After a double overtime loss in their first playoff game, the Bursey Buryn Cougars could have been emotionally crushed. Instead, they used the stinging setback as fuel and knocked the favoured Vancouver Fusion out of the post-season.
The Cougars and Fusion, who compete in the B.C. Hockey Female Midget AAA League, played a best-of-three quarterfinal series in the Lower Mainland on the weekend. Friday's extended opener ended 2-1 in favour of the Fusion. On Saturday, the Cats bounced back with their own 2-1 win. In Sunday's deciding game, the Cougars got a late third-period goal from Taya Garneau and shutout goaltending from Megan Spooner and won 1-0.
"It feels so good," said Garneau, who will turn 17 on Thursday. "It just feels like a big accomplishment for us."
Garneau was the offensive star for the Cougars. As well as firing the series winner, she scored both of her team's goals on Saturday, including the deciding marker with about five minutes left on the clock.
"I was just working hard," she said. "We all worked hard as a team and just wanted it. I wanted it enough that I put all my effort into it."
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