The Carleton Ravens women’s hockey team started their year strong Sept. 8-9, winning two exhibition games against junior teams from Nepean and Ottawa, both by a 3-2 score.
The Ravens remained adamant that the two exhibition wins were only the beginning, stressing the importance of building on their skills and beating their rivals: the University of Ottawa and McGill University.
“I’m really happy with how the team competed,” Ravens head coach Shelley Coolidge said. “But we have lots to build on. We have to treat each season as a new season and build every day.”
Carleton scored first in their game against Nepean, giving them an early lead. However, the game remained fast paced, with the Ravens constantly fighting to keep their lead.
The Ravens deemed the victory a team success and a tribute to their ability to work together in any situation.
“We’re like a family,” third-year forward Sadie Wegner said. “Our team’s strong, and everyone tries really hard. Even coming to a 5:45 a.m. practice, nobody complains.”
Coolidge called her team “a really good group of people.”
“They’ll sometimes pick at each other, but they’ll also support each other,” she said.
The true test of the Ravens’ skill came Sept. 9, when the Ravens played the Ottawa Senators women’s hockey team.
The Ravens started the game against Ottawa one goal down, but caught up in the dying seconds of the first frame. The game was a fast-paced battle, with the Ravens fighting to catch up to the Senators through the first and second periods. However, four minutes into the third, veteran defenceman Kelsey Vander Veen scored what would become the game-winning goal, with help from fellow third-years Erin Beaver and Victoria Gauge.
Goaltenders Tamber Tisdale and Eri Kiribuchi played phenomenal games, managing to keep the Senators at two goals, even when they outshot the Ravens 36-25.
“We believe in our goaltending,” Wegner said. “If there’s a problem up the ice, we can always count on them.”
The Ravens, who treated the games as part of the tryout process, were thrilled by the result of their efforts, but remained adamant that the two wins were just a warm up.
“There’s a lot of rookies coming up,” Wegner said. “It’s going to be a good, solid team.”
Last year, the Ravens set a school record by defeating the McGill Martlets for the first time in 65 attempts. Going into that game, the Martlets had won their last 116 of 117 regular season games.
When asked about the team’s plans for the season ahead, Wegner was blunt.
“We’re going to keep dominating Concordia,” she said. “And we’re going to keep bringing in the ‘Ws.’”
The Ravens plan to repeat last year’s victory against McGill, and plan to continue defending their impressive record of wins against other schools.
The Raven’s next challenge comes Sept. 14, when they take their hopes on the road to face off against Brock University.
