The Gustavus Adolphus women’s hockey team moved to 12-1-0 overall and 7-0-0 in the MIAC with a 5-2 victory over St. Olaf Friday night at Don Roberts Ice Rink in St. Peter. Five different players scored goals for the Gusties, who moved a point in front of the Oles for the league lead.
Gustavus took a 1-0 lead at the 16:40 mark of the first period when Mari Gunderson (So., Shoreview, Minn./Mounds View) netted her sixth goal of the season off assists from Jenna Bullock (Fy., Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo) and Andrea Peterson (Sr., White Bear Lake, Minn./White Bear Lake).
The Gusties increased their lead to 2-0 at the 13:57 mark when, with St. Olaf on the power play, Kelly Crandall (Sr., Plymouth, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) blocked an Ole shot attempt from just inside the blue line and picked up the rebound. Crandall beat starting St. Olaf goalie Sarah Mills for the unassisted short-handed goal with a shot to Mills’ left.
The Oles responded with a short-handed goal of their own just a short time later. St. Olaf forward Lindsey Boeser jarred the puck loose from the Gustie offense at the St. Olaf blue line and passed to a streaking Susannah Brokl, who deposited the puck over the left shoulder of Gustavus goalie Breanna Scavo (Fy., Blaine, Minn./North St. Paul). For Brokl, it was her fifth short-handed goal of the season, tops in Division III. Kari McClintick was also credited with an assist on the goal.
Gustavus pushed across a pair of goals late in the second period to push their lead to 4-1. Alyssa Saunders (Fy., Wayzata, Minn./The Blake School) scored at the 5:23 mark when she put in the rebound of an Andrea Peterson shot and Stefanie Ubl (Jr., Blaine, Minn./Blaine) gave the Gusties a three-goal lead when she beat Ole backup goalie Shannon Herrick at the 3:23 mark off a rebound of a shot by Claire Opsahl (Fy., Eagan, Minn./Eagan).
Seconds after Ubl’s goal, the Gusties appeared to go up 5-1, but a goal by Laura Hillman (Fy., Albert Lea, Minn./Albert Lea) was waived off as the net was dislodged from its moorings before the puck crossed the mouth of the goal. St. Olaf responded with a goal at the 17:37 mark as Brokl broke up a Gustavus pass and passed to Boeser for the breakaway goal.
A goal by Jenny Pusch (So., Minneapolis, Minn./Acad. of Holy Angels) at the 18:06 mark of the third period gave Gustavus a 5-2 lead. Ubl and Margaret Dorer (Jr., St. Paul, Minn./St. Anthony) were credited with assists on the goal.
Crandall and Ubl each scored a goal and an assist to lead the Gusties, who outshot the Oles 41-15. Peterson and Bullock each notched a pair of assists.
Scavo made 13 saves in net for Gustavus to pick up her first collegiate win. Mills made 8 saves for the Oles, but was pulled in favor of sophomore Shannon Herrick after allowing the second Gustavus goal midway through the first period. Herrick made 28 saves in relief and took the loss.
Crandall’s first-period goal moved her into a tie for 10th-place with Nikki Norton (1998-2001) on Gustavus’ career goal scoring list with 44 career goals, while Andrea Peterson notched her 92nd and 93rd career assists, fourth all-time in NCAA Division III hockey history, passing Jaclyn O’Neil of Elmira (2003-06). An assist on Ubl’s goal also moved Crandall (110 career points) to within a point of Katie Deschneau (111 points, 2000-04) for sixth on the Gustavus career points list.
The Gusties and Oles will conclude the weekend series Saturday evening at Northfield Ice Arena at 5 p.m.