The University of Toronto Varsity Blues women's hockey team won the 2023 OUA McCaw Cup, presented by CCM, after a thrilling come-from-behind 2-1 victory over the Nipissing Lakers on Saturday (Mar. 11) night at Varsity Arena.
The Blues outshot the Lakers 51-24 but waited until the last 3:43 of the game to find the back of the net. Katy McKenna notched a shorthanded goal and Céline Frappier buried the game-winner with 28 seconds remaining, earning championship player of the game honours in the process. The victory secured U of T's second OUA title in the past four years and was won in front of 1,228 fans on home ice.
"We said let's play Blues hockey and they just kept going," said OUA coach of the year Vicky Sunohara. "We had a lot of shots but they didn't give up and they didn't get frustrated. They stuck with it and kept working hard and I'm really proud of them."
WHAT HAPPENED: The Blues came out flying in the first period, dominating the majority of the play. U of T outshout the Lakers 20-7 after 20 minutes of play. The goalies were the stars in the first period with Blues goalie Erica Fryer and Lakers goalie Chantelle Sandquist playing like brick walls in the crease.
The Lakers didn't back down in the second, keeping up with the Blues fast-paced hockey. Nipissing struck first in the game with a powerplay goal from Lana Duriez.
The Blues battled hard in the third and finally got one past Sandquist after Katy McKenna forced a turnover and wrapped the puck around the net for a shorthanded goal with 3:43 remaining in the third period. With under 30 seconds to play, veteran forward Céline Frappier scored off a nice feed from Kaitlyn McKnight to give the Blues the lead.
Fryer finished the game with 23 saves through the 60 minutes.
UP NEXT: The Blues head to Montreal for the 2023 U SPORTS national championship from March 16-19. Seeding and scheduling will be announced Sunday.
