skip navigation

Rock County Works Overtime for Road Win at Medford

By Dan Bauer, WiPH Staff, 02/02/25, 11:15AM CST

Share

Clinging to a 3-2 lead, Medford goalie Chloe Pipkorn made save after save as the clock ran down on Senior Night at the Simek Recreation Center in Medford Friday night. Twice the Fury rang shots off the pipe and with two minutes to play Pipkorn made a huge point-blank pad save on Rock County forward Sophia Ferrera. It seemed a Raiders victory was looming.  

With fifteen seconds remaining the Fury’s Maizy Fonseca won a draw to the boards, where the Raiders tried to clear. Defenseman Sophia Young held the point and Fonesca sent a puck toward the Medford net. Pipkorn made the save, but the rebound slipped away. The Fury’s Ava Kilgora got around the Raiders defenseman and put the rebound into a yawning net to tie the game with only five seconds remaining.

At 1:37 of the second overtime, Rock County’s Fonseca ended it with a come-from-behind overtime game winner. Pipkorn, who has made tremendous progress since the beginning of the season, finished with thirty-nine saves, her second highest game total of the season.

The Fury arrived in Medford set to play their third game in four days, without their starting goalie. Piper Aaker was injured in a loss to Beaver Dam on Thursday night. With no regular back-up on the roster, Fury Head Coach Luke Steurer, sent emergency goalie, defenseman Emma Peck to the net. The sophomore from Milton High School did just enough, making eighteen saves, including nine in a scoreless first period.

Steurer praised Peck for stepping into a tough spot. “I'm sure she was very nervous the whole game, but she had fun with it,” he said.  “Emma did a great job of keeping us in there and doing everything she could to stop the puck. It is great to see her step into it to help the team out.”

Rock County began to turn the game in period two when the Raiders took three penalties. Kilgora scored her first of the game at 14:08 of the second to give the Fury a 1-0 lead. Medford’s Zayleah Leonhardt tied it with her eleventh goal of the season. Twenty seconds later Fonseca put the Fury back up 2-1 with her first of the game. The Fury outshot Medford 9-2 in the period.

Raiders senior, and Head Coach Tasha Schmidtfranz’s daughter, Grace tied it back up at 15:35 of the third. Then on a powerplay with just under ten minutes to play Megan Schaefer put Medford on top 3-2. Rock County turned up the heat and swarmed the Raiders net over the final nine minutes. Kilgora and Macy Murphy each rang the pipe as the Fury pressed the offensive zone.

Rock County’s offense generated twenty-two shots in the third period and two overtimes. “We talked about controlling the puck and not just throwing it around,” Steurer said. “I thought we started doing a better job in the third period and I think it really showed when we went six on five to try to tie it up. The girls did a great job at possessing the puck and controlling it into their (Medford) zone.”

It looked like Pipkorn had the all the answers, until Kilgora found the net with a mere five seconds remaining, for her fourteenth goal of the year. The Rock County win halted a four-game losing streak.

Saturday, the Fury would play their fourth game in five days finishing their stretch with a trip further north to face 2nd ranked Superior.

Between the second and third periods, Raider Head Coach Tasha Schmidtfranz gave glowing and heartfelt accounts of her six seniors. It was an emotional tribute to seniors Emily Kiselicka, Victoria Konieczny, Taltn Peterson, Carly Koski, Megan Schaefer and daughter Grace. The game also marked the return of Raiders forward, junior Ava Hartl, who returned from and ACL injury.

“Senior night was tough for me this year,” she admitted. “This is a group of ladies I know the most, being in the same class as my daughter. I don’t believe it has all fully hit me. I tried to keep it together, but I couldn’t.”

This was the third Red Raiders game I have covered this season. Those who think good and entertaining high school hockey only comes from the top-rated teams, are sadly mistaken. Each of the three games was highly entertaining, emotionally charged and went right to the wire with two going into double overtime. Don’t let won-loss records fool you, these girls come to play with the same energy and emotion of every other team in the state.

Even in the face of an emotional loss, on an emotional Senior Night, Schmidtfranz remains steadfast in her plan, “It was another great game, we just keep building and building,”  

 

Three Stars of the Game

1-RC-Peck, 2-MD-Pipkorn, 3-RC-Kilgora/Fonseca

Blue Collar: RC-Bierman, MD-Schaefer

 

 

WiPH Game Summaries