The Gaiters women's hockey team finally got the chance to play in front of their home crowd on Saturday evening and they did not disappoint. Bishop's grabbed the lead early and never looked back as they went on to win their home opener 6-1 over Northeastern University in superb style.

Although they were heavily outplayed, Northeastern held their ground through two periods but simply could not keep up with the Gaiters in the third when they scored three goals to pull away.

The Gaiters came out flying, scoring two goals in the first five minutes to set the tone at Jane & Eric Molson Arena. Stephanie Cunningham (Markham, Ont./Bill Crothers)-Reimann got things started for BU, shortly before Hayley Robitaille (Ottawa, Ont./Sir Wilfred Laurier S.S.) found the back of the net to double the Gaiters advantage. Rachel Tassinari got one back for the Huskies midway through the opening frame but that was all the offence they got. Later, Meghan McGovern (Waterdown, Ont./St. Mary's C.H.S.) fired a slap shot from the point that found its way through traffic and past Erika Dudek to restore the Gaiters two goal lead before the intermission.

The second period was scoreless, however there was no shortage of action as the physical play picked up to the excitement of the crowd.
The final stanza belonged entirely to Bishop's as they buried three more goals to shut the door on Northeastern's hopes of a comeback. Jessica Belanger (Sherbrooke/) had a knack for the net tonight and she finally capitalized on an opportunity 5:16 into the third, upping the Gaiters lead to three. Lauren MacCulloch (Toronto, Ont./) brought the Gaiters faithful to their feet for a fifth time when she snuck one low-side past Dudek. Hayley Robitaille (Ottawa, Ont./Sir Wilfred Laurier S.S.) tallied her second of the night, a perfectly placed wrist shot over the top of the Northeastern net minder's shoulder directly into the top corner.

Coach's Corner
"It was great to play in front of friends, family and friends," said coach Desmarais. "In the first period I really liked the way we showed up. We were a little bit nervous, but we made the right plays and did the things we needed to do. The second period was a little bit harder for us because we had the lead 3-1 and tried to make individual plays. In the third, we got back to the basics. It was fun for the girls and they were really excited for this game, so it was great."

Next up
The Gaiters host St. Lawrence College next weekend for a pair of exhibition games in their final tune up before Nationals which run from March 26 – 31 in Frisco, Tx.

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