BOSTON — In a thrilling overtime finish, Cayla Barnes propelled the Montréal Victoire to a 3-2 victory against the Boston Fleet, playing before a packed crowd at Agganis Arena on Saturday. Barnes managed to find the net just 21 seconds into overtime, maintaining her team’s standout performance as they sit atop the league standings.
This encounter was notably held at Agganis Arena, Boston University’s home, diverging from Boston Fleet’s regular venue at UMass-Lowell. This marked the third instance within their four encounters this season where the game extended into overtime, including Boston’s previous 3-2 triumph in a shootout held in Seattle. This win for Montréal also ended Boston’s impressive home winning streak, which stood at seven consecutive victories.
Marie-Philip Poulin, a Boston University graduate, opened the scoring in the fourth minute with her 14th goal of the season, solidifying her status at the top of the goals leaderboard. Her teammate Catherine Dubois soon followed, doubling the score in the eighth minute. However, the Boston Fleet fought back, with Jamie Lee Rattray scoring her fourth goal of the season in the 15th minute to finish the first period at 2-1. In the second period, Boston’s Lexie Adzija delivered a critical shot that slipped through the grasp of Montréal’s goalkeeper Ann-Renée Desbiens, allowing Amanda Pelkey to capitalize and equalize the game.
The remainder of the match highlighted the extraordinary skills of both team’s goalkeepers, with Desbiens, who secured her 13th league win, successfully stopping 19 of 21 shots. On the other end, Aerin Frankel of Boston, boasting 11 wins, achieved 26 saves out of 29 shots.
The victory augmented the Victoire’s secure position in first place with a total of 43 points in the league standings. Meanwhile, the Boston Fleet, earning a point by reaching overtime, drew level with Toronto for second place, each with 35 points.
