BOXSCORE

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. – Megan Keever and Becky Zavisza both recorded two goals and an assist to lead the 10^th-ranked Boston College women’s hockey team to Thursday night’s 7-2 Hockey East victory against second-ranked University of New Hampshire at Conte Forum.
     UNH, which entered the game unbeaten in 35 regular-season games (34-0-1) with 23 consecutive wins in regular season play, is now 9-1-0 overall and 3-1-0 in Hockey East this season. BC, the last team to defeat the Wildcats in a regular-season game (Nov. 5, 2005; 3-2 in overtime at Conte Forum), avenged last Friday’s 2-1 road loss to the ‘Cats to improve to 6-1-1, 3-1-0.
    The Eagles skated to a 3-0 first-period lead with a shorthanded, power-play and even-strength goal. BC took a 1-0 lead at 13:35 on Allie Thunstrom’s shorthanded breakaway in which she skated down the slot and wristed a shot into the upper-right corner. Zavisza struck on the power play at 18:23 with a shot from the right point, then Keever scored from close range with 43 seconds remaining in the period to give the home team a three-goal lead.
    BC quickly extended its advantage to 4-0 when Becky Zavisza’s shot directly off a faceoff trickled behind UNH goalie Melissa Bourdon (Ile Bizard, Quebec) and Thunstrom swept in front to poke the loose puck into the net just 58 after the start of the middle stanza.
    The ‘Cats called time out at that point and lifted Bourdon (seven saves) in favor of Brittany Busa (Concord, Mass.). UNH began to generate heavy pressure at the offensive end, which resulted in three BC penalties and a subsequent 5-on-3 Wildcats’ power-play goal at 2:59. Kacey Bellamy (Westfield, Mass.), with the assistance of Jennifer Hitchcock (LaSalle, Ontario), scored her seventh power-play goal of the season into an open near side from the right circle.
    The visitors continued to produce scoring opportunities but could not cut into the 4-1 deficit. BC’s Keever and Kelly Stack scored 45 seconds apart – at 15:37 and 16:22, respectively, to extend the Eagles’ advantage to 6-1.
    Hitchcock netted her sixth goal of the season on a redirection off a shot by Martine Garland (Toronto, Ontario) to lift UNH within 6-2 at 3:39 of the third period. Zavisza’s unassisted tally at 16:01 closed the scoring.
    Busa stopped eight shots and surrendered two goals in 19:02 of action. Lucy Schoedel (Ithaca, N.Y.) played the final frame in net for the ‘Cats and stopped two of three shots. BC goalie Molly Schaus recorded 38 saves.
    Boston College, now 2-35-2 lifetime vs. New Hampshire, had not scored more than three goals vs. the Wildcats in the previous 38 meetings. The seven goals surrendered is the most by a UNH team since February 2003, which was head coach Brian McCloskey’s first season.
    New Hampshire returns to action at home next weekend (Nov. 11-12) for a two-game series against fifth-ranked St. Lawrence University. Both games at the Whittemore Center begin at 2 p.m.