Syracuse sweeps Robert Morris in last series of the semester

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Orange completed its sweep of the Robert Morris Colonials with a 4-1 win on Saturday. Bryn Saarela led the Orange the whole weekend with seven points over the two games, including five goals.

The Orange celebrate as a team. Several of the players are leaving the bench to give Allie Kelley a hug.
The Orange went 2-0 on the weekend against Robert Morris. Photo Credit Jackson Cowen

“It was definitely a lot of fun. I haven’t done that before, it’s a lot of fun, especially doing it with this team,” Saarela said.

One of the other leaders on the weekend was captain and goalie Allie Kelley. She made 50 saves on the weekend and only let two shots by her in the two games.

Allie Kelley made 30 saves in the second game against Robert Morris. Photo Credit Jackson Cowen

Prior to the weekend, Kelley had 520 saves on the season, which put her second in NCAA women’s Division I hockey.

Saarela scored goals all different ways in the home series. She opened the series Friday with a powerplay goal against the Colonials.

Coach Britni Smith said was happy to see Saarela find success in the weekend.

“She just plays the right way. She’s someone that continues to battle on the defensive side of the puck and gets rewarded on the offensive side. It’s great to see her teammates get so excited for her success,” Smith said.

Close up of Bryn Saarela. She is set for a faceoff.
Bryn Saarela had six blocked shots to go along with her seven points on the weekend. Photo Credit Jackson Cowen

Saarela scored a second powerplay goal in the game Saturday. She said the key was quick puck movement.

“I think for the power play goal, just moving it around, getting them moving, and then kind of surprising them with the low attack, kind of like yesterday,” Saarela said.

Saarela wasn’t done with her special teams’ dominance. She scored a shorthanded goal on Saturday. Saarela said that the week of practice she had with her line mates helped them have success the whole weekend.

“I thought our week of practice went really well, we were connecting in some of the drills, so I think just continuing that into the weekend was very helpful,” Saarela said.

The picture shows Bryn Saarela celebrating with Charli Kettyle after a goal.
Saarela scored on the power play, penalty kill and even strength over the course of the weekend. Photo Credit Jackson Cowen

Saarela had an even strength and an empty net goal in the first game of the weekend to complete the first hat trick of her career.

Coach Britni Smith said she is able to play Saarela in any game situation.

“The goal is to have more and more players who can do that, and I believe we already have a lot of younger players who are already stepping into some of those roles as well. So it’s great to have players like Tatum and Bryn who can lead the way and help those younger players, so when they are in those positions, they have seen how it’s done and what is expected,” Smith said.

The picture is of Tatum White from Syracuse. She is getting set to take a faceoff for the Orange.
Tatum white went 32-25 on faceoffs during the weekend. Photo Credit Jackson Cowen

The Orange gets three weeks off before its first series of the second semester. The team sits at 7-12 with a 5-3 conference record.

The Orange will play in Minnesota against Minnesota Duluth in its first series of the new year. The Bulldogs are ranked fifth in the country.

Smith said the team deserved the break after their dedication to the process this semester.

“They definitely earned the sweep this weekend and it’s a good way to go into break,” Smith said.