GUELPH, Ont. - The Guelph Gryphons women's hockey team is now just one win away from a McCaw Cup berth after taking game one of their semifinal series with the Toronto Varsity Blues 1-0 on Wednesday night (Feb. 28). Katherine Heard scored the game's only goal and Martina Fedel recorded her third consecutive shutout to lead the Gryphons to a game one win and the series lead on home ice. 

The Gryphons came out of the gates and once again immediately took the fight to their opponents, continuing a style of play that Gryphon fans have become familiar with. Their pressure resulted in the first powerplay opportunity of the game, with the Varsity Blues being called for tripping just over five minutes into the opening frame. Despite being unable to break the scoreless tie, the Gryphons continued to build momentum with several strong scoring chances and by the end of the period would hold a 10-4 advantage in shots on goal. After killing off a penalty of their own, a cross checking call on Toronto's Emma Potter would result in the second advantage of the game for the Gryphons. 48 seconds into the powerplay a fantastic passing play would see Hannah Tait pass to Jaime Magoffin who found Katherine Heard walking in from the blue line. Heard would fire a wrist shot, beating Varsity Blues goaltender Erica Fryer up high and blocker-side for her first of the postseason with 1:19 remaining in the period. 

After the two teams emerged from the locker room for the second period of action, both would increase their offensive output knowing the next goal was crucial in a battle between the top two seeds remaining in the OUA playoffs. Another Gryphon penalty taken at the midway point would give the visiting team their best chance to tie things up. In the opening minute of the advantage, a point shot from Toronto's Caroline Eagles sent bodies flying to the net in a mad scramble for a loose puck but a diving Martina Fedel would save the day with the first of a series of mesmerizing saves from the Trento, Italy product. Just minutes later Fedel made another game-saving stop on an Emma Elders breakaway, stopping the forward with an outreached right-pad. Fedel would stop 10 shots in the second period, completely stealing a frame in which the Gryphons were the second-best offensively. The third-year netminder went on to finish the game with 21 saves, maintaining her perfect 1.000 save percentage through three playoff games. 

After another scoreless stretch to start the third the Varsity Blues went into desperation mode while the U of G defence went back to their smothering, relentless style of play, continuously holding up the visiting team in the neutral zone. After a failed attempt at trying to get Erica Fryer to the bench, the Varsity Blues were finally able to get an offensive zone faceoff with just 44 seconds remaining and gain the extra attacker. Despite a late Gryphon penalty, the U of G defence would hold strong, taking the victory by a score of 1-0. 

The series now shifts to Toronto, where the Gryphons and Varsity Blues will square off for game two of their best-of-three series. A win for the Gryphons would not only cement a McCaw Cup Championship game berth, but it would also officially book their ticket to the 2024 U SPORTS Championships in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Puck drop for game two at Varsity Arena is set for 7:30pm Friday. Fans unable to attend can catch the postseason action live online at www.oua.tv.