St. Cloud, Minn. -- The Saint Benedict hockey team (3-5-0, 1-4-0 MIAC) notched their third-straight win today with a 4-1 rout of the Augsburg Auggies (2-5-0, 1-4-0 MIAC). The win marks their first-conference victory of the season and third straight victory at home.
 
Senior defender Christine Brodersen (Shakopee, Minn.) put the Blazers on the board first, scoring her third goal of the season at the 8:44 mark. The assist on the goal came from first-year defender Maddie Rainey (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), her third assist of the year.
 
The Auggies came up with the answer at the 14:28 mark when Auggie forward Claire Cripps popped the puck off junior goalie Jenna Traut (St. Cloud, Minn.), over her shoulder and into the net to tie the game at one. The teams went into the locker rooms at the first intermission with the score still tied at one.
 
The second period featured many Blazer scoring opportunities, but the team failed to capitalize on three two-minute power plays. With just a minute to play in the period, senior forward Ally Nielsen (Alexandria, Minn.) snuck the puck past Auggie goalie Brianna Schulz to give the Blazers a 2-1 lead heading into the second intermission. That goal was assisted by first-year forward Stephanie Kirk (Minnetonka, Minn.) and sophomore forward Megan Lawry (Circle Pines, Minn.).
 
Still looking for their first MIAC win of the season, the Blazers refused to be content with a one-goal lead in the third period. Two minutes into the period junior forward Megan Brettingen (Mora, Minn.) scored her third goal of the season to give the Blazers a two-goal buffer for the remainder of the third period.
 
With just under three minutes to play Rainey came back to put the nail in the coffin. She took the puck at the blue line and backhanded it through Schulz's legs, giving the Blazers a 4-1 lead. That goal was Rainey's third of the season.
 
A Blazer penalty and a pulled Augsburg goalie meant the Blazers skaters were outmatched 6-on-4 through the last minute of play. The Blazers not only killed the penalty but also held the Auggies to one shot over that span to close out their first conference victory of the year.
 
The Blazers clearly took the "You can't score if you don't shoot" motto to heart, firing off 40 shots while holding the Auggies to just 18. That plus-22 shot differential is the Blazers second-highest this year, second only to an eight-goal outburst last weekend against Stevenson.
 
The Blazers will attempt to take their second straight series sweep tomorrow when they travel to Minneapolis to take on the Auggies again. Face-off is scheduled for 7 p.m.