The Penn State Lady Icers hoped to avoid their sixth straight loss when they took on Bates College on Saturday in their last regular season game. After losing the opening game 5-1, the team turned things around in the second game.

Sort of.

The Lady Icers (4-10-4)salvaged a 2-2 tie in that second game to close out the regular season on a more positive note.

Penn State came into the two-game homestand against Bates in a bit of a hole. The team hadn't won a game since November and was coming off 10-0 and 7-0 thrashings at the hands of Rhode Island last week. The strong defense the team showed in earlier games wasn't there, nor was the offense that has been struggling all season.

On Friday, the Lady Icers started out playing very strong and got on the board with an unassisted goal by senior Katie King in the first period. Bates responded with a goal of its own minutes later, and the two teams remained deadlocked through the second period.

In the third, though, the Lady Icers defense collapsed and allowed four goals in a span of 12 minutes. After the game, Penn State coach Erica Petrosky wasn't pleased with the team that showed up in the final minutes.

"We came on hard in the first two periods, but in the third, they just weren't moving their feet," Petrosky said. "We need to improve on being a full-game team."

Saturday's game was the team's last chance to make those improvements in the regular season. The game was also Senior Night and gave the team a chance to honor the players who would be playing their final game at home.

With the added motivation of trying to win for the graduating seniors, the Lady Icers came out determined to play their best game. After Bates jumped on top early in the second, the Lady Icers responded with a power-play goal by freshman defender Chelsea Sacks.

Both teams scored goals in the third period and took the game into overtime. The game remained scoreless throughout the extra period, and the Lady Icers came away with the tie.

"We played hard the entire time, we just need to play that way the rest of the way," Penn State assistant coach Mike Brinton said.

Though the defense played well in both games, scoring continues to be a problem for the team. Brinton said that once the players find more good shots to take, the team will do very well in the upcoming playoffs.

"We're jelling right now," Brinton said. "Once we find a way to put the puck in the net, we can beat anyone."

The Lady Icers will begin their postseason play this weekend in the ECWHL playoffs in Buffalo against an opponent yet to be determined.