ST. CLOUD, Minn. — The No. 1-ranked UW-River Falls women's hockey team opened its 2025-26 season with a 7-1 win versus the College of Saint Benedict Tuesday evening at Ritsche Arena.
Senior forward Megan Goodreau led the way with a four-point night, scoring twice and adding two assists - including a pair of shorthanded tallies just 62 seconds apart late in the second period that put the game out of reach.
Sophia Hess netted two goals of her own, her first two as a Falcon in her collegiate debut, both assisted by Goodreau, as the Falcons built a 3-1 lead in the first period and never looked back.
Kaitlyn Ronn opened the scoring just over three minutes in, while Katherine Bell and MaKenna Aure each added third-period goals. Kailey Niccum and Gracyn Knowles contributed assists as UWRF peppered Saint Benedict goalie Sam Knutson with 26 shots on goal.
The Falcons controlled the pace throughout, outshooting the Bennies 26-17 and dominating faceoffs 29-20. Senior netminder Jordan O'Kane was sharp in her first start of the season, stopping 15 of 16 shots to earn the win.
Saint Benedict's lone goal came midway through the first when Chloe Lewis finished off a feed from Skylar Salscheider and Greer Hardacre to cut the deficit to 2-1. But the Falcons responded quickly, just under two minutes later as Hess buried her second of the night to restore the two-goal cushion.
UWRF killed off all two CSB power plays while adding two shorthanded goals of its own.
The Falcons, now 1-0 overall, face No. 2-ranked Augsburg University on Friday night at Minneapolis, Minn., and host the College of Saint Benedict for the home opener on Saturday.
