GUELPH, Ont. – The Golden Hawks hit the road for Guelph on Wednesday night to take the first of back-to-back games against the #10-ranked Gryphons. A great start was erased by a tough finish, as Laurier fell 2-1.

The Gryphons were looking for extra points to close the gap between themselves and the OUA West's first-place team, the Waterloo Warriors. However, after an early penalty kill in the first period, the Golden Hawks wasted no time getting on the board. 

Just 15 seconds after a Guelph power-play expired, Laurier's Elle Spencer rushed into the Gryphons zone to get past a Guelph defender and their goaltender Kathryn Raymond. A shot from the top of the circle netted Spencer her sixth goal of the season, putting the purple and gold ahead just 5:23 in. 

The Golden Hawks kept the momentum moving while Victoria Kelaiditis held strong in net, saving all nine shots from the Gryphons in the first period. Kelaiditis was making her second straight start with #1 netminder Acadia Carlson on the shelf due to a wrist injury.

Guelph brought intensity in the second period as they tried to even up the score early. With a player in the box, the Gryphons' points leader Tori Verbeek got a lucky bounce in the offensive zone, allowing her a shot on net to tie it up short-handed. Laurier fought hard to regain the lead with ten shots on Raymond, but the period finished tied at one apiece. 

The third was back-and-forth, where both teams had many scoring opportunities. The tables tilted in Guelph's favour with a Laurier penalty late in the game. Even with an extra attacker, the Gryphons opted to pull Raymond from her net to make it a six-on-four with two minutes to go. 

A scramble in front of Kelaiditis did the job for the Gryphons as Verbeek got her second of the game with a textbook "garbage goal" in the crease. The purple and gold were unable to respond with so little time left of play.

Laurier's manager of women's hockey operations and head coach Kelly Paton noted that, with Friday being Laurier's Senior Night game, she hoped that the "positive energy with a few extra supporters in the stands" and "a competitive effort" will help them bounce back against Guelph in their regular season finale.

Three stars

Tori Verbeek – Guelph Gryphons: two goals

Elle Spencer – Laurier Golden Hawks: one goal

Kathryn Raymond – Guelph Gryphons: third win in five games played this season

Up next

The Golden Hawks are back home for Seniors Night and their final game of the regular season on Friday night against the Gryphons. Puck drop is set for 7 pm and tickets are available now!