Packers charge past Tigers to keep season alive
Published 9:43 pm Wednesday, February 7, 2018
- Austin’s Kylee Hanlon plays the puck against the boards in the first period against Albert Lea in a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
The Austin girls hockey team was able to make some of its biggest plays of the year in the third period as it kept its season alive with a 6-3 win over Albert Lea in a Section 1A quarterfinal in Riverside Arena Wednesday night.
With the game tied at 2-2, Austin junior Jaiden Schuster came out skating as she found Kylee Hanlon for a pair of goals in the first five minutes of the third to put Austin up 4-2. Schuster added her third assist of the period when she found Jordyn McCormack, who put the puck through the pipes to put the Packers up 5-3 with 7:30 left.
“I was trying not to be selfish with the puck and I was just looking for people to pass to,” Schuster said. “We had a positive attitude, we worked together and we communicated. Talking in the locker room before the third period helped a lot.”
Austin’s Hannah McMasters guides the puck into the Albert Lea zone in the first period of a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night at Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Hanlon, a junior, hasn’t scored a lot of goals this season but she was able to stay alert when it mattered most against the Tigers (6-19 overall).
“It hasn’t really happened a lot and I haven’t had two goals in a game since I was in JV,” Hanlon said. “We were communicating way more on the ice than we usually have. The moment just kind of came to me and Jaiden definitely knows how to pass the puck.”
The Tigers held a 2-1 lead after Mia Fjelsta scored early in the second period for AL and Austin tied the game at 2-2 when Myia Hoium scored a power play goal with 4:09 left in the second.
Austin’s Jordyn McCormack attacks the Albert Lea zone during the first period of a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Freshman Shelby Davidson-Newkirk had 28 saves for Austin and Lily Holtz added two goals.
Austin head coach Carley Grunewald said she was glad how her team closed things out with the season on the line.
“I was a little nervous with how the first two periods went,” Grunewald said. “I was getting a little jittery in my shoes, but we made some changes and they didn’t give up.”
The Packers (9-15 overall) will take on top seeded Red Wing on the road Saturday at 7 p.m. The Wingers (21-4 overall) beat Austin 12-2 Jan. 18.
Austin’s Lily Holtz approaches the net during the first period against Albert Lea during a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night at Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
“It’s going to be a really tough game, but if we play hard enough we can win and keep going with the season,” Schuster said.
SCORING SUMMARY
RW 1 1 1 — 3
Austin 1 1 4 — 6
First period
(A) Lily Holtz 12:12
(AL) Maddy Carstens (Katie Steven) (power play) 14:57
Second period
(AL) Mia Fjelsta 1:11
(A) Myia Hoium (power play) (Jordyn McCormack) (power play) 12:51
Austin’s Alexis Stich fires a shot against Albert Lea in a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
Third period
(A) Kylee Hanlon (Jaiden Schuster, McCormack) 2:45
(A) Hanlon (Schuster) 5:20
(AL) Carstens 6:12
(A) McCormack (Schuster) 9:30
(A) Holtz 15:33
Shots: Austin — 40; AL — 31
Power play: Austin — 1-for-3; AL — 1-for-4
Austin’s Jaiden Schuster controls the puck along the boards during the first period of a Section 1A quarterfinal game Wednesday night in Riverside Arena. Eric Johnson/photodesk@austindailyherald.com
