MAX CRANSTON
Sports Writer

Hockey

The Huskies women’s hockey team played a weekend series against Lethbridge Pronghorns on the road.

The Pronghorns took the Huskies to overtime on Nov. 26 with a late third-period goal to tie the game. Lethbridge got out to an early 1-0 lead but fell behind 2-1 to the Huskies mid-way through the second period. The late goal took the game into overtime and Lethbridge made good use of power play to beat the Huskies in the first of two weekend games.

The Huskies charged back on Nov. 27, pulling ahead 2-0 to start the game. The dogs increased their lead in the second period — capitalizing on defensive breakdowns to make the game 4-0 Saskatchewan. Lethbridge called in backup goaltender Shauntelle Williams in hope of changing their pace. The move turned the momentum around and the Pronghorns potted a goal in the second and two more in the third to make it a 4-3 game.

An extra attacker at the end of the third did not help Lethbridge enough to tie the game, potentially forcing the second overtime in two nights; the Huskies grabbed their win to split the weekend series on the road.

The women’s team goes into the winter break with an 8-3-2 record. Their next game is against provincial rivals Regina Cougars Jan. 7 and 8.

The Huskies men’s team had similar results against visiting Lethbridge at Rutherford rink. The Huskies dropped their first game to the Pronghorns 4-2. The Huskies got out to a lead in the second period, 2-1 midway through the frame. The Pronghorns fired back with potency, quickly closing the gap before the third period and taking the lead in the third. An insurance goal sealed the deal and the Pronghorns stole the first game.

The Huskies came out in force for their second game of the weekend. Steven DaSilva, the 2008-09 CIS Rookie of the Year finished with a hat-trick and Kyle Bortis had two goals en route to a 10-1 thrashing of the visiting team.

Saskatchewan goes into the break with an 8-6 record, they’re tied with the Calgary Dinos for third place in Canada West standings. Next on the schedule is a home-and-home series against the Regina Cougars Jan. 7 and 8.

Volleyball

The UBC Thunderbirds swept the visiting Huskies men’s volleyball team to finish the first half of the season. The Huskies were not effective in controlling the extremely efficient UBC offence. The second game, the Thunderbirds finished with a .283 team hitting percentage and held the dogs under .100 consistently.

The ”˜birds took the first game in a thrilling five-set match. The Huskies kept pace in the first four sets, but lost in the fifth to a strong UBC finish. On Nov. 27, the Huskies lost 3-1 and go into the Christmas break with room for improvement. The Huskies maintain a 1-7 record and are hoping to turn it around for the second half of the season.

The women’s volleyball team pressed the No. 1-ranked Thunderbirds to the limit in their second game, taking it to five sets. The Huskies lost their first game 3-0, but responded Saturday with more fervour. The Huskies took the nation’s top team into the fifth set, where UBC finished the game 15-7. The Thunderbirds committed 32 errors, almost twice as many as the Huskies.

With the losses, the Huskies fall to a 1-7 record. As with the men’s team, they will use the winter break to reevaluate and get back into action Jan. 14 against the visiting Bisons.