(LA VERSION FRANÇAISE CI-DESSOUS)

CALGARY -- Melodie Daoust scored three goals as the top-ranked McGill University women's hockey team dominated the No.8-seeded Calgary Dinos in a CIS Final Eight national championship quarter-final at the Markin MacPhail Centre, Thursday.

VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS

The Quebec conference champion Martlets, who earned a bye on Friday, will meet AUS champion St. Francis Xavier in a sudden-death semifinal slated for Saturday at 5 p.m. (Eastern). The X-Women advanced after rallying from a three-goal deficit for a 4-3 win over Guelph.

"It was a great feeling to come out strong and get a win in our first game," said Daoust, the Canadian Olympic gold medallist from Valleyfield, Que., who has now scored back-to-back hat-tricks in post-season play since being moved from right-wing to centre. "It helps settle down the nerves and now we can just focus on playing our game. We did a pretty good job on the power-play today and created lots of scoring opportunities. I credit my teammates for my hat-trick, they made some nice passes and I just had to take the shot. I like being moved over to centre, it forces me to keep my legs moving and I can get lower in our zone and help out our 'D' in the corner."

Daoust, a physical education junior who missed the team's first 31 games since undergoing surgery last August to repair a lower-body injury, has made up for lost time with nine goals and 21 points in nine contests since returning to the lineup.

"Mélodie is shooting the puck more and that's really the key to her scoring in the last couple of games," said McGill head coach Peter Smith, who improved to 29-11 lifetime at the CIS tournament. "When she came back (from her injury), she collected a lot of assists but was passing up opportunities to shoot the puck. Now she's managing the puck a whole lot better. She's passing when she should and shooting when she should. She's got a heckuva shot and needs to use it."

The host Dinos had a difficult time adjusting to McGill's speed and the visitors took full advantage of a plethora of Calgary penalties, going 3-for-8 on the power-play, including the game's first three markers, beginning with All-Canadian rearguard Kelsie Moffatt, a senior from Pickering, Ont., who struck paydirt at 5:11, followed two from Daoust at 11:41 and 13:52.

The 3-0 lead prompted a goaltending change for Calgary as freshmnan starter Carissa Fischer, who saved five of eight shots, was pulled and took the loss. She was replaced by sophomore Hayley Dowling, who also conceded three goals but faced 17 shots.

"Obviously those first three goals on the power play were huge," said Smith. "We've worked on it all year and it has improved over the course of the season. That said, there were times in our defensive zone that we weren't as sharp as we needed to be, so we'll need to shore that up a little bit."

The Dinos, who only had two shots on goal in the first period, outscored McGill 2-1 in the second frame with goals from CIS player of the year Iya Gavrilova and Chelsea Peterson, sandwiched around an unassisted marker by McGill's Leslie Oles, a fifth-year senior from Beaconsfield, Que., who later added an assist and was named as McGill's player of the game.

It was the 144th career goal in 197 games overall by Oles, four shy of the school's all-time record held by Ann-Sophie Bettez, who graduated in 2012.

McGill poured in ffour unanswered goals in the final frame, sparked by sniper Gabrielle Davidson, a high-scoring sophomore from Pointe Claire, Que., who put the game out of reach at 7:07 to make it 5-1. The remainder of the period was scoreless until the final moments when senior blueliner Elizabeth Hillier of Edmonton, notched an empty-netter at 17:04 to make it 6-2. It was only her fourth career goal in 133 games. Teammate Joanne Cagianos added another at 18:33, her first of the season in 39 games overall and fifth career marker.

Trailing 7-2 in the last minute, for some reason Calgary elected to pull their goalie again and that led to Daoust completing her hat-trick into the empty net.

McGill, which snuffed out all three shorthanded situations, finished with a 27-20 edge in shots as Taylor Hough, ajunior from Toronto made her second straight start between the pipes and registered 18 saves for the victory.

Erika Mitschke was named player of the game for the Dinos.

