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GOAL BY GOAL: #1 BC Women's Hockey Ruins #7 Harvard, 10-2

OH GOD THE HUMANITY

BC Athletics

One of the very few criticisms of this year's BC women's hockey team is that they had a weak schedule. That wasn't supposed to be the case: two of BC's non-conference opponents were supposed to be against the preseason #4 (Harvard), and preseason #5 (Cornell).

Unfortunately, teams that play BC tend to drop in the rankings. Cornell opened its season against BC and got torched twice in a pair of 6-2 losses, sending their season into an early tailspin. It's quite possible that the same thing may happen to Harvard. Despite heading into the locker room tied 1-1, Boston College demoralized Harvard in a stunning 10 goal outburst against the 7th ranked Crimson, 10-2.

Boston College Goal #1: 0:25 of the 1st period
Kenzie Kent (Alex Carpenter, Haley Skarupa)

BC 1, Harvard 0

It didn't take long at all for BC to get going. Before either team even made a line change, the best line in the country came flying in on Harvard's Emerance Maschmeyer to take the lead.

That's Alex Carpenter getting taken down along the boards, but she still manages to get the puck over to her linemate, freshman Kenzie Kent. Kent shows superb scoring touch on this shot and roofs the puck from short range. Good start.

Harvard Goal #1: 19:02 of the 1st period
Michelle Picard (Lyndsey Fry, Samantha Reber)

BC 1, Harvard 1

Harvard did okay with keeping the game close through the first period, despite BC holding a 12-4 shot advantage. The Crimson managed to get one past Katie Burt to tie the game at the very end of the period.

Burt probably wishes she had this one back. It's hard to tell, but based on her surprise, it looks like Picard's shot takes a bit of a deflection off the BC defeseman's skate. It was just the 2nd goal BC had given up in 6 games.

Boston College Goal #2: 3:30 of the 2nd period
Kate Leary (Emily Pfalzer, Tori Sullivan)

BC 2, Harvard 1

It didn't take long for BC's high-flying offense to answer. Pfalzer, #14 on the blue line, wrists a shot in to some heavy traffic, and while Maschmeyer is well positioned, Leary, #28, is able to get a stick on it from right on the doorstep. The puck tips into the net, and BC regains the lead.

Harvard Goal #2: 4:17 of the 2nd period
Hillary Crowe (Samantha Reber, Abigail Frazer)

BC 2, Harvard 2

There's no doubt that Harvard has skill. They put together a nice goal here to tie the game back up on a slow developing 2 on 1. The goal scorer is coming in on a small breakaway and the trailing Eagle can't quite get caught up in time to disrupt the shot. A well-placed pass across right onto the stick, and there's a nice goal for the Crimson.

I don't know what Harvard did to tick off BC, but from this point on BC starts a systematic dismantling of one of the most talented teams in the country.

Boston College Goal #3 (GWG): 5:38 of the 2nd period
Dana Trivigno (Emily Pfalzer, Tori Sullivan)

BC 3, Harvard 2

BC has this thing they do where they play keepaway from the other team in the offensive zone while managing to pull off a full change and get fresh legs on the ice. It must be totally demoralizing to the opponent, and BC has scored goals aplenty this season doing it, compounding their already measurable skill and speed advantage with fresh legs vs. tired legs.

You can see BC doing that here while Pfalzer takes another shot from the blue line. This time it's Trivigno out in front who gets herself some separation from the defender and gets enough of her stick on the the puck to tip it past Maschmeyer.

Cue the floodgates.

Boston College Goal #4: 7:38 of the 2nd period
Kali Flanagan (Haley Skarupa)

BC 4, Harvard 2

This is a soft goal for Maschmeyer to give up despite the traffic in front, but the impressive part of this goal is BC's strength in keeping possession. Skarupa has four maroon jerseys all over her but she's still able to hang on to the puck. This starts before the GIF even begins.

She passes the puck over to Flanagan, and Flanagan flings the puck in on net. It gets behind Maschmeyer, and it's 4-2.

