Phillips’ hat trick leads 14U WEHL squad to win

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) 14U SouthCentral Girls team wrapped up its 12-game regular season splitting a pair of games against the NorthEast/NorthCentral squad at the Lake Delton Ice Arena.

After winning a wild offensive battle 7-4 to start the two-game set Sunday morning, the SouthCentral team had trouble finding the mesh the second one, dropping a 2-1 decision.

A four-goal flurry for SouthCentral turned a 2-0 deficit into a 4-4 draw by the start of the third and three more unanswered goals in the final frame lifted them to the win.

Leading the way on offense was Anna Phillips (Black River Falls) with three goals and Julia Purinton (Madison Mavericks) notched a pair. Ella Knapp (Madison Mavericks) collected a goal and two assists, the other goal scored by Shelby King (Wisconsin TNT/Wisconsin Blue Devils AAA).

Defender Tahni Barger from the Sauk Prarie Flyers/Monkeys and Wildcat Youth Hockey and Payton O’Neill (TNT/Blue Devils)set up a pair of SouthCentral goals with other assists for Phillips, Purinton and Carolina Cutrano (Mavericks).

The second game was the opposite as SouthCentral opened the scoring early in the second period as Knapp set up Purinton’s third of the day, but this time the visitors struck back with a trying goal early in the third and a game winner with 6:20 to go.

Also in the lineup for SouthCentral in this one and for the entire season was Sarah Hash from the Sauk Prairie Flyers/Monkeys and Wisconsin Jr. Stars along with Paige Othmer (RWD/Badger Lightning/Blue Devils) on defense and forward Reese Olson from Baraboo/Portage Thunderbirds/Badger Lightning/Blue Devils AAA.

A goal Celebration from earlier this season. SouthCentral had plenty to celebrate in the first game, but had troubles on offense in the getaway game against NorthEast/NorthCentral on Sunday at the Lake Delton Ice Arena.

The split in the final series leaves SouthCentral with a 3-6-3 record in WEHL contests and a 7-6-3 record overall.

The four teams from the 14U Division will compete in the championship tournament this weekend at Blue Line Family Ice Center in Fond du Lac.

SouthCentral will face off against SouthEast in its first game Saturday at 9:45 a.m. In its previous four meetings with SouthEast, the local side owned a 1-2-1 record, but they haven’t faced each other in over a month.

Second game at 6:30 p.m. Saturday will see the local squad taking on the Western team which it has yet to defeat, tying once and dropping the other three.

On Sunday at 11:45 a.m. SouthCentral will wrap it up against NorthEast/NorthCentral who they hold a 2-1-1 record against this season.

Three point game for Olson in WEHL meeting

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The SouthCentral 14U Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) team saw its longest undefeated string of the season end after seven games but also saw some improvement over early matches against the Western squad in a pair of games at the United Civic Center Ice Arena in Baldwin.

After scoring the first two and final two goals in a 4-4 draw to extend its streak in the opening match despite being outshot, the Western side rallied back from an early deficit again in the second match, this time extending it to a 3-1 final.

The same two teams met in Verona at the end of August, Western handing the South Central squad 3-1 and 6-0 defeats.

Reese Olson from Baraboo (Badger Lightning/Blue Devils AAA) played a big role in the first contest, shaking off some physical play to score the first two SouthCentral goals and she also set up Leah Grudzinski (Wisconsin Mavericks) to get the team within one later in the contest.

Reese Olson slams the puck home past the Western goaltender in the first of two games at Baldwin Sunday with teammate Maizy Fonseca ready for a rebound.

Other Sauk County representation on the team includes defenders Tahni Barger (Sauk Monkeys, Wildcat Youth Hockey/Sauk Flyers); Sarah Hash (Sauk Flyers/Sauk Monkeys/Wisconsin Jr. Stars) and Paige Othmer (RWD Cheavers/Badger Lightning/Blue Devils AAA).

Anna Phillips (Black River Falls) scored the equalizer for SouthCentral in the third period to complete the comeback.

Leah Grudzinski celebrates her goal for the SouthCentral squad with Abby Hollfelder.

Outshot again in the second contest, SouthCentral kept the game scoreless until Caroline Cutrano (Madison Mavericks) found the net to put SouthCentral in front again. A shorthanded goal pulled the Western side even and that shifted the momentum back to Western who fired two more unanswered goals to wrap up the win.

The weekend results dropped SouthCentral to 2-5-3 in league play and 6-5-3 overall. The Regional squad will enjoy a week off this weekend, then return to the Lake Delton Ice Arena October 24 for a pair of matches against the NorthCentral/NorthEast team.

Paige Othmer of the SouthCentral (red jersey) squad takes away a scoring opportunity for a player from the Western team during the first of their two games in Baldwin Sunday.

Reese Olson (forward by boards, Tahni Barger (15) and Sarah Hash are in position for a faceoff just outside the Western blue line during their second game in Baldwin Sunday.

