“The two exhibition games were a good test to get some games in before non-conference play,” explained Head Coach John Burke. “It allowed our freshmen a chance to get their feet wet, and it was a great exercise to build more team chemistry.”

Freshman Sierra Vadner had a huge impact against Toronto, scoring two goals and adding an assist for a total of three points on the night. Three additional players also contributed multiple points during the game.

The Engineers started things out early against the Aeros, putting a mark on the board shortly after the opening minute. Junior Allysen Weidner deflected a shot by senior co-captain Melissa Boik for the power play goal at 1:02. The Aeros quickly rebounded with a goal of their own a minute later off a shot by Alexandra Winkel who snuck the puck past RPI sophomore Sonja van der Bliek. Vadner scored her first goal of the night with a dead-eye shot from near the point that blasted through traffic in front of the Toronto goal and past goaltender Katie Jamieson near the end of the first. Senior Jamie-Lynn Stewart assisted on the goal.

Two more Engineers added goals in the second frame to pull their lead to 4-1. Sophomore Kendra Dunlop buried a backhand pass from Weidner at 11:52, while Stewart scored her first of the season at 13:08 through the goalie’s pads from the left side.

Opening up the final period of play, Vadner and junior Allison Wright each added a goal 11 seconds apart to bring RPI’s goal count to six. The Aeros would add one more tally in the third, as Sally Butler placed a shot on the stick side past senior goalkeep Emily Ford, who came in the game to relieve van der Bliek. Dunlop finished out the period with her second goal of the game at 18:51 off a deflected shot by Weidner.

“We had a lot of scoring opportunities and took advantage of them. It’s a good thing to get our team philosophy working early on to carry it throughout the rest of the year,” noted Burke.

Van der Bliek made 14 saves for the win, while Ford had one save in nearly four minutes of relief. For the Aeros, Jamieson had 28 saves, whereas back-up Nicole Paniccia had 10 in the losing effort. Overall, Rensselaer had a 47-17 shots on net advantage for the night.

Returning to the Houston Field House on Saturday afternoon, the Engineers had another remarkable performance, overpowering the Sabres by a score of 5-1. Freshman Alisa Harrison, along with Weidner each had two goals apiece in the effort. “We expected the incoming freshmen to have a big impact on the team this year,” said Burke. “We’re fully funded this year, so we can expect the new recruits to play at that higher level. Our upperclassmen really set the standard, and players like [Weidner], Whitney Naslund, and [Dunlop] did a superb job setting examples of how we want to play.”

After a scoreless first period, Weidner netted her first of the game off a pass from line mate junior Whitney Naslund that went top shelf past Sabre goalie Jenesica Drinkwater at 3:22. Less than a minute later, Boik added her first tally of the season with a slap shot off the point that sailed over Drinkwater’s left shoulder. Stoney Creek added their lone goal of the game at 9:40, when Kelly Sabatine scored on her own rebound past senior RPI goalie Ashley Mayr during the power play. Midway through the frame, Harrison received a pass from Wright while killing a penalty to net her first of the game.

Entering the third period holding a 3-1 lead, Weidner and Harrison finished out the night with their second goals. Weidner capitalized on a pass from Naslund to wrist the puck into the net, while Vadner’s shot from the point was slammed past Drinkwater by Harrison for the fifth goal of the night.

Mayr stopped 11 shots in the win, while Drinkwater turned aside 37 of 42 for Stoney Creek.

RPI opens its regular season this weekend against Hockey East opponents Northeastern University on Friday night and against Boston University Saturday afternoon, game times 7 pm and 2 pm, respectively. “This will be a tough test against two Hockey East teams this upcoming weekend,” said Burke. “They are both big and physical with a ton of skill so they will be a good challenge. We want to represent our conference well, and hopefully with Friday’s special event, it will boost our confidence to have a rink full of supportive fans.”