SAINT PETER, Minn. – No. 3 Gustavus women's hockey opened the MIAC series against Saint Benedict with a 4-1 win at Don Roberts Ice Rink on Friday, Feb. 7.
Gustavus (16-4-0, 11-2-0 MIAC) scored two goals in each of the first and third periods, the first two of which came off the stick of
Macy Janssen (So., Blaine, Minn.) for the first multi-goal game of her career. Saint Benedict (10-7-3, 7-5-1 MIAC) added an early third period tally, but a pair of goals within 16 seconds of each other put the game away in the final frame.
Janssen scored her first on the power play, as
Brooke Power (5th, Lakeville, Minn.) and
Kylie Scott (So., Dayton, Minn.) exchanged passes in the corner. Scott sent a sharp-angled shot toward the net of CSB goaltender Kate Moffat, leaving the rebound for Janssen to clean up out front.
She added her second just before time expired in the first period, as Power grabbed a feed in the neutral zone out of the air before dishing it to her linemate, who drove the outside of the Bennie zone and walked the puck behind Moffat for her second of the game and a 2-0 lead at the end of the first
Moffat was the star of the second period, making a number of big saves to keep the lead within reach at two, including robbing
Noelle Hemr (Fy., Blaine, Minn.) in the slot off a perfect pass from
Lily Mortenson (Jr., Champlin, Minn.) in the corner.
The Bennies entered the third period with all the momentum, forcing a number of chances on Gustavus goalie
Lily Timmons (Fy., Stillwater, Minn.). After sustained pressure in the Gusties zone, Aurora Opsahl was able to break Timmons' shutout and cut the lead to one 1:27 into the final frame.
Kaitlyn Holland (Sr., Aberdeen, S.D.) erased any hopes of a Bennie comeback, scoring her sixth power play tally of the year on a rebound after attempts from both Hemr and
Abby Elliott (Sr., Lino Lakes, Minn.). And, just 16 seconds later,
Kayla Woytcke (Jr., Waconia, Minn.) netted her second of the year off a cross-ice feed from
Emma Heyer (So., Shakopee, Minn.).
The final goal of the game is the 12th-fastest sequence of goals in program history, and the first to break into the record books since 2019.
The Gusties totaled 39 shots on goal compared to 16 for the Bennies, with 17 of the Gusties' shots coming in the final period. Gustavus won the battle in the circle, with 36 wins to 23 for CSB, and finished 2-for-4 with the player advantage and perfect on one penalty kill.
Mortenson led the squad with eight shots on goal, followed by seven for Hemr. Power and Janssen led the squad with two points each, while Elliott extended her point streak to six games. Timmons finished with 15 saves between the pipes.
The Gusties and Bennies wrap up the MIAC series Saturday at 6 p.m. in St. Cloud.
