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STORRS, Conn. – Needing just one point to move into sole possession of third place in the Hockey East standings, the Northeastern women's hockey team came through by clawing its way back against Connecticut on Sunday afternoon to salvage a 2-2 tie.
 
Hayley Masters and Taytum Clairmont scored the Huskies' two goals of the 65-minute contest that saw a combined 94 shots on goal. Northeastern put 50 shots on net for just the second time this season (59 on Dec. 2), while UConn fired a total of 44. Chloe Desjardins made 42 saves, three short of tying her season high of 45.
 
Sunday's tie was also the second stalemate between Northeastern (10-15-5, 9-8-2 WHEA) and Connecticut (7-17-8, 3-11-5 WHEA) during the 2014-15 season as the two Huskies squads had played to a 3-3 draw at Matthews Arena on Jan. 3. Including Northeastern's 4-3 victory against UConn on Saturday, NU wins the season series, 1-0-2.
 
Connecticut was eager to avenge Saturday's defeat to the Huskies and dictated the pace of the game during its early stages. Christina Zalewski was whistled for boarding at 2:36, making it the second straight game that she had been sent to the penalty box within the first three minutes (2:09 on Feb. 14).
 
Northeastern successfully killed the Huskies' first power-play of the afternoon, but were less fortunate after Melissa Haganey was sent off at 11:52. Emily Snodgrass' shot from the right dot ricocheted off the near post and slide just beyond Desjardins' reach, allowing Kayla Campero to put the Huskies in front, 1-0, at 12:56.
 
Exceptional net play by both goaltenders frustrated both offenses. Denisa Krizova had a great look at an open shooting lane before UConn goalie Annie Belanger kicked the puck wide, while at the other end, Desjardins made a nifty off-balance glove save that denied a Connecticut scoring chance.
 
Penalites quickly became the theme of the second stanza as the majority of the period was played with just nine skaters on the ice. Connceticut's Madison Badeau was called for tripping at 5:35, and the Huskies capitalized with the man advantage. Krizova's shot deflected off Belanger and dropped in front of the net, allowing Masters to win the scramble in front of the crease and flip a shot in for her eighth goal of the season. Kendall Coyne and Jordan Krause were credited with their 18th and eighth assists, respectively, of the season on the play.
 
NU had a brief moment with a five-on-three opportunity and came close to scoring the go-ahead goal when Colleen Murphy's one-timer just missed wide. UConn was unsuccessful navigating Desjardins on a two-on-one play, but Lucie Povova was just as unlucky on the opposite end of the ice when her one-on-one exchange would not fall. NU went on to register a season period-high 23 shots in the second, with only one going for goal.
 
Connecticut broke through late in the second period on its fourth power-play of the day as Sarah MacDonnell recorded her eighth goal of the year to give the Huskies a 2-1 lead at 16:51.
 
Although Northeastern entered the second intermission with a one-goal deficit, its fortunes would change when Leah Lum was whistled for interference at 5:38. The Huskies' top line worked the puck around its offensive zone until Krizova found Clairmont for the game-tying goal. Desjardins saved a perfect 15 shots during the final period of regulation, and went on to save six more shots in overtime as the two Huskies squads finished in a 2-2 draw.
 
With the victory, Northeastern currently sits one point ahead of Maine for third place in the Hockey East standings. Both teams have two games remaining on their conference schedules. The Huskies will travel to New Hampshire for a 2 p.m. game on Saturday, Feb. 21, and return to Matthews Arena for Senior Day on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 3 p.m.