(FREDERICTON, NB) The UNB Varsity Reds women’s hockey team will hit the road to prepare for their return to Atlantic University Sport.

The Varsity Reds have scheduled six pre-season games, all of them on the road.

“We want that very first home game to be special,” says Varsity Reds head coach Sarah Hilworth. “So, we’re saving our home debut for our regular season opener. That will be our first home game.”

UNB opens training camp on August 31^st, at the Aitken Centre.

The women will play their first exhibition game a little over two weeks later, on September 15^th, against CEGEP de Rimouski. The game will be played at Rimouski’s Colisee Financiere Sun Life. Face off is scheduled for 5:00pm Atlantic.

The Reds and Pionnieres will face each other again the next morning, at 11:00am Atlantic.

“This will be our first opportunity to see how the girls have come together,” says Hilworth. “Winning that first game would be nice, but what we really want to see is that they’re embracing our concepts and plans, and working on becoming a team.”

The Varsity Reds will then visit AUS rivals Moncton and UPEI, on September 21^st and 22^nd, respectively, before heading south of the border for their final tune-up games.

UNB will visit the University of Maine Black Bears on September 28^th and the University of New Hampshire Wildcats on September 29^th.

“I’m excited for the next step,” says Hilworth. “The exhibition schedule will give our coaching staff the chance to evaluate and advance what we’re doing so that we can be as prepared as possible for the regular season.”

UNB makes its official return to AUS and U SPORTS play on Saturday, October 13^th, when the Reds play host to the Mount Allison Mounties in their 2018-19 regular season opener. Game time in 7:00pm.

The last time a women’s hockey team competed at the varsity level for UNB was February 22^nd, 2008, an 8-1 loss to Moncton in the AUS quarter-finals.