Toronto, ON – It can be easy to win once; it’s much harder to win twice.
On Friday night, the TMU Bold were looking to build off their dominant 5-0 win against the Western Mustangs on Nov. 5. Still, they faced perhaps the tallest task in doing so as the Waterloo Warriors arrived at Mattamy Athletic Centre undefeated on the season.
The first matchup between these sides barely a week prior resulted in a 2-1 overtime win for the Warriors, and Friday’s game marked the last time these two teams would play during the OUA regular season.
Unfortunately for the Bold, despite a strong performance on the night in goal, the offence disappeared again, and Waterloo left Mattamy Athletic Centre with the 1-0 win.
The momentum from their big win over the Mustangs was still clearly there for TMU in the first period. The Bold dominated, firing 12 shots on but could not put a shot past Kara Mark.
On the other side, when the Warriors got the puck in the offensive zone, the stingy defence kept Waterloo to just four shots that Laura Griffin turned aside.
One of the many questions for the Bold entering Friday’s contest was how the team would come out against the Warriors, considering they were missing two top scorers in Olivia Giardetti & Erika Crouse.
The TMU defence stood out early, though, and ultimately held the OUA’s two leading scorers, Tatum James and Leaf Herrfort, off the scoresheet.
“We just played them last week, James scored the first one, and Herforrt scored the second one, and James assisted it, so we absolutely know they drove that offence for that team,” Bold coach Lisa Haley said.
“We knew how important it was to make sure we knew when they were on the ice.”
The second period was much the same as the first, with the score remaining locked at 0-0. Outshooting TMU 13-11 in the period, though, the Warriors started to pick things up, including a 2-on-1 with just under five seconds to go in the period they could not finish.
Ultimately sixty minutes wasn’t enough on the night, and fifty seconds into overtime, Madison Pritchard scored the game-winner for the Waterloo Warriors as they swept the season series.
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Despite the loss, it was another stellar performance by Lauren Griffin. So far, they have yet to give up more than two goals through three games.
“I think Griff has come right out of the blue for us. We’re really excited for them. They’ve come in here, and we were really unsure of what the depth chart was going to look like,” Lisa Haley said.
“Some of their best moments have been in situations where it’s a tied game, and we’re fighting for our lives; that penalty shot save tonight was just outstanding.”
Lisa Haley also provided an update on Olivia Giardetti.
“She is doing as well as can be expected. That was a really nasty hit, and I don’t expect her back for the next couple of weeks. I’m happy to see her back in the rink, at least.”
“Her presence after seeing her leave the ice definitely gives a boost of morale for our team as well to see that she’s going to be okay.”
Ultimately, the Bold picked up two of a possible four points against the best team in the conference this season. Is one goal in two games perfect? No, but it’s a start, and if Laura Griffin can hold her own in net, it might be enough until they figure the rest out.