Boston College Goal #5: 10:18 of the 2nd period
Haley Skarupa (Alex Carpenter, Kenzie Kent)

BC 5, Harvard 2

More good puck movement from BC's top line. #16 for Harvard, Marissa Gedman, gets absolutely torched by Alex Carpenter. I'm not sure if she just doesn't realize that Carpenter is as fast as she is or what, but she's hanging out over by the boards and Carpenter creates her own personal 2 on 1 by just skating across the blue line before Gedman even realizes what is happening.

Carpenter dishes across to Skarupa who gets a good stick on it for BC's 5th goal.

At this point Harvard thinks Maschmeyer is the problem and not BC's world-class speed and skill. Let's see how it works out for them.

Boston College Goal #6 (PPG): 16:23 of the 2nd period
Haley Skarupa (Kate Leary, Alex Carpenter)

BC 6, Harvard 2

Out of all of BC's goals, this is the only one on the power play.

New-goalie-turned-sacrificial-lamb Brianna Laing sells out to make the initial stop on the puck sliding into her crease, but Skarupa keeps the play alive. At this point Laing is laying on her stomach (not the best positioning to try and make a save) and Skarupa has all the time in the world to curl the puck back into a shooting position and flip the puck into the open top shelf. Touchdown Eagles.

Boston College Goal #7: 18:36 of the 2nd period
Kenzie Kent (Alex Carpenter, Haley Skarupa)

BC 7, Harvard 2

What do you do if you're Harvard? The attack doesn't end. Carpenter gets the puck over to Skarupa for another big one timer but Harvard manages to keep it out. Unfortunately for them, now the puck finds its way to Kent who somehow gets a blind, backhanded stick on the puck to get it past Laing.

What do you do?

That wraps up a six goal 2nd period for BC in which Harvard was completely overwhelmed and overmatched. But poor Harvard had to spend another 20 minutes chasing Eagles around the ice, and the onslaught wouldn't end.

Boston College Goal #8: 2:25 of the 3rd period
Dana Trivigno (Kate Leary, Tori Sullivan)

BC 8, Harvard 2

Another great breakout from BC leads to this goal. Trivigno gets herself through the defense and is fed by a nice pass from Leary from center ice.

Another less-than-stellar effort here from Melissa Gedman from Harvard. #16 in maroon got picked apart by BC's talented forwards all game, and she almost seems resigned to her fate on this goal. She's just got no chance.

Boston College Goal #9: 3:41 of the 3rd period
Alex Carpenter (Kenzie Kent, Haley Skarupa)

BC 9, Harvard 2

Better effort from Harvard here but BC is too quick for them to do anything about it. They don't even know who to defend because by the time they make a move, someone else has the puck. When all is said and done, an Olympic first liner ends up with the puck on her stick right on the doorstep with Harvard's heads spinning. Of course Carpenter is going to score on this.

Boston College Goal #10: 8:23 of the 3rd period
Alex Carpenter (Emily Pfalzer, Meghan Grieves)

BC 10, Harvard 2 -- FINAL

More Carpenter here, this time with a nice individual effort. It's very simple on this goal—she just skates the puck into the high-percentage scoring area between the faceoff circles, and makes a quick wrister past Laing.

Harvard put Maschmeyer back in, but it was far too late. BC scored 10 goals for the third time this season (fourth if you include the exhibition game, which you don't, but still).

There is not much more you can say about the BC women's hockey team than "10-2 over the 7th best team in the country" says on its own. BC has the two highest scoring players in the country, who are finding the scoresheet more than 1 PPG and 0.5 PPG, respectively, more than the player who is third in scoring.

As a team, they are scoring 1.57 goals per game more than 2nd place. That is insane. And they have not allowed more than 2 goals in a single game on defense, good for one (1) goal per game.

That's it for the weekend as BC prepares for next week's road trip up to Orono to take on the Black Bears. BC holds on to #1 in the Pairwise by a sizable margin and will look to carry that into the winter break.