Great Britain put in a fighting performance but were defeated 4-0 by top seeds Austria at the Women’s Under 18 World Cup Division I Group B in Katowice.
GB were promoted from Division II last season with five wins from five, while Austria were relegated from the second tier.
Netminder Evelyn Brown started between the pipes and made no fewer than 38 saves.
After a scoreless first session, Florentina Rumpl drove the net to put Austria ahead early in the second period (20:20).
Emma Lintner skated cleanly across the front of the crease to score on the power play (31:28) and Rumpl cut in from the left to score her second goal (44:07).
Austria scored below par thanks to the great determination of Johanna Sintschnig, who set up Lintner for her second of the afternoon (58:52).
GB are back in action against Spain tomorrow (Tuesday, January 6). The showdown is at 8pm (7pm GMT).
Click here for complete stats and results on the IIHF tournament website.
All matches can be followed via a live webcast which is for sale here.
EN Schedule and results
Monday January 5: Great Britain 0-4 Austria
Tuesday January 6: Spain v Great Britain 20:00 (19:00 GMT)
Thursday January 8: Great Britain vs China 8:00 PM (7:00 PM GMT)
Saturday January 10: Poland vs Great Britain 4:30 PM (3:30 PM GMT)
Sunday January 11: Australia vs Great Britain 1:00 PM (12:00 GMT)
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