Dinos head coach Danielle Goyette , a former Canadian Olympian, pointed to the penalty parade in the first period as her team's undoing.

"We can't blame anyone besides ourselves," said Goyette. "We put ourselves in that position in the first period and we paid for it. We created turnovers applying pressure but it's hard to get momentum going when you're only playing five-on-five for a few minutes at a time."

Calgary will take on the fifth-seeded Guelph Gryphons, who fell to the X-Women in the earlier quarterfinal, on the consolation side of the draw Friday morning at 1 p.m. (Eastern) .

MARTLET MURMURS: This was the fourth lifetime meeting between Calgary and McGill and their first since the 2012 Nationals, when Calgary blanked McGill 1-0 in the preliminary round en route to claiming their first national title. It was the only goal allowed by McGill in that three-game tournament but the Martlets had to play for bronze, which they won. It was also McGill's last loss at the CIS tourney and they have now won six in a row... The other confrontations were: a 3-2 Calgary victory on Jan. 7, 2000 at Concordia's Theresa Humes tourney and a 6-0 McGill win on Feb. 23, 2001 at the then-named  "CIAU" national championship in Calgary, where Canadian Olympic goaltender Kim St-Pierre turned aside 16 shots for the shutout.

SEE COMPLETE BOXSCORE

Championship website: http://english.cis-sic.ca/championships/wice/index


SCORING SUMMARY
Calgary 2 at McGill 8
(Thursday, March 12, 2015 - Markin MacPhail Centre - Canada Olympic Park)

GOALS BY PERIOD:
Calgary 0-2-0 -- 2
McGill 3-1-4 -- 8

1st Period-
1, McGill, Kelsie Moffatt 1 (Daigneault, McDonell), 5:11 (PP).
2, McGill, Melodie Daoust 1 (Davidson, Fouracres), 11:41 (PP).
3, McGill, Melodie Daoust 2 (Davidson), 13:52 (PP).

Penalties-Grenon Cgy (interference), 3:53; Gavrilova Cgy (bodychecking), 5:01; served by Vafina Cgy (too many men), 10:20; Peterson Cgy (hooking), 13:05; Davies Mcg (hooking), 18:49.

2nd Period-
4, Calgary, Iya Gavrilova 1 (Parent), 2:32.
5, McGill, Leslie Oles 1 (unassisted), 10:15.
6, Calgary, Chelsea Peterson 1 (Smith, Clark), 13:46.

Penalties-Lang Cgy (holding), 3:54; Lang Cgy (bodychecking), 6:41; Cagianos Mcg (tripping), 11:28; Grenon Cgy (tripping), 16:14.

3rd Period-
7, McGill, Gabrielle Davidson 1 (Oles, MacKenzie), 7:07.
8, McGill, Elizabeth Hillier 1 (unassisted), 17:04 (EN).
9, McGill, Joanne Cagianos 1 (unassisted) 18:33.
10, McGill, Melodie Daoust 3 (Serpico, Daigneault), 19:05 (EN).

Penalties-Astle Cgy (roughing), 9:43; Cagianos Mcg (tripping), 12:39.

Shots on Goal-
Calgary 2-12-6 -- 20.
McGill 10-10-7-27.

Power Play Opportunities-
Calgary 0 / 3;
McGill 3 / 8.

Goalies-
Calgary,
Carissa Fischer (Start; 0-1, 8 shots-5 saves; 13:52);
Hayley Dowling (ND, 17 shots-14 saves; 42:55).
EMPTY-NET: (2 shots; 2 goals; 2:08)

McGill,
Taylor Hough (W, 1-0; 20 shots-18 saves; 60:00).

Attendance: 771
Start: 7:02 PM
End: 9:02 PM
Length: 2:00

Referee-Meghan Mallette.
Linesmen-Shannon Klein, Cydnie Brice.

