It was another close one for the PCI Saints. Despite losing 4-3 to Springfield, it was an offensive performance the team was proud of. The output was their highest-scoring game all season and the offensive outburst was mainly thanks to forward Marley Taylor, who finished the game with a hat-trick. Head coach Jo-Anne Clark-Gillespie commented on the effort.

"Marley didn't score a goal last year in her first year. So, when she scored that first goal, she said in the dressing room, 'I need a puck, Ms. Clark.' They always get the puck from their first goal, and then she ended up with a hat-trick tonight," says the head coach. "She led by example. She was determined to go hard to the net. That third goal was a highlight goal. She dropped her shoulder, took the middle of the ice and put it in."

Brielle Caners and Tillie Botterill both ended the game with a pair of assists. 

The Saints were down 4-2 with eight minutes left in the third period and nearly tied the game up a few times. The head coach notes the team really gave it their all down the stretch.

"All we ask of them is to go out for 30, 35, or 40-second shifts and battle as hard as they can. We want them coming back to the bench absolutely gassed, and we're seeing that," Clark-Gillespie explains. "They're having so much fun because I think they can feel the development that they're having individually, and they can see how that's coming together as a team. It's all about hard work and being first to the puck and then crashing and banging the net. That's our pre-game focus almost every game."

PCI came into this game fresh off their first win in almost two months and came very close to starting up a winning streak. Clark-Gillespie adds a big portion of this success is due to players making sacrifices and doing the little things right.

"We're looking at setting small goals every game and working toward them. In the last two games, we've set our small goals, and we've met them. So, we are celebrating those goals. The girls are really pumped," Clark-Gillespie continues. "Today, with Lauren Bryson back from injury, I now have seven D technically. So, Alexis Waldner has moved up the last few games, and she looks absolutely fine on the wing. Today, Olivia Grimeau stepped up, and she's never played wing before. She did amazing. I give those defencemen all the credit in the world."

The Saints are back on the road for their next two games but will play their final outing before the holidays on December 20th at the BDO Centre.

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