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WATERVILLE — Thanks to an early offensive outburst, the Colby College women’s hockey team is moving on in the NCAA Division III tournament.

The Mules scored four goals in the first 25 minutes of play and beat Wilkes University 4-3 in a first-round game Saturday afternoon.

Colby (18-6-2) will meet New England Small College Conference rival Amherst (21-5-1) in the quarterfinals next Saturday. Colby is playing in the NCAA tournament for the third time in four years under coach Holley Tyng. The Mules lost in the quarterfinals in 2022 and 2023.

Forwards Molly Lefebvre, Audrey Shirer, Megan Martodam and defenseman Breanna Studley scored for Colby. Senior goaltender Mandy Busky made 26 saves.

“Wilkes was a great opponent, we’ve never played them before and we faced some adversity,” said Colby senior defenseman Anna Staton. “We played simple, we played according to the game plan, and (Busky) had some key saves. Everyone had a great game. The forwards were finding the back of the net, which was huge. The (defense) was on fire, we were boxing out. It was a fun game.”

The Colonels, of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and champion of the Middle Atlantic Conference, finished 22-5-1.

Colby struck quickly, grabbing the lead just 1:17 into the first period. Shirer, with room to spare around her, was able to send a wrist shot over the left shoulder of Wilkes goaltender Audrey Milne and into the corner of the net. Jo Tattersall and Staton were credited with assists.

Wilkes tied the game 10:44 into the period, as Megan Bell, positioned to the left of Busky, tipped a Renee Ng shot into the net.

But Studley gave Colby a 2-1 lead at 15:51, shooting down the ice on a breakaway and flipping the puck over Milne’s glove.

The Mules broke out offensively early in the second period. Martodam tipped a Tattersall shot into the net for a 3-1 lead at 2:26. Just two minutes later, Lefebvre connected on a wrist shot.

Colby outshot Wilkes 24-14 through the first two periods.

“(Scoring early) was one of the (keys) in the back of my head,” Tyng said. “If we can score early, it’s just going to alleviate a little bit of that pressure. We never had to chase the game, which is huge. Playing with a lead is a gift. Finding the net four times (in 25 minutes), we needed it.”

Wilkes fought back, scoring two goals in the third period. Just 24 seconds into the third, forward Haylee Bouchard was able to poke the puck past Busky to cut Colby’s lead to 4-2. Nina Hudáková was credited with an assist.

The Colonels put Colby on its heels in the final minutes, and Hudáková scored a power-play goal at 19:10.

“We played against a tremendous opponent,” said Wilkes coach Dave LaBaff. “Being able to stick to the game plan and coming really close to tying it was something that we’re really proud of. I don’t think we’re leaving Maine with our heads held low by any means.”

Milne finished with 24 saves for the Colonels.

The Mules reached the NESCAC semifinals for the fifth straight season, falling 3-0 to Middlebury on March 8. In spite of the loss of some key players to graduation, including two-time All-American Meg Rittenhouse, the Mules went 8-2 in their first 10 games this season, then ended the regular season on a hot streak, with a 7-1 record in their final eight contests.

“Coming to the rink every week with a growth mindset has been really important for us,” Tyng said. “Growth is one of our team core values. I’ve been so impressed with the players’ ability to get better. They’re still learning, they’re still dialed in on executing our game plan and they’ve done an outstanding job on continuing to grow and continuing to get better.”

Colby is 2-0 this season against Amherst, which beat Middlebury 1-0 for the NESCAC title on March 9. The Mules defeated the Mammoths 3-1 on Feb. 7 and 3-2 on Feb. 8. Both games were played in Waterville.