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The Black River Falls Tigers knocked on the Fond du Lac door 49 times on Friday night and 48 times they got no answer. Kennedy Kohlman who has established herself as one of the state’s premier goaltenders, acting as the Warbirds doorman, refused all but one puck to enter her net as the Warbirds battled to a 1-1 tie with Tigers.

For Black River Falls it was their fifth straight road game of the season and the fourth time in five games that they have scored two or less goals. And for the Warbirds it was their third game in four days. The fatigue was visible in the play of Fond du Lac in the first period and the Tigers lopsided offensive zone possession that generated a thirteen to four shots advantage. Tiger forward Reanne Long had two good chances, both off strong forechecks, from inside the right circle. With under six minutes in the period, Allison Ritter stepped in front of a Warbird breakout pass and tapped a pass to Chloe Noth between the hash marks. Noth’s shot was stopped by Kohlman and she also denied Ritter’s rebound attempt.

“Kohlman played fantastic,” said Tiger’s head coach Brady Mathison, “just gotta tip your cap to her.”

With the clock ticking under a minute, defenseman Camryn Steele’s shot from the left point was blocked by Brenalyn Goetz ricocheting into the neutral zone and sending Goetz on a breakaway. The freshman winger went to her backhand and slid the puck past Lexi Moore for a surprising 1-0 Warbirds lead as the period ended.

The 5:04 mark of the second period offered the Warbirds a prime opportunity to extend their lead when Mara Noth was called for a five-minute major. It was the first Fondy powerplay of the game. While Kennedy had been busy protecting the Warbirds net, it was now Brooklyn, her twin sisters turn to create havoc in front of the Tigers net. The net front cage match eventually landed Kohlman in the box for roughing, cutting the Warbirds powerplay short.

Another of the state’s most impressive sophmores finally solved Kohlman at 5:29 of the third period. Piper Mathison poached a neutral zone pass, stepped around the defenseman and found the smallest of holes above Kohlman’s left shoulder where she surgically placed the game tying goal. Later in the period, Mathison showcased her acceleration splitting two Warbirds at her own blueline, then turning the defenseman inside-out, getting in alone on Kohlman. Her backhand attempt was shoveled aside and the game remained tied after 34 minutes.

Fondy got their best chance to end the game in the third period when Dana Jacobson and Aubry Quinn got free for a 2 on1 rush late in the period. Warbird captain Maddy Gilson chipped the puck past the Tiger’s defenseman sending Jacobson in on the left wing. Mathison stayed patient between the two attackers and was able to disrupt Jacobson’s pass to Quinn.

Long, got another good look, launching a slap shot from the top of the left circle that Kohlman got a piece of with her outstretched glove and Lydia Kehren fired a rebound from a Noth shot that Kohlman also gloved. The period ended 1-1 and the teams headed to overtime. Black River Falls is no stranger to overtime, having played seven a year ago. “We play a lot of them that’s for sure,” Mathison reminded. “The referee was trying to argue with me that there isn’t a five-minute 3 on 3 after the eight-minute frame. I told him to trust me, we know.” 

The marathon continued with an eight-minute overtime that included another five-minute major on the Tigers, followed by a five minute 3 on 3 overtime, that ended up being 4 on 3 and 4 on 4. They played the last 4:10 of the second overtime without a whistle. Kohlman was fantastic through the OT’s adding another 12 saves to her total. BRF’s Alexa Lowe got the chance to be a hero when she got in alone, but Kohlman shut the door one last time.

I asked Coach Mathison about getting two five-minute majors in the same game. A scenario that would likely send a few coaches into an emotional meltdown. But to his credit Mathison never argued or showed concern over the calls. “We talk to the girls a lot about controlling what we can control and don’t get caught up in distractions,” Mathison explained. “We do need to clean up our penalties though as we average ten minutes a game shorthanded.” With Mathison and Steele on the blueline and Moore in net, the Tiger’s penalty kill has been perfect.

Moore finished with 19 saves for the Tigers. Credit to both coaching staffs for staying with their third lines for much of the game. With the extra 13 minutes of overtime, the extra legs were needed.

“I thought our team played well from start to finish and controlled the game which was the pregame ask,” said Mathison. Is he worried about his teams 1-3-1 start? “We have the exact same record this year as last year at this point.  We are an effort and process group.  We would’ve liked a different result tonight, but we told them we were proud of the effort they gave, continue putting in the work on the stickhandling, passing, shooting, and scoring drills and thanked them for the day.”

It was a spectators treat to watch these two teams go at it on a Friday night at the Blue Line Family Center in Fond du Lac. Another testament to the quality of high school hockey in Wisconsin. I enjoyed every minute, even the extra ones.

• Three Stars of the Game: 1-K.Kohlman, 2-Mathison, 3-Long
• Blue Collar: FD-Dogs, BRF-C.Noth