VANCOUVER – The UBC Thunderbirds women's hockey team made history Sunday afternoon with a 3-2 win over the Regina Cougars in what was a spirited, sometimes nasty affair. With the victory the 'Birds clinched the best-of-three semifinal and will host the Manitoba Bisons next week at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre for the Canada West Championships. It will be the first time a UBC women's hockey team has hosted the conference final.
 
"This team responds under a little adrenaline and pressure," said UBC head coach Graham Thomas. "It's a testament to the character we have in the room."
 
UBC started the game by blitzing the Regina net, firing shot after shot at Regina goaltender Toni Ross, who made several top notch saves in the opening minutes.
But Ross had no answer for Rebecca Unrau (Humboldt, Sask.) who flew down the right wing and ripped a wrist shot just inside the far post giving the T-Birds the all important first goal. The red-hot Kathleen Cahoon (Calgary) and Logan Boyd (Watertown, Ont.) drew assists on the marker just over six minutes in. 
 
Just past the thirteen-minute mark of the opening frame UBC doubled its lead. With a Regina skater in the penalty box, a scramble in front of Ross ended with Haneet Parhar (West Vancouver, B.C.) flipping home a rebound from her knees. Nicole Saxvik (North Vancouver, B.C.) and Stephanie Schaupmeyer (Kelowna, B.C.) earned the helpers. 
 
When the first period ended the 'Birds had a two-goal lead and the two teams had combined for seven minor penalties.


 
The second period was uneventful compared to the first, aside from some stellar goaltending. UBC goalie Danielle Dube (New Westminster, B.C.) looked unbeatable a times, turning away the Cougar shooters with her glove and leg pads. Ross matched Dube save for save at the other end. 
 
It was almost as if the teams were saving their energy for the third period, which was borderline chaotic.
 
Cahoon may have thought she put the Cougars on ice when she chipped home a backhander from in close just before five minutes had expired. The goal was courtesy of a beautiful seeing-eye pass from Unrau, which somehow slithered between two sets of Regina skates. 
 
That goal seemed to wake up the Cougars who threw everything they had at UBC from that point on.  With Regina pressing, UBC got into penalty trouble and ended up paying for it. On the power play, Kylie Kupper found an errant puck that had bounced off a UBC player's shin guards and one-timed it over Dube's glove at 12:56 of the third period. The Cougars had life and began to pour on the pressure.
 
But Dube stood tall in her cage for the 'Birds. By the time Jaycee Magwood pounded home a loose puck from the edge of the blue paint on the power play for her third goal of the post-season, there was only one second left on the game clock.
 
UBC will now face Manitoba next week for the all the marbles. Manitoba beat UBC on the last day of the regular season, preventing the 'Birds from finishing first overall. The Bisons also knocked the T-Birds from the playoffs last year at 'The Doug' in double overtime. 
 
"There is a lot to fire us up," said Cahoon when asked post game about matching up with the Bisons. "We aren't going to take them lightly and they have to watch out."
 
Game 1 in the best-of-three Canada West Women's Hockey Championships goes this Friday night at 7 p.m. in the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre.