OWEN SOUND, Ont. - The Golden Hawks faced a tough challenge on Saturday afternoon, falling 6-0, dropping their third game in a row in the first Battle of Waterloo match-up of the season against the Warriors.
 
The special HockeyFest match-up at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre in Owen Sound saw the #6-ranked Warriors sitting atop the OUA West division, so Laurier was determined to snap their own losing streak and gain some traction in the standings on their division rivals.
 
Waterloo opened the scoring late in the first period when Keiara Raitt won a foot race to the puck in the neutral zone, creating a partial breakaway. Raitt capitalized on the opportunity by slipping the puck through the five-hole of Laurier netminder Kayla Renaud, giving the Warriors a 1-0 lead heading into the first intermission.
 
The Warriors sustained their momentum in the second period, adding goals from Gracey Smith, Kassidy McCarthy, and Leah Herrfort.

After Waterloo's third tally, Laurier made a goaltending change, with Sarah Howell stepping in to replace Renaud between the pipes.
 
Despite their hard-fought effort, the Golden Hawks were unable to contain the Warriors, who secured the win with two more goals in the final frame from Madison Pritchard and Carly Orth.

Both teams showcased strong penalty-killing units, allowing no power-play goals in the game.
 
Waterloo's Kara Mark earned a 41-save shutout, stifling Laurier's chances and capping a strong all-around performance for the Warriors.
 
"I mean, back-to-back games with over 40 shots is insane," said Laurier's manager of women's hockey operations and head coach Kelly Paton. "Obviously, we're trying, but if you trade chance for chance, they ended up finding more quality over our quantity."

Laurier registered 41 shots for the second consecutive game but struggled to generate high-quality chances, as Waterloo effectively blocked shooting lanes and limited opportunities in key areas.

Paton remarked on the team's challenges in creating offence, saying, "We had some good looks but often got blocked in layers. There's still some board play and foundational pieces we executed well today, but we need to build on challenging teams back in those spaces."
 
The Golden Hawks will aim to regroup and find their scoring touch as they prepare for their next game on the road against York University on Friday evening.

Puck drop is scheduled for 5 pm. Catch it live on OUA.tv