MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa. – The RMU women's hockey team closed out its regular season Saturday afternoon with an 8-5 loss to Lindenwood in an offensive showcase at Clearview Arena. With the result, RMU finishes the regular season with a 12-20-2 overall record and an 8-14-2 mark in Atlantic Hockey America play. The Colonials secured the No. 6 seed in the conference standings and will face No. 7 University of Delaware in the AHA First Round on Thursday, February 19, in St. Charles.
 
FIRST PERIOD
The Colonials wasted no time establishing their offensive presence. Just over three minutes into the contest, Alaina Giampietro opened the scoring with a wrist shot from the slot, finishing off a feed from Jessica MacKinnon to give RMU an early 1-0 lead.
 
Lindenwood responded quickly, scoring twice within a three-minute span, including a power-play goal, to take a 2-1 advantage midway through the period.
 
RMU answered almost immediately, however, as a clean faceoff win by Catriona Crarer created an opportunity for Emma Goding, who fired home her second goal of the weekend just 47 seconds later to even the score at 2-2 heading into the intermission.
 
SECOND PERIOD
RMU regained momentum in the middle frame, putting together one of its strongest stretches of the afternoon. Thalia D'Elia found Laura Eustace at the top of the crease, where Eustace converted to restore the Colonials' lead.
 
Minutes later, Giampietro struck again, capitalizing on her own rebound opportunity to extend the advantage to 4-2. MacKinnon and Linnea Misner earned assists on the play.
 
Lindenwood managed to cut into the deficit late in the period, as Hannah Dodds scored to make it a 4-3 contest entering the third.
 
THIRD PERIOD
The final period featured constant momentum swings. Early in the frame, the Colonials had a chance to add insurance on the power play, but Lindenwood turned defense into offense as Molly Henderson scored shorthanded to tie the game.
 
Just over four minutes later, Zsofia Pazmandi gave the Lions their first lead since the opening period, putting Lindenwood ahead 5-4.
 
RMU showed resilience once again, answering under two minutes later when Morgan Giannone scored on the power play in her final regular-season home game, tying the contest at 5-5. MacKinnon and Giampietro each recorded assists on the equalizer.
 
However, Lindenwood's top line proved decisive down the stretch. Over a seven-minute stretch, Henderson, Pazmandi, and Blichova each found the back of the net, including a shorthanded tally by Pazmandi, allowing the Lions to pull away and secure the 8-5 victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• RMU generated a strong offensive performance despite the loss, outshooting Lindenwood 40-33. Giampietro led all players with 10 shots on goal, while Taylor Storey and Crarer each finished with a +1 rating.
• The Colonials also controlled the faceoff circle, winning 48 of 74 draws (64.9 percent). MacKinnon was dominant, capturing 24 of her 33 faceoffs (72.7 percent).
• RMU blocked 17 shots defensively, with Mya Kearns and Rowyn Ringor each recording three blocks.
• In net, Maggie Hatch made 21 saves over the first 53 minutes before Ella Willoughby entered in relief and stopped four shots over the final seven minutes.

 
MULTIPOINT PERFORMANCES
Giampietro led the Colonials offensively with two goals and an assist, marking her 14th career multipoint game and the eighth multi-goal performance of her career.
 
MacKinnon continued her outstanding season with three assists, giving her seven helpers over her last three games and marking her 11th multipoint performance of the year.
 
DYNAMIC DUO
Giampietro concludes the regular season tied for third in the conference with 16 goals and continues to climb RMU's career leaderboard with 38 goals and 64 points.
 
MacKinnon finishes the regular season tied for the AHA lead with 25 assists and ranks second in the conference with 39 points. Her 493 faceoff wins this season lead all players nationally.
 
UP NEXT
The Colonials now turn their attention to postseason play. No. 6 RMU will face No. 7 Delaware in the AHA First Round on Thursday, February 19, in St. Charles, Missouri. The winner will advance to face No. 3 Lindenwood in the Quarterfinal Round on Saturday, February 21, with a trip to the semifinals on the line.
 
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