Chris Smith | Lindenlink Contributor

The Lindenwood Lady Lion’s ice hockey team had redemption in mind when the number three ranked Wisconsin Badgers came into town.

Last season, LU lost to Wisconsin 13-0 and 11-0.  This year, the team was determined to have a better showing against one of the nation’s top teams.

And that’s exactly what they did.  After a quick start, the Lady Lions fell to the powerful Badgers 7-2.

“The team is more mature as we grew from a 14 rookie roster last year to just a handful this year,” said LU team captain Brett Lobreau.  “This year, we have a little more depth on the bench.  We’re rolling the lines that want to play and work as hard as they can.”

Friday night’s game started with a bang for LU.  The Lady Lions scored two goals in the first four minutes.

A defensive error by UW led to Kendra Broad scoring LU’s first goal.  Assistant captain Allysson Archibal added a second goal for LU less than a minute later.

Brianna Decker and Kelly Jaminski both scored goals in the first period for UW.  That tied the score up 2-2 after the first period.

The second period turned out to be much more one-sided.  LU couldn’t continue its momentum from the first period due to a lot of key penalties.

“We took something 100 percent positive,” said LU head coach Vince O’Mara. “And turned it into something only 50 percent positive with penalties.”

UW seemed to take advantage of the power plays and stormed past LU, despite their quick start.

“They had a lot of energy.  It was their home opener,” said UW head coach Mark Johnson.  “A lot of little things can make a big difference, and I like the way we responded.”

Two of UW’s three goals in the second period came on the power play.  “They are one of the best for a reason,” said O’Mara.  “When you play a team like that, you’ve got to stay out of the box.”

At the end of the second period, the Badgers had taken a 5-2 lead.

The third period was the same story as the second for LU, which was once again plagued by penalties and simple mistakes.  Brianna Decker and Karley Sylvester each scored power play goals in the third for UW.

The Badgers outshot LU 41-22 throughout the game.  UW also out shot the Lady Lions 19-2 on power plays.

“We took the lead for granted,” said LU defenseman Chelsea Witwicke.  “But, I think we improved a lot since we played against Ohio State.”

Ohio State was the first opponent of the season for the Lady Lions.  With losses of 0-4 and 2-7, LU had games under their belts and prepared for Wisconsin.

The Lady Lions look to improve even more as they take the ice against Minnesota State next weekend.  The games are at Wentzville Arena, at 7 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 12 and 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 13.