CANADA FINISHES PRE-WORLDS COMPETITION WITH SECOND WIN OVER CARLETON

MORGAN BELL

LONDON, Ont. – A trio of players notched goals for the second game in a row as Canada’s National Women’s Under-18 Team cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Carleton University Ravens on Friday afternoon in the second of two pre-world championship games.

Canada blanked the Canadian Interuniversity Sport side 4-0 in the opener of the two-game exhibition series on Thursday.

Elizabeth Giguère (Quebec City, Que./Limoilou, CEGEP), Sarah Quaranta (Niagara Falls, Ont./Stoney Creek, PWHL) Jaycee Gebhard  (Plenty, Sask./Notre Dame, JWHL), Sarah-Eve Coutu-Godbout (Rouyn-Noranda, Que./Limoilou, CEGEP) Stephanie Sucharda (Mississauga, Ont./Mississauga, PWHL) had the other Canadian goals.

Coutu-Godbout was the only Canadian to record multiple points, finishing with a goal and an assist.

Marlène Boissonnault (Dundee, N.B./Rothesay Netherwood School, CAHS) went the distance in the Canadian net, needing to make just five saves for the victory.

Giguère put Canada on the board first, beating Ravens’ netminder Tamber Tisdale with a quick wrist shot from the top of the crease at 16:12 of the opening period.

Quaranta added to the Canadian lead in the second, banging home the rebound of a Madison Field (Oakville, Ont./Oakville, PWHL) shot just 1:49 into the middle frame.

Canada was absolutely dominant in the second period, holding the Ravens without a shot on goal, including on three Carleton power plays, while directing 22 at Tisdale.

Despite a 39-2 advantage in shots on goal through 40 minutes, the Canadians held just a two-goal lead, and saw it cut in half 69 seconds into the third period thanks to Ravens forward Sidney Weiss.

But Gebhard restored the two-goal advantage at 2:13, Coutu-Godbout made it 4-1 at 3:25, and Sucharda added another goal just 10 seconds after that to put the game out of reach early in the final period.

Canada finished with a 61-6 shots on goal advantage.

With pre-competition camp done, Canada will travel to Buffalo, N.Y., for the 2015 IIHF Ice Hockey U18 Women’s World Championship, opening up against the host Americans on Monday (7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT).