Trio of goal scorers surge women’s hockey to exhibition victory

Three different goal scorers powered the Oswego State women’s hockey team to a season-opening 3-1 victory over the Beijing Swift on Saturday. 

Veterans Elizabeth Cooley and Tilly Pethrick, alongside first-year Hailey Hirt each found the back of the net for the Lakers, helping Oswego secure the exhibition victory against its international opponent.

Under the leadership of head coach Mark Digby, Saturday’s battle gave Oswego an opportunity to test itself against competition from outside the traditional collegiate hockey team. Beijing, which competes in China’s Women’s Ice Hockey League, brought a different style of play to Oswego as both teams continued preparing for their upcoming seasons.

Oswego’s three-goal performance highlighted contributions from multiple players, an encouraging sign for a Lakers team looking to establish its offensive identity early in the 2026-27 campaign after dropping its first-round matchup to SUNY Cortland, 2-1, to end the 2025-26 season. 

Senior forward Jenna Majewski and sophomore forward Georgia Cunliffe are among the returning offensive contributors in the present campaign. Majewski recorded eight goals and five assists last season, while Cunliffe finished her freshman campaign with eight goals and eight assists. Although neither tallied a point in the matchup, both demonstrated that, yet again, they are going to be a force to be reckoned with this coming season 

The exhibition against Beijing provided Oswego with valuable preparation before the games began to count in the standings. Facing an international opponent allowed the Lakers to continue developing chemistry and evaluate their play ahead of a demanding conference schedule.

Although the result will not affect either team’s regular-season record, the 3-1 win gave Oswego a positive result as it continued its preseason preparations.

The Lakers are scheduled to host Nazareth University in another exhibition on Oct. 24 before opening their regular season against Arcadia University on Oct. 30.

With contributions from a multitude of skaters, Oswego will look to carry its offensive production and preseason experience into the start of the regular season.