NORTHFIELD, Vt.- The third-ranked Norwich Women's Ice Hockey team defended its home ice Saturday afternoon, defeating intrastate rival Vermont State Castleton 4–2 in the Little East Conference (LEC) Semifinals at Kreitzberg Arena. Norwich used an explosive four-goal second period to pull away and secure its spot in the conference championship game.

Sophia Nelson (Castle Pines, Colo.) recorded the first game-winning goal of her collegiate career, while Breanna Ricker (Laconia, N.H.) added a two-point effort. Olivia Boyer (Saint Paul, Minn.) and Livia Brooks (Walpole, Mass.) also continued their march toward the 100-career point milestone with key contributions in the victory.

Norwich controlled possession early in the opening period but struggled to break down a disciplined Castleton defensive unit. The Spartans clogged shooting lanes with active sticks and several timely blocked shots, limiting clean looks toward netminder Gianna McCusker.

A Cadet power play midway through the frame helped sustain offensive-zone pressure, but Castleton's penalty kill held firm with McCusker turning aside several chances. Late in the period, the Spartans earned a man advantage of their own, forcing Madison Brunet (Timmins, Ont.) into action. Brunet came up with a handful of steady saves to preserve the scoreless deadlock through twenty minutes.

The game shifted dramatically early in the second period.

Just 1:45 into the frame, Geena Cookinham (Gilmanton, N.H.) intercepted a Castleton breakout attempt in the neutral zone and carried the puck into the offensive zone alongside Ricker. McCusker denied Ricker's initial shot, but Boyer followed up the play and buried the rebound, giving Norwich a 1–0 lead and recording career point No. 98.

The Cadets continued to press and doubled their advantage four minutes later. Dani Ammons (Centennial, Colo.) recovered the puck in the right corner and sent it back to the point for Ricker. Ricker stepped into a wrist shot that found its way through traffic and past McCusker, pushing the lead to two.

Norwich's momentum only grew as the period progressed. Just past the midway point, Maggie Hunter (Royal Oak, Mich.) took control of the puck in the neutral zone and advanced it ahead to Alex Leslie (Irishtown, N.B.). Leslie carried the puck into the offensive end before slipping a pass to Nelson, who beat McCusker to the blocker side for her first career game-winning tally and a 3–0 Norwich lead.

The Cadets capped the period with another goal in the final two minutes. Anna Lisac (Euclid, Ohio) freed the puck in the neutral zone and sent it ahead to Madison Anderson (Green Bay, Wis.) near the Norwich bench. Anderson quickly moved it to Brooks, who finished the play to extend the advantage to four and record career point No. 99.

By the end of the frame, Norwich had tilted the ice entirely, outshooting Castleton 20–2 in the second period.

The Cadets carried that momentum into the third period, continuing to control possession early while looking to close out the game. Castleton eventually found a spark midway through the frame when Moa Carlsson cut the deficit to three with a goal eight-and-a-half minutes in.

Norwich maintained pressure in response, but the Spartans found another opportunity late. With McCusker pulled for an extra skater during a power play, Carlsson struck again to bring Castleton within two with under five minutes remaining.

Despite the late push, Brunet remained composed in the net. The Norwich netminder came up with several key saves in the closing minutes, steadying the Cadets and preventing any further comeback attempt.

"Today felt like a playoff game," said Head Coach Justin Simpson. "We had a great crowd and a lot of energy in the building. Castleton pushed hard all game and challenged us as we knew they would. We had a very, very strong 2^nd period, which allowed us to create some separation heading into the third. We are looking forward to hosting the LEC Championship game next weekend vs UMass Boston."

With the win, the top-seeded Cadets will host the No. 2 seed UMass Boston in the LEC Championship Game on March 7 at 3 p.m. at Kreitzberg Arena, with the conference title on the line.