Duluth, Minn. – The Saint Scholastica Women's hockey team went away to Blaine, Minn to play the first game in a two-game series against the Royals of Bethel University. Tonight's game ended in a close 1-2 defeat. 

How it Happened

First Period
The game opened up with the Saints largely on defense, the Royals closed in on their zone, getting nine shots off against the Saints, but in typical fashion, goaltender Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, Minn./Grand Rapids HS) stopped seven of the nine, the other two were blocked by the defense. 

The Saints were not entirely of defense opening the period, they were able to get seven shots off, all were stopped by the Royals' defense, but the eighth shot, coming from Grace Chapman (Blaine, MN/Blaine HS), beat the whole defense and found the back of the net, giving the Saints a one-goal lead with four and a half minutes into the period. Chapman's goal was assisted by Kendra Royer (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Marshall HS). 

Following the first goal, the Saints began to go on an offensive push, attempting seven shots to bring the period to a close, with a score of 1-0.

Second Period
Period two opened similarly to the first, the Saints attempted four shots, while the Royals tried to even the game with eight shots, which were all stopped. The ninth shot however was not, and with twelve and a half minutes into the period the game was tied at 1-1. 

Just under a minute after the Royals' goal, the Saints found themselves on a power play. Given this extra-skater advantage, the Saints got five shots off, three of which were saved, and the other two were blocked by the opposing defense. The power play came to an end shortly after, with the score stuck at 1-1. 

The final four and a half minutes of the period saw the Saints primarily on defense, successfully stopping all nine of the Royals' attempts and taking the lead going into the second intermission. When they weren't on defense, the Saints got three shots off, however, the period came to a close with neither team any closer to the win. 

Third Period
The third period saw the Saints on their heels for the first 15 minutes. The Saints were able to get some opportunities offensively, however, they were out-shot 21-4 in the first three-quarters of play. 

Nearing the end of the first 15, the Royals were able to secure their second goal of the game. 

With time winding down, the Saints put everything they had on the ice, getting four shots off before the Saints called a timeout. 

Not long after the timeout, the Saints decided to pull goaltender Cole, with two minutes remaining in the game to force overtime. With the empty net, the Saints attempted six shots to even the game out. Much to the dismay of the Saints, half of their shots were blocked by the defense. 

With only twenty-six seconds remaining in the game, the Saints found themselves in the penalty box for the first time in tonight's matchup. With less than half a minute remaining in the game, and down a skater, the Saints tried everything they could to even the score, but the game came to a close quickly after, with the final score remaining 1-2. 

Goaltending
Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, Minn./Grand Rapids HS) played 58:20 seconds for the Saints, during that time faced a total of 40 shots and recorded 38 saves, giving her a save percentage of .95
Anna Hanson played 60 minutes for the Royals. She faced a total of 22 shots and recorded 21 saves, giving her a save percentage of .954

What's Next
The Saints (3-13-0, 1-8-0 MIAC) will come back home to play the second game in a two-game series against the Royals (9-6-1, 4-5-0 MIAC) of Bethel University, tomorrow, Saturday, January 25. Puck drop is scheduled for 6 p.m.