Gees win against Ravens and lose to MartletsLAST WEEKEND, THE University of Ottawa women’s hockey team took a win against their crosstown rivals the Carleton Ravens (2-3-3) and a loss at home against the McGill Martlets (8-1). The Friday game against the well-matched Ravens went into overtime, with the Gees emerging victorious in a convincing 3-2 win. The Saturday game went differently as the Gees struggled to defend their net against the nationally top-ranked Marlets, leading to a 5-1 loss.
The Gees came close to being defeated on Nov. 19 when they took the ice against Carleton University. Third-year forward Fannie Desforges scored the first goal for the Gees, tying up the match after the first period.
After an uneventful second period in which the Ravens stole a point, third-year forward Dominique Lefebvre scored the tying goal. Desforges came out victorious in overtime, resulting in a 3-2 win for the Garnet and Grey.
“We played overall very well [and] showed a lot of character in the third to come back and tie the game to win in overtime,” said head coach Yanick Evola. “We were also really disciplined. It feels good, but we are not satisfied.”
The team was still high on their Friday victory as they stepped into the arena on Nov. 20, but they weren’t able to maintain the energy as they slowly lost momentum during the first period. The Martlets dominated the game early on, scoring two goals in the first frame.
“We played a solid game against McGill,” said Evola. “They had some lucky bounces that got them the lead. We never quit and played a good 60-minute game.”
The second period saw the Gees react to the lead with aggressive plays and fast skating that resulted in many penalties, allowing the Martlets to convert two more goals for a 4-0 advantage.
Evola commented on the number of penalty kills acquired by the Gees and how it affected the game.
“It’s never good to take many penalties,” he said. “We only had three penalties against Carleton on Friday, so when we want, we can be a good, disciplined team. But of course we have to be better in that aspect and control our emotions a little better.”
The last period saw the Gees return to the ice with a new attitude. First-year forward Carling Chown took a low shot into the net at the seven-minute mark. The Martlets came back with a goal of their own, refusing the Gees access to their net for the remainder of the game.
Evola explained that considering the McGill Martlets rank first nationally for goals per game and goals against, the U of O squad did well. However, there are some things they still need to work on.
“[We have] lots of things to do,” he said. “We will watch the game tape and evaluate our strengths and weaknesses … for sure, we need to be more disciplined and do the little details a little quicker.”
The Gees (3-7-0) will travel to McGill University to compete against the Martlets yet again on Nov. 25.
—Katherine DeClerq
