BRAINARD — The Brainerd/Little Falls Warriors held 1-0 and 2-1 leads before losing 3-2 to the Class 2A No. 11 Roseau Rams in Round 8, going dark in the third period. . 14 Essential Health Sports Center.
The Warriors’ attempts to maintain and regain the lead in the third period were thwarted by penalties. BLF was called for two minor penalties in the final frame. The first was by Roseau’s Lilly Erickson, who tied the score at 2-2 at 4:33 of the third. This was the senior’s eighth goal and 16th point of the season.
“We talked to our team about staying out of the box in the third period, and we didn’t do that,” Warriors head coach Tate Rask said. “That’s what’s going to happen when you play a good team like Roseau. They’re going to make you pay. After the second period, I told the team that we can withstand their next power play. I said I didn’t think so, but that wasn’t the case.
“I liked the way we played at first, but the girls weren’t disciplined enough to get out of the box. Roseau did that and they had a much better power play than we did tonight. Hats off to Erica Folden who came out tonight, she did another good job.”
BLF took their second penalty of the period, but the Warriors were back at full strength a minute later when Jazmin Hovda stole the puck in the Warriors zone and slipped a shot between Folden’s leg pads at 10:48. He scored the winning goal in the minute.
Roseau outscored the Warriors 33-14. Folden made 30 saves but watched as BLF struggled to generate offense while holding a 6-4 skater advantage for 57 seconds. Roseau’s Rauna Ullmann was called for interference at 14:18 of the third. Brainerd’s first power-play team was unable to get the puck into Roseau’s zone, and the second team, which included two additional skaters, managed one shot on net.
“We have to practice hard here,” Rask said. “What helps us is we have a lot of home games coming up. Right now, it’s all about our practices and honestly, who steps up. Who’s going to play that third line and second line?” We’re just trying to find ourselves. It’s not going to be easy, but at the same time we’re going to play good hockey as we get closer to the end of the season.”
The Warriors were without a shot on goal for the first 11 minutes of the first period until a tripping call forced BLF into a power play situation that gave BLF the advantage. The Warriors took advantage of the player advantage and took four shots, until Lia Glass grabbed a rebound in front of Roseau’s net. The sophomore put the puck in the goal at 11:13 for a 1-0 lead.
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“I really liked the jump in the first period,” Rask said. “I loved what we were doing. Our bench was great today. Out of all of us, our bench was the best. We got really good energy from the girls. After the first period, we were impressed with where we were sitting. After the second period, we were still there, only scoring a penalty at the end to get out 2-1. .”
Roseau tied the game at 1-1 with a goal from Greta Heldund 1:08 into the second period. BLF quickly responded with a goal by Kate Boberg off a ricochet off Bryn Thoma at 3:56 of the second game.
These same two teams will meet again on January 18th in Roseau. The Rams have won seven straight against the Warriors.
BLF suffered three straight losses on Saturday, including sectional losses to St. Cloud and No. 17 Bemidji. The third loss was to Fergus Falls, which ranked No. 17 in Class 1A and tied for first place in the Central Lakes Conference. BLF’s schedule won’t get any easier as they host No. 8 ranked Moorhead on Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 7 p.m., followed by Class 1A No. 6 Proctor/Hermantown two days later.
“We have to find a way to switch lines and get the buy-in of the team,” Rask said. “We need to find an identity. Some girls have chosen to do what they love, but unfortunately, that’s not how this game works. Right now, our team needs to find an identity.” I like that we have a schedule coming up. We have to compete against some really difficult teams to find out who we are. I tell my daughters to come to work every day and keep working. I just tell them it’s necessary.”
First Period: BLF-Liar Glass (Jaylin Wharton) ppg 11:13
2nd period: R-Greta Hedlund (Amelia Kvien) 1:08; BLF-Kate Boberg (Bryn Thoma) 3:56
3rd period: R-Lily Erickson (Peyton Remick, Summer Byfugulian) ppg 4:33; R-Jasmine Hovda 10:48
Shots on goal: BLF 6-3-5 — 14, R 8-14-11 — 33
Goalkeeper: BLF-Erica Folden (30 saves); R-Maddie Rissel (12 saves)
JEREMY MILLSOP can be reached at 218-855-5856 or jeremy.millsop@brainerddispatch.com. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/jeremymillsop.
Key: Roseau scores two goals in the third period to outscore the Warriors 32-13.
Section: BLF 1-4-0, R 5-1-0
Overall: BLF 5-5-1, R 9-3-0
Next up: Brainerd/Little Falls hosts Moorhead on Tuesday, Dec. 17 at 7 p.m.
