ROCHESTER, NY – The RIT women's hockey team (7-11-3) dropped its final game of the 2014-15 calendar year, 6-1 to the University of North Dakota (9-9-2) at the Gene Polisseni Center on Saturday afternoon. North Dakota scored four first period goals and cruised to the win.

Lindsay Stenason (Oakville, Ontario/Appleby Collegiate) scored RIT's lone goal, a power-play tally 6:15 into the second period off assists from Marissa Maugeri (Ajax, Ontario/Durham West Lightning) and Lindsay Grigg (Oakville, Ontario/Oakville Hornets). Celeste Brown (Great Falls, MT/National Sports Academy) fired a team-high six shots on net. In goal, Jetta Rackleff (Bend, OR/Summit) started, stopping 12-of-16 shots before being pulled after the first period. Brooke Stoddart (Elmvale, Ontario/Elmvale) played the final two periods, making 14 saves.

Josefine Jakobsen scored a pair of goals for North Dakota, while Andrea Dalen had a goal and two assists. Gracen Hirschy, Meghan Dufault, and Amy Menke also scored. Becca Kohler added two assists, while in goal, Lexie Shaw made 16 saves for her fourth win of the year.

North Dakota out-shot RIT, 32-17. RIT was 1-for-5 with the man-advantage, while North Dakota was 1-for-3.

"That was a tough one to go into the holiday break on, especially after yesterday's game when we played hard and with a lot of passion," said RIT head coach Scott McDonald. "I've never seen us come out so flat before in my time here. Only one line was working early, but we did not quit as the game went on."

North Dakota took play to the Tigers from the opening puck drop, jumping out to a 4-0 lead while out-shooting RIT 16-1 over the first period.

Dalen got North Dakota on the board 3:11 in, as Tori Williams poked the puck from a RIT player in the neutral zone and sent Dalen in. The North Dakota captain fired a hard shot from the middle past Rackleff for her sixth goal of the year.

At the 9:56 mark, Hirschy was the recipient of a loose puck that bounced off a RIT defender right to her on the doorstep to make it 2-0.

Less than four minutes later, Menke deflected a pass from Shannon Kaiser in front past Rackleff for UND's third goal. In the final minute, Jakobsen came out of the corner on a power-play all by herself and waited out Rackleff to sweep the puck past her and make it 4-0.

Celeste Brown (Great Falls, MT/National Sports Academy) had RIT's lone shot in the final minute of the period and nearly got her team on the board, firing hard slap shot from the right side in close, but Shaw made the shoulder save. Brown was robbed in front by Shaw just over two minutes into the second period from point-blank range.

RIT got on the board with a power-play tally, as Maugeri centered a puck that glanced off of Stenason's skate in front and past Shaw to make it 4-1 North Dakota.

After Stenason's goal, North Dakota came back with a pair before the second period ended to lead 6-1. Dufualt came out from behind the net to roof a backhander over Stoddart at the 9:50 mark to make it 5-1, while  Jakobsen went top shelf on a 2-on-1 from in close for the final tally.

Yesterday, North Dakota North Dakota scored twice in a span of 1:33 to break a 1-1 tie and defeat the Tigers, 3-1. Menke scored a power-play goal with 2:40 left in regulation and Dalen added an empty-netter with 1:07 left for the insurance marker. Mackenzie Stone (Kars, Ontario/South Carleton) scored RIT's lone goal midway through the third period on a 5-on-3 power-play, while Rackleff made 33 saves in goal.

North Dakota leads the all-time series between the two schools, 4-0, also defeating the Tigers at home on Nov. 30 and Dec.1, 2012 by scores of 3-2 and 8-2. 

"The break comes at a good time for us," said McDonald. "We will come back in January refreshed and ready to move forward."

The Tigers return to action on Jan. 9-10, 2015, as College Hockey America foe Robert Morris comes to the Gene Polisseni Center for a pair of games, both starting at 3:05 p.m.