Game Summary

WINONA, Minn. — With 16 new faces on his roster, Saint Mary's University women's hockey coach Duncan Ryhorchuk wasn't really sure what to expect when his team opened its season Friday evening at home against Lake Forest.

What he certainly didn't expect, was for his Cardinals to score on their very first shot — and on two of their first nine.

In fact, for the first 20 minutes, the game came very easy to the Cardinals, who held a commanding 2-0 advantage after outshooting the visiting Foresters 13-5.

Problem was, collegiate hockey games are 60 minutes long, not 20 — and over the final 40 minutes, it was Lake Forest that had the upper hand, scoring a pair of second-period goals, then netting the game-winner with eight minutes remaining in regulation, en route to a 3-2 nonconference victory at the SMU Ice Arena.

"We came out real hard and just dominated the first 15 minutes or so," said Ryhorchuk, whose team will get another shot at the Foresters Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. "We just couldn't sustain that high level of intensity. I don't know if we're not in 'game shape' yet or what, we just seemed to lose a step."

If the Cardinals had any first-game jitters, they certainly didn't show as Jessica Ribish (Elm Grove, Wis.) scored on her first collegiate shot just 23 seconds into the first period. Ten minutes later, Ribish was at it again, netting Goal No. 2 to give the Cardinals what seemed like a comfortable 2-0 cushion.

"That first 15 minutes, we were flying out there," said Ryhorchuk. "It's not that Lake Forest played that much better (in the second and third periods), we just seemed to slow down a bit."

And when the Cardinals downshifted out of high gear, the Foresters took advantage.

Lil Caligiuri pulled Lake Forest within one, 2-1, when she beat SMU goalie Nikki Jung (Inver Grove, Heights, Minn.) from in close just four minutes into the second period. Nichole Greco tied it late in the second period, slipping a shot through Jung's pads with 27 seconds left.

Andrea Richmond completed the Foresters' comeback — and sealed their first win in three tries this season — when her slap shot from the point eluded Jung and found the back of the net at 12:03 of the third period.

"We know we can play better," said Ryhorchuk. "Obviously, we're disappointed with the loss, but we also did some good things out there."