PLAYERS OF THE GAME:
1. MCG - 4 Leslie Oles
2. CGY - 10 Erika Mitschke

SOURCE:
Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
Athletics & Recreation
McGill University
514-398-7012 (Tel.)
514-398-1956 (Fax)
m.athletics.mcgill.ca (mobile website)
www.mcgill athletics.ca
earl.zukerman@mcgill.ca
@EarlZukerman (twitter)

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QUART DE FINALE #2 Championnat de hockey féminin de SIC: Les Martlets écartent les Dinos et atteignent la demi-finale

CALGARY (SIC) – Trois buts marqués en avantage numérique en première période ont permis aux favorites des Martlets de McGill de s'imposer rapidement et ainsi vaincre l'équipe hôtesse des Dinos de Calgary 8-2 jeudi soir lors du premier jour de compétition du championnat de hockey féminin de SIC.

Ces trois buts sur le jeu de puissance au premier tiers combiné à deux dans des filets déserts en troisième période ont contribué au gain des Martlets qui rejoignent ainsi les X-Women de St. Fx en demi-finale nationale, un match qui aura lieu samedi à 15h HDM et qui sera diffusé sur les ondes de Sportsnet ONE.

Calgary poursuit sa route en consolation et a rendez-vous avec les Gryphons de Guelph vendredi matin.

L'olympienne canadienne Mélodie Daoust a tiré son épingle du jeu avec un tour du chapeau, touchant la cible à deux reprises en avantage numérique en première période et complétant sa soirée de travail dans un filet désert en fin de rencontre.

« C'est un bon sentiment de débuter le tournoi en force et de remporter la victoire, a dit Daoust. Ça a permis de chasser la nervosité rapidement et nous pouvons maintenant nous concentrer sur notre jeu en vue de la demi-finale. Nous avons bien travaillé en avantage numérique aujourd'hui et avons créé plusieurs opportunités de marquer. »

Dans le troisième duel de l'histoire entre les deux formations, McGill a vengé son revers de 2012 face aux Dinos, année où ces dernières ont mis la main sur leur premier titre de SIC.

Détentrices du titre de championnes canadiennes, les Martlets ont démarré le match sur les chapeaux de roue en utilisant leur jeu de puissance pour prendre les devants 3-0. Kelsie Moffatt a ouvert la marque avec un tir du poignet de la ligne bleue qui a battu la gardienne Carissa Fischer sous le bloqueur. Daoust a ensuite doublé l'avance des siennes six minutes plus tard avant de récidiver grâce à une belle passe de Gabrielle Davidson de derrière le filet.

Calgary a repris du poil de la bête au deuxième tiers lorsque Janelle Parent a récupéré la rondelle sur un repli défensif avant de se diriger en zone adverse dans une descente à deux contre un. Parent a remis le disque à Iya Gavrilova, joueuse de l'année de SIC, qui a déjoué Taylor Hough.

Après un quatrième but des Martlets grâce à Leslie Oles, Calgary a répliqué lorsque Chelsea Peterson est revenue devant le filet pour battre Hough entre les jambières, mais ce ne fut pas suffisant pour briser le rythme de leurs rivales. Calgary a retiré sa gardienne à plusieurs reprises en troisième période afin de tenter de réduire l'écart mais n'a pu marquer.

« Ces trois buts en avantage numérique ont fait une grosse différence, a dit Peter Smith, entraîneur-chef de McGill qui porte ainsi sa fiche au championnat de SIC à 31-12. C'est le résultat du travail effectué toute la saison. Cela dit, nous avons encore du travail à faire, nous devons notamment ajuster certains éléments de notre jeu en zone défensive. »

Hough a bloqué 18 tirs devant la cage des Martlets tandis que Fischer en a arrêté cinq avant de céder sa cage à Hayley Dowling qui a effecuté 11 arrêts. Erika Mitschke, pour Calgary, et Oles ont reçu les titres de joueuses du match.

