LANGLEY, B.C. – Trinity Western (0-0-1) made their U SPORTS debut at the Langley Events Centre on Friday, playing UBC (1-0-0) to mark a significant moment in Spartans history. First-year goaltender Mabel Maltais (Edmonton) was outstanding in a 3-1 loss taken by the Spartans against UBC.

The first period of hockey between the two sides saw a series of UBC scoring chances that were snuffed out by Maltais. UBC goaltender Reese Hiddleston was solid in the first period as well, flourishing in the limited chances the Spartans could create throughout the first 20 minutes of hockey.

The start of the second period saw an energized group of Spartans begin to take jabs at UBC's seemingly impermeable defensive group. With the Spartans being forced to dig in their heels from taking a series of ill-advised penalties, Jordan Matthews (Okotoks, Alta.) broke through off a stretch pass to change the game, taking a shot which rebounded to Ashlee Wolfe (Holbein, Sask.) who snuck it past Hiddleston. Wolfe's goal now stands as the very first U SPORTS goal scored in TWU women's hockey history.

Although the Spartans continued to make Hiddleston and UBC's defensive group work to stave off more chances, UBC started to fire on all cylinders. UBC's Rylind MacKinnon brought the game to a tie, then Mackenzie Kornic elevated UBC to a 2-1 lead to finish off the second period.

Kenzie Robinson added a goal in the third period as UBC coasted to the finish line. The Spartans could never truly settle into the game as their eagerness and inexperience shone through the 11 penalties they took throughout the duration of the game. All three of UBC's goals came on the power play.
 

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Even with the loss, the Spartans proved that their program's foundation is strong. The top-line of Brooklyn Anderson (Shellbrook, Sask.), Neisha Germann (Lloydminster, Alta.), and Ashlee Wolfe proved to be an impressive mix of speed, grit, and skill.

NOTABLE

• TWU head coach Jean LaForest emphasized the team's goaltending coming into the season. After Mabel Maltais' performance on Friday, it seems that the team's emphasis was put in the right spot. Maltais stopped 26/29 shots, serving as a necessary backbone to the team.
• University of Saskatchewan transfer Chelsea DeBusschere (Lloyminster, Alta.) was an understated part of TWU's overall play tonight. DeBusschere's Canada West experience was on full display as the third-year defender played a very well-rounded game.

QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach Jean LaForest
"We can compete with that team. Our biggest downfall today was the penalty kill. We couldn't stay out of the box, but I really think the outcome would have been completely different if it weren't for our lack of discipline. Tonight's game was won on special teams, so we need to make adjustments on both our power play and penalty kill since we weren't able to be successful on either of those."

UP NEXT
The Spartans are heading to the UBC Thunderbird Arena to play UBC on Saturday at 7 p.m.

About Spartan Athletics
As official members of U SPORTS, the Spartans currently compete in 13 sports in the Canada West conference, including women's and men's soccer, volleyball, basketball, hockey, cross country and track & field, as well as women's rugby sevens. TWU also competes as an independent team in men's rugby. Since TWU entered U SPORTS in 1999, the Spartans have won 12 U SPORTS team championships and 29 Canada West team championships.

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