The last time the top-seed Tomahawk Hatchets qualified for the WIAA Boys State High School Hockey Tournament was 1991, well before anybody on the current Hatchet roster was born. But that was the goal of the Hatchets on Saturday at the Mosinee City Recreation Center where they took on third-seed Mosinee, the reigning section two champions in division two.

For Hatchets fans, the 2024 version of the team did not disappoint, dismantling the host school Mosinee to the tune of an 8-2 running time victory.

Austin Lamer opened the scoring for the Hatchets with a laser of a wrist shot from the point through traffic and into the net just 2:27 into the first period. Sawyer Hanna added a rebound goal at the 5:52 mark on a Carson Childers shot to make it 2-0 for Tomahawk early in the first period.

Lamer extended the lead to three goals on the power play at the 11:18 mark before Mosinee finally answered back with a goal of their own. Also on the power play, Lukas Neuwirt got Mosinee on the board at the 13:56 mark of the first period with assists from Isaac Lewens and Daniel DeCaluwe.

Unfortunately for Mosinee, Tomahawk added an end-of-the-period back-breaker when Logan Seymour knocked in a rebound to make it 4-1 Tomahawk after the first period. Tomahawk outshot Mosinee 15-10 in the period and looked markedly faster through the entire frame.

The host school played much stronger defense in the second, limiting Tomahawk to just one coal, another from Seymour on a hard cut across the front of the net to make it 5-1. Shots in the second were 12-6 in favor of the Hatchets.

Mosinee started the third period on the power play and Neuwirt put in his second power-play goal of the game on a feed from Elliot Yirkovsky to give Mosinee a shot of adrenaline to start the third period and cut the lead to 5-2.

But Tomahawk would score the next three goals, at 5:25, 11:08 and 11:46 to put the game into running time.

Austin Lamer lead the way for Tomahawk with three goals an an assist. Jonah Dickens had two goals and three assists. Logan Seymour had two goals and an assist, and Sawyer Hanna had a goal and assist to account for all eight Tomahawk goals. Goalie Trevor Seliskar had 21 saves in the win.

Lukas Neuwirt had both goals for Mosinee, with assists going to Isaac Lewens, Elliot Yirkovsky, and Daniel DeCaluwe. Aiden Karst stopped 30 shots in the loss, and Andrew Lingl recorded the final two saves for Mosinee.