VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds women's hockey team fell 4-2 in their Canada West league opener against the Lethbridge Pronghorns on Friday night at Father David Bauer Arena in Vancouver.

In an adrenaline-filled game, UBC fought hard to overcome the Pronghorns' three rapid-fire goals in the first period. All four Lethbridge goals came on the power play.

Fifth-year forward Rebecca Unrau (Humboldt, Sask.) did her best to try and secure a Thunderbird victory, netting two goals, but the effort was too little, too late.
 
"We've got a really resilient group that just works one shift at a time," assistant coach Mike Sommer said following the tough loss. "Our players worked hard and we had some bad bounces."
 
UBC was down two players due to penalties halfway through the first with veteran leaders Kathleen Cahoon (Calgary) and Kelly Murray (Medicine Hat, Alta.) in the box for boarding and tripping, respectively. The 'Birds were able to stand tall on the PK for nearly a minute before Lethbridge took advantage of the 5-on-3. Fifth-year goalie Daniellle Dube (New Westminster, B.C.) blocked a shot from the point but couldn't corrall the rebound and a quick chop from the Pronghorns' Tricia Van Vaerenbergh slid the puck past her glove side.
 
UBC was still down a player when the next goal was scored less than a minute later. A shot from the blueline through traffic was redirected up and over Dube's shoulder by Lauren Fredrich, and yet another PPG wobbled into the net off of a shot from the circle 90 seconds later. That goal went to Mattie Apperson and Dube was pulled in favour of fifth-year Samantha Langford (Pense, Sask.), who would finish the game.
 
The 'Birds would not give up, though.
 
UBC came back strong in the second, scoring two. Unrau, the 10th-best scorer in the league last year, netted both goals for UBC. Unrau picked up one of the few unprotected rebounds from Pronghorns goalie Alicia Anderson and beat her with a quick shot for her first of the night.
 
Then just after a Pronghorns double minor expired, Unrau scored again at 17:01 to close the gap to just one goal. Rookie Shiayli Toni (Saskatoon) and Murray picked up the assists.
 
Unfortunately, Lethbridge was the only team to pot another goal in the third, furthering their lead to the game's final score of 4-2. The Thunderbirds directed a total of 32 shots at Anderson, while the Pronghorns aimed 17 at Dube and Langford. UBC went 0-for-6 on the power play while Lethbridge took advantage of the man-up situations, going 4-for-6.
 
"We know it's a process and I think everyone did a really good job of keeping a positive attitude and just going out there and working hard," said Sommer. "We've got a really good group. We have a team full of leaders… and I think we're going to be ready to go tomorrow."
 
The Thunderbirds and the Pronghorns will rematch tomorrow, finishing their weekend matchup Saturday, October 3 at the Father Bauer Arena. Puck drop is slated for 3 p.m. PT.