CALGARY – Two first-period goals by
Elizabeth Lang set the tone for the University of Calgary Dinos on Saturday evening as they defeated the UBC Thunderbirds 3-1 to sweep the weekend set at the Father David Bauer Arena.
Lang's two goals and a second-period marker by
Kira Makuk chased Reese Hiddleston from the net during her Canada West debut. Tory Micklash stopped all seven shots in relief, but the T-Birds could only solve
Kelsey Roberts once at the opposite end of the rink. The Dinos netminder was nearly unbeatable with 25 saves on the day.
The Dinos opened the game strong with Lang showing off her lethal shot. The Thunderbirds were called for tripping 2:47 into the period and with 40 seconds remaining on the power play
Taylor Beck set up Lang in the offensive zone with plenty of room to snap off a wrist shot for her ninth goal of the season.
Three minutes after her opening goal, Lang intercepted the Thunderbirds' clearing attempt and went top shelf on Hiddleston for her second goal of the night and the eventual game winner.
"It was kind of just being at the right spot at the right time, they gave [the puck] up right up the middle and they had a two-man screen, I just shot it and it went in," explained Lang.
Makuk extended the Dinos lead to 3-0 at 2:34 of the second period after capitalizing on a two-on-one chance with Beck.
The Thunderbirds maintained an advantage on the shot clock for most of the game, but it was not until late in the second period that they finally found the score sheet.
With five minutes remaining in the period, the Thunderbirds finally broke their scoring drought after a scrum in front of the net. The goal was credited to Chanreet Bassi for her third of the year.
The Dinos were outshot 26-16 after three periods but would hold on for a 3-1 win, improving to 9-1 in their last 10 games, dating back to Nov. 1.
"We relied on Kelsey [Roberts] there a lot with the [shot] differential, I think defensively we just have to work on boxing out their players and blocking shots from the point," said Lang.
The Dinos will head east next week to take on the Manitoba Bisons, while UBC returns home to host the Regina Cougars. Both weekend sets begin Jan. 10.
