The Carleton women’s hockey team’s defensive woes continued Friday and Sunday as they lost 8-1 against the Concordia Stingers and 3-1 at the hands of the Bishop’s Gaiters.
Carleton’s season started well with wins over Bishop’s and the uOttawa Gee-Gees on their opening weekend. But Carleton’s third and fourth games against strong Université de Montréal and McGill University teams were resounding losses.
The losing continued in the team’s latest action, as they’ve now been outscored 23-5 in their last four games.
Friday: 8-1 loss to Concordia
Friday’s game was a first for rookie goaltender Frédérike Lavoie-Leroux. After four straight starts for Marie-Ève Côté, head coach Pierre Alain gave her a rest.
It proved to be a trial-by-fire for Lavoie-Leroux.
Concordia challenged the new goaltender early putting 17 shots on net in the first period and scoring three. Carleton managed just one shot in the same period.
In a marginally better second frame, the Ravens limited Concordia to 13 shots and made six of their own. Carleton ended the second period down 4-1, before Concordia dominated in the third and doubled their goals for a final score of 8-1.
Carleton’s lone goal came from forward Jenna Morais, who leads the team in goals.
Carleton’s defensive woes, combined with only 13 shots compared to Concordia’s 53, proved to be the team’s downfall.
Sunday: 3-1 loss to Bishop’s
Sunday’s game was Carleton’s first time playing the same team twice this season. They opened their season with a win against Bishop’s at home, but their first trip to Sherbrooke, Que. to face the Gaiters didn’t go as planned.
Carleton started the game outshooting Bishop’s 13-5 in a scoreless first period. For Alain, who has emphasized playing with a shooting mentality all season, this was a strong start.
Six minutes into the second, Carleton centre Sydney Berta took a head contact penalty, giving Bishop’s the power play. A minute in, Bishop’s defender Marie-Camille Théorêt carried the puck past three Carleton players and tucked it into the net.
A minute later, Carleton faced another penalty kill but defender Nicole Hunter managed to grab a loose puck and find some open ice. She skated up the centre and ripped a shot, beating the Bishop’s goaltender to tie the game 1-1 with a short-handed goal.
The third period saw the tide of the game switch in favour of Bishop’s, who heavily outshot the Ravens. Berta took another hitting penalty and Bishop’s converted on the ensuing power play, knocking a loose puck in front of the net past Côté.
After a penalty to forward Justina Beard late in the third, Bishop’s scored one more with a long slapshot from the point.
Carleton will attempt to bounce back this weekend against uOttawa and Montréal.
Featured image by Isaac Phan Nay.
