The St. Thomas University women’s hockey team were outscored by the University of New Brunswick Reds at the Aitken Centre Jan. 15, 5-1.
The Reds began the evenly-played period with a quick goal resulting from their first shot on net. This was followed by a consistent back and forth between the separate ends.
Mariah Carey a third-year forward who scored in the third period, said despite the loss, she’s convinced that her team won the third period.
“Once we got that goal it brought our energy up for sure, but it it’s hard to come back from it late … We need to always bounce back no matter what team it is.”
Both teams played rough, aggressively fighting for control. Tommies’ Kaylee Vader and Jacey Dane received back-to-back penalties for tripping and slashing respectively, leaving the team shorthanded for nearly four minutes halfway through the period.
The Tommies flexed their strong defence by holding back the Reds, with goaltender Caroline Pietroski catching the puck in a crowd in front of her net, until their second goal slipped passed her near the end of the power play. Megan Pardy closed the period with the Tommies’ third penalty for body checking.
The Tommies found themselves in their own end to start the second period. They would find their scoring chances from a breakaway from Olivia Reid. Brooke Stanford also had a chance, shooting the puck from the left side, but was not able to get it by the UNB goaltender.
Despite the chances, the Reds were still able to add to their lead, getting two shots past Pietroski, who would later be subbed out of the game for first-year goaltender Marandee Hunter. The Tommies would again get more chances in the period with a powerplay, but it was cut short after taking a penalty of their own.
STU activated during the third period, starting with a full two-minute powerplay advantage. Eclipsing the shots 13 to 10, the Tommies put pressure on the Reds in their own zone. This resulted in a holding penalty for the Reds, leaving the Tommies again with an advantage. Soon after, Legault, fighting behind the Reds’ net, passed the puck up to Mariah Carey, who nailed a one-timer, giving the Tommies their only goal late in the game. The play quickly returned to relatively even exchanges, with both teams adapting and responding to each other. The period ended with a Reds’ empty-net goal, bringing the Reds’ final goal.
Carey, who put her team on the board, believes the credit should be shared with Legault.
“She had great patience, I hollered for it and it went off my stick pretty quick,” said Carey.
Carey said the loss won’t weigh too heavily on the team.
“It’s frustrating at times but you have to put that aside and keep positive, go hard, and amp up your teammates as well. I know they say it’s a rivalry [with UNB], but any team we play we want to win — doesn’t matter who they are.”
