Sherman Nets Huskies' Lone Goal

            GORHAM, Maine -- The visiting Franklin Pierce University women's ice hockey team scored three goals in the third period to pull away from the University of Southern Maine and post a 4-1 victory in ECAC Women's East play Saturday afternoon on Senior Day at the USM Ice Arena.

            The win was the fifth straight for the Ravens who improved to 19-5-1 overall and 13-4-0 in league play.  The Huskies, hoping to lock up a home-ice berth in the upcoming playoffs, slip to 8-14-3 overall and 6-8-3 in the league.  The Huskies will have to wait for results of other games to determine their playoff seeding.  The game was the regular-season finale for both clubs.

            Tied 1-1 after two periods, the Ravens took advantage of a couple of opportunities midway through the period to take command.  Junior Bryana Harron (Woburn, Mass.) pounced on a rebound to score her sixth goal of the season at 7:30 to snap the tie.  Sophomore Marisa Ketterman (Palmer, Alaska) added a power-play marker at 9:44 to give the visitors a 3-1 advantage.  The goal was the 15th of the season for Ketterman to share the team lead.

            Sophomore Katie Flynn (Sandwich, Mass.) tacked on an empty-net goal at 18:28 to cement away the decision.

            Franklin Pierce grabbed a 1-0 lead with the only goal of the first period.  Junior Sarah Sheils (Pittsburgh, Pa.) went top shelf with a shot from the right-wing circle to score a power-play goal at 9:39.  Ketterman and rookie Alex Brolsma (Bloomington, Minn.) picked up the assists on the play.

            The Huskies tied the score early in the second period as junior Cassandra Sherman (North Smithfield, R.I.) went the length of the ice after taking a pass from classmate Chelsea Boucher (Gilford, N.H.) in her own zone and beating Raven sophomore goalie Noelle White (Corona, Calif.) with a nifty backhander into the roof of the net.  The goal was the fourth of the season for Sherman.

            Ketterman finished the game with three points (1g, 2a) while Harron had two points (1g, 1a) and Brolsma had two assists.  White stopped 16 shots to earn her 11th win of the season.

            USM senior goalie Liz Bergstrom (Chanhassen, Minn.) finished the game with 29 saves.  Bergstrom and classmates Talya Bent (Cranston, R.I.) and Julia Pearl (Essex Jct., Vt.) were honored prior to the start of the game.

            Franklin Pierce enjoyed a 33-17 edge in shots on goal, including a 20-6 advantage in the third period.  The Ravens converted on 2 of 7 power-play opportunities while killing off all four Huskies' man advantages.

            Southern Maine will advance to ECAC Women's East Tournament that begins next Saturday with four quarterfinal round games.  Seedings, opponents and game times will be announced later tonight.  Franklin Pierce will play in the ECAC Open Tournament. 

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