The Fraser Valley Jets are the first team to be eliminated from the South Coast Women’s Hockey League playoff tournament.
The Jets dropped both games played Friday at the Sardis Sports Complex in Chilliwack, falling 4-2 to the South Fraser TNT in the first game of the tournament, then dropped a 3-2 decision to the North Shore Rebels in an evening game. Fraser Valley will finish third in Pool B.
Jackie Lang gave Fraser Valley an early lead over the TNT with a goal four minutes into the game, but Alisha Choy netted a pair and Jacki Sollis notched one for a 3-2 South Fraser advantage after 40 minutes.
Kirsten Martin pulled the Jets to within one with two minutes remaining. Shea Weighill of the TNT closed out the scoring with an empty net goal.
Needing to avoid a loss to North Shore to stay alive, Fraser Valley again got a goal from Lang to open the scoring. But by the end of the second period, Ivana Bilic, Jess Sibley and Shannon Morris-Reade had the Rebels up by two with one period to play.
The Jets outshot North Shore 12-5 in the final frame, but managed only a goal from Makenna Burns with 55 seconds remaining.
The TNT and North Shore will face-off Saturday morning at 9 a.m., with a win or tie by South Fraser needed to clinch top spot in Pool B. Both teams will play in Saturday night’s semifinal round.
Paced by a pair of shutouts from netminder Megan Buchanan, the defending provincial champion Meadow Ridge Moose won twice on opening day to clinch first place in Pool A.
The Moose began their day with a 3-0 win over the Richmond Devils. Shay-Lee McConnell, Sydney Langston and Kaely McMurtry scored the goals.
In the final game of the first day of play, Meadow Ridge edged the Kamloops Vibe 1-0 on a third-period goal by Darcy Henderson.
The Devils and Kamloops play Saturday morning at 11:30 a.m. Richmond needs a win to move on to the semifinal.
