Fillier Nets Season's Third Hat Trick, Sending No. 13 Princeton to ECAC Quarters

Saturday, February 24

Princeton, N.J.

3:00 PM

Princeton University

14-10-6

Dartmouth (Opening Round)

6-21-3

Dartmouth

Princeton

Princeton's seniors, clockwise from top left, Sarah Fillier, Stefanie Wallace, Annie Kuehl, Daniella Calabrese, Emma Kee, Catherine Kerin and Kate Monihan, played their final game at Baker Rink on Saturday.

Photo by: Shelley M. Szwast

Fillier Nets Season's Third Hat Trick, Sending No. 13 Princeton to ECAC Quarters

February 24, 2024 | Women's Ice Hockey

Box Score

It may have been Sarah Fillier's final game at Baker Rink, but the decorated senior helped ensure it wouldn't be her last game in the orange and black.

Getting a goal in each period, Fillier's hat trick, her third of the season and fifth of her career, helped No. 13-ranked Princeton to a 5-1 win over Dartmouth on Saturday afternoon, sending Princeton on to No. 3-ranked Clarkson for a best-of-three quarterfinal series in the North Country next weekend.

Fillier put Princeton on the board when she put back a rebound on an Issy Wunder shot less than nine minutes into the game, and less than six minutes later, Sarah Paul had a blast from the left circle to give Princeton a 2-0 lead that the Tigers took into the intermission.

Five-plus minutes into the second, Fillier had a takeaway as Dartmouth tried to clear it from the Tigers' offensive zone, converting to put Princeton up 3-0, and a little more than five minutes later, Gabby Kim sent forward a loose puck from just ahead of the Tigers' defensive blue line for Emma Kee, and Kee, a senior like Fillier playing in her final game at Baker, made the breakaway count as the lead became 4-0 at the midway point of the game.

Dartmouth got on the board with less than six minutes to go in the game as Hamilton Doster's stick redirected an Anne Averill blast from the right point, but Fillier's third answered it as she gathered a loose puck in the corner along the end boards in Princeton's defensive zone and took it all the way back, firing it home from the slot for a 5-1 Tiger lead.

Here's all ??? of 'em today in our win over Dartmouth! pic.twitter.com/HVJTzkK7b4
— Princeton Women's Ice Hockey (@PWIH) February 24, 2024

Jennifer Olnowich had the win in goal, stopping 17 of 18 Dartmouth shots on goal as Princeton outshot the Big Green 86-28 overall and 54-18 on goal.

The three-goal, four-point day lifted Fillier to 91 career goals, moving her up a spot to sixth on Princeton's all-time list. The only player to play for the Tigers this century who has scored more goals than Fillier is her former teammate, Carly Bullock '20, who stands a spot ahead of Fillier at 95 career goals. Fillier's 101st assist remained the second-most in program history, behind only Kathy Issel '95 and her 122 assists, and Fillier's 192 career points remained fourth all-time and the most since record-holder Issel finished her career with 218.

The hat trick was Fillier's second in as many weekends, along with one at Union eight days earlier, and Fillier has scored nine goals and 11 points in the last four games.

Princeton will begin the series at Clarkson on Friday in a 6 p.m. start with the second game set for next Saturday at 3 p.m. A third game would be played Sunday, if necessary, also a 3 p.m. start.