Boys Hockey Roundup - Moose Lake Area boys struggle while girls win two, tie one

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The Moose Lake Area hockey teams and the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton girls team were all in action in tournaments over the holiday break.

The Moose Lake Area boys (0-8-0) dropped three games in the North Shore Classic last Thursday, Friday and Saturday but got a sterling performance from junior goaltender Gage Mohelsky.

On Thursday, the Rebels fell 6-1 to Legacy Christian at Rukavina Arena in Silver Bay but got a remarkable performance from Mohelsky, who made 70 saves on 76 Legacy shots. The Rebels were outshot 76-11 for the game and got a second-period goal from Jesse Granfors.

The next day, the Rebels fell 10-0 to Robbinsdale Cooper. This time, Mohelsky made 65 saves on 75 Hawk efforts, as Trey Rooney led the way with a hat trick and an assist for Robbinsdale Cooper.

On Saturday, Mohelsky stopped 54 of 61 shots from Bagley in a 7-2 setback. Cole Lower scored a pair of power-play goals for the Rebels in the contest.

For the tournament, Mohelsky made 189 saves in the three games.

The Rebels’ girls improved to 9-3-1 with two wins and a tie at the Schwan’s Cup, playing in the White Division of the 64-team event.

On Thursday, the Rebels beat Brookings, S.D., 5-0 and outshot them 45-15. Andrea Youngberg, team scoring leader Jessica Bird, Hailee Opdahl, Hannah Dougherty and Erin Mollberg scored the goals with Kaitlyn Greene stopping all 15 Brookings shots on goal for the shutout.

The next day the Rebels ran their shutout string to six periods with a 6-0 win over Long Prairie.

Again, the team spread out its scoring with six different players finding the range. Georgia Ryan, Cheyanne Wilson, Sage Gerard, Jessica Bird, Mollberg and Jamie Bird all scored, with Cassie White playing in goal.

The Rebels then tied North Metro 3-3 in the division final. Jessica Bird and Andrea Youngberg staked the team to a 2-1 lead after the first period, and Jessica Bird added a third goal midway through the second. But the Rebels couldn’t hold the lead, with Selena Pena and Taylor Anderson scoring to earn the tie for North Metro. Greene stopped 26 of 29 shots for the Rebels in goal.

Lumberjacks take consolation crown

The CEC girls took part in the annual Mid-Winter Meltdown, winning two of three games to improve to 7-6-2 on the year and earning the consolation championship in the process.

The tournament started with a 3-0 loss to host Eden Prairie on Thursday, with CEC outshot 40-10 for the game and Alyssa Acheson stopping 37 of 40 Eagle shots on goal.

The ’Jacks rebounded the next day to knock off Eagan 3-2. Mikalya Baker erased a 1-0 deficit with the team’s first goal of the tournament in the second period before two goals by Carley Esse in the third period gave CEC a 3-1 advantage. Esse’s second goal came with 1:07 to play in the contest and was needed after Eagan’s Lexi Wilson scored with 43 seconds to play. Katie Beckman stopped 24 of 26 shots in goal to earn the win.

In the consolation final, CEC outlasted Cretin-Derham Hall 2-1. After a scoreless first period, Esse got CEC on the board with a shorthanded goal at 2:18 of the second period, and another shorthanded goal by Emily Gustafson proved to be the eventual game-winner with 5:09 to play in the third period. Beckman earned the win in goal for the ’Jacks, who face the Duluth Northern Stars at the Heritage Center on Saturday afternoon.

Tags: moose lake, sports, hockey