SUPERIOR, Wis. – Last weekend the Yellowjacket women's hockey team opened Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) play on home ice, going head-to-head with UW-Eau Claire, a club always ranked among the top teams in NCAA Division III.
 
Despite opening the scoring and hanging tough with the Blugolds, the Yellowjackets took the loss in the conference opener. Friday, the Yellowjackets looked to not only avenge that loss, but climb back above the .500 mark on the year as they hosted Northland College.
 
Although the game didn't unfold the way the Yellowjackets and their coaching staff wanted, in the end they did what they needed to do and earned a 6-0 victory in a matinee at Wessman Arena.
 
Jenna Hoops (Woodbury, Minn./Visitation School) led the charge offensively for the Yellowjackets (4-3-1, 1-1-0 WIAC), scoring two goals, increasing her season total to three. Molly Black (Devils Lake, N.D./Devils Lake) got the start in goal and was forced to make just nine saves, securing her first shutout of the season. Her record for the year now stands at 2-1-1.
 
Game Notes

• After struggling to find offense in the first period, Gaby Andreacchi (Thunder Bay, Ontario/St. Patrick) got the Yellowjackets on the board, scoring her second of the year with just 1:59 to go in the period to make it 1-0. Andreacchi's goal ended up being the eventual game-winner.
• In the second the Yellowjackets blew the game open, scoring four times, with all the goals coming in a less than 10-minute stretch.
• Hoops took a pass from Brynn MacLean (Wilcox, Saskatchewan/Athol Murray College of Notre Dame) in the slot and lifted a backhand past Northland goaltender Zoe Laming at 9:50 to make it 2-0.
• A couple minutes later Darbie Mattson (Atikokan, Ontario/Atikokan) scored on a shot from long range for her first of the year. The goal at 11:38 of the second made it a 3-0 score.
• At 15:42 Cora Coz (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) got a pass in the left circle and scored into a wide-open net to increase the lead. Kailey Swerhun (Thunder Bay, Ontario/St. Ignatius) and Maddie Rewertz (Hibbing, Minn./Hibbing) assisted on the Coz goal, making the lead 4-0.
• In the final minute of the period Taylee Marks (Thunder Bay, Ontario/Hammarskjold) scored her first collegiate goal, connecting on a shot from the right point.
• Hoops closed out the scoring late in the third, scoring the prettiest goal of the afternoon. Hoops got the puck in the slot and roofed a shot, putting a wrister under the bar at 17:04.
• Each team took two penalties for four minutes, and each team was scoreless on two power play chances.

The Yellowjackets are back in action Saturday afternoon when they host UW-Stevens Point at Wessman Arena. The opening faceoff is scheduled for 2 p.m.
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