Prep report: Larson, Postal lead Hunters to win at Little Falls

Andy Larson and Kaden Postal combined for five goals and four assists as Duluth Denfeld outgunned Little Falls 7-5 in nonconference boys hockey on Friday night at Exchange Arena in Little Falls, Minnesota.

The game featured four ties and two lead changes.

Shamus Shea’s first varsity goal, late in the second period, gave Denfeld a 4-3 lead after two periods and Larson made it 5-3 with an unassisted goal in the first minute of the third period, but the Flyers bagged two quick goals to even it up with 11:09 to play.

That lasted only 41 seconds as Larson’s hat trick goal ended up being the game-winner. Postal added an empty-netter for his second goal of the game to go with two assists.

Ellie Hanowski scored twice for Forest Lake at Essentia Duluth Heritage Center as the Northern Stars couldn’t avoid its third straight game without a win.

Alana Moline and Bailey Coole had the goals for Duluth (9-6-3), which got 25 saves from Ella Brisbois.

Goals in the third period from Kylie DeBay and Mercury Bischoff broke a 1-1 tie after two periods.

Riley Toivonen made 22 saves for the Lightning (11-7-0).

Brooks Johnson became the fastest boys player in school history to the 1,000-point plateau but that couldn’t help the Hilltoppers get a win at home against Browerville.

Johnson, a sophomore, had 30 points, but the Tigers had more balance. Three players scored in double figures led by 20 from Miguel Maloney.

The Hunters had three scorers in double figures as they won back-to-back games for the first time since February 2020.

Marnaries Ferguson had a team-high 17 points, while Deon Persaud-Davis scored 16 and Aidan Altona 15 for Denfeld (6-7).

The Eskomos tested their mettle against the AAAA Crimson and were found wanting on Friday night.

Gannon McGuire made five 3-pointers and led Maple Grove, the No. 4-ranked team in AAAA, with 16 points.

Esko (7-2), which trailed 39-24 at halftime, had only one scorer in double figures: Makoi Perich, with 17.

Asher Zubich dropped 51 points for the Rangers in a big home win.

The Panthers benefitted from a 14-point halftime lead, which turned out to be their winning margin.

Austin Josephson was too tough to handle down low, scoring 27 points. Slayton Stroschein and Theo Yellowrobe had 11 points apiece.

For the Cardinals, Brady Dahl scored a team-best 17 points.

The Rebels locked it down in the second half, allowing only 10 points to break the game wide-open.

Adam Neumann led a balanced offensive effort with 18 points, while Nolan Nelson scored 17, Owen Loew 13 and Jimmy Walker 12 for MLWR

Kyra Latvala scored 13 points to lead a balanced scoring effort for the Eagles, who had three other players with at least nine.

Tieryn Plasch scored 27 points as the Tigers (8-4, 7-1 HON) had no problems with the Beavers at home.