by Scott DCamp
Sports Editor
The Thief River Falls girls hockey team extended its winning streak to three games with home wins over Sartell/Sauk Rapids Friday night and Delano/Rockford Saturday afternoon.
Thief River Falls defeated Sartell/Sauk Rapids in a back and forth offensive game Friday night. The Prowlers dominated the Storm’n Sabres statistically, with a 42-18 advantage in shots on goal.
The Prowlers led 2-0 on goals by Alexis Sawatzke, who scored at the 4:42 mark in the first period, and Brynn Hennen, who found the net halfway through the second.
The Storm’n Sabres bounced back to tie the game with goals by Abby Swanson and Cameron Lane early in the third period.
The Prowlers answered quickly, regaining the lead on Sawatzke’s second goal of the night and third of the season just 25 seconds after Lane’s goal.
The Storm’n Sabres tied the score again just past the midway point of the third period, with Swanson scoring again to make it 3-3.
The Prowlers went up 5-3 on a pair of goals by Ella Breiland. Breiland’s first goal came with 8:06 remaining and the second came 1:10 later.
The Storm’n Sabres weren’t done yet. With just under six minutes remaining, Natalie Steinberg scored to make the score 5-4.
The score remained 5-4 into the final minute of the game when the Storm’n Sabres pulled goaltender Abby Massmann in favor of a sixth skater. The Prowlers took advantage, with Charleigh Hamre scoring the empty net goal to effectively clinch the 6-4 win for the Prowlers.
“I thought it was a game that we dominated in the first two periods but let them stick around,” said Thief River Falls Head Coach Brett Johnson. “We had several opportunities to put the game away but couldn’t get the puck to go in. I also thought their goaltender played really well. With that being said, it was great to see the girls respond in an adverse situation. Being up 2-0, them tying it up 2-2, and then going back and forth 3-2, 3-3, and then two goals from Ella Breiland and an empty netter by Charleigh Hamre.
“I think our scoring can come from anywhere. With our depth this year, I feel that any one of our three lines can play against almost any line. But it is nice to not have to rely on one line or a couple of girls to put the puck away. I feel that all of our athletes have the ability to put the puck in the net. We had five girls with two points that night – Sawatzke, [Rowan] Kennett, Hamre, Hennen, Breiland.”
The Prowlers controlled the puck for most of Saturday’s game against the Delano/Rockford Tigers, outshooting the Tigers 27-9 in the 2-1 win.
The Prowlers and Tigers traded first period goals, with Hamre finding the net just 1:18 into the game and Sydney Connor answering for the Tigers halfway through the period.
The score remained 1-1 going into the third, with Grace Knutson taking a pass from goaltender McKenna Carr and scoring the go-ahead goal with 8:38 remaining.
“We had several opportunities to put the puck in the net and did not execute on those opportunities allowing them to stay in the game so to speak,” Johnson said. “Again, I thought their goalie played well. After the game and speaking to their coach he said, ‘Wow, your group just keeps coming and coming,’ meaning from one line to the next there is not a whole lot of difference between them. I think that is one of the best compliments you can receive as a team.”
The Prowlers are 4-2 through six games, scoring 4.3 goals per game and allowing 2.8 goals per game.
“We have depth, we have speed, we are gritty, and we have a willingness to learn,” Johnson said. “Very pleased with the start of the season and we will continue to get better and better each and every day.”
Scoring
1 2 3 T
Sartell/Sauk Rapids 0 0 4 4
Thief River Falls 1 1 4 6
First period – TRF, Alexis Sawatzke (even strength) (Kiptyn Anderson) 4:42.
Second period – TRF, Brynn Hennen (Charleigh Hamre) 8:27.
Third period – SSR, Abby Swanson (Faith Torborg, Shelby Omvig) 2:44; SSR, Cameron Lane (unassisted) 6:23; TRF, Alexis Sawatzke (Grace Knutson) 6:48; SSR, Abby Swanson (Faith Torborg) 8:39; TRF, Ella Breiland (Rowan Kennett) 8:54; TRF, Ella Breiland (Rowan Kennett, Brynn Hennen) 10:04; SSR, Natalie Steinberg (Shelby Omvig) 11:05; TRF, Charleigh Hamre (unassisted) (empty net)16:44.
Shots – Sartell/Sauk Rapids 6-4-8 – 18; Thief River Falls 10-14-18 – 42.
Power plays – SSR 2 (4 minutes); TRF 1 (2 minutes).
Goalie saves – SSR, Abby Massmann 36; TRF, McKenna Carr 14.
Scoring
1 2 3 T
Delano/Rockford 1 0 0 1
Thief River Falls 1 0 1 2
First period – TRF, Charleigh Hamre (Lila Dalager) 1:18; D/R, Sydney Connor (Gwenyth Beck) 8:27.
Second period – No Score
Third period – TRF, Grace Knutson (power play) (McKenna Carr) 8:22.
Shots – Delano/Rockford 5-2-2 – 9; Thief River Falls 13-7-7 – 27.
Power plays – D/R 0-for-3; TRF 1-for-2
Penalties – D/R 4 (8 minutes; TRF 6 (12 minutes).
Goalie saves – D/R, Savannah Geyen 25; TRF, McKenna Carr 8.
Scoring
1 2 3 T
SSR JV 0 0 0 0
TRF JV 1 1 1 3
First period – TRF, Kaitlyn Jahn (Jillian LaRoque) 14:02.
Second period – TRF, AJ Brateng (Halle Seeger) 11:35.
Third period – TRF, Ava Barrett (Halle Seeger) 9:53.
Shots – SSR 7-6-1 – 14; TRF 9-13-10 – 32.
Power plays – SSR 0-for-1; TRF 1-for-4.
Penalties – SSR 4 (8 minutes); TRF 1 (2 minutes).
Goalie saves – SSR 29; TRF, Claire Munter 14.
Scoring
1 2 3 T
Delano/Rockford JV 0 1 0 1
TRF JV 1 1 1 3
First period – TRF, Abby Seeger (Jillian LaRoque) 3:19.
Second period – D/R, Meredith Van Bergen (Andelyn Streich) 0:42; TRF, Halle Seeger (Mable Hinrichs, Aubrey Payment) 10:59.
Third period – TRF, Halle Seeger (Aubrey Payment) 3:45.
Shots – D/R 0-1-1 – 2; TRF 7-10-10 – 27.
Power plays – D/R 0-for-2; TRF 0-for-4.
Penalties – D/R 4 (8 minutes); TRF 2 (4 minutes).
Goalie saves – D/R 24; TRF, Faith Hartmann 2.
Greater Minnesota
Conf. overall pts
Bemidji 3-0-0 5-0-0 6
Roseau 2-1-0 4-2-0 4
Moorhead 1-0-0 3-2-0 2
East Grand Forks 1-2-0 3-2-0 2
Thief River Falls 1-2-0 4-2-0 2
Warroad 0-0-0 3-1-0 0
Crookston 0-3-0 1-4-0 0
Results
■ Tuesday, Nov. 18 – Bemidji 4, Roseau 1; East Grand Forks 2, Crookston 1.
■ Thursday, Nov. 20 – Moorhead 4, Crookston 0.
■ Friday, Nov. 21 – Holy Family 4, Warroad 3; Roseau 4, Buffalo 1; Thief River Falls 6, Sartell/Sauk Rapids 4.
■ Saturday, Nov. 22 – Roseau 5, Sartell/Sauk Rapids 1; Bemidji 4, Buffalo 1; Thief River Falls 2, Delano/Rockford 1; Warroad 3, River Lakes 1; Crookston 3, Legacy/Bismarck (ND) 2.