« Nous n'avons que nous-mêmes à blâmer, a dit l'entraîneure-chef des Dinos, Danielle Goyette. On s'est placée dans une situation difficile et ça nous a coûté cher. Ce n'est pas évident de revenir de l'arrière dans un tel contexte. »

SOMMAIRE

PREMIÈRE PÉRIODE

1. McG Kelsie Moffatt (1) (Michelle Daigneault, Jordan McDonnell), 5:11 AN
2. McG Mélodie Daoust (1) (Gabrielle Davidson, Brittney Fouracres), 11:41 AN
3. McG Mélodie Daoust (2) (Gabrielle Davidson), 13:52 AN

PUNITIONS:

Grenon (CGY) obstruction, 3:53;
Gavrilova (CGY) mise en échec, 5:01;
Punition de banc (CGY) trop de joueuses sur la glace, 10:20 (purgée par Vafina);
Peterson (CGY) accroché, 13:05;
Davies (McG) accroché, 18:49.

DEUXIÈME PÉRIODE

4. CGY Iya Gavrilova (1) (Janelle Parent), 2:32
5. McG Leslie Oles (1) (Jordan McDonnell, Gabrielle Davidson), 10:15
6. CGY Chelsea Peterson (1) (Jenna Smith), 13:46

PUNITIONS:

Lang (CGY) retenu, 3:54;
Lang (CGY) mise en échec, 6:41;
Cagianos (McG) trébuché, 11:28;
Grenon (CGY) trébuché, 16:14

TROISIÈME PÉRIODE

7. McG Gabrielle Davidson (1) (Leslie Oles, Alison MacKenzie), 7:07
8. McG Elizabeth Hillier (1) (sans aide) 17:04 FD
9. McG Joanne Cagianos (1) (sans aide), 18:33
10. McG Mélodie Daoust (3) (Alexandria Serpico, Michelle Daigneault), 19:05 FD

PUNITIONS:

Astle (CGY) rudesse, 9:43;
Cagianos (McG) trébuché, 12:39.

BUTS (par période)
McG 3-1-4:8
CGY 0-2-0:2

TIRS AU BUT (par période)
McG 10-10-7: 27
CGY 2-12-6: 20

AVANTAGE NUMÉRIQUE:
McG 3-8
CGY 0-3

GARDIENNES
McG – Taylor Hough (V, 1-0, 20 tirs, 18 arrêts, 2 BC, 60:00)
CGY – Carissa Fischer (D, 0-1, 8 tirs, 5 arrêts, 3 BC, 13:52); Hayley Dowling (17 tirs, 14 arrêts, 3 BC, 42:55)

JOUEUSES DU MATCH:
McG: Leslie Oles
CGY: Erika Mitschke

ARBITRE: Meaghan Mallette

JUGES DE LIGNE: Shannon Klein, Cydnie Brice

FOULE: 771

DÉBUT: 19h02
FIN: 21h02
DURÉE: 2:00

HORAIRE & RÉSULTATS DU CHAMPIONNAT (heure des ROCHEUSES)

Jeudi 12 mars
15:00 Quart de finale 1: StFX 4, Guelph 3
19:00 Quart de finale 2: McGill 8, Calgary 2

Vendredi 13 mars
11:00 Consolation 1: No. 8 Calgary vs. No. 5 Guelph (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
15:00 Quart de finale 3: No. 7 Moncton vs No. 2 Western (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
19:00 Quart de finale 4: No. 6 Montréal vs No. 3 Alberta (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 

Samedi 14 mars
11:00 Consolation 2: Perdantes QF 3 vs Perdantes QF 4 (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
15:00 Demi-finale 1: No. 4 St.Fx vs. No. 1 McGill (Sportsnet ONE / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 
18:30 Demi-finale 2: Gagnantes QF 3 vs Gagnantes QF 4 (Sportsnet ONE / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 

Dimanche 15 mars
11:00 Match de 5e place (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
14:30 Bronze (www.CIS-SIC.tv) 
18:00 Finale (Sportsnet 360 & ONE / www.CIS-SIC.tv) * 

* Des frais seront exigés pour visionner sur le web des demi-finales & finale.