WINNIPEG – The No. 7-ranked Manitoba Bisons women's hockey team upended the top-ranked UBC Thunderbirds by a score of 2-0 at the Wayne Fleming Arena on Friday night.
 
With the win, Manitoba improves to 10-4-3-2, and UBC falls to 14-3-2-0 in Canada West play.
 
Bisons goaltender Rachel Dyck stopped all 24 shots that came her way, shutting the door for her fifth shutout of the season. The home side grabbed a lead in the first period, on a goal from Alanna Sharman. Spectacular goaltending and an excellent effort on the penalty kill kept the Herd up by one throughout the contest, before junior forward Venla Hovi added an insurance marker with just over a minute remaining in the third period.

The opening period featured a lot of chances from both sides, but both goalies made key stops early on, each making eight saves in the frame. Bisons defencemen Alexandra Anderson took a two-minute minor for body checking at 13:49, but the UBC power-play was short lived, as Mathea Fischer took a penalty 50 seconds later, forcing some 4-on-4 play. The Bisons took advantage of the extra room on the ice, as Lauryn Keen fed forward Sharman on a breakaway, and she made no mistake, beating goalie Tory Micklash high glove side for the lone goal in the period.
 
The visitors came out strong to open the second frame, forcing Dyck to make a couple of huge saves early on. The period became one riddled with penalties, with the Bisons serving three, and the Thunderbirds serving just one. The home side's penalty kill came up big in the frame, keeping the teams lead at 1-0 heading into the second intermission. Being short-handed so much, the Herd was unable to record a single shot in the period, and Dyck stopped all 10 shots that came her way, including a few big stops in the final minute.
 
The Manitoba power play got to see the ice two times in the opening 10-minutes of the final period, including a 5-on-3 opportunity. The Herd put on some pressure, but the Thunderbirds penalty killers were able to kill off all of the penalties, and keep the deficit at just one goal. Hovi netted her insurance marker on a power play deflection, with Anderson and Sharman picking up assists.
 
The two teams will be back at it again tomorrow, January 14, as the puck will drop at 11 a.m. PT at the Wayne Fleming Arena.