Hailey Dirk, Cougars Athletics

CALGARY - Friday night, at the Flames Community Arenas, the Mount Royal Cougars and Saskatchewan Huskies both sought to end their respective losing streaks. Following an early Huskies lead the Cougars evened the score, but the Huskies ultimately took it by a final score of 4-3.

Cougars' head coach Scott Rivett said that "Unfortunately, today we made some mental mistakes. The other team was able to capitalize on our bad decisions. Tomorrow we'll have to play a tighter game."

The Huskies came into the game guns-a-blazing, as they fired their first shot on Cougars net within seconds of the puck-drop. Continuing their attack, the Huskies eventually scored with a slap-shot from forward Courtney Cormack. From there, the two teams racked up shots and penalties, driving forward a fast-paced game.

The Huskies, mimicking the first period, scored another quick shot on the Cougars with thanks to Brooklyn Haubrich. Cougars goalie Emma Pincott was feeling the pressure by now, along with the rest of her team. This pressure was alleviated though after Breanne Trotter scored the first goal for the Cougars, poking home a loose puck in front of the Huskies net.

Not letting up, the Cougars evened out the score after Tianna Ko shovelled her way past the Huskies' defence which brought the score to 2-2. The Huskies would go back on top when Shyan Elias scored a third goal. 

Down a goal, the Cougars had one more period to sway the game to their favour. Instead, the Huskies cemented their lead with another goal, again scored by Shyan Elias. The Cougars were relentless though, and forward Nicolette Seper managed a third goal for her team. Even so, the Huskies remained on top, and took the first win of the weekend.

The Booster Juice Players of the game were Breanne Trotter from the Cougars, and Shyan Elias from the Huskies. Saturday, Feb. 2, the two teams will rematch, once again at Flames Community Arenas.