After a seven-game drought, UMass Boston has finally found their season life. This newfound emergence has come in the form of a recent four-game winning streak, one that helped the Beacons emerge from the depths of the New England Hockey Conference. Beacons Athletics reports that the Beacons scored just over five times as much in that span than they had in their previous four games; a two-goal winless stretch. [1]
The team has also surfaced above .500 within their conference—and held a 6–4–2 record after their illustrious weekend prior to the beginning of the spring semester. Their efforts were good enough for them to grab hold of fifth in the conference with 20 points, and they were standing just one game behind the fourth-seeded Southern Maine, according to Nehockeyconference.com. [2]
Don’t dismiss this as the schedule opening up. The rolling Beacons took down the 2023 NEHC champions, Norwich University on Saturday, Jan. 20. Norwich was ranked eighth in Women’s Division III NCAA, but has dropped to 13th. Norwich previously beat the Beacons 5–1. Plymouth State University, who previously bested the Beacons 3–2 on Friday, Nov. 3, faced UMass Boston again on Saturday, Jan. 13. But this time, the tides turned 4–1 in favor of the UMass Boston. Against the four teams the Beacons have streaked against, they held a prior record of 1–2–1 stemming from previous matchups in the year. [2]
In easily their biggest win of the season, 2–1 over the Norwich Cadets, UMass Boston’s Leah Bosch posted a shutout until just under a minute left, Norwich’s final push on the power play. Bosch has been this season’s standout.
The Beacons’ netminder has sustained a sub-2.25 goals against average, stopping over 400 shots, and at one point, maintained a .931 save percentage, per Beacons Athletics. [3] Bosch continues to play her part for this team, as she has kept them within reach in every start she’s had.
Scoring has been UMass Boston’s largest deficiency. It was a real struggle up and down the lineup, as both the team and fans have yet to see somebody rise above and give close to star production. After their game against Norwich, five Beacons led the team in scoring, tied at a lowly three goals. That being said, Bosch is left with a huge sum of responsibility to win games.
Out of their nine losses leading up to last weekend’s matchups against Salem State University and the University of Southern Maine, six had been decided by two goals or less. UMass Boston’s three ties this year have all resulted in two or fewer goals for each team. Four goals, which is the team’s season high, has been reached just twice. In fact, the Beacons have scored one goal or less in 63 percent of their games this year. [1]
This is why it’s not only encouraging to see a ramped-up offense, but rather, absolutely necessary. Four games remain on the Beacons’ schedule, and they are all in conference. Opportunity to climb the seeding of the NEHC and to establish themselves is there. However, this crucial stretch requires the top of their game. Make no mistake; seeding matters. Dropping just one spot from where they are now, they’d be slotted to match up with Elmira College, the 11th ranked team in Women’s Division III, says ncaa.com. [3]
According to Beacons Athletics, the Beacons will travel to play #11 Elmira College, a big test for the team, but surely one they’re looking forward to. On the bright side, to cap the regular season off, UMass Boston gets a two-game series with Johnson & Wales University, one of the worst teams in the conference. The former of the two games is at home, Friday, Feb. 9, so fans should be sure to pack Barry Ice Arena and support their fellow Beacons as the team tries to make some noise before playoffs.
- 2023-24 Women’s Ice Hockey Schedule – UMass Boston (beaconsathletics.com)
- 2023-24 NEHC Women’s Ice Hockey Standings – New England Hockey Conference (nehockeyconference.com)
- DIII Women’s Ice Hockey Rankings – PairWise Ranking | NCAA.com