DULUTH, Minn. (csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica women's hockey team returned to Mars Lakeview Arena tonight after not playing at home since their 1-0 victory over St. Catherine in early December. Even before the puck dropped, it was a special night as CSS and St. Olaf College wore the color teal to bring awareness and honor those who have battled Cervical Cancer. January is officially Cervical Cancer Awareness Month.

In addition, it was also Senior Night, CSS honored five players who are playing their final season of collegiate hockey. Mariah Haedrich (Hermantown, Minn./Hermantown HS), Kayla Kasel (Forest Lake, Minn./Forest Lake HS), Elise Lund (Esko, Minn./Esko HS), Taylor Murray (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake HS), and Ali Ratzloff (Rochester, Minn./Rochester Lourdes HS) have all been tremendous additions to this team. (We will have a more in-depth write-up for each senior after their last game).

How it Happened
The five graduating seniors mentioned above and Center Abby Pohlkamp (Baxter, Minn./Brainerd HS) made the start for the Saints tonight. It was St. Olaf who would strike early, scoring at 16:21. A tripping call on the Oles would set up a power-play opportunity for CSS at 12:43. The Saints would fire four shots on goal, but came out empty-handed.

It wasn't until 6:55 remained on the clock, Freshman Hanley Block (Alexandria, Minn./Alexandria HS) would put the Saints on the board, the assist went to Lily Holtz (Austin, Minn./Austin HS). Lund and the Saints would keep the Oles scoreless to stay tied 1-1 after the first period. 

St. Olaf would slowly take control in the second, at 8:54 they would score to take the 2-1 advantage. With 1:03 left in the second, the Oles would score to give them the 3-1 lead. Both teams would be penalty-free for the period. The Saints wouldn't be able to connect on their 13 shots on goal, while the Oles would score 2 of their 5 shots on goal.

The third period would come down to the wire, after a scoreless 18 minutes and back-and-forth clean play by both teams, the Saints would finally score with 2:08 remaining. Scoring would be Pohlkamp, who now leads the team with four goals on the season. Credited for the assists were Lauryn Hull (Kimberly, Wis./Kimberly HS) and Allie Bussey (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing HS). 

The Saints would still need one more goal to tie the game, CSS would pull Lund to try and get a quick score. Lyndi Schubert (Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville HS) and Pohlkamp would both take shots on the net, but it was the Oles who got control of the puck with seconds remaining to score an empty net goal. St. Olaf would take the first game of the series, 4-2.

The Saints may have not ended up with the victory, but overall the night was filled with joy as the team recognized their five graduating seniors with friends and families.

Goaltending
Lund made her first career start tonight. The senior goaltender saved 23 shots on the night, allowing 3 in, for a save percentage of .885. For the Oles, Hannah Fritz had 24 saves, 2 goals allowed and earned a save percentage of .923

Up Next
The Saints (4-8-1, 3-5-0 MIAC) and Oles (8-5-2, 4-3-1 MIAC) conclude their series tomorrow afternoon (Saturday) at the St. Olaf Ice Arena in Northfield, Minn. Puck drop is scheduled for 5 p.m.