EDMONTON – Fourth-year goalie Lindsey Post stopped all 17 shots she faced, as the Alberta Pandas women's hockey team blanked the visiting UBC Thunderbirds 1-0 Friday night at Clare Drake Arena in Edmonton. 

Fifth-year defenceman Natasha Steblin scored the only goal of the game in the second period, while UBC netminder Danielle Dube (Vancouver) stopped 29 of 30 shots in the loss.
 
It was actually the visiting Thunderbirds who started the game off strong, controlling possession for the initial ten minutes. However, Post stopped all six, and Dube stopped all seven opening period shots to keep the game scoreless. 

The Pandas received a spark early in the second period, after an unfortunate situation saw rookie Panda Regan Wright crash into the end-boards, ending her game. The injury seemed to give Alberta a boost, as the slowly started to take control of the game, culminating in Steblin's goal. Deanna Morin won an offensive zone draw cleanly to Steblin on the right point, and she wired a shot over a screened Dube for her third goal of the season. 

The Pandas continued to press in the third period for the insurance marker, outshooting UBC 29-10 at one point, but were unable to capitalize on five power plays. Third-year Thunderbirds forward Kathleen Cahoon (Calgary) had one of the best scoring chances in the game, as she found herself wide open in the slot, but fired the puck high. Post would go on to make another seven saves in the final four minutes, to cement the Pandas 1-0 victory. 

UBC (6-2-4-1) remains in first place after the loss, but only two points clear of Alberta (7-5-0-1) for the top spot. Very little separates seven of the eight teams in the Canada West. The Thunderbirds and Saskatchewan are tied with 23 points, while seventh-place Lethbridge has 19.

UBC and Alberta will be back at it on Saturday, with the rematch taking place at 1 p.m. PT at Clare Drake Arena. 

The Thunderbirds will look to their talented roster for some offensive production. Fifth-year forward Rebecca Unrau (Humboldt, Sask.), fourth in the Canada West in scoring with 12 points, leads a squad teeming with individual merit. Just behind her in scoring is Cahoon (Calgary) with eight points, fourth-year Nicole Saxvik (North Vancouver) with seven, second-year Logan Boyd (Waterdown, Ont.) with six, and four other 'Birds tied with five points a piece.