Terrier women's polish leading to better finishes

For the last couple of years, Boston University women's coach Brian Durocher believed his team had been knocking on the door of success, but this season he sees the Terriers smashing through it. They started slowly, losing two of their first three games, but since then BU is unbeaten in its last nine (6-0-3) heading into tomorrow's game against Hockey East rival Boston College.

"Last year, we were pretty close against all these big teams," Durocher said. "The fourth game [this season against Mercyhurst] we scored three goals in the last period to win the game, and Clarkson the following weekend we were in a real barnburner at 2-1 [also a victory]. From the neck up, we were starting to think we were competitive with these teams and we finally figured out we might be able to beat some of these teams and it has kind of snowballed from there. It has been a nice run."

One of the brightest spots for the fifth-ranked Terriers has been the emergence of freshman forward Jenelle Kohanchuk, who has 11 points in 12 games. Kohanchuk, a native of Winnipeg, Manitoba, is the center of the "K Line" with senior right wing Gina Kearns and sophomore left wing Jillian Kirchner. In her first collegiate game, Oct. 3 against Union, Kohanchuk celebrated her 18th birthday by scoring the winning goal and adding two assists.

"I knew she was going to be a good, solid player," Durocher said. "But she's had a real good start for a freshman as far as finishing and getting points. That might be the most pleasant surprise that we have. I knew she had some of those characteristics you see - I always equate it to Mark Messier, being that confident, strong, two-way player. I felt like she was kind of like that, but she seems to have a little bit softer touch, a little bit more strength and speed than maybe I realized watching her. It's been nice for us."

Junior forward Melissa Anderson leads the Terriers with 14 points and Kearns is second with 12. After Kohanchuk are senior forward Erin Seman and Kirchner with 10 points each.

Seman, a native of Ramsey, Minn., said team chemistry is stronger than it has been.

"We finally figured out how to finish," she said. "I compare our team to the Celtics because when it's close and down to the wire, I have confidence that someone is going to pull through, that our team is going to pull through. Whether it's getting a goal to tie it up and send it to overtime and get a win in overtime, we have found a way to put the puck in the net.

"In the past, we'd struggled with that. We've always been a very good team but we had some tough breaks, maybe some bad bounces, which can affect the outcome of an entire game. This year, maybe a little bit of luck is on our side, but also we're overall a much better team. Everyone just seems to be on the same page."

The Terriers will have a challenge tomorrow when they host the eighth-ranked Eagles.

"I really think they have a fantastic goalie in Molly Schaus," said Durocher. "They have a lot of firepower up front [led by junior Kelli Stack with 22 points in 10 games]. They're a real good skating team. What we'll try to do against a team like that is keep them away from runs of two or three or four goals. They play off that kind of momentum real well. When they score, you make sure you batten down the hatches and prevent them from getting that second and third one."

Winning weekend

The UMass-Lowell men's team earned a pair of wins last weekend, over New Hampshire, 8-3, at home, and UMass, 2-0, on the road. Junior forward Kory Falite had a career-best 4 points, including his first career hat trick, in the victory over the Wildcats. Freshman forward Matt Ferreira tallied his first two goals, including one shorthanded. Thirteen of the 18 Lowell skaters earned at least 1 point. The River Hawks' eight goals were their most since an 8-0 shutout of Bentley Nov. 27, 2004. It was their highest output against a Hockey East opponent since an 8-4 victory over BC Jan. 12, 2002. The River Hawks host Providence tomorrow and Northeastern Saturday . . . Holy Cross may not have won last weekend, but the Crusaders were impressive in two games against undefeated Air Force. Sophomore goaltender Adam Roy stopped 71 of 76 shots. He allowed just one goal Friday, losing, 1-0, in overtime, and allowed four goals Saturday while making 39 saves in a 5-1 loss.

Nancy Marrapese-Burrell can be reached at marrapese@globe.com.

Correction: Because of a reporting error, the date for the Boston University-Boston College women's ice hockey game was incorrect in the College Hockey Notebook in yesterday's Sports section. The game will be played tomorrow at 3 p.m. at BC.