ST. PETER, MINN. – The St. Catherine University hockey team entered the weekend's series against Gustavus Adolphus College knowing it was going to battle for every shot and goal. After a 3-0 loss to the Gusties Friday evening, the Wildcats were hungry not just for a goal, but an upset victory over the No. 6 team in the nation. Sadly, St. Kate's was shut out in its second straight Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) game, falling to Gustavus by a final score of 3-0.

Like Friday, the Wildcats spent a significant amount of time in the penalty box, including in the first period, when the Gusties had a 5-on-3 advantage. At 7:01 in the first period, junior Brede Postier (Byron, Minn. / Dodge County) was called for hooking, suffering the first penalty of the game. With a little under one minute remaining on Postier's penalty, Gustavus managed to score its first goal of the game, as Diana Draayer beat Kristen Pechacek (Park Falls, Wis. / Chequamegon) to give the Gusties a 1-0 lead.

After giving up the Gustavus goal, St. Kate's tried to even the score with a goal of its own. Unfortunately, the Wildcats quickly found themselves down a skater for the second time that game, as Laken Muller (Inver Grove Heights, Minn. / Simley) was called for hooking at 8:31 in the period. This time, Pechacek and St. Kate's defense managed to successfully kill the penalty, but the Gusties still managed to take on a second goal at 12:20 in the first period to take a 2-0 lead over the Wildcats.

Gustavus scored a third goal at 10:46 in the second period, taking a 3-0 lead over St. Kate's midway through the game. However, that was the last shot Pechacek would allow in the back of the net for the rest of the game. The senior goalie faced 49 shots in 60 minutes of work and made 46 saves, tallying a .939 save percentage in the game. Sadly, the Wildcat offense was unable to pressure Gustie goalie Amanda DiNella. St. Kate's managed to get just 15 shots on net during the game, and reigning All-American DiNella was there to make every save, resulting in the 3-0 shutout.

With the loss, the Wildcats overall record falls to 6-14-1 and the team is 5-8-1 in MIAC play. St. Kate's will return to the ice on February 9 for a two-game series against Augsburg University. The first game is scheduled to begin a t 7 p.m. in Minneapolis, Minnesota.