Women’s hockey is fun way to deal with the NHL lockout blues

By Vaikunthe Banerjee
Photos by Vaikunthe Banerjee

Have you heard of the SFU Women’s Hockey Team? It is an SFU club that plays in the South Coast Female Amateur Hockey League (SCFAHL). The league began in the 1983–84 season as the BC Girls Ice Hockey Association, and the SFU team has been playing in it since the 2010–11 season. The team is recognized as a club and not a varsity team. They are a student-run organization with self-administered executives. Their coaching staff recognizes the team’s potential, and voluntarily spend countless hours to train the team. Their games have 15-minute periods and usually go on for about an hour and 15 minutes.
The team has played several games this season. On Nov. 9, they played against the Trinity Western University Titans and swept the ice with them to win 4–0. The game started with two goals scored by Sheralie Taylor with 12:28 remaining in the first period and another scored soon after Nicole Oud with 9:55 remaining in the period. The two-goal lead in the first period left the other team demoralized. Just 12 seconds into the period, Aly van Nieuwkerk scored for SFU. It looked like the team was unstoppable as they kept getting shots on net and broke down the Titan’s defense, leading to Laura Wiggins scoring in the third period to give SFU a decisive win.
They played again on Nov. 16 against the Delta Jets, whom they had previously defeated 2–1. They lost 3–2, but put up a good fight until the very last seconds of the game. The first period was uneventful, with each team playing great defense. The Delta Jets scored the game’s first two with 12:54 and 8:21 remaining in the second period. SFU came back when Wiggins scored a goal with 5:56 remaining in the second period. Then, the Jets scored again in the second period with 3:14 remaining. The girls came back with a goal of their own which was scored by Nancy Lachimea in the third period. In the end, they lost a hard fought game, but being at the game was worth it. “I was so into the game, because I was so happy to see high-quality hockey during the lockout,” says Dylan Belvedere, a third-year SFU student.
If you miss hockey, show some school spirit and go see the SFU women’s team at the North Surrey Recreation Centre where they play. Check out their schedule at www.southcoastfemalehockey.com/schedule.