Defenseman Toni Theaker scored with 5:14 remaining in the second overtime period to lift the Swift Current Diamond Energy Wildcats to a 3-1 series win over the Regina Rebels in the best-of-five opening round of the Saskatchewan Female Midget AAA Hockey League playoffs.
Theaker’s point shot found its way home after 84:46 of action as the Wildcats defeated the visiting Rebels 3-2 in game four.
“I just shot and the goalie ramped it up top shelf into her corner and it was pretty exciting,” explained Theaker, a rookie defenseman from Eatonia. “It was crazy. There was a lot of adrenaline going and it was a rush. Your tired but you just keep pushing through,” she said of the double overtime win.
The Rebels had taken a 2-0 lead on goals from Ally Kosteniuk and Brooke Pellerin before the Wildcats tied the game with goals from Chloe Smith and Mikayla Swallow in the second period. Tenelle Lind, Sara Kendall, and Trista Labarowski all added assists.
“I thought we played really well,” said Theaker. “We had our feet moving the whole time. I think that if we stick to how we play our game I think we can beat any team. We just have to work as a team and compete for a full 60 minutes.”
Harper Davey earned her second straight win with 31 saves. Chantal Burke took the loss with 27 saves on 30 shots.
The fifth seeded Wildcats will now take on the top seeded Saskatoon Stars in the second round of the SFMAAAHL playoffs.
“They are a hard team. They battle hard and they pass hard, so we have to do the exact same as them. We have got to compete, move our feet, play our game, and I think we can do really good,” said Theaker.
