Women's World Cup: Italy overwhelms Slovenia on debut
The Women’s World Cup of hockey is off to a great start for the Italian national team. At the debut in Division I Group B, in Dumfries, in Great Britain, the Azzurre won with a clear 12 to 0 over Slovenia, at the end of a one-sided match (70 shots to 12 at the final siren). Shutout between the posts for Martina Fedel. On Thursday at 2 p.m., the challenge with Kazakhstan, the newly promoted team from the second division that today surprisingly beat South Korea, relegated from Group A, 4 to 2.
The team will take on Kazakhstan.
A rocket start for coach Poirier’s girls: the Slovenians immediately go into trouble and at 06:26 they cash in the first goal: Intihar does not hold back Bonafini’s shot and on the rebound it is Carola Saletta who scores. 64 seconds pass and the Azzurre double: great work by Heidenberger in forecheck, puck in the slot for Aurora Abatangelo who cannot miss. Italy withstands the first numeric inferiority of the match and, having recovered the fifth player of movement, here is the tris: breakaway led by Mazzocchi on the right and winning assist for the rushing Samantha Gius (15:25).
The Azzurre go close to the poker at the end of the first period, but still find it in the opening of the middle period: it is 25:14 when Abatangelo collects a rebound on the balustrade on Fantin’s shot and deposits the puck in the back of the net. On the powerplay, at 30:34, Italy also hits the fifth goal, thanks to Franziska Stocker’s shot to the cross. The Italian domination continued, leading to the sixth and seventh goals: at 35:30 Amie Varano found the right corner from the blue, 53 seconds later Rebecca Roccella sent to the seventh at the end of a restart. With 30 seconds to go before the buzzer, Mattivi comes up with a framing assist for Manuela Heidenberger, who only has to tap it in behind Intihar.
The Azzurre managed effortlessly in the third period, and at 49:24 Saletta took advantage of a gross defensive error by the Slovenians to sign 9-0. At 50:41 Matilde Fantin brings Italy into double figures, deflecting Heidenberger’s shot, and a minute later Varano makes it a personal double by mocking Intihar from a defiladed position. At 55:02 it was Mia Campo Bagatin who added to the list of scorers, making it 12-0 with which the contest ended.
