MANKATO, Minn. -- The Minnesota State women's hockey team cruised to a 3-0 victory over St. Cloud State in a Western Collegiate Hockey Association game played at Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center, Friday evening. 

With the win, the Mavericks now stand 8-9 overall with a 4-9 mark in WCHA action. The Huskies fell to 6-10-1 with a 2-10-1 record in conference play. 

The opening period of Saturday's contest was a scoreless one between MSU and SCSU. The Mavericks were edging the Huskies in the shots effort 11-9 following the conclusion of the first period.

The Mavericks scored the first goal in the second period when senior forward Brooke Bryant redirected a pass from the slot into the goal at the 12:47 mark. Shortly after, at the 14:13 mark, Bryant finessed her way up the right side of the ice and ripped a shot past SCSU's netminder, Sanni Ahola, for her second goal of the night. The pair of markers, which were roughly a minute and a half apart, were Bryant's seventh and eighth goals of the season and gave MSU a 2-0 lead. The Mavericks continued to build on the momentum late into the second period and at the 18:39 mark, sophomore forward Madison Mashuga extended the lead to 3-0, scoring her third goal of the season. The Mavericks held the shots advantage, 23-18, at the second intermission.  

The Mavericks sealed Friday's contest by playing stifling defense in the final period to hold off the Huskies for a 3-0 victory. Another outstanding performance between the pipes from junior goaltender Calla Frank, now 7-7, resulted in her collecting First Star of the Game honors, as announced by media in attendance. She stopped all 27 shots she faced for her second consecutive shutout, it marks her third shutout of the season and the seventh of her career.  

Bryant supplied the charge offensively for the Mavericks. The Linden, Calif., native pocketed two goals on the night, including the first and eventual game-winning goal, to earn Second Star of the Game.

While MSU claimed the shots advantage, 36-27, in Friday's affair, neither side had an upperhand with the man advantage. The Mavericks were 0-4 on the power play while the Huskies went 0-3.

The Mavericks and Huskies rematch Saturday in the series finale with a 3:01 p.m. face-off scheduled back at the Mayo Clinic Health System Event Center.

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