GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - McKendree University women's hockey (8-4-1, 2-4-1 WMCH) fired-off early and often to begin the second half of its season with 18 total goals over a pair of games at Grand Valley State and Davenport on Thursday and Friday. The Bearcats defeated the Lakers on Thursday evening, 9-2, to open the 2023 slate and then earned a 9-0 shutout win on Friday afternoon against the Panthers. The two wins pushed the Bearcats to five-straight wins, dating back to the mid-November when McKendree beat Concordia-Ann Arbor twice and Lindenwood. McKendree will return home for its next games on January 20-22, hosting No.1 Liberty and Rhode Island at the McKendree Metro Rec Plex.
GAME 1 | @ GRAND VALLEY STATE
The new year kicked off quickly for the Bearcats, who entered with a three-game winning streak, with three goals in the first period. The Bearcats were led early as freshman forward
Jayna Barnden scored on a power play in the seventh minute off assists by senior center
Camryn Scully and sophomore defender
Aria Groot. SHe tallied her second goal of the day in the 14th minute as sophomore defender
Codi Bacon dished out a pass which Barnden fired in for the 2-0 lead. Groot then capped-off the period with her own goal in the 17th off dish-outs by Barnden and sophomore defender
Ashley Hayley.
Grand Valley struck back less than a minute into the second period, cutting the lead to 3-1.
McKendree added another pair of scores in the second following the Lakers' score with sophomore forward
Larisa Gorgevska-Sharpe firing her fourth of the year. Gorgevska-Sharpe's came off an assist by freshman defender
Lilia Brown. Freshman defender
Brooke Lannon then tallied her first collegiate goal in the 18th minute from Gorgevska-Sharpe and Bacon, pushing the lead to 5-1.
The Lakers then put up their second goal of the game to close out the second period in the 19th minute. The Bearcats held a 5-2 lead entering the third.
The third and final period featured a quartet of goal scorers with Lannon firing her second of the game via senior wing
Quinn Atchison and Bacon. Barnden then put up her first career hat-trick via freshman forward
Kerstyn Barron and junior forward
Jaynee Smothers. Sophomore forward
Kiley Hasenfratz fired her first of 2023 off assists by Barnden and senior forward
Juliana Davis.The Bearcats final score came from sophomore forward
Isobelle Hobbs in 16th minute.
Junior goaltender
Brianna Burke held net in full time for McKendree with 20 saves.
Scoring Recap
P1 | #15
Jayna Barnden (5) via #22
Camryn Scully (6), #13
Aria Groot (8)
P1 | #15
Jayna Barnden (6) via #17
Codi Bacon (2)
P1 | #13
Aria Groot (2) via #15
Jayna Barnden (4), via #24
Ashley Hayley (3)
P2 | #7
Larisa Gorgevska-Sharpe (4) via #73
Lilia Brown (2)
P2 | #4
Brooke Lannon (1) via #7
Larisa Gorgevska-Sharpe (5), #17
Codi Bacon (3)
P3 | #4
Brooke Lannon (2) via #14
Quinn Atchison (4), #17
Codi Bacon (4)
P3 | #15
Jayna Barnden (7) via #42 Kerstyn Berron (3), #41
Jaynee Smothers (4)
P3 | #96
Kiley Hasenfratz (4) via #15
Jayna Barnden (5), #23
Juliana Davis (1)
P3 | #2
Isobelle Hobbs (3), unassisted
GAME 2 | @ DAVENPORT
McKendree looked for its fifth-straight win in its final game of the week on Friday afternoon as they took on Davenport. The Bearcats offense did not skip a beat in the outing as they fired nine goals by the final horn. Freshman goaltender
Paige Hunt had her first start and shutout of her collegiate career, tallying seven saves on the day.
Davis began things with a 12th minute score off an assist by senior defender
Madison Puffalt. Hasenfratz followed it up with her fifth score of the year off a dish-out by Groot in the 15th minute. Scully added the Bearcats' third score of the game and her sixth of the year to close the period in the 19th minute via Davis.
The second period opened with Barnden scoring her eighth goal this season and fourth of the weekend in the ninth minute. Barnden was assisted by Smothers and Puffalt on the goal. Smothers joined with her own score in the 17th minute of the second period off an assist by Groot. It marked Smothers' third goal and Groot's 10th assist of the season. Atchison scored in the 20th minute of the second with a dish-out by Lannon. The Bearcats led 6-0 at the conclusion of the second period.
Atchison led the way to start the third period with a 10th minute goal with another Davis assist. Davis then fired her own score to put McKendree up 8-0 over the Panthers with Scully and Barnden assisting on the goal. Barnden wrapped up the weekend with her ninth goal of the year and fifth of the weekend with Barron sending the pass for the score.
Scoring Recap
P1 | #23
Juliana Davis (4) via #9
Madison Puffalt (1)
P1 | #96
Kiley Hasenfratz (5) via #13
Aria Groot (9)
P1 | #22
Camryn Scully (6) via #23
Juliana Davis (2)
P2 | #15
Jayna Barnden (8) via #41
Jaynee Smothers (5), #9
Madison Puffalt (2)
P2 | #41
Jaynee Smothers (3) via #13
Aria Groot (10)
P2 | #14
Quinn Atchison (3) via #4
Brooke Lannon (6)
P3 | #14
Quinn Atchison (4) via #23
Juliana Davis (3)
P3 | #23
Juliana Davis (5) via #22
Camryn Scully (7), #15
Jayna Barnden (6)
P3 | #15
Jayna Barnden (9) via #42
Kerstyn Barron (4)
UP NEXT
McKendree women's hockey will host three games on January 20-22 at the McKendree Metro Rec Plex as No.1 Liberty and Rhode Island visit the Bearcats' home ice.
