NORTHFIELD, Vt.- On the final day of the regular season, the Norwich Women's Ice Hockey team played host to Southern Maine. A game in which all five seniors who were honored for their accomplishments after the game played an integral role.

The Huskies challenged Leocadia Clark (Stowe, Vt.) immediately off the opening puck drop, but soon after, the Cadets would start putting pressure on USM goaltender Haley McKim including several from Melianne Reynolds (Sherbrooke, Que.). But, in a matchup between two of the top goaltenders in the New England Hockey Conference (NEHC), neither would give an inch.

Norwich dominated possession for much of the period, and late in the period they would find the scoresheet. After a shot from the blueline by Grace Joscelyn (Hooksett, N.H.) was blocked, which came to Taylor Girouard (Burlington, Mass.) whose shot hit the glass behind the cage. The carom found a wide-open Livia Brooks (Walpole, Mass.) on the left side, which she buried amid mass confusion for her 20^th of the season. Minutes later, the Huskies would get a chance to tie it up with a powerplay, but Clark and the rest of the Cadet penalty kill kept the lead at one at the break.

In the second period, the two sides traded chances on the powerplay, neither of which were successful. Minutes after another Norwich penalty expired, they would double their lead. Off a faceoff to McKim's glove side, Olivia Boyer (Saint Paul, Minn.) won it back to Aimee Headland (Nottingham, U.K.). Headland sent a rocket of a one-timer passed McKim's blocker to stretch the lead to two. After the goal, USM looked to eat into the deficit, but Clark said no.

After a brief Norwich flurry to open the third, the two sides would once again exchange unsuccessful powerplays. When the two sides returned to five-on-five action, the Huskies began to push looking to get on the scoresheet. However, Clark, Neris Archambault (Pepperell, Mass.) and the rest of the Cadet defense hunkered down and keeping USM scoreless. With under a minute remaining, and already on the powerplay, McKim was summoned to the bench for the extra skater. After the kill was finished,

Boyer poked the puck loose into the neutral zone which Reynolds retrieved. Her long-distance attempt at the empty cage sailed wide, but Headland won the race to it, and buried the empty netter clinching the victory and Clark's fifth clean sheet of the season. It was also the tenth win in the young coaching career of senior student assistant Ally LaGue.

With the victory, Norwich clinches the NEHC regular season title, and home ice advantage in the postseason tournament. Their first contest will be Saturday Feb. 17 at 3 PM against Johnson & Wales.