Offense comes alive despite two weekend losses at Baraboo
MEDFORD-RIB LAKE GIRLS HOCKEY
Despite dropping two games in the Badger Lightning’s two-day triangular in Baraboo, the Medford Raiders girls hockey team showed some scoring punch that could serve them well as the new season gets rolling.
The Raiders scored eight goals while falling 11-3 on Friday to the Cedarburgbased Lakeshore Lightning Co-op and then pushed the Baraboo-based Badger Lightning Co-op to a 4-4 tie through two periods on Saturday before falling 7-5.
The defeats put the Raiders at 0-3 heading into back-to-back home games against the Black River Falls Co-op tonight, Thursday, at 7 p.m. and the Somerset- based Western Wisconsin Stars Co-op Friday in a game that follows a 5 p.m. boys game at the Simek Recreation Center.
Senior Emily Schafer scored four goals in Saturday’s close loss to the Badger Lightning, while Kyla Kennedy had a goal and two assists and Kiersten Crass added two assists in a productive day for the Raiders’ top scoring line.
Schafer’s power-play goal, assisted by Kristen Brandner, 11:34 into the opening period tied the game at 1-1 and Schafer’s unassisted goal just 53 seconds later gave Medford a 2-1 lead that lasted for 2:20. The Lightning’s Kayla Capener tied it at 14:47 and Emily Patton added a powerplay just 21 seconds later only 10 seconds after Crass was sent to the penalty box for tripping, giving the hosts a 3-2 lead.
Kaylee Engal’s goal 1:01 into the second period gave the Lightning a two-goal lead, but the Raiders hung tough after that, getting 13 saves in the period from Alex Nicks and scoring twice to even the game. Schafer got the first one at 8:31, assisted by Kennedy. Kennedy’s powerplay goal at 16:07 came with a Crass assist.
Unfortunately, the tie didn’t last long. Just 43 seconds into the third period, Bella Bowden scored the go-ahead goal for the Lightning with assists from Bailey Babcock and Capener. Mallory Ruhland and Capener added goals at 4:44 and 12:37 to make it 7-4 before Schafer got her fourth goal with 3:33 left in the game, assisted by Crass and Kennedy.
The Raiders got 22 of their 36 shots on net in the third period, but the Lightning’s Katlyin Elder stopped all but one of them. She got the win by collecting 31 saves. Nicks had 35 saves for Medford, 13 in the first period, 14 in the second and 15 in the third.
The Raiders scored on two of eight power-play chances, while the Lightning was one for four.
In Friday’s loss to Lakeshore, Medford was unable to recover from a four- spot the Lightning put up in the first period. Four different goal scorers opened up the big lead before Brandner, a junior, scored her first varsity goal with 25 seconds left in the period with an assist from Schafer.
Schafer’s goal 7:44 into the second period got Medford within 4-2, but Lightning got goals from Anna Gontarski at 9:38 and Alison Kellner at 15:25 to open up a 6-2 lead.
Lakeshore scored four more times before Kennedy assisted on Schafer’s goal with 59 seconds left in the game. Amy Erpenbeck then scored 19 seconds after that for Lakeshore to close the scoring.
Lakeshore outshot Medford 42-8 and was successful on both of its power plays. Medford had two power-play chances but was unable to convert. Nicks had 21 saves in two periods of work between the pipes. Freshman Saige Duesing had 10 saves on 15 shots in the third.
Gontarski had a hat trick for the Lightning and an assist while Kellner had two goals and three assists.
Lakeshore won the triangular by beating the Baraboo Co-op 5-2 later on Saturday afternoon.
