ANGOLA, Ind. – Every skater recorded a point as the Trine University women's hockey team secured the weekend sweep of visiting Hilbert College by the score of 8-0.
The Thunder started off slowly compared to last night, scoring just one goal in the first period. It took until the 14th minute of play before senior Sara Martino scored the goal, set up by passes from classmate Grace Canty and sophomore Leah Connor.
Trine found their groove in the second period with four different members of the team scoring goals to give themselves a 5-0 lead going into the second intermission.
The first goal came from sophomore Payton Hans in the third minute with senior Gabrielle Hicks and junior Grace Hicks adding assists. The goal came during four-on-four play with both teams down due to a pair of roughing penalties.
The next penalty went against the Hawks in the seventh minute of play, giving the Thunder their first power play opportunity of the afternoon. They converted just 30 seconds later. Hans started the play moving the puck at the point and passing it to sophomore Ellie Warhoftig who passed in turn to senior Makena Thompson. Her shot went true giving the team a 3-0 lead.
The next two goals were set up by defensive steals. First sophomore Anabelle Scriver came up with the steal and got the puck to Grace Hicks who skated through the neutral zone before scoring the goal in close.
In the final minutes of play, junior Taryn Raisanen broke up the play and got the puck to sophomore Kailey Mleko who went the length of the ice before scoring her goal form the faceoff circle. The 5-0 lead went into the second intermission.
An early power play for the visitors forced Trine to play a skater down. Rather than just kill off the penalty they ended up going on the offensive. Warhoftig scored a goal in the fourth minute of play with Canty and Gabrielle Hicks adding assists.
Another power play goal, from Hans this time, gave the Thunder a 7-0 lead in the seventh minute. Scriver and Thompson added assists.
Junior Madison Toor became the final skater for the team to earn an assist. She almost made it a goal with a sharp shot on net in the 15th minute of the period, but the Hilbert goalie came up with the save. The rebound stayed in close and Mleko finished it off by pushing it into the back of the net. Scriver also added an assist on the play.
Once again freshman Casey Frank got the win in net and again faced little action. She finished the game with eight saves and the shutout.
The Thunder improve to 8-8 overall following the win. They will return to Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) play for their next competition. They travel to face Aurora University on Friday, January 27. Opening puck drop is scheduled for 8:35 p.m. ET.