TORONTO, Ont. - With the Golden Hawks finishing off their weekend road trip in Toronto on Saturday night by taking on the Varsity Blues, it was a match-up of two teams that shared virtually identical records but entered the match-up coming off very different results. 

The Golden Hawks were looking to rebound from a lopsided 9-3 loss to the Nipissing Lakers the night before, whereas the ninth-ranked Varsity Blues were looking for consecutive wins after a 2-0 victory against the York Lions. 

Unfortunately for Laurier, it was Toronto who made it back-to-back wins and shutouts with a 4-0 victory at Varsity Arena. It was just the second time this season that the Golden Hawks were shut out and first since their home opener.

Laurier didn't do itself any favours by taking an early hooking penalty. Just seconds after killing it off, the Varsity Blues' Kaitlyn McKnight sneaked the puck past Laurier starting netminder Acadia Carlson for her fifth goal of the season, making it 1-0 for Toronto. 

As the period wore on, the Golden Hawks had a few good chances, including a power play opportunity where Chloe Davidson bounced the puck toward the Toronto net but saw it land on top of it.

Moments later, McKnight struck again for the Varsity Blues to double their lead.

The second period saw a lot of back-and-forth play but a lack of goals.

The third period was mainly spent in the Golden Hawks' defensive zone, forcing Carlson to make some huge saves to keep her team in the game. 

Halfway through the period though, Toronto took a penalty to allow the Golden Hawks to have a player advantage. Unfortunately, the Varsity Blues found an opportunity to race into the Golden Hawks' zone shorthanded. A crisp passing sequence was finished with Nikki McDonald's fourth goal of the year to make it 3-0. 

After picking up an assist on each of the first three Toronto goals, Taylor Trussler scored one herself 2:16 later to round out the offence.

The Varsity Blues took overlapping penalties late in the game, giving the Golden Hawks a 5-on-3 opportunity, but to no avail. 

Although the Golden Hawks lost 4-0 to the Varsity Blues, Acadia Carlson still performed well after being pulled a night earlier, making 33 saves. 

At the other end, Erica Fryer made 19 saves for the shutout.

The loss drops Laurier's record to 9-6-0-1, good for third in the OUA West but just two points ahead of fourth-place Western, who have won two of their past three games.

THREE STARS: 

1st Star: Taylor Trussler, Toronto Varsity Blues - 1 goal, 3 assists

2nd Star: Olivia Hilton, Toronto Varsity Blues – 3 assists

3rd Star: Erica Fryer, Toronto Varsity Blues - 19 save shutout

Up Next:

The Golden Hawks are headed to London on Thursday, January 11, to face the Western Mustangs. Puck drop is at 11:00 am at Thompson Arena. 

Follow along @WLUAthletics on X for live updates and find all the action live on OUA.tv.