The dawning of a new hockey season introduces new delights and shines the light on old ones. This was clearly the case when the Metro Lynx of Middleton and the Wildcats of the University School co-op began the 2018-19 girls’ hockey season in a non-conference game on Saturday, November 17th at the Madison Ice Arena in Madison.
The season began brightly for the Wildcats and their freshman goaltender, Sami Stommel. Stommel was solid and unyielding in the crease, and she blanked the Lynx, 4-0.
Commenting on the shutout in her first varsity game, Stommel said, “It's great. I was really nervous throughout the game. I really wanted the shutout. I'm so glad that's how I started the season.”
Stommel played brilliantly, stopping all 12 shots the Lynx put on her. No save was better than her very first one. Stommel faced a breakaway by junior Abby Ahlborn midway through the first period and cooly stopped the puck with a stick save.
At the opposite end of the rink, senior Gwen Parker also played well for the Lynx and their new head coach, Mike McKersie. Ably enduring the Wildcats’ onslaught, Parker turned aside 38 of the 42 shots her opponents fired at her.
The Wildcats played well all night in support of their goalie. Their coach, Dan Carey, beginning his second year at the team’s helm, commented on the team’s performance, “It was a nice win for the girls. They worked hard all week and moved the puck well as a team. It was fun to see contributions from all four classes and a nice shutout win for Sami.”
The Wildcats sparkled from the very start. They outshot the Lynx 8-1 in the first period, and scored on two of those shots.
Sophomore Jordan Bonk scored the first goal for the Wildcats. On a regroup in center ice, Bonk took a pass from junior Maggie Meissner and wheeled into the Lynx’s zone on the right side. Skating in on a one-on-one, Bonk used the Lynx defender as a screen and fired a five-hole shot through Parker just 4:55 into the season.
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Bonk said, “it felt great to finally shoot the puck. Shockingly my shot went in, and it got the team started off in the right direction.”
Later in the opening frame, the Wildcats scored their second goal while on a power play. Off a faceoff in the Lynx end, senior Gaby Turer got the puck on the left sideboards and passed it to the near point to senior defender Libby Hennelly. Hennelly smoothly moved the puck across the blue line to senior Jenna Klenz. Klenz one-timed a low shot past Parker at 12:20.
The Wildcats added two more goals in the second period.
At 3:24, Turer took a breakout pass from Hennelly then skated through center ice. As she moved across the Lynx’s line, she moved to the right. From the circle, she blazed a shot into the net, giving the Wildcats a substantial 3-0 lead.
Bonk scored her second goal of the game at 13:31. On another breakout play, senior defenseman Michaela Fritz moved the puck up the boards. It bounced off the foot of sophomore Eiley Sheahan to Bonk who was cutting across the rink just outside the blue line. Bonk described how the play proceeded, “Michaela had a great pass off the boards to me, and I picked it up in center ice and skated it in. I beat the defenseman wide on the right and shot bar down.”
Smiling and surprised at her two-goal performance, Bonk went on to say, “I loved the feeling of being able to help the team. I don’t shoot enough; maybe I should shoot more often”.
The third period was scoreless. With a good lead, Carey gave newcomers to the varsity more ice time, while McKersie urged his players to play their best. The Lynx picked up their efforts. They fired 10 shots in the final period, but Stommel was like wall of blue granite and stopped them all. Her teammates moved the puck from danger after each attempt and held on so they could board the bus back to Milwaukee with a victory.
After the win, Klenz, one of the team’s captains, indicated the reason the Wildcats glowed on the ice, “I think we worked well together as a team. I know that, as a whole, we were all pretty nervous with the new lines, and it being our first game. But I think that right when we stepped onto the ice, we just fell into our rhythm and worked cohesively as a team.”
The Lynx are now 0-1 and 0-0 in the Badger Conference. They player the Badger Lightning at the Pierce Park Pavilion in Baraboo at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Novewmber 20th.
The Wildcats are 1-0 and 0-0 in the Eastern Shores Conference. They play next on Friday, November 23rd in the opening round of the annual Gobbler Cup Tournament at the Mosinee Recreation Center in Mosinee. The Wildcats take on the Central Wisconsin Storm in a non-conference game scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m.
