After defeating the Toronto Blues on Saturday, the Alberta Pandas went on to win the 5th edition of the CIS Women’s Hockey Championship in Regina, Saskatchewan. The Pandas beat the Laurier Goldenhawks 5-2 to take the gold.
Alberta returned to the top spot in CIS women’s hockey two years after they won their first championship. Last year the Blues went undefeated, beating Regina in the gold medal game. In 2002, Toronto and Regina met again, but this time in the battle for bronze. The Blues emerged victorious with a score of 3-2.
The first period saw U of A dominating play. Laurier’s offense was all but silent, while goalie Cindy Eadie faced a steady stream of shots from the Panda’s strong offensive line. Eadie, the CIS rookie of the year, played brilliantly but didn’t get the defensive backup she needed to withstand three goals scored by Alberta in the first period. The first goal for Alberta came from Mandy Kinjerski. Two consecutive goals by CIS-leading scorer Danielle Bourgeois followed. By the end of the first period the Pandas had amassed 18 shots on goals, with Laurier barely showing their presence.
The Goldenhawks brought an extremely young team to this year’s championships. Coach Bill Bowker had fourteen rookies on board. The inexperienced team had to be satisfied with a great season that saw them capture the OUA title, defeating Toronto.
At the start of the second period, Laurier appeared ready to pick up their offense. Their momentum was briefly slowed when Ashley Stevenson received a penalty for body checking almost immediately. In fact, many body checking offences went un-penalized throughout the game. Despite the setbacks, Laurier demonstrated a good effort, with Chantal Legere scoring on a power play midway through the second period. With added confidence, the Goldenhawks brought themselves into contention when Amanda Joseph scored a second goal. Unfortunately, that would be the last of Laurier’s goals.
Alberta continued to wield their killer offensive line of Bourgeois, Dubyk and Kinjerksi. Defensively, the Pandas effectively supported goalie Stacey McCullough.
The score by the end of the second period was 4-2 for Alberta.
The winning goal by Alberta captain Krysty Lorenz was scored in the third period. An experienced Alberta team reclaimed their place at the helm of Canadian university women’s hockey, while Laurier’s young team had to settle for silver, no doubt with great things to come.
Photograph by Simon Turnbull
