Notables
-Saints open their eighth season as a program
-CSS has never lost a season opener in its eight year history
-Lalikova assisted all three goals
-Stegora earned two of the three Saints goals
-Both teams went 1-6 on power play opportunities
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. (csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica women's hockey team opened its season with a win on Friday night in Minneapolis when it defeated the Augsburg Auggies 3-2.
The Action
The contest saw three scoring plays in the first period with the Saints striking first. Emily Stegora (Red Wing, Minn./Red Wing HS (Minnesota State-Mankato)) earned the first goal of the season for CSS, assisted by Greta Nundahl (New Brighton, Minn./Irondale HS) and Denisa Lalikova (Puchov, Slovakia/Proctor Academy, N.H.) to put the Saints up 1-0 after just over seven minutes of play. The other two goals of the period went to Augsburg. At 10:50, Megan Robertson put one in the net to tie the score at 1-1. Four minutes later and the Auggies gained the lead with a goal from Bridget Wagner. The rest of the period saw no more scoring, despite a power play for Augsburg in the last three minutes before the intermission.
The second period also saw a lot of scoring plays and this time in favor of CSS. The first goal of the period was shorthanded for the Saints and was put between the pipes by Stegora, her second of the game. She was assisted again by Nundahl and Lalikova to tie things up at 2-2 near the halfway point of the period. Less than a minute later, Alexia Klaas (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Denfeld HS (Minnesota-Duluth)) netted one on a CSS power play, assisted by Lalikova to put the Saints back in the lead at 3-2 headed into the second intermission.
The third period was a slow one. St. Scholastica went on the power play twice, and the Auggies had three power play opportunities in the final six minutes but neither team could take advantage and the game ended with a score of 3-2 in favor of the Saints. CSS got 14 shots on goal during the period and the Auggies managed four.
Goaltending
The Saints had Lexi Thomeczek (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph Academy (St. Louis AAA Blues)) in the net, making 39 saves on the 41 shots she faced. For the Auggies, Rebecca Sonnek saved 18 of the 21 shots she saw.
Up Next
The Saints head to Wisconsin next weekend where they play a series against Marian University. Puck drop is set for 4 p.m. on Friday.
