The University of Regina women's hockey team dropped a 2-1 decision at the hands of the MacEwan Griffins in Edmonton on Saturday afternoon.
Rylee Gluska and Chantal Ricker scored for the Griffins, who earn their first Canada West win in program history. Trinity Grove responded for the Cougars, netting the first goal of her Canada West career.
Brianna Sank recorded the win in net for MacEwan, stopping a whopping 37 shots. Katie Crowther was solid between the pipes for Regina, making 21 saves in her season debut.
Gluska got the home team on the board at the 7:03 mark of the second period, banging home a rebound in front of Crowther. Ricker doubled the lead roughly five minutes after, electing to shoot on a two-on-one break and ripping a slap shot from the circle past Crowther.
The Cougar goal was scored with 93 seconds left in the middle frame, as Grove took a great feed from Lauren Focht and went in alone. The first-year Cougar opted for a low shot and slipped it into the back of the net under the pad of Sank. Rachel O'Toole also picked up a helper on the play, her second assist of the weekend.
The Cougars pressed late in the game with a couple of power play opportunities, but weren't able to generate any solid scoring chances. The Cougars finished the night 0/6 on the powerplay, while the Griffins failed to score on their only attempt with the advantage.
Regina (1-1-0) will be back in action next weekend, with a home-and-home set against the Saskatchewan Huskies. The Cougars will play host to the Huskies on Friday night with a 7 p.m. start at The Co-operators Centre, and that will be followed by a rematch in Saskatoon on Saturday night.
