WILKES-BARRE – Sophomore goaltender Alexa Rango (Hopewell Junction, NY/) was strong between the pipes and sophomore Kendall Castro (Killingworth, CT) scored a third period goal as the Wilkes University women's ice hockey team battled with United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) opponent Utica College in a 2-1 loss Saturday afternoon at the Toyota SportsPlex.

With the loss Wilkes fell to 0-4-0 in the UCHC and overall this season. Utica stayed unbeaten at 3-0-0 in league play and are 3-1-0 overall.

Rango was strong all game in the crease for the Colonels in her first start of the season. She finished with 47 saves including 19 in the second period.

Castro's goal was her first of the season and the fifth of her career. The goal came 8:14 into the third period to pull Wilkes within one goal after trailing 2-0. Shauna Tubbs (Maumee, OH) won a faceoff in the Pioneers end which Ashley Murry (Morgantown, PA) got out to the point where Brianna Stanton (Kenai, AK) fired a slap shot toward goal. Castro was perfectly positioned to deflect the shot past the Utica goaltender as Stanton picked up her first career point and Murry was also credited with her third career assist.

Neither team could find a goal in the first period as Rango stopped all 12 of the Pioneers shots. Bria Reilly made three first-period saves for Utica.

Utica broke into the scoring column 8:46 into the second period when Maddie Paydos jammed the puck home in front of the net as Utica had an extra skater on the ice on a delayed penalty call. Wilkes was able to kill off the ensuing power play and two more Utica extra-man opportunities in the period as the game headed for the third with the visitors leading 1-0.

Carolyn Whitney added the Pioneers second goal on a rebound after Rango made a nice save on Erica Sloan's close-in shot 6:17 into the third period.

The Colonels had two opportunities on the power play after closing the gap to 2-1 but Utica was able to kill off the chances, allowing just one shot on goal.

Both teams were strong on the penalty kill in this game as Wilkes forced Utica to go 0-for-5 on its power plays and Utica forced Wilkes into a 0-for-3 day. Laurenne Fraser (Salt Lake City, UT) won 10 faceoffs for the Colonels while Tubbs added seven wins as Utica held a 30 to 18 advantage in the circle for the game while leading 49 to eight in shots. Castro, Erica Sheaffer (New Hartford, NY) and Andrea Delvecchio (Orange, CT) each had two shots for Wilkes. Whitney had a game-high 10 shots for Utica.

Wilkes continues the season with game three of a seven-game home stand next Saturday, November 23 when the Colonels welcome in Post University for a non-conference game with puck drop scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the Toyota SportsPlex.