This board meeting was part of the physical contests between the SouthCentral (red) and Western (blue) WEHL teams played in Baldwin on Sunday. SouthCentral players in the scrum including Sarah Hash (11), Ella Knapp (17) and Payton O’Neill (2).

Ruhland, Begalske help WEHL team earn split in Delton

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

A pair of Badger Lightning varsity players, got the shorter drive with their Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) team this past weekend.

Elroy’s Mallory Ruhland and Signe Begalske from Sauk Prairie have been playing with the League’s South Central team this season. After practicing at the Lake Delton Ice Arena earlier in the season, the team played host to a pair of games Sunday against the NorthCentral/Northeast squad.

Both games were close heading to the final period, the Northeast/NorthCentral team up 1-0 in the first contest but returning from the second intermission with four more unanswered goals and a 5-0 win. The second game was much closer, a late second period goal for SouthCentral sending them to the third period even at 1-1 and a goal with just over five minutes to play lifted the team to a 3-2 win. Ruhland collected an assist on the game winner.

Standout goaltending played a big part in the win for SouthCentral as they captured the ‘W’ despite a lopsided 44-14 edge in shots for the visiting side.

The split was the third straight for the SouthCentral team who also played had a loss and win Sept. 19 against the same team at Greeheck Fieldhouse in Schofield after playing SouthEast to a split as well in Beaver Dam August 22.

Next up for the SouthCentral team is a practice in Oregon Wednesday and they will step away from league play this coming weekend, playing at the HPC Showcase in Bolingbrook, IL.

The team will practice in Lake Delton one more time, on Nov. 3.

Mallory Ruhland (left) and Signe Begalske

South-Central WEHL squad collects Wheels of Fire title

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

With a week off in the middle of its short season schedule, the 14U South Central Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) squad took several team members to the Chicago area for a weekend tournament.

Clearly the class of the field, the South-Central squad which uses the Lake Delton Ice Arena as a home-base, didn’t just pick up four wins, but surrendered just a single goal on the weekend at the Wheels of Fire Tournament

Starting out against THEM Girls. South-Central collected a 6-0 win with Tomah’s Shelby King (Blue Devils AAA) leading the way with a four-goal game, Anna Phillips of Black River Falls and Julia Purinton from McFarland (Madison Mavericks) notching the other goals.

Against the Metro Jets from the Detroit area, South-Central rolled to a 10-0 goose egg with Phillips and King notching two more apiece and others for Waunakee’s Olivia Dull; Leah Grudzinski from Verona (Madison Mavericks); Maizy Fonseca of Warren (Monroe Youth Hockey Avalanche); Abby Hollfelder of Sun Prairie (Madison Mavericks); Carolina Cutrano from Waunakee (Madision Mavericks) and Payton O’Neill from Black River Falls (WI TNT/Blue Devils) and Reedsburg’s Paige Othmer (Badger Lightning/RWD/Blue Devils) collected an assist on the game winner.

RWD/Badger Lightning defender hustles back to her own end to gather a puck against the WEHL SouthEast team at the Wheels of Fire Tournament in Darien, IL. While helping defensively on a weekend that saw just one goal against in four contests, Othmer also contributed an assist for South-Central.

Against a familiar opponent, the WEHL SouthEast team (for the fifth time in two weeks), the South Central squad kept rolling with a 4-1 win. This time Brynn Brinkmeister is from Sun Prairie (Madison Mavericks/Wisconsin Jr. Stars) paced the attack with two goals and othes came from Phillips and Grudzinski.

The weekend finished where it started as South Central lined up Sunday against THEM Girls once again, getting a tougher challenge but still blanking the oppostion 3-0.

Othmer drew a penalty and it was on that powerplay the South-Central squad notched the game winner, Grudzinski pulling the trigger for her second of the weekend.

Insurance came late as Phillips stayed hot, scoring the clincher wrapping up a weekend that saw her score in every game, notching the easiest one of the stretch into an empty THEM Girls cage. Another empty netter from King put an exclamation point on it.

While the goals piled up for the South-Central squad, goaltending has been unreal this season so far as the goaltending trio of Lily Rosenthal from Sun Prairie (Madison Mavericks/Jr. Wisconsin Stars); Tomah’s Alexa Moore (TNT Hockey/Blue Devils) and Diana Hanson from Holmen (Coulee Region Stars/Jr. Chill/River Valley Fuse) have kept a clean crease five times in 10 games.

The 14U South-Central squad will be back in Lake Delton on Wednesday to prepare for a return to WEHL play this weekend as they travel to Cornerstone in Green Bay Sunday for a pair of games against North-Central/NorthEast at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.

The South Central team is 2-2-2 in WEHL league play and 6-2-2 overall heading into this weekend, but they have not played this team yet.

The WEHL South-Central squad took a minute after four games in Darien, IL to show off their medals and championship pennant won at the Wheels of Fire 14U Hockey Tournament this past weekend. The team will head into its second and final month of the WEHL season in Green Bay Sunday.

