North Dakota netted two power play goals in the early stages of the second period, and senior Amber Hasbargen got her first shutout of the year as the Sioux downed Minnesota-State 3-0 Saturday.
The win snapped a five-game conference losing streak for UND (6-17-2, 2-15-2 WCHA). The Mavericks (10-12-3, 7-10-2), meanwhile, fell to 1-8-2 in their last 11. They used to be a frequent presence in the USCHO.com Top 10 this season, before injuries took their toll.
After a scoreless first period, UND scored two power-play goals in the first five minutes of the second period to stake a 2-0 lead.
The first goal came on a 5-on-3 advantage when Fighting Sioux sophomore Christey Allen put in her third goal of the year on a rebound of sophomore Cami Wooster’s shot that went off a body in front and out to Allen. She settled down the rebound and put the puck in behind MSU sophomore goalie Brit Kehler for a 1-0 lead.
“There was a lot of commotion in front of the net and that gave her all the time in the world to shoot,” UND coach Shantel Rivard said of Allen’s goal.
“I just saw the open net, basically it was in slow motion,” said Allen.
Just 31 seconds later, still on the power play, freshman Melissa Jaques tipped shot from freshman Alyssa Johnson that ended up in the back of the net for the 2-0 lead. It was Jaques’ eighth goal of the year.
The rest of the period saw several scoring chances, but neither team could convert.
“Hasbargen played amazing today, she was at the top of her game,” Allen said.
“We finally got some bounces, we’ve been working really hard and it went our
way today,” Hasbargen said.
The Fighting Sioux goaltender made 28 saves in the victory.
“She settled down after we got the two goals and played a great game,”
Rivard said of her goalie.
Kehler finished with 27 saves, while seeing her record drop to 4-11-2 this season.
UND sophomore Cara Wooster scored her ninth goal of the season on a tip of freshman Christy Carlson’s shot from the point for the game’s final goal at 6:10 of the third period.
North Dakota finished 2-for-4 on the power play, while the Mavericks finished 0-for-5.
The teams rematch Sunday at 3:07 PM.
