VANCOUVER - The UBC Thunderbirds (2-6-1) took down the CIS no. 8 ranked Saskatchewan Huskies (6-1-2) with a 3-2 victory in a shootout Friday night at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.
Defenceman
Kirsten Mihalcheon was the only scorer in the five-round shootout, beating Huskies goalie Vanessa Frederick in the second round to put her team ahead for good.
Frederick made 26 saves in the loss while her counterpart,
Melinda Choy, was a perfect 5-for-5 in the shootout and made 23 saves during regulation for the win.
The win ends UBC's six game losing streak and moves them into fifth in the league standings with five points. The loss keeps the Huskies in second with 14 points, eight back of undefeated Alberta.
"Again we got off to a real slow start but tonight as the game wore on, we got stronger. By the third period we pretty much owned the game. The team we had in the third period is the team we can be but we need to be good for three periods," said UBC head coach Nancy Wilson. "This type of win is just the boost of confidence we need. We've been working hard, in practice and against the top teams in the conference, and they certainly deserved the win tonight."
Danny Stone opened the scoring for the visitors in the first period with an unassisted effort at 13:57.
The T-Birds didn't draw level until early in the second when fourth-year
Lisa Bonang notched her second of the season, finishing off a play from
Kelsey Halvorson and
Jenny Mahovlich.
UBC took the lead just over six minutes later when
Tamara Pickford added her team leading third goal while the T-Birds were on the penalty kill. Chelsea Purcell knotted the game 2-2 on a Huskies power play at the 17:20 mark of the second frame with Stone and Breanne George picking up helpers.
The T-Birds pressed for the go ahead in the third period, out shooting the visitors 16-4, but they weren't able to solve Frederick. The Huskies registered the only shot in an uneventful overtime before seeing UBC earn the full two points with the shootout win.
UBC and Saskatchewan face-off again tomorrow at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
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