WATERLOO, Ont. – The #3-ranked Laurier Golden Hawks saw their 12-game winning streak snapped by their crosstown rivals, the #8 Waterloo Warriors, falling 4-3 on Alumni Night Saturday at the Memorial Rec Complex. The loss marked Laurier's first defeat since November 7, though the Golden Hawks remain atop the OUA standings with 52 points.
Before puck drop, the 2005-06 championship team was honoured with a ceremonial puck drop to recognize the program's historic title run.
OUA goals-against average (0.87) and save percentage (.961) leader
Sarah Howell stopped 21 shots in the contest.
After a scoreless opening period,
Elle Spencer broke the deadlock just over halfway through the second, netting her 13th goal of the season. On Laurier's first power play of the game,
Ella Jackson sent a centring pass from the corner to Spencer at the doorstep. After a couple of whacks at the puck, Spencer lifted it to the top shelf over Waterloo goaltender Kara Mark to give the Golden Hawks a 1-0 lead.
However, Waterloo would convert to their own advantage just minutes later. Tatum James would tie the game at one after pouncing on a rebound after Howell was forced out of position on a lateral play, leaving James alone in front.
Gracey Smith would then give the Warriors their first lead of the night with just over a minute remaining in the second. Collecting the puck off a turnover in the neutral zone, Waterloo rushed the attack and fired a quick shot. While Laurier managed to get a stick on the initial attempt, the puck ricocheted into the slot, where Smith quickly placed it glove side.
Waterloo would then extend its lead to two in the final frame as Sarah Hirst sniped a shot from just above the left circle and beat Howell clean.
Not long after, Laurier earned a golden opportunity with a minute-and-a-half of 5-on-3 power-play time, prompting Laurier's manager of women's hockey operations and head coach,
Kelly Paton, to call a timeout.
Very quickly, Jackson would fire a backhand shot through traffic, bringing the Hawks to within one. With still over a minute left on the advantage, the Golden Hawks maintained good offensive zone pressure with lots of timely shots. After collecting the puck of a rebound,
Claire Robinson fired a shot that deflected off Mark and into the back of the net, tying the game at three with just over 11 minutes to play.
"Special teams had a big impact on the outcome on both sides," Paton said. "Our power play did some good things offensively for us and got us back in the game in the third period. Unfortunately, our penalty kill fell short of the expectations on execution."
In a matchup that looked destined for overtime, the Golden Hawks would find themselves on the wrong side of the whistle as
Kara den Hoed would be sent off for cross-checking – a penalty that would unfortunately prove costly.
Already capitalizing on their only other power-play opportunity earlier in the game, Waterloo struck again. Despite Laurier winning the faceoff, Tia Lascelle pinched in closer than anticipated, picked up the loose puck, and drove it to the net, where she tucked home the eventual game-winner to stun the purple and gold.
Laurier pulled Howell for the extra attacker with just over a minute remaining but was unable to generate a tying goal.
Despite the setback, Paton emphasized the importance of using the loss as a learning moment as the Golden Hawks enter the final stretch of the regular season.
"Winning in this league is extremely hard to do," she said. "For us, it's going to be really important over the next few games to maintain focus and energy and finish the season with strong habits that carry into our playoff run."
Laurier now turns its attention to a challenging road stretch, beginning Friday night in Nipissing, followed by a matchup in Toronto, and concluding with a regular-season finale against Guelph – games Paton noted will carry significant postseason implications.
"It's obviously a weekend on the road coming up," Paton added. "We've got an overnight trip with Nipissing and Toronto before coming back home to take on Ontario Tech, then closing the season against Guelph – knowing that could factor into who finishes first in the West Division. It's exciting for us to still be playing meaningful hockey with just a few games remaining."
Fans can catch all of this weekend's action live on OUA.tv
