Lucas Punkari
With their coach emphasizing the fact they needed to find the back of the net more often, the Muskie girls’ hockey team certainly did that over the weekend with 14 goals in two games.
Fort High opened with an 8-3 win over Sioux Lookout on Friday night at the Ice For Kids Arena, then hit the road to take a 6-4 decision over Red Lake on Saturday.
“I was very impressed with the girls,” Muskie head coach Mel Langtry said after Saturday’s win.
“We had one less player on Saturday than we did on Friday, and the girls were quite tired after playing a full 60 minutes the night before, along with the bus trip in the morning.
“So to play another game at a fast pace, and come out with the win, is something that I’m very proud to see the girls accomplish,” he added.
Shae-Lynn Smith led the way Saturday with a pair of goals, with Jessica Taggart and Jillian Langtry both finishing with a goal and an assist each.
Hailey Clendenning and Sydney Jones also scored for the Muskies, while Ericka Tymkin had a pair of assists in the win.
“That was a nice comeback win for us,” Langtry said after his team had trailed by 2-1 and 4-3 deficits.
“We were able to get a lot of shots on goals and drive to the net really hard, and that paid off with a couple of nice goals in front of the net, which is what you have to do on their goalie,” he stressed.
Friday night’s win saw Jillian Langtry turn in a dominating performance, finishing with four goals and three assists.
That final point total could have been even higher as Langtry ripped through the Sioux Lookout defence numerous times—only to be turned aside by goalie Ashley Osmond.
“I thought we were a little bit over confident at first,” Jillian Langtry said after Friday’s win.
“But we picked it up a lot after the second period, and we started working together as a team and started to shoot a lot more on net instead of making all these fancy plays,” she noted.
Smith added a hat trick in Friday’s win, with Taylor Dixon netting the other goal.
Dana Cridland earned both wins between the pipes.
The squad is back in action tonight for an exhibition game in Baudette, then heads on the road again tomorrow to face the St. Thomas Aquinas Saints (Kenora).
Their next home is set for this Friday (Feb. 11) versus the Kenora Broncos at 7:15 p.m. at the Ice For Kids Arena.
