Ooks soar to ACAC Championship Series

The NAIT Ooks came flying out of the gates, using a three-goal outburst in the first period to carry on to a 4-1 victory over the Olds College Broncos at the Town of Olds Sportsplex on Saturday, sweeping the three-game semifinal series between the two sides.

Tayler Premak scored twice to earn player of the game honours for NAIT, while Josie Nichols and Charlieze Sallis also scored for the Ooks. Payton Basterash added two assists, while Kaitlyn Slator made 26 saves.

Jesse Jack had the lone marker for the Broncos, while Lacey Friesen and Cienna Kinghorn combined to make 22 saves as Olds College's season came to an end.

Premak put the Ooks up just over seven minutes in with a redirect off a Hannah Prinsen shot, then doubled up with just over three minutes to go in the opening period after finding a loose puck in the slot off a scramble in front of Friesen. Nichols extended the lead to three just 16 seconds later, stopping a Broncos clearing attempt at the blue line and sending it back on net to beat Friesen five-hole to give the Ooks a 3-0 lead at the first intermission, where Friesen was lifted for Kinghorn.

Jack got the Broncos on the board late in the second, forcing a turnover in the NAIT zone and snapping a shot over Slator's shoulder to cut the lead to 3-1 after 40 minutes, only for Sallis to ice it midway through the third off a two-on-one with Darby Robertson.

The Ooks will now face off with the Red Deer Polytechnic Queens to crown the 2022-23 ACAC Champions in women's hockey, with Game 1 slated for March 17 in Edmonton.