OSHAWA, Ont. - The UOIT women's hockey team couldn't hold off a late third period push from the No. 6 ranked Western Mustangs, ultimately falling in a tightly-contested 2-1 contest.
 
Not to be overshadowed by the loss is the play of goaltender Brooke Vial (Port Moody, B.C), who stood up to 35 shots and emerged with a career-high 33 saves. After a slow start, the Mustangs killed off a holding penalty to Olivia Kariunas and found their legs, gradually tilting the ice in their favour.
 
Vial was sharp as the chances began to mount. On an odd-number rush, the puck was dropped to the trailing Alyssa Chiarello, who was denied by Vial. In the second, a Mustangs two-on-one resulted in a goal-line review that went in Vial's favour. Her career-best save total was registered off a wrist shot from Chiarello, which she swallowed up in her chest.
 
The women return to the ice in less than 24 hours to face Windsor as part of the Bell Let's Talk doubleheader at the Campus Ice Centre. Puck drop is scheduled for 3:30 p.m.
 

LIGHT THE LAMP

• The home team opened the scoring shortly into the second period when a loose puck found Chelsea Ball (Maple, Ont.) who snuck it far side under Carmen Lasis.
 

WHKY I Ridgebacks waste little time to open the scoring in the second period, as @chellball scores, assisted by @nikkizabel_ and Nauboris @UOIT leads 1-0 pic.twitter.com/zNBj73HmtO

— UOIT Ridgebacks (@UOITRidgebacks) January 19, 2019

• It wasn't until 13:27 into the third that the Mustangs could issue a response, as Alyssa Chairello took the puck on her off wing and dangled through a maze of stick to beat Vial upstairs.
• Western plunged the dagger in at 17:04 when Rachel Armstrong caught Vial moving in the wrong direction, after taking a pass in the slot from April Clarke; it was Armstrong's second point of the game.
 

BETWEEN THE PIPES

• Vial kept the Ridgebacks close every second of the game in a career-high 33 save performance.
• Boasting a goals against average of 1.40 and a save percentage of .946 coming into Saturday's game, the Mustangs' Lasis was again in fine form, stopping 31 of 32 UOIT shots.
 

RIDGEBACKS AT A GLANCE

Overall Record: 8-11-1-1 (W-L-OTW-OTL)
Conference Record: 6-10-0-1
 
Next game: Sunday, Jan. 20 vs. Windsor Lancers • 3:30 p.m. – Campus Ice Centre

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