The Western Mustangs earned their first three wins of the season with lopsided wins over UOIT, Guelph and Queen's Sept. 25-26 in Waterloo, Ont.

Nicole Pullen and Lauren Crape combined for 30 points on the weekend, while rookie goalie Cait Mancuso again looked like a veteran in the pipes according to Western head coach Dave Hastings, earning all three wins.

In the first game, Western hammered the UOIT Ridgebacks 18-4.

Pullen of Orangeville, Ont., led the Mustangs with five goals, while Crape, a junior national team player from Calgary, had four goals and an assist.

Freshman Rebecca Watson and Emmi Morris added three goals each in the win, while Beth Turowec added a pair.

Western built a 6-0 lead 14 minutes into the game and took a 10-2 lead into the half. Subbing in players in the second, they outscored the Ridgebacks 8-2 in the second half to win 18-4.

"It was a great game to build confidence in our offense and execute new tactics on both sides of the ball," says Mustangs head coach Dave Hastings. "The ladies worked hard from start to finish and we were please with their play down the stretch."

In their second game of the weekend on Sunday morning, Western's offence performed admirably in a 17-4 win over Guelph.

Once again, Pullen led Western in scoring with six goals and three helpers. Crape added four goals, while Larissa Boychuk, Turowec and Morris scored twice each.

Considering that Guelph had defeated Laurier the week before to establish their program as up and coming, Hastings said his players "were a little nervous going into this game." 

"We just were not sure how much Guelph improved," he said.

After giving up the first goal, the Mustangs scored seven unanswered to take a 10-2 lead into the half. Western continued to apply offensive pressure, and in the last 10 minutes ran a spread offense to draw Guelph out defensively and capitalized to finish 17-4.

"It was great to see the offence come alive and explode," Hastings said. "We have been working hard on it and it keeps getting better."

"We did a great job with our midfield control and our defense," Hastings said. "Although Guelph carried the offence early, our defence was relentless and our transition game was excellent off turnovers."

In the final game of the weekend, the Mustangs came from behind to defeat Queens' 14-5 - a team they tied 9-9 earlier in the season.

Pullen led Western with four goals, whle Boychuk added two goals and two assists. Fresham Kristen Stafford also netted a pair, while Crape had two goals and a helper.

Queen's started the scoring after 7 minutes in what looked like a low scoring defensive affair. 

Western tied the game at 2-2 with 10 minutes left in the first half and then pulled ahead 4-3 and scored a late first-half goal to extend the lead to 5-3 at the half. 

The Mustangs scored in the first 30 seconds of the second half, the first of three unanswered goals. 

Defence once again set the tone that no comeback's would happen as Laura Robinson continually shut down Queens best attacker Jackie Byers who was held to one goal. 

Mancuso was outstanding making 15 saves

"It was great to see Nicole lead the way this weekend and equally great to see the balanced scoring and the strong defense," Hastings says. "When we put all aspects together we have success. The key is staying consistent and continuing to develop and improve." 

The Mustangs host Guelph (1 p.m.) and McMater (5 p.m.) at the Huron Flats Fields (behind TD Waterhouse Stadium) on Saturday Oct. 9.

The final two weekends before the tournament are Oct. 17 in Toronto and Oct. 23-24 in Guelph, Ont., and Waterloo, Ont.