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Northfield posts another shutout in 1A quarterfinals

By DAVID LA VAQUE, Star Tribune, 02/22/17, 10:45PM CST

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The fifth-seeded Raiders upset No. 4 Mound Westonka 2-0 to notch their fourth consecutive postseason shutout.


Northfield goalie Mallory Tidona (29) blocked a shot by Liz Schepers (13) of Mound Westonka in the second period. (Carlos Gonzalez, Star Tribune)

Mound Westonka coach Jack Gravel made an astute observation that Northfield’s postseason success owes to improvements made by goaltender Mallory Tidona.

Northfield has lost just twice since Tidona’s mid-December talk with Brent Bielenberg, her coach and a former goaltender. The No. 5 seed Raiders turned stifling in the playoffs, blanking three consecutive section opponents, and Wednesday they upset No. 4 seed Mound Westonka 2-0 in the state tournament quarterfinals.

“I feel like I’ve improved mentally and physically,” said Tidona, whose team is 21-7. “We talked after the 5-2 loss to Proctor, and I’ve been taking things more seriously since then.”

Tidona, a junior, earned her sixth shutout of the season and won a duel with Mound Westonka senior Emma Polusny, who is committed to play at St. Cloud State. Tidona stopped 16 shots, none bigger than a second-period breakaway chance for Liz Schepers.

A Ms. Hockey semifinalist with 56 goals this season, Schepers got in alone but couldn’t beat Tidona. Unaware who she was facing, Tidona said she “moved where she was going and the puck just hit me.”

“I thought that was the one where we’d tie it up,” Gravel said. “It would have been a different game.”

Sophomore defenseman Kate Boland, verbally committed to Bemidji State, scored for Northfield (20-6-3) with 57 seconds remaining in the first period. She added an empty-net goal with 14 seconds left in regulation.

First Report

Stifling team defense and stout goaltending propelled No. 5 seed Northfield to a fourth consecutive postseason shutout, this one a 2-0 upset of No. 4 Mound Westonka in the state tournament quarterfinals.

Junior goalie Mallory Tidona earned her sixth shutout of the season, outdueling Mound Westonka senior Emma Polusny, who is committed to play at St. Cloud State. Northfield (19-7-3) entered the game not allowing a goal in any of its three Section 1 playoff victories.

This is each program’s second state tournament appearance. Neither won its quarterfinal game the first time. The Raiders advance to Friday’s semifinal, a 1 p.m. game against No. 1 seed Blake.

Kate Boland, a sophomore defenseman who made a verbal commitment to Bemidji State, scored with just 57 seconds remaining in the first period for a 1-0 Northfield lead. Boland now has 11 goals this season.

Mound Westonka (21-6) had a chance to draw even. Liz Schepers, a senior forward and Ms. Hockey semifinalist with 56 goals this season, got in alone at the Northfield net in the second period but Tidona made the save.

Northfield’s victory marked the first for a lower-seeded team in the Class 1A quarterfinals since 2014.

The teams traded brief power-play chances midway through the third period but neither got a goal.

A Northfield shot on Mound Westonka’s empty net hit the post with 30 seconds remaining. Boland gave her team a cushion with an empty-net goal with 14 seconds remaining.


Photo gallery: Class 1A girls' hockey quarterfinals

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