It was New Year’s Eve, and Molly Guenther gave the University School co-op girls’ hockey team something to celebrate besides the change to 2020. The sophomore scored a goal late in the third period to make a big difference for the Wildcats. Her goal earned them a 1-0 victory over Albert Lea High School of Albert Lea, Minnesota in the second round of the Open Division of the Herb Brooks Hockey Classic on Tuesday, December 31st at the National Sports Center in Blaine, MN.

Throughout the game, the Wildcats tried frequently to score more.  The shot totals demonstrated their domination of the game; they outshot the Tigers, 37-4.  Maddie Schneider, Albert Lea’s junior goalie, made it tough for her opponents from Wisconsin by making 36 saves.  Sami Stommel, the Wildcats’ goaltender, had a far easier time.  Stommel earned her second straight shutout in the tournament by stopping all 4 shots the Tigers put on net.

After the game, Stommel said, “I felt really proud of my team for getting a big win, and I was really glad that I could keep the shutout against Albert Lea, and yesterday against Arrowhead.”

Her teammates did all they could to get that big win.  They forechecked well, they back checked, they blocked shots, and they played solid defense in front of their sophomore goalie.

However, it wasn’t until the game had gone deep into the third period that the Wildcats finally made their determination pay off.

The difference maker began during a faceoff in the left corner of the Albert Lea zone.  Junior Zoe Neudorfer took the draw and won the puck back to junior Zoe Uihlein at the left point.  Uihlein fired the puck toward the net. As Guenther skated toward the net, she tipped it past Schneider for the game-winning goal at 10:34.

Guenther said, “It was a backhanded tip. My line worked together really well, and we were all very happy that it went in, and we could take the lead. It was super fun to get our second win of the tournament. I hope we can keep up the same energy and momentum for our next games.”

Maggie Meissner, one of the Wildcats’ captains, described her teammates’ efforts to attain the win, “As a team we continuously skated hard and executed our systems well. We played with grit and intensity, that drove us to our success.”

USM is now 3-6-2.  The Wildcats play Luverne High School of Luverne, MN in the final round of the Open Division of the Herb Brooks Hockey Classic at 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, January 1, 2020 at the National Sports Center in Blaine, MN.