CROOKSTON GIRLS HOCKEY SCORES 3 TIMES IN THE LAST 3 MINUTES TO BEAT BEMIDJI

The Crookston Pirates were trailing 1-0 late into the third period when they scored two goals 11 seconds apart with just over three minutes to go in the game and added an open net goal with a minute and a half left to come from behind to beat the Bemidji Lumberjacks at the Crookston Sports Center.

FIRST PERIOD
Bemidji scored an early goal just over three minutes into the game when Naomi Johnson, a seventh grader for the Lumberjacks, found a rebound in front and sneaked it by Pirate goalie Kambelle Freije and the visitors took a 1-0 early lead. “Everyone lost sight of the puck there,” said Crookston head coach Emily Meyer, “Kambelle lost sight of it, and before you knew it, it was in the net.” Crookston couldn’t do much against the Jacks’ defense. They clogged the passing lanes to throw off Crookston, played physically, and Ava Myhre, the sophomore goalie for Bemidji, was tough in the net.  The period was not without other scoring chances, seven minutes into the period, Taylor Field received a pass from her zone by Addie Fee that sent Field in on a breakaway but was stopped by Myhre. Bemidji’s Makenna Dreher also had a breakaway and was controlled by Freije. With a minute and a half to go, Emily LaPlante had a defenseman turned and let a shot go that rang off the pipe. “We did have chances,” said Meyer, “Bemidji’s goalie had a hot glove, and that was where a lot of our shots were gravitating to.”  Bemidji led 1-0 after the first period with only 14 shots in the game, with eight by Bemidji.

SECOND PERIOD
Nobody would score in the second period, but Crookston’s Field had another chance on a breakaway, and Myhre stopped her again. Crookston had an early power play but didn’t do much with it, and then it got a little physical. The Pirates were shorthanded for four minutes near the end of the period, but the penalty-killing groups of the Pirates continue to shine this season. Crookston has given up eight power-play goals this season out of 59 attempts for an 86% penalty kill percentage, while at the same time, the Pirates have scored six short-handed goals this season!  Freije was tested in the second period, but your best penalty killer is usually your goalie, “That kid is so determined to make it, so it’s a low-scoring game on our part. Kambelle does such a great job with confidence, and she stood on her head tonight, so she deserves a lot of credit too.” Bemidji outshot Crookston 9-6 in the second period. However, it was still Bemidji 1, Crookston 0 after two periods, “We let them get on the power play a little too much and got a little chippy and got away from us, but we did a good job of killing them off, disrupting everything they had.”

THIRD PERIOD
The third period for at least half of it, was a pace that showed Crookston looking for the tying goal somehow, while Bemidji was doing the same things that kept the Pirates off the scoreboard thus far with great defensive play and doing an excellent job of gaining some offensive zone time. Crookston had to kill off another penalty with just under nine minutes left in the game. About a minute after Crookston regained strength, Bemidji took a hooking penalty. Crookston only got a few opportunities with the man advantage. Still, five seconds after they were at full strength, Taylor Field pounced on another Bemidji attempt at a breakout and put a shot on that Myhre made the save, but kicked the rebound right back to Field, who buried it to tie the game at 1-1 with 3:19 left in the game. 11 seconds later, Cassie Solheim jumped on a rebound off Addie Fee’s shot and had an open net with Myhre down and with Cassie’s reach, was able to put it in, and in 11 seconds Crookston had their first lead 2-1. “That was certainly what we needed,” said coach Meyer, “Taylor got her rebound, and Cassie crashed the net and was able to put the rebound and up over the goalie, a quick turnaround for sure.”   Bemidji would call a time-out with just under two minutes left and pull their goalie simultaneously. Bemidji had the puck in the Crookston zone, and the Pirate’s leading scorer, Brekken Tull, had the puck near the left circle in her zone and lifted a slow, easy shot on the ice all the way, and it hit right in the middle of the net for the open net goal that put it away for the Pirates.  “The puck just came out right to me, ” said Tull, “I put the shot down knowing the net was open. I didn’t think it would go in because I didn’t have the best look, but it went in.” In a span of 1:50, the Pirates went from a probable loss to an improbable win of 3-1. “We played a pretty good game,” said Tull, “we came into the locker room and talked about the positives and what we did improve on, and I think that helped us too. Coming into the third period, we did a little dance party in the locker room. We turned on Pitch Perfect, danced, and got out of our heads for a little bit. I think that helped us tonight as well, and we’ll have to see if we’ll do that every game now.”
Crookston is 14-5-2 on the season and will play East Grand Forks for the third time this regular season on Friday at Mayville, N.D.’s Kim Braaten Arena. The Pirates have three in that area that is part of a coop, Parker and Paeyton Strand’s of Mayville and Brynley Coleman of Hatton, N.D. “If East Grand Forks goalie is on, they can be tough,” said Meyer, “we’ve beaten them twice and want to keep the momentum going on Friday.”
Bemidji drops to 12-7-3 on the season, and they will be AT East Grand Forks on Thursday, the day before Crookston meets the Green Wave.  East Grand Forks lost tonight at Thief River Falls  7-3.

1st Period
3:37 –  Bemidji  –  Naomi Johnson (Ellie Solheim, Millie Knott)

2nd Period
No Scoring

3rd Period
13:41 –   Crookston –  Taylor Field (12) unassisted
13:52 –   Crookston –  Cassie Solheim   (8)  (Addie Fee)
15:31 –   Crookston  –  Brekken Tull (13)  (Reese Swanson)  (Open Net)