Tending to a tense two-goal lead late in the third period, Mound Westonka coach Jack Gravel knew his team had the means to kill a 5-on-3 penalty situation. They had practiced the scenario before.

The problem Friday night in Orono was that two of his captains, and two of the three components of that 5-on-3 solution, were in the penalty box.

There wasn’t really a B scenario that didn’t involve at least one of his two most talented forwards, he said.

Instead, the White Hawks would have to turn to a player they’ve been forced to rely on all season whilst putting together an impressive 12-3-1 record.

Goaltender and captain Emma Polusny put the weight of the game on her shoulders for that 1 minute, 11 seconds. Her effort helped secure a 3-0 shutout victory over Wright County Conference rival Orono, a varsity first for the junior.

“She’s our backstop,” Gravel said. “And we are going to go as far as she will take us, to be truthful about it.”

White Hawks junior wing Liz Schepers had a goal and two assists as the top-line wing and captain had a hand in all three scores for the road team. She buried a shot from the left circle to score the game’s first goal midway through the second period to put Mound Westonka out in front for good.

Schepers, however, could do nothing to help her team as she sat in the penalty box next to her first-line center and junior co-captain, Ellie Burris, as the two watched anxiously while the White Hawks worked their way through that 5-on-3 penalty kill situation without them.

“For Ellie and I being a big part of the penalty kill, it was definitely a little nerve-racking in the box,” Schepers said. “But our entire defense played well tonight, and we have Emma.”

Polusny turned away four shots on goal during that span and 26 in the final period and a half as Orono’s speed and up-ice rush produced steady pressure.

But the White Hawks worked to clear out the slot and dared the Spartans to take their shots from up high and outside. Orono did, but nothing stuck.

“I got a lot of help from the rest of the team, clearing out in front of the net,” said Polusny, who finished with 33 saves in the game. “I was able to see everything that was coming at me tonight, and if I can see it, I feel confident that I can make the save.”

The win is another boost for a young and up-and-coming Mound Westonka team, ranked No. 8 in the Class 1A coaches' poll. The victory also keeps White Hawks atop the Wright County standings with a 4-0 record and ahead in the race for the top seed in the Section 2 playoffs.

After going ahead 2-0 early in the third with a goal by Burris from Schepers and Hunter Gallus, Mound Westonka finished off Orono (3-12-1, 1-2-1) on Burris' empty-net goal (set up by Schepers) and picked up a rare victory over the No. 12-1A Spartans, who outshot the White Hawks 33-18. 

“We’ve never beaten Orono, not since I started here in eighth grade,” Polusny says. “This is a pretty sweet experience.”

“This is definitely a game that we mark on the calendar every year,” Schepers added. “This is a game that we want to win, and the last few years (the games) have not gone our way. To win this now is big for our confidence, and it was definitely a team win.”

First Report

Junior goaltender Emma Polusny stopped all 33 shots she faced to help lead Mound Westonka to a 3-0 shutout victory at Wright County Conference rival Orono on Friday night.

White Hawks junior wing Liz Schepers had a goal and two assists and opened the scoring midway through second period to put the visitors out front for good.

Mound Westonka's Ellie Burris scored twice in the third, the last one an empty-netter, to finish off Orono and help the White Hawks pick up a rare victory over the Spartans despite being outshot 33-18. 

Orono junior goalie Madeline Carlson finished with 15 saves in the loss.

Mound Westonka, ranked No. 8 in Class 1A, won its eighth straight game and improved its record to 12-3-1. Moreover, the White Hawks are 4-0 and sit atop the standings in the Wright County Conference while the No. 12-1A Spartans fall to 3-12-1 on the season and 1-2-1 in league play.

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