Mar 8, 2008 - The #4 ranked StFX X-Women faced the #5 ranked Manitoba Bisons Saturday afternoon at the Ottawa Sports Complex at the CIS championship and were handed a 3-1 loss in their first round robin game. Bison netminder and Player of the Game Stacey Corfield made 29 saves en route to the win, with Katie Harvieux taking the loss in nets for the X-Women.

The first period was fairly evenly matched, the X-Women opened with a few good scoring chances early on in the first few minutes. Christina Davis had a couple shots on goal in the first minute of play and the X-Women seemed to work out their first game jitters quickly. Manitoba had three power play opportunities but were denied on all three instances. Katie Harvieux played solid in nets for X, stopping several good scoring chances by the Bisons. Manitoba led in shots 10-6 and were pressuring late in the period but the score remained scoreless after the first frame.

The Bisons opened up the scoring in early in the second period at the 1:40 minute mark with a goal by Shannon Hoogsteen. She scored on a two on one with the assist going to Amy Coates. StFX netminder Harvieux got a piece of the puck but it flipped over her glove and across the goal line. StFX came back with a few good scoring chances with the top line of CIS Player of the Year Brayden Ferguson, Jessica Shanahan and Christina Davis creating scoring opportunities and seeing a lot of ice time. The X-Women had one power play chance in the second period and had several chances to score but failed to convert. They were pressuring for several minutes in the Bisons end when Manitoba forward Tammy Brade made her way up ice and beat X defender Marilynn Hay on a one-on-one situation and took a quick low shot, beating Harvieux glove side and giving the Bisons a sudden 2-0 lead. The unassisted goal was scored at the 14:33 mark and Manitoba scored another just a minute later when there was a scramble in front of the X net. Chantal Larocque was credited with the goal with the assists going to Addie Miles and Becca King. The Bisons out shot the X-Women by a 9-7 margin in the second frame.

StFX began the third period on the power play from a late second period Bisons penalty but it was wiped out 42 seconds in when Shanahan was called for tripping. Both teams had scoring chances back and forth with Bison goaltender Stacey Corfield making several good saves on X snipers Ferguson, Amanda Church and Carolyn Campbell. As the period went on the X-Women had a sense of urgency to get on the board and both teams started to get a bit rougher, with some shoving back and forth and the exchanges of coincidental roughing penalties. The X-Women went on the power play at the 13:24 mark and the Bisons got into more penalty trouble just 16 seconds later, giving the X-Women a five-on -three power play opportunity and a chance to get back into the game. They didn't disappoint as Amanda Church converted to score the X-Women's first and only goal of the game at the 14:08 minute mark. Laura Grant and Kelly Boudreau were awarded assists on the power play goal. The X-Women continued to pressure on the ensuing power play and pulled the goalie with just under a minute left but couldn't put the puck past Corfield again, resulting in the 3-1 loss. Amanda Church was named Player of the Game for the X-Women who were out 30-18 by the Bisons.