After falling behind early in the game, No. 7 Quinnipiac women’s ice hockey came up just short against the No. 9 Clarkson Golden Knights Saturday afternoon by a score of 2-1.

Clarkson came into the contest riding a three-game win streak while the Bobcats were hoping to rebound after a tough 4-1 loss at St. Lawrence a day prior.

As the first period got underway, both offenses started off slow, feeling each other out.

Just before the five-minute mark in the period, off a drop pass from senior forward Darcie Lappan, sophomore forward Jenna Goodwin wristed a shot up over the left shoulder of Bobcats’ graduate student goaltender Logan Angers, giving the Golden Knights an early 1-0 lead.

However, Clarkson wasn’t done. Less than two minutes after Goodwin’s goal, senior forward Gabrielle David fired a one-timer in the slot past Angers to extend the Clarkson lead. With only three shots, the Golden Knights had two goals on the board.

Trying to slow down Clarkson, Bobcats head coach Cass Turner used her timeout to let the team collect themselves.

Coming out of the timeout the Bobcats attempted to slow down the pace of play, but Clarkson was all over them and forced the visitors to play catchup.

After a few trips up the ice where Quinnipiac looked like it was regaining its confidence, with 11:21 remaining, graduate student forward Shay Maloney was assessed a two-minute penalty for interference.

The Bobcat’s penalty kill was successful, keeping it a two-goal deficit, but the team wasn’t able to translate that success into the offense as they were forced to play mainly dump-and-chase hockey for the rest of the period.

Starting the second period, the Bobcats began to play with confidence, connecting on strong stretch passes and getting traffic in front of Golden Knights junior goaltender Michelle Pasiechnyk.

The Bobcats took control of the game, keeping sustained offensive zone pressure, trying to wear down the Golden Knights defense.

With 11:27 on the clock, Bobcats junior defender Kendall Cooper headed off and into the locker room. She would not return to the game.

While the Bobcats had possession they struggled to get shots to Pasiechnyk, as Clarkson was more than willing to surrender the body. The Golden Knights ended the game with a commanding lead in blocked shots (26-3).

With under two minutes left in the period, Golden Knights senior forward Brooke McQuigge received a body-checking minor, giving the Bobcats their second power-play opportunity.

Entering the third period after an unsuccessful power play, Quinnipiac tried to get as many pucks toward Pasiechnyk as possible.

Just past the two-minute mark in the period Bobcats graduate student forward and co-captain Lexie Adzija had a wrap-around chance that forced Pasiechnyk to stretch out and just barely keep the puck out of the net.

As time continued to wind down, physicality increased, highlighted by several after-whistle hits, including one on Pasiechnyk by Bobcats junior forward Olivia Mobley – which drew a reaction from the Clarkson bench, coaches and players alike.

With 6:32 left on the clock, Golden Knights freshman forward Sena Catterall took a seat in the penalty box.

Catterall wasn’t sitting very long when Adzija snuck a shot right through Pasiechnyk’s five-hole, cutting Clarkson’s lead to a single goal with under six minutes to play

We've got ourselves a game folks 😎 pic.twitter.com/eyVvJKG3sx

— Quinnipiac Women's Ice Hockey (@QU_WIH) February 18, 2023

Even with the extra attacker and a volley of shots toward Pasiechnyk in the game’s dying minutes, the Bobcats weren’t able to find the back of the net, as Clarkson held on for the win. With the loss, the Bobcats finish the regular season with a record of 27-7-0, good enough for third in the conference.

The Bobcats will host St. Lawrence next weekend in the opening round of the ECAC Hockey playoffs. The dates and times have not yet been announced.