Lady Flames sophomore defenseman Brookelyn Beauchamp skates out of the neutral zone against the Pride. (Photos by Chase Gyles)
DI Lady Flames open season by shutting out Washington Pride U19 team
9/23/2023 6:35:00 PM | Women's D1 Hockey
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Brielle Fussy ended a scoreless tie with 28 seconds left in the second period before adding an insurance goal a minute into the third.
Junior forward and alternate captain Brielle Fussy scored twice in a span of 90 seconds late in the second period and early in the third to lift Liberty University's five-time defending ACHA Division I national champion women's hockey team to a 2-0 triumph in its exhibition opener against the Washington Pride U19 travel team, Saturday afternoon at the LaHaye Ice Center.
"I thought we played a pretty decent game," Lady Flames Head Coach Chris Lowes said. "We did some good things and obviously Brielle had a great game for us and we needed her touch around the net. We don't have our lungs and our legs where they're going to be, but I thought we controlled possession and we made some good decisions."
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Brielle Fussy, shown starting a breakout, scored both Liberty goals from close range.Â
With 28 seconds left in the second period, Fussy received a cross-crease assist from graduate forward Yannick Truter in the left circle before firing a forehand past Washington goalie Aljandra Erdman from short range.
"We were just getting our lines back together and it was a mad dash onto the ice," Fussy said. "Yannick and I talked about how we wanted bodies and pucks to the middle of the ice. On that one, I just tried to be more patient and make a move instead of just shooting right away."
Then, less than a minute into the third, with the Lady Flames on the power play, Fussy finished another scoring opportunity around the net after junior defenseman Madison Glynn launched a shot from the point. Truter deflected the putback to Fussy deep in the left crease where she lifted a point-blank shot off the post before it rebounded off the back of Erdman into the cage.
"I knew as soon as we got one, more would come," Fussy said. "When you can't find a way to score, the clean-up goals definitely have to come out. With our team, it's all about getting that first one, especially the first one of the season against a good Washington Pride team. They were fast and physical, just like us, so we just had to give it back and it was a good way to start the season. It was a great first test and I'm excited to see the rest."
Liberty outshot the Pride, 36-15, and senior goalie Amanda Storey made 15 saves in the shutout with defensive support from senior Peyton Carle and junior Sammy Peebles, among others.
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Lady Flames forward Laura Arfstrom posts up against Pride forward Astrid Wilbur.
"The freshmen coming in played a great game as well," Fussy said, referring to defenseman Sophia Adamek and forwards Ella Sarauer and Sienna McClinchey. "They're bringing good energy to practices and games. They showcased a lot of good skills today and they're going to keep improving."
Fussy played on the line with sophomore forward Brookelyn Beauchamp and Truter.
"It was a matchup I've never been with, but it worked really well and I'm super excited to see all of these matchups that come out," she said.
Fussy's older sister, senior Brityn Fussy, started on the same line as junior forward Zosia Adamak and Sarauer while McClinchey played with junior forwards Laura Arfstrom and Madison Conley, a call-up from the Division II team, and graduate head captain Rianna Spanier was joined by junior Haley Battles and sophomore Isabella Hervert.
"So far, they've been pretty balanced lines," Brielle Fussy said. "They'll probably change things up every week to get into the season and see what's to come. We just need to be burying the puck more often and we have to work on our zone entries and breakouts from the defensive end, so we can hopefully take advantage of our speed on fast breaks up the middle of the ice."
Lowes was pleased with the Lady Flames' overall performance in their first test since winning their sixth national title last March near Boston. He said it was a positive first step in what will be a long journey before they contend for a seventh crown in St. Louis next spring.
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Head Coach Chris Lowes said the Lady Flames played with patience and poise.
"For our first skate as a team, we're happy," he said. "We showed a little more patience and calm when we had the puck and I haven't seen a lot of that in practice, so that was good to see. We did enough things well. Our defense and special teams — which is never very polished this early in the year — was OK, and five-on-five, we did some good things. We didn't make any major mistakes and short of missing on some great scoring chances, we did what we needed to."
Liberty is scheduled to host Hockey Training Institute (HTI) out of Toronto, Ontario, on Thursday and Friday this week, but those games are tentative for now as HTI may have travel issues.
By Ted Allen/Staff WriterSenior forward Brityn Fussy starts a fast break in front of graduate forward Yannick Truter, who assisted both Liberty goals Saturday.Liberty celebrates one of junior forward Brielle Fussy's goals in the exhibition against the Washington Pride at the LaHaye Ice Center.
