Notables
-Saturday's game has been moved up to a 4 p.m. start
-Only one goal was scored in 5-on-5 play
-M. Johnson has had six points in the last six games
-Saints are still undefeated at home this season with an 8-0-3 record

DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica women's hockey team had a tough, physical fight on Friday night in game one of the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) First Round series against Concordia University Wisconsin, which resulted in a 2-2 draw. That sets up a winner-take-all game Saturday to decide who advances into the Slaats Cup Semifinals next weekend.

The Action
The first period saw one goal from CUW. It came on a power play just six minutes after play began and a minute after the Saints had failed to score on a player advantage of their own. Each team would have one more power play chance in the period. The Saints managed four shots on goal with the skater advantage, but the game went into intermission with CUW up 1-0.

In the second period, the Saints tied things up at the four minute mark when Mac Johnson (Monticello, Minn./Monticello HS (St. Cloud State)) scored a short-handed goal for CSS, assisted by Taylor Thompson (Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo HS) and Alexia Klaas (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Denfeld HS (Minnesota-Duluth)). Just two minutes later, the Saints took the 2-1 lead with a goal from Denisa Lalikova (Puchov, Slovakia/Proctor Academy, N.H.), assisted by Abby Sawyer (Owatonna, Minn./Owatonna HS), on a delayed penalty. This was the only goal in the game that was scored with both teams skating at full strength, though there were three power plays in the period.

The Saints started the third period with an advantage, due to a last-second cross-checking penalty on the Falcons - a rough hit near the Saints bench that met protests from the fans, Saints players and coaches alike. The five-minute major was cut short though, as three penalties were called in the first four minutes of the period, an interference call and too many players on the ice penalty for the Saints, and a hooking call for CUW. Ultimately it ended with a power play goal coming for the Falcons to tie things up at 2-2, a score which would not change as the period expired. Sawyer almost gave the Saints the lead late, but her shot hit directly off the post.

Overtime saw fast-paced play and a few scoring chances for each team. Concordia had a power-play for the final 1:30, but after some tense moments, the game ended with a tied score of 2-2.

Goaltending
Lexi Thomeczek (St. Louis, Mo./St. Joseph Academy (St. Louis AAA Blues)) was in net for CSS, making 26 saves on 28 shots faced. For the Falcons, Breanna Thomson made 22 saves on 24 shots.

Up Next
The Saints (15-6-5) and Falcons (12-12-2) meet up again tomorrow for the deciding game of the series, set to begin at 4 p.m. Note the new start time due to incoming weather. If the game tomorrow ends in a tie, then a 20 minute mini-game will take place immediately following the game to determine a winner.