Frankel and Brandt Heroics: Fleet Outlast Torrent in Seattle Shootout

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SEATTLE, WA — In a goaltending duel that brought the crowd of 12,774 at Climate Pledge Arena to its feet, the Boston Fleet narrowly defeated the Seattle Torrent 2-1 in a shootout on Sunday night.

Despite being heavily outshot by the expansion Torrent, the league-leading Fleet relied on the brilliance of Aerin Frankel and a clutch shootout finish from Hannah Brandt to secure their third victory over Seattle this season.

The Stats That Mattered

Feature	Boston Fleet	Seattle Torrent
Goals (Reg/OT)	1	1
Shots on Goal	21	36
Power Plays	1/2	0/3
Saves	35 (Frankel)	20 (Schroeder)
Shootout	1/5 (Winner)	0/5

Game Recap: A Defensive Masterclass

1st Period: Special Teams Strike Early

The Fleet struggled to find their offensive rhythm early, going over ten minutes without a shot on goal to start the game. However, they capitalized when it mattered most. At 12:28, during a 5-on-3 advantage, captain Megan Keller fired a one-timer past Corinne Schroeder for her league-leading fourth power-play goal of the year.

2nd Period: The Torrent Surge

Seattle, inspired by a pre-game visit from Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, dominated possession in the middle frame. At 5:47, Julia Gosling found a “silent spot” in the slot and hammered home a slick pass from Brooke Bryant to tie the game at 1-1. It was Gosling’s 10th point of the season, a team high.

3rd & Overtime: The Frankel Show

The final 25 minutes of play belonged to Aerin Frankel. Seattle poured on the pressure, but Frankel was impenetrable, making 35 saves in regulation and overtime—including a point-blank stop on a late Torrent power play that extended Seattle’s scoreless streak with an extra skater to 17.

The Shootout: Brandt Seals It

After four rounds of scoreless shootout attempts, Hannah Brandt stepped up for her second try in the fifth round. Reading Schroeder’s movement, Brandt found the back of the net, while Frankel punctuated her night by stopping all five Seattle attempts to secure the extra point.

Voices from the Locker Room

Hannah Brandt (BOS): “I kind of read as I was going out. Coach [Sparre] said, ‘go win it for us.’ We needed the shootout. Aerin was standing on her head all game, in the shootout, and she deserved that. I had to do this for Aerin and the rest of our team.”

Julia Gosling (SEA): “I just came off the bench, found that little silent spot and saw Brooke had the puck – she made a great pass to me, and I hit the one-timer. I was practicing those [one-timers] recently, so I was ready for it and just beat Frankel there. It was cool that it happened right after Malala was shown in the stands. She talked to us before the game and we all felt pretty inspired, so maybe that helped with our game today. We felt great out there and it was an honor to have her here and have her speak to us. She’s a huge inspiration for all women, so I was honored to see her and meet her at our game today.”

Kris Sparre (BOS Coach): “We commit to blocking shots. We’re really good at that, but when there’s a breakdown, we have Aerin Frankel in the net. Your best penalty killer is your goaltender. We’ve done a good job of committing to an identity on our penalty kill which kind of bleeds into the way we want to play five-on-five.”

Standings Impact

With the win, the Boston Fleet (28 pts) extends its lead at the top of the PWHL standings to six points over the New York Sirens. The Seattle Torrent (13 pts) earned a single point for the shootout loss, leaving them tied with Vancouver for seventh place as the league approaches the Olympic break.

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