SOUTH BURLINGTON, Vt. - The Saint Michael's College women's ice hockey team fell to Saint Anselm College, 4-0, in a New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) contest on Saturday at Cairns Arena. With the loss, the Purple Knights fall to 0-8 overall and 0-6 in the NEHC. With the win, the Hawks improve to 6-1 and 5-1.

For the Purple Knights, junior Jillian Witwicki (Danvers, Mass./Pingree School) went 2-for-4 at the faceoff dot, and senior Tina Frasca (Norwood, Mass./Tabor Academy) made 41 saves. It was her 26th career 30-save effort. For the Hawks, senior Alex Starzyk scored twice and added an assist while classmate Alison Quinn recorded two assists. Junior Paige Gorecki scored once, and sophomore Caley Mueller tallied while classmate Maddie Scavotto made six saves in her shutout victory.

Just 3:33 into the first period, Mueller scored the opening goal by finishing off a rebound following two Frasca saves. During a Saint Anselm power play eight minutes later, Butler sent a pass across the slot to Starzyk just above the right post, and Starzyk finished with an ice-level shot that hit off the left post and in at 13:26. At 14:24, Gorecki finished with a shot from the high slot after receiving a pass from sophomore Maura Kieft.

At 4:20 of the second period, senior Sarah Bagley (Concord, Mass./Concord-Carlisle) fired the Purple Knights' first attempt on goal from just across the blue line, and the shot was stopped and held by Scavotto. At 13:20, Witwicki let go of a high and hard slap shot from above the right circle, but Scavotto knocked the puck away with her glove before it could find the top right corner. At the 17:00 mark, junior Kaitlyn Spillane found the puck in the middle of the slot and quickly released a low snap shot that Frasca denied with a right pad save as she directed the rebound into the corner. Frasca finished the second period with a total of 29 saves for the game.

With 12:35 remaining in the third period, Quinn fired a low and quick snap shot from the bottom of the right circle that Frasca denied with a pad save. A little more than halfway through the period, junior Amanda Donahoe (Wakefield, Mass./Saint Mary's) fired a shot from between the top of the left circle and the hash marks that would have hit the top left corner if not for a denial by Scavotto. With under three minutes remaining, Quinn sent a pass from behind the net to Starzyk in the high slot, and Starzyk carried the puck into the lower right circle before sending a shot past Frasca's blocker side hip and just inside the left post. The Purple Knights did not generate a chance on goal in the final minutes.

Up next for the Purple Knights is a road contest against non-conference opponent Salem State University on Dec. 2 at 7 p.m.