TORONTO - The Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) Bold women's hockey team dropped their penultimate game of the regular season on Thursday, falling 5-1 to the No. 2 nationally ranked Toronto Varsity Blues.

The Blues didn't waste long to show why they've been one of the best teams in U SPORTS all season long. Toronto notched two goals in 1:35 to take a 2-0 lead less than six minutes into the game.

The Blues extended the lead to three with their second powerplay marker of the night with 2:55 remaining in the opening frame.

The Bold responded in the second period as Dani Fox's fifth goal of the season — a powerplay marker assisted by Erika Crouse and Emily Baxter — cut the deficit to just two. 

That was as close as the Bold would come however, as the Blues added two more in the early stages of the third to help them snap a two-game losing skid and move to 22-2-2 this season — best in the OUA.

Meanwhile, the loss for the Bold means they remain in fourth spot in the OUA East Division. TMU had the chance to lock up a spot in the postseason with a win tonight at Varsity Arena. Instead, the Bold will shift their attention to Saturday night at the Mattamy Athletic Centre. 

The 10-12-4 TMU will play host to the Queen's Gaels, who currently sit one-point up on the Bold for third-place in the OUA East. 

Trailing TMU and Gaels is the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks, who need to pick up wins in their final pair of regular-season games on Friday and Saturday night in order to punch their ticket to the postseason. A Ridgebacks loss on Friday night against the York Lions would guarantee a Bold return to the playoffs.

TMU will also honour a batch of soon to be graduates on Saturday night, as Madison Lalonde, Dani Fox, Olivia Giardetti, Brooklyn Gemmill, Claire Banks, Erika Crouse and Alexia Ursua all will suit up in their final regular-season games of their OUA careers. 

Puck drop is scheduled for 6:15 p.m.