OTTAWA SENDS 48 SHOTS ON GOAL; USES TWO EMPTY NETTERS TO WIN 4-1
Some things have changed for the Gee-Gees women’s hockey team — including a move to the comfier confines of the OUA East — but others remain the same, like the ownership of the Alerts Cup, awarded annually to the winner of the women’s Colonel By Classic.
Thursday night served as a preview of Saturday’s matinee, and the Gee-Gees came into TD Place as heavy favourites after a 7-1 win. Not even a minute into the first period on Saturday, fourth-year forward Alyssa Biesenthal would tap in her own rebound, continuing the onslaught that began two nights prior.
The Gee-Gees would pepper Carleton rookie goalie Kaitlyn Langille with 19 more shots on goal in the first frame, though just Biesenthal’s would get past the 18-year-old netminder. Langille was in net for all seven of the Gee’s goals at Minto on Thursday.
And just like the first period started with a goal less than a minute in, a bad line change by the Ravens led to OUA leading points-getter Arianne Gagnon coming in all alone on Langille, faking her out of her net, and tucking it into the empty cage for her 10th goal of the season.
The Gee-Gees would maintain puck possession but make some costly turnovers that led to high-danger chances in on Kingsley, but the first-year Gee would save each one of them until a two-on-one broken play when she tried to poke check the puck away which then bounced right off Raven Olwen Jones and into the back of the net.
Kingsley would end with 34 saves on 35 shots to pick up the win after the Gee-Gees added two empty netters. “I definitely prefer it when there’s a lot of action because that makes it a lot more fun for both teams,” said the Sudbury native after the game, adding that Langille played “amazing” in the opposite net.
Kingsley heads into the Christmas break with a .937 save percentage and a 1.87 goals-against average placing her among the top goalies in the OUA. “Kingsley’s been playing really, really, well for us and really kept us in this one today,” said head coach Ali Domenico after the game, who logged her first Colonel By Classic behind the bench.
The Gee-Gees enter the Christmas break placed second in the OUA East and fourth overall in the OUA with a record of 9-4-2. The ninth win eclipsed the Gee-Gees’ eight from a season to go, which came in the RSEQ.
“We’ve had some wins when maybe we didn’t perform great and some losses where we performed really well,” contended the first-year head coach, who came to the Gee-Gees from the NCAA’s Providence Friars. “Consistency is what we’re looking for, that’s most important to us right now and [we’re] kind of seeming to hit our stride.
“It’s a big win for the team,” said Gagnon postgame. “It’s six points this weekend … it’s always fun to win against Carleton because [they’re] your rivals.” The fourth-year forward heads into break tied for the OUA lead in goals (10) and standing firmly in first place with 21 points in just 15 games.
The Gee-Gees will welcome the McGill Martlets to the Minto Sports Complex on Jan. 4 for an exhibition match, before resuming their OUA season with weekend matchups against Laurier and TMU the following weekend.
