Lady Flames trample Antelopes in ACHA DI nationals opener; conclude pool play Tuesday against Niagara

Monday, March 17

Centene Community Ice Center l St. Louis, MO

8:00 PM EST

Liberty University Club Sports

Grand Canyon University

Haley Battles Liberty Grand Canyon goal celebration

Liberty senior forward and alternate captain Haley Battles netted her second hat trick of the year on St. Patrick's Day in a 7-0 shutout of Grand Canyon after completing her first on Valentine's Day in a 7-2 win over defending national champion Adrian (Mich.) College in Lynchburg, Va. (Photos by Lexie Moore)

Lady Flames trample Antelopes in ACHA DI nationals opener; conclude pool play Tuesday against Niagara

3/18/2025 8:33:00 AM | Women's D1 Hockey

Senior forward and alternate captain Haley Battles scored her second hat trick in just over a month to spark the attack.

Haley Battles Jules Lefaive celebration — Battles is congratulated by freshman defenseman Jules Lefaive after scoring one of her three goals on the night against Grand Canyon.

Senior forward Haley Battles netted a hat trick to lead Liberty University's No. 1-ranked ACHA Division I women's hockey team to a 7-0 triumph over Grand Canyon University in Monday night's first round of pool play at the National Championships in the Centene Community Ice Center in Maryland Heights, Mo., a suburb of St. Louis.

"We haven't seen GCU before, and we're just really happy to get nationals started off on a good note," Lady Flames Head Coach Chris Lowes said of the Antelopes (14-16-2), who earned an autobid by winning the Western Women's Collegiate Hockey League title. "It's their first trip here, we've been here before. That served us well. We looked confident and comfortable out there."

ACHA National Tournament Logo 2025

Liberty (22-3) is contending for its seventh national title in program history after having its ACHA-record streak of five consecutive crowns snapped by Minot State in double overtime in last year's semifinals. It outshot the Antelopes by a 74-7 count, including 24-0 in the first period when the Lady Flames netted two goals before tacking on two more in the second period and three more in the third.

Just 2 minutes, 15 seconds after the opening faceoff, Battles started the scoring with the Lady Flames on a 5-on-4 advantage off an assist from junior defenseman and fellow alternate captain Emerson Oakes.

"Getting that power-play goal by Battles really helped us settle in," Lowes said. "Obviously Battles went off today and did her thing with a hat trick and an assist, and we had some girls play with a lot of confidence today. We're a nice mix of vets and rooks, a lot of young girls, and a lot of them played really well."

Graduate defenseman Peyton Carle doubled the lead at the 9:59 mark off an assist from sophomore forward Sienna McClinchey before Battles stretched it to 3-0 by finishing a feed from senior defenseman Samantha Peebles 2:30 into the second period.

Second-leading scorer and alternate captain Zosia Adamek extended the advantage to 4-0 with 6:24 left in the second period off an assist from fellow senior forward and head captain Brielle Fussy, Liberty's scoring leader.

Then in the third, Presley Ellis scored off an assist from fellow freshman forward Hayley Lee with 16:20 remaining in regulation before Battles completed her hat trick off a pass from Ellis less than three minutes later and junior forward Brookelyn Beauchamp capped the scoring off Battles' assist less than a minute after that.

Battles' second hat trick in a little more than a month came on St. Patrick's Day, after netting her first of the season in a 7-2 Valentine's Day victory over reigning national champion Adrian (Mich.) College at the LaHaye Ice Center. Her four points moves her into a tie with Adamek for second among the team's scoring leaders with 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists).

Junior goalie Alex Keith (13-3, 1.33 goals-against average, 95.0 save percentage, 3 shutouts) started in net the first two periods before Brooklyn Adams (6-0, 0.59 GAA, 97.0 SP, 3 SO) played the third period and completed the shutout.

"It was great to get her reps, and she looked really good," Lowes said of Adams. "Keith didn't face a lot of rubber, but she had a breakaway and stood tall."

Liberty Grand Canyon women's hockey prayer circle — Grand Canyon University players and coaches gather with the Lady Flames to pray after Monday night's game in Centene's Plager Arena.

In a show of dominance in the first round of pool play, the top four-ranked teams in ACHA Division I all won decisively on Monday, with No. 4 Midland defeating Indiana Tech, 3-1; No. 3 Adrian downing Arizona State, 4-1; and No. 2 Maryville shutting out Miami (Ohio) University, 6-0 to set the stage for the Lady Flames' lopsided triumph.

Liberty will face Niagara University (11-10-2) in Tuesday's 7:30 p.m. second round at Maryville University Ice Hockey Center in Chesterfield, Mo.
"At this point, we're just happy to move on and put ourselves in a good spot to go 2-0 in our pool," Lowes said. "If we beat Niagara, we go onto the semis. If we lose, Niagara will probably go on if they beat GCU. I've never been a part of a three-team pool. If we take care of business, we'll be (back in the Final Four)."

The Lady Flames swept the Purple Eagles by 5-1 and 3-2 scores in their first-ever contests Dec. 5-6 at the LaHaye Ice Center.

"We're excited," Lowes said. "This was a good first step for us and we've got to be ready for the turnaround. Niagara's rested, they didn't play today. But we're healthy and had a good look today. We've got to be ready, hit the reset and be ready to go tomorrow. It's playoff hockey. We've just got to go execute and go do our thing. We've got a few keys to success and if we stick to them, we'll be happy."

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer