Liberty University Club Sports Athletics
Lady Flames sweep Bulldogs, extend winning streak to eight
3/7/2021 12:00:00 AM | Women's D1 Hockey
Sophomore forward Yannick Truter netted her first hat trick — scoring one goal on the power play, one shorthanded, and one at even strength — to help Liberty University's top-ranked ACHA Division I women's hockey team complete a sweep of No. 3 Adrian College with an 8-4 triumph on Sunday afternoon at Arrington Arena in Adrian, Mich.
"Overall, it was a good road trip," Lady Flames Head Coach Chris Lowes said. "Today's game was really night and day as far as the difference from (Saturday), which was a tight defensive game before we were able to break it open in the third period. Today, we were down 1-0 and 2-1 and the girls battled back and were able to get on the right side of it before the end of the first period," leading 3-2.
The Bulldogs (2-3) got on the scoreboard first when Taylor Murcek tipped in a shot from near the blue line by fellow senior forward Kelly-Rae Zdan just over five minutes into the contest.
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| Lady Flames graduate forward Val Manchak controls the puck beside an Adrian player last season at the LIC. |
Liberty (8-1) knotted the score after freshman goalie Amanda Storey rejected a shot by Murcek and graduate forward Val Manchek started a fast break with senior forward Alex Smibert. Smibert beat Bulldogs freshman goalie Halley Faulkner with a shot from the right circle through an Adrian defenseman in front to tie the game at 1-1 at the 11:35 mark.
Just over a minute later, freshman forward Nicole Thomas put Adrian back on top with a two-on-one fast-break finish in the right crease. However, the Lady Flames retied it at 2-2 when Vanessa DeMerchant worked a give-and-go with fellow senior forward Danica Polson in the right circle before putting away a shot from deep in the left crease with 9:19 left in the first period.
"I was proud of way the girls battled back, because they haven't been down a lot this year," Lowes said. "They looked poised and there was not a lot of panic."
Smibert lifted Liberty to its first lead with 3:35 still remaining in the first when she took a short pass from senior forward and head captain Shannon Fehr and accelerated down the left wing, slicing through the circle before beating Faulkner blocker-side on a shot very similar to her first goal.
"We had moments today that were really good, and definitely had some periods where we weren't exactly dialed in," Lowes said. "Smibert had two really good goals in the first period. She plays her best in big games and she was dialed in today."
The Lady Flames stretched their advantage to 4-2 with 16:13 remaining in the second period when junior forward Alexis Lauber finished a back-door pass from Truter on a fast-break counterattack with a shot in front, ending the day for Faulkner.
Liberty added four more goals on freshman Reid Bahr, Saturday's starter, starting at the 12:51 mark. Freshman forward Brityn Fussy received an outlet pass up the center of the ice and launched a wrist shot in the left circle that beat Bahr top-shelf, extending the lead to 5-2. The Lady Flames made it a 6-2 contest when Polson skated through the Bulldogs' defense on a fast-break and assisted Truter's shot in the slot with 10:06 to go in the second period.
The Bulldogs got two goals back in the next three minutes to cut the deficit to 6-4, the first on a fast-break finish by junior forward Kat Robinson into the upper netting at the 9:15 mark and the second by senior defenseman Tanya Candido, who came out from around the back of the cage and put away the puck in the left crease.
But a shorthanded goal by Truter pushed Liberty's lead to 7-4 with 4:09 left in the second. Senior forward Shelby Bradford blocked a Bulldogs shot and sent an outlet pass to Truter, who cut back into the high slot and put a shot on goal that trickled past the pads of Bahr, who kicked it into her own cage as she pivoted back into position.
The third period remained scoreless until Truter poked in a loose puck in front, polishing off her hat trick with 45 seconds to go.
The two teams will meet twice more this Friday and Saturday at the LaHaye Ice Center, where the puck is scheduled to drop at 4 p.m. for both regular-season-ending games.
Before Saturday's opening faceoff, the Lady Flames will honor five seniors — forwards Polson , Bradford, and Fehr and defensemen Sydney Pierce and Kristi Serafin. They also feature five fifth-year seniors: defensemen Dana McLeod and Sally Hoerr, a transfer from Grand Valley State, and forwards Deena Birney, Smibert, and DeMerchant.
"We are excited to recognize our seniors and keep improving as a team," Lowes said.
Liberty will then have two weeks to prepare to defend its inaugural Women's Midwest College Hockey (WMCH) Tournament title, March 26-28 near St. Louis, and another two weeks before taking its shot at a third consecutive ACHA DI National Championship, April 15-20 in Minot, N.D.
By Ted Allen/Staff Writer
Alex Smibert, who scored twice Sunday, skates past fellow senior forward Vanessa DeMerchant.
