FLASH POINTS:

• The Red Flash kicked off their Spring Break with a 9-4 win over Occidental
• Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa/Villa Maria Academy) scored three goals in the win
• Five different players scored
• Kate Wilke (Burbank, Calif./Burroughs) made 11 saves against the Tigers and had five steals against Cal Lutheran

 
 
THOUSAND OAKS, CA- The Red Flash got their Spring Break off on a strong note defeating Occidental 9-4 in SFU's opening match of the Tina Finali invite hosted by Cal Lutheran but could not complete the sweep, falling to the host Regals in the nightcap
 
OCCIDENTAL MATCH (Box Score)
The Red Flash knocked off the Occidental Tigers 9-4 in SFU's first match of the Finali invite. The Flash got a balanced offense with five different goal scorers including a hat trick from Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa/Villa Maria Academy).
 
The match got off to a slow start as the teams traded four turnovers in the opening stages of the first quarter. After Kate Wilke (Burbank, Calif./Burroughs) made one of her 11 saves, the Flash got a bad break after Emily Wickenheiser (Mechanicsburg, Pa/Cumberland Valley) rang one off the goal post. Moments later, Tina Bonilla got SFU on the board with her first of two goals of the day. The Red Flash would lead 1-0 after the first.
 
A late first-quarter exclusion gave SFU a power play that carried over into the second. They took advantage as Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa/Villa Maria Academy) fed Kelsey Gring (Sinking Spring, Pa/Wilson) for a power-play goal, set up by a Erin O'Neill (Landsdale, Pa/North Penn) steal. After failing to score on another exclusion Emily Wickenheiser (Mechanicsburg, Pa/Cumberland Valley) made it 3-0 after putting away a Tina Bonilla pass. Wilke would make four saves in the second as the Red Flash took a 3-0 lead into the half.
 
SFU would start the second half as they ended the first, with Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa/Villa Maria Academy) scoring her second of the game to make it 4-0 early in the third. Wickenheiser made it 5-0 after SFU killed off another exclusion penalty. After the goalies traded a pair of saves and the Red Flash killed off another penalty, Bonilla cashed in her second of the match to make it 6-0 off a pass from Amber Rogers (Souderton, Pa/Souderton). A late Tiger goal made it 6-1 heading into the fourth.
 
It would be 8-1 Red Flash after Fehr completed the hat trick with two goals that were sandwiched around a pair of big saves from Wilke. The Tigers would strike with three quick goals in the middle of the quarter that made it 8-4. Wilke would make another big save that led to a late Missy McCreary (Altadena, CA/LaSalle (Citrus College)) goal to round out the scoring.
 
The Red Flash out shot Occidental 22-19 and went 1-6 on the power play while killing off all five Tiger power-play opportunities. The win moved the Flash to 5-4 on the season and 1-0 at the Finali invite.
 
CAL LUTHERAN MATCH (Box Score)
The Red Flash got off to a slow start against the host Regals. CLU struck early on their first shot of the day. SFU put a lot of pressure on the Regals, forcing three-straight turnovers but were unable to beat Bailey Meyer. Kate Wilke (Burbank, Calif./Burroughs) got a transition game started, feeding Wickenheiser for her first goal of the match to tie it at one. The Regals Megan Seeman would score twice, the first after collecting a rebound off the post. CLU would lead 3-1 after the first.
 
The Regals would make it 4-1 on a Nicole Roed goal and Bailey Meyer and the Regal defense would make it hold up. Meyer would make four saves and get aided by a pair of posts to hold the Red Flash off the scoreboard in the second. Roed would add another late in the quarter and CLU forced Wilke into a pair of saves late as CLU led 5-1 at the half.
 
The Flash would strike twice at the start of the third with Wickenheiser finishing a Bonilla pass and Wickenheiser feeding Kelly Fehr (Erie, Pa/Villa Maria Academy) to make it 5-3. Fehr would then hit the post on her next shot but kept her hot hand when she finished on another Wickenheiser pass to make it 5-4. The Regals would regain momentum after it became 5-4, scoring on their next three shots on goal to take a 8-4 lead into the fourth quarter.
 
The goalies took over in the fourth, as both Wilke and Meyer made a pair of saves early. Wilke caught a break on a shot that hit the post on an SFU exclusion. The Flash continued to pepper Meyer with shots but could not find the goal. Late Regal tallies pushed the lead out to 10-4. The Flash recorded 21 steals in the match but 16 saves from Meyer were too much to overcome. They outshot Cal Lutheran 31-25 but fell to 5-5.
 
The Red Flash continue their west coast swing on Tuesday. They will take on LaVerne in a true road match, opening sprint is set for 2 p.m. Eastern.