Krystal Baumann scored her first goal as a Gustie on Saturday afternoon.
St. Peter, Minn. – After Hamline tied the game at 1-1 just over one minute into the third period, the Gustavus women’s hockey team scored three unanswered goals to skate past the Pipers by the final score of 4-1 on Saturday afternoon at Don Roberts Ice Rink. With the win, Gustavus improves to 5-1-1 overall and 4-0-0 in the MIAC, while Hamline drops to 0-5-1 overall and 0-3-1 in MIAC play.
After a scoreless first period that saw the Gusties outshoot the Pipers 17-3, Krystal Baumann (Jr., Farmington, Minn.) put Gustavus on the scoreboard with her first goal in a Gustie sweater. Baumann ripped a laser from just inside the right point into the top right corner of the net to give Gustavus the 1-0 lead. She was assisted Marissa Brandt (Jr., Vadnais Heights, Minn.) and Carolyn Draayer (Jr., Deephaven, Minn.) on the goal, which came on the power play at the 8:49 mark.
The Gusties would enjoy a 13-3 shot advantage in the second period, which would end with the score still 1-0. Through the first two periods, Gustavus held a shot advantage of 30-6. However, a penalty late in the second period would prove costly, as it gave the Pipers 1:31 of a skater advantage to open the third period.
Hamline would not let the power play go to waste, scoring with just 20 seconds left on the advantage. Corinne Henning scored the goal on a backhand to tie the game at 1-1. However, the Gusties responded with a goal of their own just 3:21 later to take the lead for good.
Leah Johnson (Jr., Chanhassen, Minn.) scored on the power play to take the 2-1 lead. Johnson picked up a rebound, brought the puck behind the net, and finished on the other side over the top of Hamline goaltender Sam Starks’s left shoulder. Keri Pickel (Sr., Rochester, Minn.) and Courtney Boucher (Jr., Hastings, Minn.) assisted on the paly.
Halie Gudmonson (Fy., Albertville, Minn.) added an insurance goal six and a half minutes later. Gudmonson picked up a rebound in front of the net and put it away to give the Gusties a 3-1 lead. On the goal, she received assists from Carolyn Draayer and Maddie Bergh (Sr., Eden Prairie, Minn.).
Halie Gudmonson added an insurance goal midway through the third period.
Senior captain Melissa Doyle (White Bear Lake, Minn.) delivered the final blow of the afternoon. Doyle scored her second goal of the season with just 1:34 remaining to put the finishing touches on the three-goal win. Doyle, like Gudmonson, cleaned up a miss in front of the net and buried it in the back of the net. Amanda Cartony (Sr., Stillwater, Minn.) and Allison Eder-Zdechlik (So., Stillwater, Minn.) were awarded with assists on the play.
For the game, the Gusties converted on 50 percent (2-4) of their power play chances, compared to 25 percent (1-4) for the Pipers. Gustavus also posted a shot advantage of 41-13.
Goaltender Marah Sobczak (Sr., Lake Elmo, Minn.) earned the win in net after allowing just one goal and making 12 saves. She picks up her first victory of the season to improve to 1-0-0. Hamline goalie Sam Stark suffered the loss in a 37-save effort. She drops to 0-5-1 on the year.
“As a goaltender, it’s always nice when your team scores a bunch of goals, but it’s also nice to have a back-and-forth game like today,” stated goaltender Sobczak. “It’s easier for me to stay focused and be a part of the game a little more. I’m just glad we found a way to score some goals and pull it out in the end.”
The afternoon marked the first start for Sobczak since the 2011-12 season after being away from the team recovering from a serious car accident. Although she had seen action already this season, Marah mentioned that it is still not quite like playing a full 60 minutes.
“Obviously the nerves were there and I had a lot of adrenaline, but it felt great to start again,” admitted Sobczak. “It was nice to play the whole game through with my teammates and get the win.”
“She worked her way into a situation where she deserved to start,” added Head Coach Mike Carroll. “This wasn’t something that we just decided that we will put her in because she’s a great kid; she earned the start. It was good to see her back because she has been such a great influence on the girls. This whole thing is great for her, it’s great for her family, and it’s great for the other girls on the team as well.”
The Gusties will get a chance to enjoy the Thanksgiving break before getting back into action two weeks from now on Friday, Dec. 6th, when they host St. Olaf College for a 7:00 p.m., start at Don Roberts Ice Rink.
“Well it will be nice to have a week off, but we have to keep getting better,” finished Carroll. “We have four tough games coming up after the Thanksgiving break, so we have to continue to get better and better every day.”
great job Halie