(HALIFAX, NS) The UNB REDS will have to play a fourth game in their best of five Atlantic University Sport semi-final series after a 2-1 loss, in double overtime, to the Saint Mary's Huskies on Sunday night, in Halifax.
Huskies' forward Jillian Duggan (Halifax, NS) scored the game-winner at 14:54 of the second OT period.
"That sucked, but we have a lot of fight in us and that showed," said REDS' captain Payton Hargreaves (Whitby, ON). "That was one of the grittiest games we've played all season. We fought for every single play. We fought for every single shot. I think we can take a little bit of momentum out of this and take it to tomorrow."
Despite the loss, UNB leads the series two-games-to-one.
"I'm extremely proud of our group," said REDS' interim head coach Kyle MacDonald. "They faced a ton of adversity and a lot of it wasn't brought on by themselves. They responded admirably when they did have to face it and we're just excited for tomorrow. We're looking forward to the opportunity at hand tomorrow."
In a high-paced first period, the Huskies could do little to generate offence. They registered just one shot on the UNB net in the first ten minutes. The REDS countered with five, but none that presented a significant scoring opportunity.
The teams went to the first intermission with 0-0 on the scoreboard.
The REDS scored 46 seconds into the second period.
Lily George (Nipissing First Nation) fed Mackenzie Keenan (Midhurst, ON) in the slot and she wired a shot past Huskies' goalie Ridleigh Hansen (Red Deer, AB) to put the visitors up 1-0.
About four minutes later, Saint Mary's countered when Keyara Nelson (Belleville, ON) tipped an Allie Barter (Hammonds Plains, NS) point shot past Kendra Woodland (Kamloops, BC) in the REDS net.
As time wound down in the second, the Huskies caught the REDS on a line change and broke into the REDS' zone on a 3-on-1, but Woodland stood her ground and deflected a hard shot away from the net.
The first half of the third period saw defence take over. Neither team gave much ground and neither was able to create much in the way of scoring chances.
With about nine minutes to play, the Huskies were able to get a puck to the net, but Woodland, once again, stood her ground.
When regulation time expired, the teams were still tied 1-1.
The first overtime saw UNB forced to kill off a penalty, but neither team scored.
UNB rang a shot off the post of the SMU net in the first minute of the second overtime and the teams settled into a back-and-forth of sorts.
Woodland was tested several times, stopping a shot from point blank range at the 8:14 mark and taking a shot off her mask at about 12:50.
On the winning goal, Duggan snuck behind the REDS defence and redirected a pass across the front of the net. Woodland had no chance to get to it.
"Our goaltending was really, really good," said MacDonald. "When we got opportunities, we were ready to jump on them. I think it's just a matter of, next game, being a little more intense and being ready and hungry for those loose pucks, because there's plenty of them."
Woodland made 38 saves on 40 Huskies shots while Hansen stopped 30 of 31 UNB shots.
"We have to come together as a team," said Hargreaves. "We re-group and know we have a game owed to them tomorrow. It's just a matter of who's going to want it more and it's got to be us."
Game four will go Monday evening, at SMU's Dauphinee Centre, in Halifax. Game time is 7:00pm.
RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics
PHOTOS BY: Eduardo Ibarra/for SMU Athletics