CIS women's hockey Friday roundup: Record setting win for UOIT over the No. 5 Gryphons

TORONTO - The Varsity Blues women’s hockey team notched their first win of the season over the York Lions with a 4-2 victory on Friday night (Jan. 20) at Varsity Arena.

The win lifts Toronto (10-8-1) from sixth place into a tie with York for fourth in the OUA standings.

"I thought we did the little things right," said Varsity Blues head coach Vicky Sunohara. "We won battles, crashed the net and got shots away at their net. We kept it simple and it paid off."
 
Third-year forward and assistant captain Kelly O’Hanlon (Markham, Ont.) opened the scoring midway through the first frame, as she sent a shot through traffic to beat York goaltender Megan Lee.

Toronto extended their lead to two at the 11:05 mark of the second period as Madoc, Ont., native Ragan Danford found herself wide open in front of the net and fired it into the open mesh.

Veteran forward Brenley Jorgensen of Kingston, Ont., added Toronto’s third goal with just over five minutes remaining in the game after receiving a pass from rookie forward Jacqueline Scheffel behind the net and burying the one-timer.

Jorgensen added a short-handed empty-netter with 3:28 to go; however, the Lions responded, finally getting on the board and scoring two goals 23 seconds apart to bring the game within two. York’s comeback attempted ended up being too little, too late as the Blues skated away with two points.

The Varsity Blues return to action on Sunday, January 22 as they take on the Ryerson Rams at George Bell Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 2 p.m.

Source: Toronto Sports Info

OSHAWA, Ont. – Twenty-four hours after playing in the OUA Outdoor Classic, UOIT earned one of the biggest wins in the five year history of the women’s hockey program as the Ridgebacks defeated the No. 5 ranked Guelph Gryphons 2-1 at the Campus Ice Centre.

The Ridgebacks picked up their eighth conference victory of the year, which set a program high for wins in a season. UOIT also won the season series over Guelph, as the teams split their previous two meetings.

“The team came out with a lot of energy and really deserved the win tonight,” said UOIT head coach Karen Nystrom. “I am really proud of the way we played and our overall effort in the game.”

UOIT captain Jill Morillo (Whitby, Ont.) got the Ridgebacks on the board in the first period as she scored her league leading 14th goal of the year. Melissa Berney (Bowmanville, Ont.) and Jennifer Daly (Ajax, Ont.) had assists on the goal which was scored less than five minutes into the game.

Guelph would even the score with just 14 seconds left in the period, as Oshawa native Jessica Pinkerton netted her 12th goal of the season. Pinkerton leads all OUA freshman in scoring with 21 points.

In the second period, the Ridgebacks would regain the lead as Jaclyn Gibson (Cobourg, Ont.) put one past Guelph goalie Brooke Siddall (Windsor, Ont.). Berney recorded her second assist of the night.

The teams would trade scoring chances the rest of the game, but the two goaltenders would hold their ground and not allow another goal, giving the Ridgebacks the one goal victory.

Jessica Larabie (Pickering, Ont.) made 28 saves for UOIT in the win, including all eight shots she faced in the third period. The Ridgebacks defence did a good job in front of her, as they limited the number of scoring opportunities of the league’s second ranked offence.

Guelph outshot UOIT 29-25 and both teams were 0-for-6 on the power play.

UOIT improves to 8-12-0 and sit just one point behind Waterloo (7-8-3) for eighth place in the OUA standings. The Ridgebacks will travel to Western (7-11-0) and Windsor (9-8-2) for back-to-back road games next weekend.

A QUICK LOOK AT THE RIDGEBACKS
Overall Record: 10-12-0
Conference Record: 8-12-0

Next Home Game: Fri. Jan. 27 @ Western (7:30 p.m.)

Source: UOIT Sports Info

SASKATOON - Cara Wooster scored 3:28 into overtime to give the University of Saskatchewan Huskies a 3-2 victory over the visiting University of Manitoba Bisons Friday night in Saskatoon’s Rutherford Rink.

Wooster tallied the game winner on a wrist shot after a Julia Flinton from the top of the face off circle beating Manitoba Bisons’ goaltender Leiette Klassen’s glove. It was Wooster's second overtime winner this season.

With the win the Huskies keep a hold of first place in the Canada West moving to 14-4-1 on the season. Manitoba drops to 9-5-3.

Saskatchewan opened the scoring at 6:01 in the first period when rookie Lindsay Karst scored her third of the season. Canada West leading scorer Julie Paetsch added to the Huskies’ lead just 38 seconds into the second frame.

The Bisons’ have strong special teams play to thank for their comeback. Both Manitoba goals were scored with the man advantage. Nellie Minshull tallied at 19:18 in the second period with Danny Stone in the box. Caitlin MacDonald notched the game at two at 7:26 in the third period with Flinton in the box.

Vanessa Frederick made 30 saves in the win for the Huskies, while Klassen stopped 33 shots at the other end of the ice. Manitoba finished the game 2-for-5 on the power play, while Saskatchewan failed to capitalize on four opportunities.

The two teams meet again Saturday in Rutherford Rink. Puck drop is 7 p.m.

Source: Saskatchewan Sports Info

LETHBRIDGE – Lethbridge Pronghorns climbed back from a two goal deficit and earned a shootout win against the University of Alberta Pandas, Friday night at Nicholas Sheran Arena.
 
Shelby Ballendine scored both goals for the Pronghorns in the third period and Sadie Lenstra scored the only goal in the shootout. Alberta’s goals were scored by Alison Campbell and Andrea Boras. 
 
Lethbridge net-minder Crystal Patterson turned aside 25 of 27 on the night and Alberta’s Kaitlyn Chapman made 19 saves.
 
The Pandas drew first blood midway through the first as a power play opportunity allowed Stewart to find a wide open Boras, just inside the blue line, who blasted a hard slap shot through traffic, beating a screened Patterson.
 
Alberta’s offensive effort earned them another goal late in the period at 17:03, as first-year forward Alison Campbell, in position in front of the crease, managed to sneak one past the glove of the Lethbridge net-minder.
 
After a mostly uneventful second period, the score remained unchanged as the visiting Pandas held onto their two goal lead heading into the third frame.
 
Late in the third, Amy VanBuskirk’s rocket from the top of the circle found the front of then net where ‘Horns leading scorer Shelby Ballendine skillfully deflected it in past Chapman, narrowing the gap to one and bringing the home crowd to their feet.
 
With less than two minutes remaining in regulation, Lethbridge pulled Patterson to gain an extra attacker and it paid off immediately as Ballendine buried her second of the game, tying the game at two’s and forcing extra time.
 
Despite outshooting the ‘Horns 8-3 in the 4-on-4 overtime period, neither team would manage to put it away which meant they would settle it with a shootout.
 
After an unsuccessful first attempt by Ballendine, it was Sadie Lenstra who managed to notch the game-winner after Alberta’s second shooter failed to beat Patterson. 
 
With this win, the ‘Horns secure the fourth spot in the division and improve to 11-7-1 while the Pandas move to 9-3-7. The puck drops for game two of the weekend series tomorrow night at Nicholas Sheran Arena and will be also be broadcast live on www.canadawest.tv

Source: Lethbridge Sports Info