PLYMOUTH, N.H. – Sophomore Juliet Rutigliano (Martinsville, N.J.) scored the game-winning goal 6:55 into the fourth overtime as top-seeded Plymouth State University held off third-seeded Rivier University, 2-1, in the championship game of the inaugural Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Women's Ice Hockey Tournament in front of a sellout crowd at Hanaway Rink on Friday night.
 
Officially the second-longest game in NCAA Division III women's hockey history, the back-and-forth battle lasted more than two full regulation games and spanned four hours and 33 minutes in real time.
 
Graduate student Lauren McNeil (Ottawa, Ontario) gave the Panthers a second-period lead, but the Raiders pulled even midway through the third on a goal by Tia Picardi to even it all up at 1-1.
 
Plymouth State outshot Rivier 33-13 over the first three overtime periods, but senior goaltender Rachel Hinkley (Swedesboro, N.J.) kept the Raiders in the game with a series of remarkable stops. Rutigliano finally ended it in the fourth overtime when she fired the puck into the slot from the corner, where it deflected off a skate and into the net – just 71 seconds shy of the longest game in Division III women's hockey history.
 
Sophomore Karlee Lehner (Prince Albert, Saskatchewan) finished with 33 saves for the Panthers and was named Tournament Most Valuable Player after posting a 0.64 goals against average and .962 save percentage in PSU's two playoff wins.
 
Plymouth State was playing in its first-ever championship game, capping a historic season with the program's first title. The Panthers set several program records this season, including wins, winning percentage, shutouts, goals, assists and points, finishing the year with an 18-7-2 record. Rivier wrapped up its season at 15-11-1.
 
While there is no automatic berth to the NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Championship Tournament this year, the Panthers hold out hope for a possible – though unlikely – at-large bid. The tournament bracket will be announced during the NCAA Selection Show, which airs live on NCAA.com on Sunday (Mar. 9) at 8:30 p.m.
 

Release courtesy of Plymouth State Sports Information