MONTREAL (CIS) - Player of the year Danielle Bourgeois scored a hat trick and added one assist to lead the three-time defending national champion and top-ranked Alberta Pandas to a 7-1 win over the No. 4-StFX X-Women in their first game of the preliminary round at the 2005 Canadian Interuniversity Sport women's hockey championship, at McConnell Arena.

Championship info: www.cisport.ca/e/championships/w_hockey/2005

With the win, Alberta extends its undefeated srteak against CIS opponents to 109 consecutive games (108-0-1), dating back to Oct. 13, 2001.

Bourgeois, a fifth-year left winger from Edmonton, opened the scoring in the contest with 2:43 left in the first period. She put the score at 5-1 late in the second frame with a power play marker, and completed the hat trick notching the final goal of the evening, with five minutes left in the match.

Bourgeois, who claimed her second straight Brodrick Trophy as CIS MVP Wednesday night and vies to complete her brilliant university career with a fifth championship rings in as many seasons, earned player-of-the-game honours for her four-point effort.

Canadian national team member Delaney Collins-Pye, a fifth-year rearguard from PilotMound, Man. scored the Pandas third goal and added two assists.

Edmonton natives Taryn Barry and Kristen Hagg, and forward Tarin Podloski from St. Albert, Alta., a member of the CIS All-Rookie team, rounded out the scoring for Alberta.

Sophomore defender Caitlin-Marie Sullivan, a native of Rhode Island, scored the lone goal for StFX on the power play, making it a 4-1 game 13:32 into the second period.

The Pandas outshot the AUS champions 42-5, including 16-0 in the final stanza. Alberta converted one of three power play opportunities, while the X-Women went
1-for-1.

Fifth-year Panda netminder Andrea Thomas of Edmonton stopped four shots for the win, while Chelsea Mackenzie, a senior from Ottawa, made 35 saves in the losing effort.

Top-ranked Alberta will face the No. 5-McGill Martlets Saturday at 7 p.m. EST in its second and last match-up of the preliminary round. StFX meets McGill Friday at 7 p.m.

SCORING SUMMARY

Alberta 7, StFX 1

FIRST PERIOD

SCORING:
1. ALB Danielle Bourgeois (1) (unassisted), 17:17
2. ALB Taryn Barry (1) (D. Collins-Pye, L. MacAlpine),18:19

PENALTIES:
T. Sullivan (StFX), interference, 10:27.

SECOND PERIOD

SCORING:
3. ALB Delaney Collins-Pye (1) (G. Kernaleguen), 6:04
4. ALB Kristen Hagg (1) (D. Bourgeois), 10:26
5. StFX Caitlin-Marie Sullivan (1) (R. Davies), 13:32 PP
6. ALB Danielle Bourgeois (2) (T. Podloski, K. Hagg), 18 :53 PP

PENALTIES:
T. Barry (ALB), tripping, 12:14; A. Lemmex, body-checking, 18:11.

THIRD PERIOD

SCORING:
7. ALB Tarin Podloski (1) (D. Collins-Pye), 13:35
8. ALB Danielle Bourgeois (3) (J. Coffin), 15:07

PENALTIES:
M-A Berthiaume (StFX), interference, 6:21; B. Ferguson (StFX),
high-sticking, and K.
Kother (ALB), high-sticking, 14:02.

POWER PLAY:
ALB: 1/3
StFX: 1/1

SHOTS ON GOAL (by period):
ALB: 9-17-16: 42
StFX: 1-4-0: 5

GOALTENDERS
ALB- Andrea Thomas (W, 5 shots, 55 saves, 60:00)
StFX- Chelsea Mackenzie (L, 42 shots, 35 saves, 60:00)

PLAYERS OF THE GAME:
ALB: Danielle Bourgeois
StFX: Caitlin-Marie Sullivan

SCHEDULE & RESULTS (all times LOCAL)

Seeding:

1. Alberta
2. Wilfrid Laurier
3. Concordia
4. St. Francis Xavier
5. McGill
6. Manitoba

Thursday, March 10

Wilfrid Laurier 6, Manitoba 0
Alberta 7, StFX 1

Friday, March 11

4 p.m. Manitoba vs Concordia
7 p.m. StFX vs McGill

Saturday, March 12

4 p.m. Wilfrid Laurier vs Concordia
7 p.m. Alberta vs McGill

Sunday, March 13

9 a.m. 5th place game
1 p.m. Bronze medal game
4 p.m. Gold medal game

-CIS-

For more information, please contact:

Earl Zukerman
Communications Officer
McGill Universi