SAINT PETER, Minn. – The No. 3 Gustavus women's hockey team met Hamline for the third time in as many games, this time in the MIAC Playoff Semifinals, and dealt the Pipers their first shutout of the season, a 4-0 decision at Don Roberts Ice Rink Saturday, March 1.
The Gusties (21-5-0, 16-3-0 MIAC) advance back to the MIAC Playoff Championship for the fifth consecutive tournament (no MIAC postseason was held in the 2020-21 season), to face No. 1 seed Augsburg.
The Gusties took a 1-0 lead five minutes into the first period, as
Lily Mortenson (Jr., Champlin, Minn.) netted her team- and conference-leading 21st goal of the season. After an
Eva Nelson (Fy., Buffalo, Minn.) keep at the blue line, a quick turn-and-shoot play off the stick of
Kaitlyn Holland (Sr., Aberdeen, S.D.) found Mortenson out front, who roofed the puck over the shoulder of Piper goaltender Kendra Nordick. Hamline (16-10-0, 11-8-0 MIAC) tested the Gusties the other way, but
Lily Timmons (Fy., Stillwater, Minn.) saved all eight first period attempts to hold the 1-0 lead at the first intermission.
Nelson once again started the next Gustie scoring play, jumping to glove a high clear from the Pipers out of the air to maintain possession for the Gusties. The first-year dished the puck into the corner for Holland, who delivered a perfect pass to the stick of
Noelle Hemr (Fy., Blaine, Minn.) out front, who buried her 12th of the season just past the toe of Nordick to double the lead. Hamline, which controlled the play for much of the second period, couldn't get past Timmons, who held her shutout for the 2-0 lead heading into the final frame.
The Gustie defense smothered Hamline in the third period, holding the Pipers to just five shots on target through the final 20 minutes. The Pipers failed to convert on a pair of power plays, and allowed two empty netters with the 6-on-5 advantage, both off which came off the stick of
Brooke Power (5th, Lakeville, Minn.), with the final goal coming off Power's stick at the Gustie blue line. Timmons locked things down for her fifth solo shutout, making a pair of big saves in the game's final minutes.
Kylie Scott (So, Dayton, Minn.), Power, Nelson, and Holland each finished with a pair of points to lead the Gustie offense, while Holland contributed a team-leading five shots to a total of 24 for Gustavus. Timmons stopped all 17 shots between the pipes, including three on the power play and eight in the first period.
The Gusties will face Augsburg (22-2-1, 16-2-0 MIAC), which defeated Saint Mary's (16-11-0, 10-8-0) 3-2 in four overtimes in the longest game in recorded NCAA Division III women's hockey history in their semifinal match-up. The MIAC Playoff Championship is set for next Saturday, March 7, with a tentative 6 p.m. puck drop in Minneapolis.
