Duluth, MN - The Saint Scholastica women's hockey team took on the Wildcats of St. Catherine's University tonight for the final home game of the season, as well as the women's senior night. Gabby Gamst (Moose Lake, Minn./Moose Lake HS) scored two goals in the first period to put them in a 2-0 lead. The Wildcats responded early with a goal in the second period, but was answered with two more goals from Bailey Coole (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) and Jenna Horvat (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) later in the period. Freshman Alaina Hedberg (St. Paul, MN/Tartan HS) scored the final goal of the night for a 5-1 win, which makes it her first ever collegiate goal. 

How it Happened 

1st Period

The Saints came out firing from the start, immediately testing the Wildcats' defense. Lyndi Schubert (Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville HS) set the tone with an early shot on goal, and just two minutes in, Gabby Gamst (Moose Lake, Minn./Moose Lake HS) capitalized to give the Saints a quick 1-0 lead on senior night. Schubert and Victoria Nelson (Mahtomedi, MN/Mahtomedi HS) provided the assists.

Hannah Martin (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) kept up the offensive pressure at 6:32 but couldn't convert. The Saints' attack remained relentless, with Sophie Parendo (Proctor, Minn./Proctor HS), Gamst, and two attempts from Nelson all challenging the Wildcats' goalie in rapid succession around the midway point of the period. Despite their dominance, they couldn't extend their lead.

The Wildcats finally found some offensive momentum at 12:11, generating three quick shots, but Saints' goalie Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, Minn./Grand Rapids HS) stood tall to deny them all. Moments later, Bailey Coole (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) and Morgan Mitchell (Farmington, MN/Farmington HS) tested the Wildcats' defense again, but the Saints remained stuck at one goal.

Cole came up big again at the 18-minute mark, turning away another series of Wildcat attempts to preserve the lead. At the other end, Kendra Royer (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Marshall HS) fired a shot on goal but was stopped by the Wildcats' goalie.

Just before the buzzer, with only 11 seconds left in the period, Gamst struck again for her second goal of the night, assisted by Martin and Isabella Brama (Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of Holy Angels), which doubled the Saints' advantage. By the end of the first period, the Saints had outshot the Wildcats 13-7, setting the tone for a dominant performance.

2nd Period

The Wildcats came out strong to start the second period, pressing hard to cut into the Saints' lead. Cole faced a flurry of four quick shots, stopping the first three, but the fourth rebound was buried by a Wildcats attacker, making it 2-1 just 2:02 into the period.

The Saints responded quickly, with Parendo and Paige Blattner (Avon, Minn./River Lakes HS) testing the Wildcats' goalie at 2:56, but both were turned away. The game became a fast-paced battle, with both teams trading scoring opportunities. Over the next nine minutes, the Saints fired four more shots on goal, while the Wildcats countered with six of their own.

At 12:52, Coole extended the Saints' lead to 3-1 with a well-placed finish off an assist from Schubert. The offensive pressure didn't let up, as Suzi Vidmar (Boise, Idaho./Timberline HS) and Gamst continued to push forward in search of another goal.

The Saints faced a challenge at 15:11 when Martin was sent to the penalty box for cross-checking. The Wildcats took advantage of the power play opportunity, launching several shots on goal, but Cole stood firm and turned them all away to maintain the two-goal cushion.

The Saints struck again at 17:24, as Jenna Horvat (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS) found the back of the net to extend the lead to 4-1, putting them in a dominant position heading into the final period. Despite being outshot 15-11 in the period, the Saints made their chances count, adding two more goals to strengthen their hold on the game.

3rd Period

The Wildcats recorded the first shot of the period at 3:38, but Cole stood strong in net to make the save. Just a minute later at 4:31, Hanley Block (Alexandria, Minn./Alexandria HS) applied pressure on the other end for the Saints but couldn't break through. Cole then came up clutch again at 5:49, stopping back-to-back shots to preserve the Saints' 4-1 lead.

Horvat looked to add her second goal of the night at 7:25, but the Wildcats' goalie turned her away. Morgan Mitchell (Farmington, MN/Farmington HS) followed up with a shot of her own but met the same result.

The Saints' defense found themselves under siege as the Wildcats pressed hard for another goal, pinning them deep in their own zone. A series of three close-range shots tested Cole, but she denied them all to keep the score unchanged.

Tensions rose at 8:53 when Martin and two Wildcats players were sent to the penalty box for roughing, giving the Saints a brief 4-on-3 power play. However, they couldn't generate a shot on goal during the advantage.

Vidmar and Blattner looked to extend the lead around the 11-minute mark, but the Wildcats' goalie remained solid. Moments later, after the Saints took on another stretch of three consecutive shots, the Wildcats took a hooking penalty at 13:09. The power play was short-lived, as Schubert was called for hooking at 13:42, evening the ice once again.

The Wildcats kept up their offensive push, firing another flurry of shots around the 14-minute mark, but Cole remained unbeatable between the pipes. Then, at 17:03, freshman Alaina Hedberg (St. Paul, MN/Tartan HS) sealed the victory in style, netting her first collegiate goal off assists from Blattner and Vidmar to make it 5-1.

The Saints tried a few more times, but it didn't matter as the Saints came out on top with a 5-1 win following a very dominant display over the Wildcats of St. Catherine's University.

Senior Spotlight - Tonight we would like to thank seniors Taylor Leonard (Mound, Minn./Mound Westonka HS) and Sara Parent (Otsego, Minn./Rogers HS) for their hard work and dedication to the Saint Scholastica women's hockey program. We would also like to thank sophomore Jenna Horvat (Duluth, Minn./Duluth East HS), as she will be leaving to fulfill military duties. She will be back to play in the 2026 season.