Duluth, Minn. – The Saint Scholastica Women's hockey team hosted the Cardinals of Saint Mary's University, tonight, January 30, in the first of a two-game MIAC Conference series. Tonight's game against the Cardinals ended with the Saints earning two more MIAC points after capturing the win against Saint Mary's with a final score of 3-1.
How it Happened
First Period
Period one of tonight's game opened with both teams fighting for definitive possession of the puck, rallying defense, and pushing for a strong offense. Shots were recorded, albeit at a slow rate, with the Saints attempting four total, with only one landing on net, and the Cardinals six total, with two on net.
The opening goal of the game came nearly eight-and-a-half minutes into the period from the Cardinals. They managed to find the back of the net for what would be their only goal on the night.
The Saints went on to try three more shots, two of which, from Gabby Gamst (Moose Lake, MN/Moose Lake HS), and Alaina Hedberg (St. Paul, MN/Tartan HS) ended up getting caught up in the defense and were blocked.
Almost exactly three minutes after the Cardinals' goal, the Saints went on to score their own, coming from Victoria Nelson (Mahtomedi, MN/Mahtomedi HS), who was assisted by Hanley Block (Alexandria, MN/Alexandria HS), and Hedberg.
The opening period came to a close nearly nine minutes later, with both teams continuing to push for another goal, but things stayed at a standstill going into intermission with a 1-1 tie.
Second Period
The second period saw a heavy offensive push from the Cardinals, trying to gain the lead. The Saints saw their best chances early on, and midway through the period, attempting a total of 15 shots, with seven landing on net.
The Cardinals pushed hard this period for some offensive momentum, even getting a powerplay attempt. But even with 13 shots on goal in the second period, the Cardinals were not able to regain their lead as goaltender Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, MN/Grand Rapids HS) managed to stop all of the Cardinals shots with poise.
The middle period came to a close with the game remaining at 1-1.
Third Period
The final period of tonight's game brought fans a lot of excitement. Right away, both teams went head-to-head, trading shots and face off wins. But early in the third, the Cardinals found themselves on a five-on-three, after the Saints suffered two penalties. Given this advantage, the Cardinals tried their hardest to net another goal, but the Saints' penalty kill came up big, and shut down every attempt the Cardinals brought. The Cardinals attempted a total of eight shots, with four landing on target, and three blocked by the Saints' defense, Katie Sandelin (Hermantown, MN/Hermantown HS) recorded two, and Sophie Parendo (Proctor, MN/Proctor HS), one.
Nearing the end of the period, Hedberg recorded her second point of the night, this time a goal. Hedberg's game winning goal was assisted by Gamst.
With less than a second remaining in the game, the Saints added one more goal. Once again, Hedberg added to her point total on the night, now three, with the final, empty net goal.
Following Hedberg's second goal, the game came to a close with the Saints capturing another MIAC Conference win, with a final score of 3-1.
Goaltending
Saints, Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, MN/Grand Rapids HS): Played 60:00, faced 31 shots, recorded 30 saves, save percentage of .967.
Cardinals, Celeste Rimstad: Played 58:31. faced 15 shots, recorded 13 saves, save percentage of .866.
What's Next
The Saints (7-10-1, 2-7-1 MIAC) will travel to Winona, Minn. to once again play the Cardinals (6-8-2, 2-6-2 MIAC) of Saint Mary's University in the second of a two-game MIAC Conference series on Saturday, January 31 at 2 PM.
