BOISE, Idaho — Jocelyne Larocque scored less than 4 minutes into the game, Sarah Nurse added a goal midway through the first period and Canada cruised to a 4-1 win over the United States on Sunday to take a 2-1 lead in the five-game Rivalry Series.
Emerance Maschmeyer had 36 saves for Canada.
Kristin O’Neill scored a goal in the second period and Emily Clark capped the scoring with 3:55 to play.
Laila Edwards scored for the U.S. to trim the deficit to 3-1 with about 6 minutes remaining.
The teams faced off for the third time — in three different cities — in five days. The United States won the opener 7-2 on Wednesday in San Jose, California, and Canada tied the series Friday with 5-4 shootout victory in Salt Lake City.
The final two games will be played in Canada in February.
The 36-year-old Larocque, the oldest player in the series this year, cleaned up a scramble in front of the net to open the scoring with 16:30 left in the first period and Canada led the rest of the way.
