VANCOUVER – It was a Friday night thriller at Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre. The lone undefeated team in U SPORTS, the MRU Cougars, entered UBC territory for a heavyweight tilt, but the reigning Canada West champion T-Birds prevailed with a 4-0 win thanks to a complete team effort.
"They came in really prepared for us, and they shut down our offensive zone game and had some nice breakouts. Their forecheck was hemming us in, so in those areas we made some adjustments and it made a difference in the second and third periods," said UBC head coach Graham Thomas.
"We know they're going to come out even harder tomorrow to start the game, so we're going to have to have a good response."
Third-year netminder Mya Lucifora got the start for UBC while fourth-year Kate Holan got the nod for the Cougars. Goals were hard to come by in the game's early moments as both goalies stood tall to prevent the opening tally.
A deflection in the defensive zone led to a point-blank chance for Kiana McNinch, but Lucifora stretched out to deny her in tight. On the other end, a blocked clearing attempt led to a close opportunity for Ilona Markova, but Holan slammed the door shut to keep things knotted at zero entering the second frame.
Despite the strong goaltending, the game opened up in the second period after Mount Royal took back-to-back penalties to give UBC a five-on-three powerplay for more than a minute. Sensing the pressure to convert, Markova rose to the challenge and fired home her third goal of the season after a great effort to keep the puck in on a clearing attempt.
Markova's wrist shot sparked the Thunderbirds' offence, which kept MRU on its heels with a relentless forecheck. Under pressure, the Cougars committed a turnover in their own end, which allowed Barunka Sibertova to crash the crease in pursuit of her own rebound, leading to a scramble in front that left Vanessa Schaefer wide open to tap home her first of the year, sending UBC into the third period up 2-0.
The T-Birds entered the decisive frame determined not to give a glimmer of hope to the top team in the Canada West standings. Uptempo play created scoring opportunities thanks to steady possession and offensive pressure. Under attack, it was only a matter of time until UBC scored again as Tayah Wallace submitted her entry for highlight of the night, walking in from the wing and dancing to the far side around an outstretched Holan to score her first career U SPORTS goal.
"It was a beautiful goal. Her patience and poise there to hold the goalie and just tuck it in – that's a first goal she'll never forget," Thomas said.
Moments later, the T-Birds broke out on a three-on-one that was finished off with a one-timer from Maggie Rauckman for her team-leading sixth goal of the year. Rauckman's marker was more than enough insurance to support Lucifora, who picked up her third shutout of the year to help UBC improve to 6-1 on the young Canada West campaign.
"Really impressed with [Lucifora], she showed up and just gave us everything she had and gave them nothing. She had a couple of big saves and made some really timely stops," Thomas added.
Mount Royal will look to rebound tomorrow, Saturday, November 7th, in a highly anticipated rematch against UBC at Doug Mitchell. Puck drop is scheduled for 2 p.m. Tickets are available at the door or online. Fans can also stream the game on CanadaWest.tv.
