(FREDERICTON, NB) The UNB REDS claimed the 2021-22 Atlantic University Sport regular season women's hockey title Sunday with a 3-0 win over the visiting Saint Mary's Huskies.
With the win, the REDS tie the Huskies with 33 points, but take first place by virtue of their head-to-head record.
"It's unbelievable," said REDS goaltender Kendra Woodland (Kamloops, BC), of the REDS pennant. "Coming in, first year to now, I didn't think we'd be in this spot in this amount of time, so it's a great accomplishment."
Woodland stopped 25 shots for the shutout and was named Subway Player of the Game.
"It was a team game today and everybody put in their efforts and we came out on top."
Sunday's game, between two nationally ranked teams, was a close one.
The REDS opened the scoring at the 7:47 mark of the opening period when Ashley Stratton (Mount Pearl, NL) moved around a Huskies defender and lifted a shot over the shoulder of Huskies' netminder Dagny Hudspeth (Burlington, ON).
The teams then played through a scoreless second period where the goaltenders were the best players on the ice.
UNB created some breathing room at 8:04 of the third period with a second goal.
Melanie Drost(Nepean, ON) crashed the net and found a loose puck that she pushed past Hudspeth.
Paige Grenier (Olds, AB) scored into an empty Huskies net at 19:04.
"It's not the finish we wanted for the regular season, but a new one starts on Wednesday, so we've got to look ahead to that one now," said Huskies' captain Alexa McMillan (Edmonton, AB). "It doesn't really matter who wins at the end of the day, it matters who wins at the end of the playoffs. First place right now doesn't count for much unless you win it at the end."
"We shut down their top players," said REDS head coach Sarah Hilworth. "We kept them to the outside. We stuck with our game plan and kept it really simple and didn't try to over complicate it. When we had our opportunities to put the puck in the net, we did that."
UNB finishes the regular season with a record of 15-3-1-2.
Saint Mary's finishes with a 16-4-1-0 record.
UNB won two of the three head-to-head match-ups with the Huskies.
Both the REDS and Huskies now prepare to host single-game elimination playoff contests on Wednesday night.
UNB will play host to 8th place Mount Allison while Saint Mary's takes on crosstown rival and 7th place Dalhousie.
"We're going to live in this for a little while and be right back on the hard work," said Woodland. "The work starts tomorrow."
RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics
PHOTOS BY: Jeff Crawford/for UNB Athletics