The female U18 AAA Central Plains Capitals played one of their best games of the season tonight but just couldn't come away with the victory. The Caps lost 5-2 to the top-seeded Westman Wildcats but the game was closer than the score indicates.

The Caps entered the third period tied 2-2 after picking up goals from Courtney Dupuis and Liberty Aime but unfortunately, they couldn't pull away in the end. Head coach Brendan Schaan was very happy with the performance.

"I think that's definitely a game you can build on. Westman plays a pretty aggressive and physical game. It was nice to see the light turn on for a lot of our younger players like, 'Okay, this is what this level of hockey needs to look like.' That was a game where you looked at everyone and said, 'Everyone wanted to work, and everyone wanted to be there and contribute.'"

One of the Capitals veterans, Kamryn Cloet, went down with an injury in the contest, and while Schaan is unsure of her timetable, he wishes her a very speedy recovery. 

The coach adds the growth of this team from day one until now has been tremendous, and he notes the young girls are really starting to understand what it takes to succeed. With that being the case, they will be looking to turn some of these moral victories into actual victories next weekend.

"Like any good team, D zone is always going to be the biggest thing that we have to work on. We have to be aware of where our weaknesses are with our wingers, and with our D in front of the net. We lose a couple too many battles for my liking," Schaan continues. "It makes our goalies' lives a little bit easy when we're out there blocking shots, and we're making sure they can see pucks all the way in. I think we're getting better at it but is there room for improvement, absolutely."

Central Plains will have another pair of home games next weekend as they take on the Winnipeg Avros on Friday and battle the Yellowhead Chiefs on Saturday.

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