Liberty University Club Sports
West Virginia University
DII Lady Flames open season by skating over Mountaineers; prep for Delaware Showcase
10/4/2022 11:43:00 AM | Women's D2 Hockey
Though it suffered setbacks caused by injuries in its first game, Liberty University's ACHA Division II women's hockey team showcased tremendous potential in a season-opening sweep of West Virginia over the weekend at the LaHaye Ice Center. The Lady Flames endured a few concussions in Friday's late-night opener to prevail, 5-2, before the Mountaineers, trailing 4-0 late in the first period, forfeited Saturday's rematch when they lost their lone available goalie to injury.
Less than two minutes into the first period of Friday's opener, freshman defenseman Katrina Walhof started the scoring with her first career goal for the Lady Flames, firing a shot through traffic from the right point that careened into the upper netting for an early 1-0 edge.
Then, with 6:55 left in the first period, sophomore forward Camille Sponaugle doubled the Lady Flames' advantage by gathering a loose puck in the right circle and ricocheting a wrist shot off the left post and into the back of the net.
Liberty extended its lead to 3-0 just over a minute later when sophomore forward Isabel Gracia chased down a long outlet pass that rebounded off the back boards in front of WVU goalie Willow Herman, who opted to defend the shot rather than risk coming out to clear the puck.
The Mountaineers ended Lady Flames freshman goalie Abby Hodsden's shutout bid midway through the second period when Allyson Schwind, last season's leading scorer, scored shorthanded with a backhand shot over her shoulder, finishing a cross-crease feed. But Liberty responded less than five minutes into the third period when freshman Isabel Crossman, skating through the slot, deftly deflected graduate defenseman Sarah LaPorte's shot from the left point through the five hole of Herman, making it 4-1.
West Virginia struck again to trim the deficit to 4-2 with 7:45 remaining in regulation, but just over a minute and a half later, sophomore right wing Piper Prem picked up a loose puck behind the net and sneaked a backhand past Herman inside the right post.
In Saturday's rematch, the Lady Flames struck even more quickly, with LaPorte skating the puck along the left backboards and swiftly slipping a shot inside the post exactly 1:00 after the opening faceoff.
Freshman forward Guinivere Donovan set up Liberty's second score with 11:14 left in the period when she gathered a rebound in the left crease and skated toward the backboards before sending a pass back to Gracia for an easy finish and a 2-0 lead. Then, just 1:10 later, Crossman slammed home a putback of junior right wing Hunter DiGrazia's shot from the top of the right circle for a 3-0 advantage.
With the Lady Flames on the power play, sophomore forward Brigh Cote capitalized on a WVU turnover in its own end, capping the scoring by squeezing a shot off a backdoor pass from freshman forward Brylie Beddell through the five hole of WVU goalie Alexa Rummel, stretching the lead to 4-0 with 6:53 left in the first period. Less than a minute later, Rummel was injured on a pileup in the cage and the Mountaineers forfeited the contest with no backup keeper available.
Liberty (2-0), an independent team this season, will travel to the Delaware Showcase in Newark, Del., this weekend to challenge some of the best teams in College Hockey East (CHE), with games scheduled against Navy on Friday at 8 p.m., the host Blue Hens on Saturday at 11:15 a.m., and Buffalo on Sunday at noon.
Videos by Patrick Strawn/Club Sports Director of Video & Media
