Stevens Point, Wis. – After falling to fifth-ranked UW-Stevens Point by the score of 5-2 last night, the Gustavus women’s hockey team earned a split in the non-conference series with a 2-1 win on Saturday afternoon at Ice Hawks Arena.
Similar to the previous contest, the two teams were tied heading to the third and final period. This time it was Gustavus with the final say as Halie Gudmonson (Fy., Albertville, Minn.) netted her second goal of the weekend to give her team to one-goal victory. Gustavus improves to 8-3-2 overall, while UW-Stevens Point drops to 13-3-1 on the year.
The Gusties jumped out of the gate with a goal just 4:13 into the game when Carolyn Draayer (Jr., Deephaven, Minn.) put the Gustie women in front with her fourth goal of the season. The goal was Draayer’s fifth goal in six career games against the Pointers and put her team on top 1-0 in the early going.
Gustavus went on to hold a 9-4 shot advantage in the first period as the two teams would head to the first intermission with the score still 1-0.
The second period favored the Pointers, who held a shot advantage of 10-6 in the frame. One day removed from a hat trick in the third period, Cassandra Salmen evened the game at one apiece with a goal at the 9:58 mark. Emily Lester assisted on the goal and the two teams entered familiar territory: tied after two periods.
Again, Gustavus wasted no time scoring in the third period. The go-ahead goal came just 2:05 into the frame when Halie Gudmonson received an assist from Allison Eder-Zdechlik (So., Stillwater, Minn.) and put the puck away. The goal put the Gusties back in front by the score of 2-1, and would prove to be Gudmonson’s second game-winning goal of the season.
The Gusties killed a pair of power plays in the final period, which led to four shots for the Pointers. Gustavus also held a shot advantage of 9-8 in the final 20 minutes.
For the game, Gustavus outshot UW-Stevens Point 24-22. Neither team was able to take advantage of the power play, as the Gusties were held scoreless on three chances and the Pointers on four.
Lindsey Hibbard (So., Princeton, Minn.) earned the win in net for the Gusties in a 21-save effort, while Janna Beilke-Skoug suffered the loss for the Pointers after making 22 saves.
Gustavus will be back on the ice next weekend when it gets back to the conference schedule with a weekend series against Augsburg. The two teams will play in Minneapolis on Friday night before battling in St. Peter on Saturday afternoon.