TORINO, Italy -- Forward Sarah Parsons (Dover, Mass.) had two goals and an assist to help the U.S. Olympic Women’s Ice Hockey Team earn its second straight shutout and improve to 2-0 at the XX Olympic Winter Games with a 5-0 win over Germany tonight. At 18 years old, Parsons is the youngest member of Team USA.
“It was a good win for our team,” said Ben Smith, head coach of Team USA. “We showed a lot of determination and I give Germany credit as well. I thought they played hard throughout the game.”
Jenny Potter (Edina, Minn.) opened the scoring for Team USA at 4:45 of the opening stanza when she fired a backhanded shot into the upper corner with the U.S. on the power play. Katie King (Salem,N.H.) upped the U.S. lead to two when she re-directed Potter’s shot low to the near-side of German goaltender Jennifer Harss with Team USA up a man.
Less than two minutes into the second period, Parsons made it 3-0 when she took an Angela Ruggiero (Harper Woods, Mich.) pass at the doorstep and went high to the short side. Natalie Darwitz (Eagan, Minn.) struck next when she re-directed a Parsons shot high to the near side at 9:57.
Just past the midpoint of the final session, Parsons scored her second of the night when she carried the puck in low and pushed it just inside the near post to account for the 5-0 final margin.
Pam Dreyer (Anchorage, Alaska), who made her Olympic debut, gained the shutout in goal for Team USA with 10 saves.
Notes: Jenny Potter leads the team with six points (2-4) in two games ... Sarah Parsons scored her first two Olympic goals and added an assist in the game ... Team USA outshot Germany by a 60-10 count in the game and has outshot its first two opponents in the Olympic Winter Games by a 116-19.