VANCOUVER – The No. 9-ranked UBC Thunderbirds increased their lead atop the Canada West women's hockey standings with a 3-0 shutout of the No. 10 Regina Cougars on Friday night at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre in Vancouver.
 
Stephanie Schaupmeyer (Kelowna, B.C.), Shayli Toni (Saskatoon, Sask.), and Rebecca Unrau (Humboldt. Sask.) carried the offensive load for UBC, each potting a goal. Mathea Fischer (Oslo, Norway) picked up two primary assists in the win, while fifth-year goalie Danielle Dube (New Westminster, B.C.) posted 26 saves for her third shutout of the season.
 
Schaupmeyer got UBC on the board six minutes and change into the first period. After defender Cailey Hay (Oakbank, Man.) pushed the puck in deep, Fischer did some nice work along the wall, twisting and turning until she had space to center the puck in the slot, where Schaupmeyer was waiting to bury it behind Regina netminder Toni Ross. 
 
The two goalies dueled well into the second frame, but a little over midway through the period, UBC was able to double up its lead.
 
After Cougars defender Jolene Kirkpatrick was dinged for a boarding call, the freshman Toni made the man advantage count. After Mikayla Ogrodniczuk (Vancouver) lobbed a point shot at Ross, Toni deftly made her way through the slot, deflecting the puck past the Regina netminder as she skated by.
 
The 'Cougars, who ended up taking four penalties in the final frame, were made to pay one more time. With under 10 minutes left in the contest, and an extra skater thanks to a tripping call against Regina's Nikki Matthers-Watters, Unrau made her mark.
 
After Fischer worked the half-wall beautifully, the Norwegian freshman found Unrau in the high slot, and the fifth-year senior made no mistake, firing a bullet past Ross on the one-timer, capping the scoring for evening, and sealing the result for the home side.
 
"I thought our power plays have been coming along, so that's good. Those are the difference makers, and it hasn't been that way for us all year, so it's nice that its been working for the last six games or so," UBC head coach Graham Thomas said of his side's special teams.
  
Though he was pleased with the result, Thomas is still looking to refine the process.
 
"Overall, we played great two out of three periods," Thomas said on how his team played. "These games are going to be physical, emotional, we got to keep our cool and play our game."
 
The Birds and Cougars will square off for the second time in two nights tomorrow at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PT).