14U SouthCentral WEHL finds return match tougher

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

Photos Courtesy Jessica Othmer

After collecting a pair of shutout wins at the Lake Delton Ice Arena the previous weekend against SouthEast, the South Central 14u Girls Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) team found it a little more difficult in Ozaukee this past weekend.

The tension from the previous weekend as the third and fourth consecutive meetings of the season saw some more physical matches in this hardfought rivalry. The SouthEast team found a way to the net in the opener, battling South Central for a 2-2 draw, then finally collecting a win with a 3-1 edge in the second contest.

South Central 2 SouthEast 2

Both teams led once in the first game but neither held the position for long. After a scoreless opening period, it was South Central on the board first board first with a goal by Tahni Barger from the Sauk Prairie Monkeys/Sauk Prairie Flyers with set ups for Carolina Cutrano and Abby Hollfelder, both Madison Mavericks.

Tahni Barger (right) and a 14U WEHL South Central teammate celebrate her goal to open the scoring at Ozaukee

That goal came with 4:43 to play in the middle period but teams were even 43 seconds later on a goal by Aly Schuster (Milwaukee Jr. Admirals/WCYHA/Them Girls).

Southeast led for the first time in three contests early in the third period on a goal by Josee Busse (Reedsville) but this time South Central battled back after trailing just 35 seconds with a goal from Brynn Brinkmeier (Madison Mavericks/Wisconsin Jr. Stars) and help from Maizy Fonseca (Monroe) and Samara Collins (Coulee Region Stars/AAA Blue Devils/River Valley Fuse).

Brynn Brinkmeier (red jersey) slams home the tying goal against SouthEast in the first of two games at Ozaukee on Sunday

SouthEast 3 South Central 1

The host team finally pulled out a win in the second game, a pair of unanswered first period goals standing up as the difference in the contest.

Brinkmeier scored the lone South-Central goal early in the final period from Olivia Dull (Waunakee), but Sydney Bertolino (Ozaukee Youth Hockey) scored her second of the game with 4:10 to go to restore the two-goal margin and clinch the win.

Brinkmeier’s second of the day had South Central within a goal in the second contest, but the host SouthEast squad added a late one to clinch the win.

Busse fired the other SouthEast WEHL goal.

The weekend results dropped the South-Central team to 2-3-1 in league play. The squad will take a break from WEHL league play and instead head to Darien, IL near the Windy City to take part in the Wheels of Fire Tournament, a massive event with several divisions of boys’ and girls’ teams.

Baraboo’s Reese Olson gets a chance in close for South Central in one of two games played against SouthEast in Ozaukee on Sunday.

Reedsburg’s Paige Othmer (right) keeps an eye on a SouthEast player on defense with Leah Grudzinski (Madison Mavericks) coming on to help out in 14U WEHL action in Ozaukee Sunday.

Teammates on the 14U South Central WEHL team and Sauk Prairie Monkeys and Sauk Prairie Flyers, Tahni Bager (15) and Sarah Hash work together to clear their zone during their two game series Sunday in Ozaukee.

Barger goal starts up 14U South Central sweep at Lake Delton

By Jim den Hollander

Editor/Publisher

Saukhockey.info

The South-Central 14U Girls Wisconsin Elite Hockey League (WEHL) team rallied back from a pair of opening weekend defeats against the West squad with back-to-back shutouts against the South-East WEHL squad at Lake Delton Ice Arena Sunday (Sept. 12)

Goaltenders Alexa Moore, from Tomah (TNT/Blue Devils) kicked out 20 shots in the first encounter, a 3-0 win for South-Central and Lily Rosenthal from Sun Prairie (Madison Mavericks Jr. Wis. Stars) turned aside another 10 in the second game, won by the locals 1-0.

In the opener, South-Central scored once in each period, beginning with Tahni Barger a DeForest native that played with both the Sauk Monkeys and Sauk Flyers along with Wildcat Youth Hockey. Barger drained a long range shot from just inside the blue line 20-seconds from the end of the opening period. Olivia Dull from Waunakee had a set up on the goal by Barger.

Barger is one of three Sauk County blue liners on the team – joined by Reedsburg’s Paige Othmer (Badger Lightning, RWD, Blue Devils AAA) and Sarah Hash, a Middleton native that played with both the Sauk Prairie Flyers and Sauk Monkeys as well as the Wisconsin Jr. Stars. Also on the team is Baraboo’s Reese Olson (Badger Lightning, Blue Devils AAA).

Other home team goals came from Anna Phillips from Black River Falls and Carolina Cutrano, also Waunakee (Mavericks).

Teams played through a pair of 15-minute frames settling nothing, although the South-Central team held an edge in both shots and control of the contest.

Ironically, the only goal of the contest came with South-Central shorthanded as Dull put one in under the cross bar, spoiling an otherwise brilliant effort from Elizabeth Bowers of Cedarburg (Ozaukee Youth Hockey) who stopped all but one of the 46 shots she faced, often two or more at a time.

Head Coach Jared O’Neill was pleased with the effort of his team (see video interview below) as the team evened its Before Season record at 2-2.