By Hayden Godfrey
Despite an energetic start, the Ryerson Rams women’s hockey team was unable to mount a comeback, falling to the Queen’s Gaels 4-3 on Jan. 11 at the Mattamy Athletic Centre.
Having lost their third consecutive game, Ryerson’s record falls to 9-6 on the season.
Though the Rams dominated throughout most of the first frame—they outshot the Gaels 9-0 through the first 11 minutes of play—Queen’s took the lead on an odd goal with 40 seconds to play in the first.
After a Queen’s dump-in, Ryerson goalie Fanny Vigeant emerged from her crease to try and clear the puck. The bouncing puck fell in favour of the Gaels, as Addi Halladay made no mistake and wired a snapshot into the open net.
Early in the second, the Gaels added to their lead when forward Hailey Wilson snuck one past Vigeant in yet another peculiar play. Nevertheless, the Rams quickly found themselves on the wrong end of a 2-0 hockey game after allowing two on the penalty kill.
The Rams, clearly unsettled by the surprisingly lopsided score, answered back with authority. They got on the board minutes later when their captain, the always sure-handed Kryshanda Green, roofed a backhanded shot while streaking rapidly through the high-slot.
“We’re never, ever gonna quit,” Green said after the game. “We’ve gotta keep an open mind out there and hope that our hard work pays off.”
Energized and back in it, Ryerson’s Lauren Nicholson evened it up at two with a stunning top shelf wrist shot that narrowly missed the left shoulder of Queen’s goaltender Stephanie Pascal. Just like that, the Rams were back in it.
After losing forward Camryn Tait to a lower-body injury in the middle of the third period, the Rams fell behind for good when Gaels forward Quinn Johnston tucked one under Vigeant’s left pad to give Queen’s a 3-2 lead.
Gaels forward Bridgid Goris added an empty netter to extend the lead to 4-2. Though the Rams did come a little closer, closing the gap to a single goal after Green potted a loose puck in front of the net with five seconds remaining, they ultimately fell 4-3.
“We just have to keep working hard,” said a calm and composed Green after the game. “We just gotta find a way to win.”
UP NEXT: The Rams host the UOIT Ridgebacks on Saturday, Jan. 12th at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. Puck drop is scheduled at 4:15 p.m.
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