Four days separate the Nipissing Lakers women’s hockey team and potential history. The Lakers won a 3-2 overtime thriller over the Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday night to head to the OUA championship final for the first time in program history. At 12:12 of the first overtime period, forward Brooklyn Irwin knocked home a rebound in the crease to send the Lakers to the final. One of the standout forwards for the Lakers all playoffs long, Jade Gauthier had the team’s first goal. Bronwyn Bolduc scored the other goal for the Lakers in regulation.
Now, the number one and two seeds from the regular season will do battle on Saturday at 2:00pm. The game will be played in Guelph, after the Gryphons disposed of the Waterloo Warriors 4-1 on Sunday in Game 3 of their second round series. The Lakers and Gryphons played twice in the regular season, the Lakers won 1-0 in North Bay back on Friday, November 18th. Guelph won 4-1 in the second meeting between the two teams in the regular season finale on Sunday, February 19th.
Both teams have played five games so far in the postseason. The Lakers beat Laurentian University 3-2 in the opening round, and knocked off Toronto in two games in the second round. Guelph made quick work of the Windsor Lancers in the first round, beating them in two games before taking care of business against the Waterloo Warriors in three games in the second round. Saturday’s game gets underway in Guelph at 2:00pm. You can catch it live on OUA TV: portal.stretchinternet.com/oua/
