Hillary Sterling scored two goals, including the game-tying goal with 2:09 to play in the third period, but Cornell's Izzy Daniel netted one late in overtime to secure a 3-2 win over the St. Lawrence University women's hockey team on Friday night at Appleton Arena.
 
With the overtime loss, the Scarlet and Brown fell to 14-12-7 overall and 10-7-4 in ECAC  Hockey play. Cornell improved to 13-12-2 overall and 11-8-2 in conference play; the Saints are now three points ahead of the Big Red in sixth place in the conference standings and 3.5 points behind Clarkson, which sits in fifth.
 
After a slow start on both sides of the puck in the first period, it was Cornell winger Leah MacSween who struck first for the Big Red, netting her second goal of the season on a backdoor finish past the far pad of Saints' netminder Lucy Morgan with 1:01 remaining to play in the first period.
 
As the first period came to a close, the Big Red led the Scarlet and Brown 1-0, holding the lion's share of possession, as well as shots on goal.
 
Five minutes into the second period Sterling was able to corral a loose puck careening towards Cornell goalie Lindsay Browning, dragging it cross-crease and sending one home to tie the game at 1-1.
 
"It was definitely not our best start," said Sterling. "But our extra efforts came into play and were really key because of the puck bounces and opportunities that were going their way."
 
Just over a minute later, Cornell defensemen Alexa Davis fired a wrist shot from the point on a feed from Daniel, which was deflected past Morgan, finding the back of the net to regain the lead at 2-1.
 
Late in the second period, St. Lawrence received a bench minor penalty for too many players on the ice. The Saints penalty kill unit was up to the task, with Laura Cote and Kristen Guerriero blocking two shots each from the slot and Morgan getting in front of the third.
 
Both teams seemed to split the momentum and time of possession fairly evenly throughout the final regulation period, creating offensive opportunities. Still, they were unable to find the back of the net through most of the period until Sterling cashed in on the equalizer, firing a quick wrist shot upstairs past the glove of Browning for her fifth goal of the season.
 
The Big Red held the bulk of possession for most of the overtime period, and Daniel found the back of the net on a five-hole shot off a 2-on-1 on an assist from Ashley Messier.


 
"The team has taken a lot of good steps forward," said Saints' head coach Chris Wells '92. "This is the third game out of the last four where we've managed to tie the game…obviously with the 3-on-3 (overtime), you get a bounce here, a bounce there, and sometimes it can go the other way."
 
The Cornell front five blocked 20 shots, with Browning stopping 18 of 20 shots on goal from the Saints. Morgan stopped 19 of 22 shots from the Big Red.
 
After the game, St. Lawrence honored their four graduate students, also known as the "Super Seniors." Nara Elia, Skylar Podvey, Brittney Gout, and Jessica Poirier were recognized for their contributions to the team.
 
The Saints host eighth-ranked Colgate tomorrow at 3 p.m. in their final regular-season contest.