Backed by the cheers of a home-town crowd, the Lady Wolves secured a slot in the 2019 Esso Cup gold medal game last night, with a 5-0 victory against the Stoney Creek Sabres.
Looking to become the first Esso Cup host to claim gold in the history of the tournament, the Lady Wolves face off against two-time national champions the St. Albert Slash at 4 p.m. this afternoon at the Gerry McCrory Countryside Arena.
The Lady Wolves wasted no time claiming the game Friday, securing a 3-0 lead and 18-5 shot advantage within the first 20 minutes of the all-OWHA semifinal.
Hannah Smith got Sudbury on the scoreboard at 8:14, jamming in the rebound from an intense end-to-end rush and heavy-handed shot by Katie Chomiak. Not long after, Chomiak earned her first of the game with a shot from the left faceoff circle.
Sudbury's Taylor Scott finished off the opening period with a bullet to the top right corner, signaling a switch from Sabres goaltender Kayla McDougall to Megan Warrener, who made 27 saves on the games 29 shots thereafter.
The Lady Wolves kept their pace in the second, leading 19-8 in shots on goal, but were only able to manage a power-play goal from Lauren Hancock, thanks to the Sabres re-enforced defence.
Chomiak closed the show in the final frame, fending off a couple of defenders to beat Warrener with a shot from the slot and earn a 5-0 shutout for the Lady Wolves.
You can watch a livestream of the gold medal game here.
