CALGARY – The University of Calgary Dinos women's hockey team came up just short in its home opener Friday, falling 3-2 to the University of Saskatchewan Huskies in a shootout at Father David Bauer Arena.
The Dinos trailed 2-0 in the first period, rallied to tie the game in the third and outshot the Huskies 36-30, but could not find a winner in overtime or the shootout.
Avery Gottselig put the Huskies ahead less than three minutes in, with assists from Jacquelyne Chief and Kara Mitenko. Jaiyana Nurani doubled the lead with just over five minutes left in the period on a feed from Kelsey Ledoux.
Calgary answered before the first intermission.
Sydney Mercier cut the deficit to 2-1 in the final two minutes of the period, scoring off a rebound.
The second period was a goaltending duel. Neither team scored, as Calgary's
Amelia Awad and Saskatchewan's Clara Juca both stood tall.
The Dinos' push came late in the third period, and it didn't waver even after Calgary had a disallowed goal. That determination paid off on the power play, as
Evelyn Lawrence tied the game 2-2 with just over three minutes left in regulation on a pass from Mercier.
"We obviously didn't love our start, but I think after the disallowed goal, the fact that we kept rolling at them and the fact we found a way to get the game into overtime, there's a lot of pulse we can build on," said Dinos head coach
Josh Gosling.
Calgary drew another penalty in the dying minutes of regulation and carried the power play into overtime, where the Dinos controlled the play and outshot Saskatchewan 5-1. Juca held firm, however, and the five-minute period ended scoreless. She finished with 34 saves, while Awad made 27 stops for Calgary.
Saskatchewan's Kahlen Wisener scored the only goal of the shootout, securing the Huskies' first win of the season.
Mercier led the Dinos with a goal and an assist. Gosling said there's a lot the team can build off of, though he pointed to areas to address before the rematch.
"I don't know if we found our base today," he said. "That's one thing we'll be questioning for tomorrow."
The Dinos will host the Huskies again Saturday, Oct. 10 at Father David Bauer Arena. Tickets are available at GoDinos.com/Tickets.
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