No. 2 Warriors Make Statement with Sweep of No. 1 Liberty
FREMONT, Neb. – Not only was it a rematch of last year's conference title game on Thursday and Friday, it was a meeting between the top two teams in the ACHA, as No. 2-ran Midland University hosted No. 1-ranked Liberty University inside Sidner Ice Arena in Fremont. In what was arguably the biggest college women's hockey series ever played in the State of Nebraska, the Warriors came away with a sweep of the Flames, winning 2-1 on Thursday night and 5-0 on Friday evening.
THURSDAY: Midland 2, Liberty 1
The opening game of the weekend was as good as advertised as the teams showcased why they are the highest-ranked teams in the country. Just over three minutes in, Ava Matthews-McCulley scored off a feed from Grace Page and Taylor Bell. The goal was the first of Matthews-McCulley's collegiate career and staked Midland to the early lead.
Ten minutes later, Liberty found the equalizer as they jumped on the loose puck in the attacking zone and hit the unassisted goal at the 14:30 mark. The score would remain knotted as the first-period buzzer sounded and the teams went to the dressing rooms.
Coming out of the intermission, Kayla Flanigan forced a turnover near their defensive blue line. Kamryn Hayhurst took the puck and started a breakout with a racing Ally Rakowski on her left. A great angle pass to set up a one-on-one with the goalie and with less than a minute in, Midland went up 2-1 over Liberty.
After the exciting start to the second, the defenses settled in in front of their spectacular goalies. The Flames' netminder captured 10 saves over the rest of the period while Hannah Stone grabbed 4 saves. Despite getting a pair of powerplay chances, the Warriors took the 2-1 lead into the final intermission.
Over the final 20 minutes of play, the defenses stood firm. Stone corralled eight saves in the period while her counterpart picked up seven. Liberty's defense was able to withstand another penalty that gave Midland an attacking advantage. With just over three minutes in the game, the Warriors were whistled for a five-minute major. The Flames were unable to use the advantage as they were whistled for a minor penalty moments later. Despite pulling its goalie, Liberty was unable to find the equalizer as Midland won 2-1.
For the game, Hannah Stone stopped 15 shots by the Flames to earn the win in net. Midland had a 23-16 lead in shots.
FRIDAY: Midland 5, Liberty 0
After taking the first game of the series, Midland wanted to make a statement in the second. Less than three minutes in, Kayla Flanigan scored to put the Warriors in front. Jaicee Huberdeau and Kamryn Hayhurst assisted on the first strike of the game.
Playing with great energy and focus, the Warriors struck for their second goal of the period as Huberdeau led a breakout down the right side. Just past the blue line, she found Ally Rakowski on the backside of the goal at the 10:49 mark of the period. The teams would go into the intermission with Midland leading, 2-0.
Out of the intermission, and on the powerplay, the Warriors struck in the first minute for the second straight game. Posted up in the slot, Rakowski took a pass from Jenna Grosdidier for her second score of the game, 51 seconds into the period. Flanigan was also credited for an assist to make it 3-0.
Before the period's end, Rakowski would complete her hat trick. With just under eight minutes to go, Flanigan took control along the boards, flipping it into center ice to Hayhurst who carried it into the neutral zone. A flip ahead was raced for and won by Rakowski. She skated the rest of the way and sent in past the goalie who was on an island defensively.
Leading 4-0, the Warriors started to grind out the game defensively. Each time the Flames looked to be building some sort of momentum, they quickly put an end to any scoring chance they might've had. After two periods, Midland led 4-0.
In the final frame, the Warriors' defense held their ground. They controlled the puck, keeping any idea of a miraculous comeback by the Flames in check. Playing a bit reckless, Liberty was whistled for a pair of minors in the third. After an interference with 6:15 to go, the Warriors' special teams came through with their second powerplay goal of the night.
Pinpoint passing but Midland saw the puck move from left to right, around the defense. Grace Page hit Katie McNair on the doorstep to the left of the keeper. Rather than trying to go to the short side, she hit Darbi Poole in the low slot for the final goal of the game at the 14:11 mark.
For the contest, Hannah Stone corralled 19 saves as she earned her 11th win of the season in net. Shots were in favor of the Warriors, 27 to 19.
"These were big wins for our team and our program," commented head coach Jason White. "Coming in, we knew this would be a chance for us to show what kind of team we can be. I thought we played a solid game on Thursday night and then really put things together on Friday. While these are great wins for our resume, we've still got work to do to reach our full potential. We'll get another opportunity this weekend with a talented team in Jamestown on Sunday."
Ahead of that matchup, Jamestown (9-4-0-0) will take on Liberty (10-2-0-1) at Sidner Ice Arena on Saturday afternoon at 4:00 p.m. The exciting weekend of women's hockey will wrap up with the Warriors and Jimmies on Sunday, December 3 at 12:00 p.m.