It's safe to say that the RIT women's hockey team had a terrific season this year, and their postseason games were truly an inspiring thing to behold.
Often it seemed like the Tigers were stacking themselves up against insurmountable obstacles, playing teams that were far out of their league — but even when they lost they did it with professionalism and a good, hard fight. This season's women's hockey games served as a reminder for why college hockey can be such a vital and uplifting sport to witness. They faced their losses with dignity as they regrouped to fight another day, and their wins ran the gambit from major triumphs over seemingly unbeatable teams to total shutouts against their competitors. Following the team was exciting from start to finish, but all great stories must come to an end.
The Tigers had already made history by entering the NCAA quarterfinals for the very first time as a Division I hockey team, so essentially whatever they did afterward would just be another checkbox to add on to what was a job well done. With a tremendous winning streak behind them and the support of some absolutely ravenous hockey fans at their back, it really seemed like the Tigers could take down top-seeded school University of Minnesota, but they fell 6-2 in the wake of a great hockey game. The Tigers' loss broke an eight-game winning streak in the postseason.
While the entire team played exceptionally well, some standout performances came from third year forward and New Media Marketing major Carly Payeri, who scored both of the Tigers' goals, and fourth year defense and Nutritional Management major Emilee Bulleid, who assisted both goals. RIT's loss was ultimately sealed by a standout power play from Minnesota, who scored a total of three times out of five attempts with the man advantage.
Speaking to RIT Athletics, head coach Scott McDonald seemed positive about the entire experience.
"I couldn't be prouder of the way we played," McDonald said. "Minnesota is such a highly skilled team, and they showed that on the power-play, which was the difference. I thought our energy and effort was really strong. Today was a great stepping stone for our program."
The NCAA tournament presses on without RIT, with Minnesota facing off against fourth seeded team University of Wisconsin in the NCAA Division I Frozen Four Semifinal, which will take place Friday, March 18 at the Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. Second-seeded team Boston College is playing third-seeded team Harvard in the second semifinals, the the winners of both matches will face off in the NCAA National Championship on Sunday, March 22. We couldn't be more proud of how far the Tigers made it this year, and even in the face of a disappointing loss against a team as formidable as Minnesota, it's hard not to feel as if the Tigers still won. The team fought bravely all season, and their efforts led them to somewhere that RIT has never been before.
