Duluth, Minn. – The Saint Scholastica Women's hockey team hosted the #6 Green Knights of Saint Norbert College in a non-conference match. Today's thrilling game saw the Saints upset the nationally ranked Green Knights in a stunning 3-1 victory.

How it Happened

First Period
Period one opened slowly for both sides. The Saints were the first to record a shot on goal, with a shot from Hanley Block (Alexandria, MN/Alexandria HS) getting stopped by the glove of the Green Knights' goaltender. Block's opening shot was quickly followed up with two shots on goal from the Green Knights that goaltender Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, MN/Grand Rapids HS) was able to bring in.

The Period transitioned to a back-and-forth effort, with both teams seeing fairly equal time of possession and attempting a number of faceoffs.
Just before the third minute of play, the Saints began a strong offensive push, attempting six total shots, with five falling on net, and the other getting blocked by the defense.

Roughly halfway through the period, the Saints found themselves on their first penalty kill of the night. Matching the strong defensive tone of the game so far, the Saints were able to easily kill off this first penalty and stop five shots along the way.
The first frame came to a close with both teams trading offensive blows, but neither succeeded in recording a goal, leaving the score tied at 0-0.
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Second Period
It took no time at all for the Saints to get things going in the second. Just under two minutes into the period, Isabella Brama (Minneapolis, MN/Academy of Holy Angels) recorded her first career goal as a Saint. This goal, coming off assists from Kendra Royer (Duluth, MN/Duluth Marshall HS) and Suzi Vidmar (Boise, Idaho./Timberline HS), gave the Saints an early lead that they would go on to maintain for the remainder of the game.

Following Brama's goal, the Saints were forced to reel back as the Green Knights' offense began to attempt to turn things around. Ultimately, Cole was forced to make 10 saves in the second, but those 10 saves allowed the Saints to stay in it against a tough opponent.
Period two came to a close with the Saints able to kill off another penalty and walk into the locker room with a 1-0 advantage.
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Third period
The majority of scoring tonight occurred here, in the final period of the game. The Saints were able to extend the lead they already had, and the Green Knights were able to avoid what could've been a shutout.

This time, it took the Saints even less time to score than in the second period. Only a minute-and-a-half into the third, Victoria Nelson (Mahtomedi, MN/Mahtomedi HS) found herself with the puck in front of the goaltender and lit the lamp for the Saints, doubling their lead. Nelson's goal was unassisted.

Only a couple of minutes after the Saints' second goal, they found themselves on a power play. Not wanting to waste a perfect opportunity, the Saints capitalized on this, and thanks to the shooting skills of Hanley Block (Alexandria, MN/Alexandria HS), the Saints were able to extend their lead once again, now 3-0. Block's goal was assisted by Alaina Hedberg (St. Paul, MN/Tartan HS) and Morgan Mitchell (Farmington, MN/Farmington HS).

With emotions high on the Green Knights' bench, they knew they needed something before the final horn sounded, and with another penalty getting assessed to the Saints, they found the perfect time. A little under halfway through the period, Saint Norbert was able to score their solitary goal of the night.
The game slowly came to an end after the Green Knights' goal. Saint Norbert made an attempt to close the gap when they pulled their goalie with three-and-a-half minutes remaining; however, it did not allow them to score again, and the Saints walked away with an upset win, 3-1.
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Goaltending
Saints, Makenzie Cole (Cohasset, MN/Grand Rapids HS): played 60:00, faced 45 shots, recorded 44 saves, save percentage of .977
Green Knights, Keira Markell: Played 56:48, Faced 20 shots, recorded 17 saves, save percentage of .850
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What's Next
The Saints (4-7-1, 0-4-1 MIAC) will once again host the Green Knights (10-4-0) of Saint Norbert College tomorrow, Saturday, January 10. Puck drop is scheduled for 3 pm.

Link to Game Highlights: