Tigers Bounce Back; Dominate Lakers

By Pat Rupp

What a difference a couple of days of practice can make.

Farmington rebounded from a disappointing season-opening loss to Rosemount on Tuesday to score a dominant 7-1 win over Prior Lake in a South Suburban Conference game played Saturday afternoon at Dakotah Arena.

“This was a very similar style game to our game against Rosemount,” Tiger coach Jon Holmes said. “We outplayed and outshot both teams, but this time we were able to clear the rebounds and keep most shots outside the slot.” 

Claire Enright, a University of Minnesota recruit, recorded a pure hat trick over a 15-minute stretch covering the first and second periods and linemate Carly Lancaster chipped in with four assists to lead the way. Bailey Zimmer added a pair of goals and Kiersten Wood and Samantha Moehle each found the back of the net once.

“Claire (Enright) is a special player,” Holmes said. “Everything from her hockey intelligence right down to her edge work is a showcase of why the Gophers want her.

“Lanny (Lancaster) complements Claire nicely. They are both fast and move well together. They still have lots of growing to do, but each game and each practice, they will learn more and more about each other’s nuances.”

Cassie Knutson, Madison Kadrlik, Grace Auge, Moehle, Enright and Izzy Zwart each added assists to the offensive barrage which saw Farmington double up the Lakers in the shots on goal department, 34-17.

Netminder Ryleigh Furlong picked up her first varsity win, stopping 16 of the 17 shots sent her way. The night featured a long list of individual firsts as Moehle, Wood and Zimmer each notched their first varsity goals.

The winners led 3-0 after one period on a goal by Zimmer and two more by Enright. The lead swelled to 4-0 after two frames on Enright’s third score and the Tigers put the game away in the final period on scores by Wood, Moehle and Zimmer.

A sticky Tiger defense allowed the Lakers but seven shots on goal over the final two periods.

“Our defensive corps deserve major props as they have been flying every other shift with lots of double shifting with Jayden Seifert still out for these early season games,” Holmes said.

 “Brenna Fuhrman is a special player and really keeps a sense of calm on the ice as she not only poses an offensive threat but also takes away chances with her excellent positioning. She and senior captain Cassie Knutson have done a phenomenal job thus far.”

Farmington (1-1) is off until after the Thanksgiving break. The Tigers resume play Tuesday night, Nov. 27, when they make the short trip to Ames Arena where they take on South Suburban Conference rival Lakeville North (0-3)