By: Taylor Massey QBSN Staff Writer
The winter sports season is finally upon us and the women’s ice hockey team started it off right. The Bobcats crushed Cambridge, 7-0, in their preseason exhibition match.
Six different Bobcats scored, including two freshmen, to seal the victory. Erica Uden Johansson (Sundsvall, Sweden) led with two goals while Kelly Babstock (Mississauga, Ontario), Nicole Kosta (Mississauga, Ontario), Breann Frykas (East St. Paul, Manitoba), Brittany Lyons (Canton, Mass.) and freshmen Nicole Brown (Oshawa, Ontario) and Nicole Connery (Newmarket, Ontario) each added a goal to bring the total to seven.
Brown was the first on the board scoring just under two minutes into the first period. The freshman picked up a pass from Frykas and beat Cambridge goalie Julia Vandyk to collect her first goal as a Bobcat.
Connery tallied her first career assist on the goal and later followed with her first collegiate goal. Brown and Connery are among six new freshmen joining the team this year. Each young Bobcat saw ice-time against Cambridge.
Johansson and Connery were not the only ones to have a multiple-point game. Babstock and Kosta each tacked on two assists to go along with their goals.
The starting line of Babstock, Kosta and Johansson has proven to be a powerhouse when it comes to producing goals. Out of the seven goals, their line made four.
However, they might not be the only ones the team has to rely on this season. Frykas teamed up with Brown and Connery for one goal, and the group showed promising chemistry for the rest of the season.
“To have two potentially dynamic lines, it’s tough to contend with,” said Head Coach Rick Seeley.
Starting goalie Victoria Vigilanti (Woodbridge, Ontario) split time between the pipes with Chelsea Laden (Lakesville, Minn.). Each turned away three Cambridge shots for the shutout.
Overall the Bobcats performed a strong attack on Cambridge and controlled the majority of the game.
Quinnipiac outshot Cambridge a whopping 60-6. They also took advantage of two of the four power-play opportunities that Cambridge presented them with. Johansson and Kosta each capitalized on a power-play goal.
“We made a goal at the start of the game that they don’t get as many shots as we get goals and we clearly did that,” said senior captain Regan Boulton (Brandon, Manitoba). “For us, it’s huge.”
The Bobcats will take confidence from this win into next weekend when they open up regular season play. They host Mercyhurst on Friday Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. and again on Saturday Oct. 6 at 1 p.m. at High Point Solutions at the TD Bank Sports Center.
