LANGLEY, B.C. – Trinity Western's home opener held a 2-1 victory over Saskatchewan in the cards for the Spartans on Friday night at the George Preston Recreation Centre.
The Spartans (1-0) were lifted by a late winner by
McKenzie Mayo (Saskatoon) and an unassisted goal from
Kyra McDonald (Inuik, N.W.T.). The Huskies' (0-1) lone goal was scored by Mallory Dyer.
Mabel Maltais (Edmonton) had a strong night in net, stopping 29 of 30 shots faced as Huskies goaltender Camryn Drever also played well, stopping 24 of 26.
AS IT HAPPENED
After a scoreless first period, the Huskies scored 6:28 into the second period. The Spartans withstood four minor penalties before McDonald got TWU on the board, tying the game at 1-1 heading into the third.
Mayo rifled a slapshot past Drever to give the Spartans a 2-1 lead with only 1:08 remaining with
Jordyn Matthews (Okotoks, Alta.) and
Neisha Germann (Lloydminster, Alta.) combining for the assists.
QUOTABLE
TWU Head Coach – Jean Laforest
"I'm really proud of how the team played. We battled through and found a way to get a win. We had a tough stretch in the second period where we spent a lot of time killing penalties, but we got ourselves out and we're able to rally. We're on a trajectory and it's exciting to see the growth from last year. This year's team has taken that step to be able to withstand a tough stretch and not fold. The team is excited for the win and we can't wait to get back out there.
A lot of players played well, but our team gave our player of the game award to Mabel. She played really well and provided us with the goaltending we need to have to get the win. You need good goaltending at this level and she gave us that tonight.
It's early times, but this is definitely a good start to the season."
NOTABLE
- TWU is now 2-1 over the Huskies all-time.
- The Spartans were ranked ninth in the Canada West preseason coaches poll while Saskatchewan was ranked fourth.
UP NEXT
TWU rematches Saskatchewan (1-0) at the Merlis Belsher Place on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. CT.
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 13 U SPORTS team championships and 32 Canada West team championships.
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