I loved the energy our team played with today. We did a great job on the forecheck and that is always the way we like to play. So many people stepped up and played well and it was truly a team win. We are looking forward to continuing to get better with each game."
 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Vermont pounced on the scoreboard first 14:31 into the opening frame when Josie Hemp disrupted a Boston College breakout, allowing Julia Mesplède to collect the puck and dish a pass to a streaking Rose-Marie Brochu on the far side. Brochu ripped a shot under Grace Campbell's glove, securing her first goal of the season, earning UVM the 1-0 lead.
• The Eagles bounced back, seeing Sammy Taber set up Ava Thomas for her sixth goal on the campaign, knotting the score at 1-1 with just over two minutes remaining in the first period.
• A breakdown by Vermont in the neutral zone resulted in Boston College scoring their second goal of the game courtesy of Lauren Glaser, her second of the season, earning the Eagles a 2-1 advantage with a little under 16 minutes remaining in the middle frame.
• The Catamounts knotted the game at 2-2 with 3:43 remaining in the middle frame when Kaylee Lewis whipped a breakout pass across the ice to Lauren O'Hara, who took the initial shot on net upon entering the Eagles zone, but Campbell couldn't fully handle the puck. Stella Retrum was backdoor to slam the puck in the net, notching her third goal on the season to give Vermont the equalizing goal heading into the third period.
• Hemp gave the Catamounts a 3-2 lead to begin the third period just 1:59 in on the power-play, scoring from the point with a snapshot, seeing the puck barley squeak through Campbell to cross the goal line, notching her third goal of the season, earning UVM the one goal lead.
• Just over two minutes later, 4:18 into the final frame, the Catamounts doubled their lead when Makena Lloyd-Howe's breakout pass set up Maisey Bojarski to feed Morgann Skoda her second goal of the season. Bojarski executed a drop pass to Skoda near the faceoff dot where Skoda was able to snipe the top right corner on Campbell, earning UVM the 4-2 advantage.
• Boston College cut the deficit in half on the powerplay 15:04 into the final period, getting a goal from Maxim Tremblay, cutting the Vermont lead to one, 4-3.
• Ellie Simmons stood tall in net for the final five minutes of action, making one more crucial save while Boston College had a pulled goalie. Lewis and O'Hara each put their body on the line in the final minutes, blocking back-to-back shots as the Catamounts tamed any last-minute push from the Eagles.
• As the final period concluded, UVM skated away with the 4-3 win from Gutterson Fieldhouse during the team's first ever Catamount Classroom Game.

 
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Retrum recorded her second multi-point game of the season, scoring one goal and one assist against the Eagles. She also notched a tied game-high six shots on net, a season high.
• Retrum extended her point streak to five games.
• Hemp scored her third goal of the season on the powerplay, her second powerplay goal on the campaign. She also recorded one assist, her first multi-point game in her career.
• Brochu tallied her first goal of the season to go along with winning eight of her 15 faceoffs on Friday afternoon.
• Skoda notched her second goal of the season, first from Gutterson Fieldhouse to go along with four shots on goal, tying a season high.
• Bojarski registered her first career collegiate point against the Eagles, garnering one assist.
• O'Hara had one assist to go along with a tied game-high six shots on goal. She also won 14 of her 24 faceoffs against the Eagles.
• Mesplède, Lewis, Kokavec, and Lloyd-Howe all tallied one assist on Friday.
• Simmons made 17 total saves en route her second victory in between the pipes this season. 
• UVM outshot Boston College 37-21. The Catamounts have rallied off 37 shots or more in four straight contests.
• With today's Win, Vermont Mutual Insurance Group will donate $100 to the Lund Family Center through the Cat's Win, Community Win's initiative. Vermont Mutual has donated over $5 Million Dollars since launching their Charitable Giving Fund in 2014.
• With tonight's 4-3 decision, Community Bank N.A. will donate $200 to Special Olympics Vermont. Community Bank, N.A. donates $50 per goal to Special Olympics Vermont for every goal the men's and women's team scores this season.

 
 
UP NEXT
Following the Friday afternoon win, the Catamounts will look to close out their weekend series with the Eagles, returning to action tomorrow afternoon for a 2 p.m. puck drop from Gutterson Fieldhouse. Saturday's contest will be the team's annual Military Appreciate game. Fans can catch Saturday's matchup live on ESPN+.
 
For news and updates about the Vermont women's hockey program, follow @UVMwhockey on Instagram, X, and Facebook, and visit UVMathletics.com.
 
The Windjammer Inn and Conference Center is the presenting sponsor of the UVM women's hockey program