SUPERIOR, Wis. – The Gustavus women’s hockey team started their 2018-19 season on Saturday afternoon and defeated UW-Superior by a score 2-1.
“What was really nice is that we set the pace in the first period,” said head coach Mike Carroll. “We had a little bit of a let down in the second period and made plenty of mistakes but we worked through it and we played a lot more physical with them in the third period and the goal we got was a beautiful goal. We held on at the end and Amanda [DiNella] (Sr., Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.) made some good saves. All in all we’re really happy with how we played.”
Jamie Byrne (Fy., Delano, Minn.) scored her first collegiate goal and got the scoring started in first period when she found the back of the net off an assist from Madison Bergren (Sr., Mahtomedi, Minn.).
The Yellowjackets answered back in the second period with a goal but the Gusties bounced back in the third period when senior captain Allie Stanger (Sr., Paynesville, Minn.) scored off assists from Hannah Kobienia (Fy., Willmar, Minn.) and Kristina Press (Fy., Cottage Grove, Minn.) to give the Gusties the 2-1 edge.
DiNella played well in net for the Gusties making 21 saves while allowing just the one goal.
When asked about how the team handled their first game of the season with so many new faces, coach Carrol said, “I think it helped a lot to have the scrimmages we had for sure. Hockey is a game of mistakes and working through it and we weren’t playing as well for a while today but our veteran leadership kicked in and had a calming effect to help us work through those things. It was a really good learning experience for our younger players to go through that and come out with a win.”