Izzy Daniel dazzled for Cornell as the #9 Big Red beat #5 Clarkson in overtime.
Izzy Daniel dazzled for Cornell as the #9 Big Red beat #5 Clarkson in overtime.
ITHACA, New York -- Izzy Daniel calls herself a “pass first” player, but Friday night she did a little bit of everything.
The senior factored on all three goals as No. 9 Cornell toppled No. 5 Clarkson, 3-2, in overtime. The Big Red overcame two one-goal deficits before junior Lily Delianedis delivered the game-winner 2:25 into the extra period.
Daniel fought off Golden Knights forward Dominique Petrie to gain control of the puck in the slot. As she drew defender Alexie Guay toward her, Daniel found Delianedis at the bottom of the right circle, where the center on a one-timer.
“That's probably part of my game that I need to get better at, being more willing to shoot it because I'm definitely a pass first player,” Daniel said. “Lily and I have been playing together for almost 10 years, so I know that when she's open, I'm going to give it to her. She's the shooter, the goal scorer. She's going to put that one away.”
Daniel, who leads the nation in points per game with an average of 2.20 and assists per game with 1.33, set up Rory Guilday’s second-period tally to knot the score at 1-1. She then registered her 14th goal of the season to square it again at two apiece midway through the third.
“I think these are the games that you look forward to the whole season,” Daniel said. “(Clarkson) has continued to be a huge rival of ours, so I think it's easy to get up for a game like that.”
Freshman Annelies Bergman finished with 28 saves, including a stop on a breakaway by Clarkson's Anne Cherowski in overtime.
Brooke McQuigge and Petrie both scored unassisted goals for the Golden Knights, which fell to 18-0-3.
After a scoreless first period, McQuigge gave Clarkson the lead 20 seconds into the second. The forward’s low shot from the left circle just got under Bergmann's right pad as the goaltender started to drop.
The Big Red responded just over four minutes later. Using Delianedis as a screen, Guilday fired a slap shot past goalie Michelle Pasiechnyk from the left point for her third goal of the season.
Clarkson regained the lead 17 seconds into the third period on Petrie’s quick shot from the right circle. But Daniel delivered again, one-timing a wobbling puck from the slot at 10:37 of the third to square it at two apiece.
“I think I got all of it,” Daniel said. “Luckily it snuck in the far side, which was relief and obviously pretty exciting.”
Despite the loss, Pasiechnyk finished with 29 saves, including several highlight reel stops. The senior netminder preserved the tie in the third period, first with a glove save on a Karel Prefontaine blast with 3:24 left. She then made a point-blank stop on Mckenna van Gelder
with 62 seconds remaining.
Both teams, which returned from winter break, are in action again on Saturday afternoon. Clarkson travels to face No. 4 Colgate, while Cornell hosts No. 10 St. Lawrence.
“We know the next six games are going to be a really tough and important stretch,” Daniel said. “We really wanted to make sure we were ready to go, and that we did a really good job of that today.”