FAIRMONT — Mankato West center Courtney Bloemke fit the definition of a true playmaker during Thursday night’s nonconference hockey game in Fairmont.

Bloemke collected a natural playmaker by distributing three consecutive assists during the middle period before scoring a goal to highlight the visiting Scarlets’ 6-1 triumph over the Fairmont Area Cardinals at Martin County Arena.

First-year head Fairmont Area coach Ashley Olson expressed concern about her lineup’s limited personnel due to illness, and Mankato West capitalized by utilizing its depth.

“We’re probably only going to skate eight players tonight,” Olson said during the pregame. “It really hurts with (starting junior defender) Courtney (Williams) being out with pneumonia and (seventh-grade defender) Macy (Militello) out due to bronchitis, but you can’t do anything about it.”

Bloemke and the Scarlets unleashed 21 shots on goal during the opening period — one more than the Cardinals generated on the entire game. Fairmont Area starting goaltender Emily O’Connor turned away 20 first-frame blasts, giving up only Tealy Krosch’s one-timer from the left wing with 15:46 remaining.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the Scarlets wore down the short-handed hometown roster and erupted for five goals behind 20 second-period shots.

Freshman wing Sunshine Langworthy lit the lamp by tapping home a perfect crossing pass from Lindsey Hays to beat O’Connor for a 2-0 lead only 45 seconds into the middle segment.

Bloemke then heated up the ice by drilling a line-drive from just left of the point off of O’Connor’s pads and an alert Hays stuffed home the putback for a three-goal edge at the 14:43 juncture.

Bloemke kept the hot hand in distributing the puck by finding Sydney Morales on the doorstep with 9:53 remaining in the second period before Bloemke fed McKenna Krosch only 21 seconds later to widen West’s lead to 5-0 and caused O’Connor’s exit.

Bloemke then proved an equal-opportunity scorer by beating Cardinal reserve netminder Sadie Sandersfeld with a chip shot off an assist from Kiera Swenson at the 1:39 juncture of the middle segment.

Olson then flip-flopped starting defender Taylor Nuss to center during the third period, and the senior combined with seventh-grader Mackenzie Householder to pace Fairmont Area’s nine-shot effort during running time.

Householder rushed the left wing and maneuvered around one Scarlet defender only to be denied access to the net by West goalie Sarah Olsen with 4 minutes remaining in regulation.

Nuss then fed Myah Lytle with a no-look trail pass on a right-wing rush. Lytle unleashed a crossing slapshot that Olsen turned away via a stick save with 2:45 showing.

Householder finally spoiled Olsen’s shutout bid by finding the net after a physical scrum near the crease with 30 seconds remaining. Alyssa Fetters notched an assist on the play.

Olsen made 19 saves to net the win for West, while O’Connor and Sandersfeld turned away 28 and 17 shots, respectively, for the Cardinals.

Fairmont Area (2-4-1) travels to Benson on Saturday for a 1 p.m. game against Morris/Benson Area.

Mankato West (3-8-1) hits the road to Windom Area on Saturday for a 1 p.m. non-league game.

Mankato West   1-5-0–6

Fairmont Area   0-0-1–1

Scoring Plays

1st Period

MW — Tealy Krosch (unassisted), 15:46.

2nd Period

MW — Sunshine Langworthy (Lindsey Hays), 16:15.

MW — Hays (Courtney Bloemke), 14:43.

MW — Sydney Morales (Bloemke), 9:53.

MW — McKenna Krosch (Bloemke), 9:31.

MW — Bloemke (Kiera Swenson), 1:39.

3rd Period

FA — Mackenzie Householder (Alyssa Fetters), pp., 0:30.

Shots on goal: Mankato West 21-20-10–51; Fairmont Area 7-4-9–20.

Saves: Sarah Olsen (MW) 7-4-8–19; Emily O’Connor (FA) 20-8-x–28, Sadie Sandersfeld (FA) x-7-10–17.

Penalties: Mankato West 3 for 6 minutes; Fairmont Area 1 for 2 minutes.

Power-play chances: Fairmont Area 1-for-3; Mankato West 0-for-1.

Boys Hockey

New Ulm 10, Fairmont Area 0 — Brady Asmus recorded five points to lead the Eagles to a Big South Conference shutout victory over the Cardinals on Thursday night in New Ulm.

Asmus scored a goal and provided a double-assist with Luke Scheid on Tomas Babik’s score in the first period. Asmus then recorded a hat trick in the second period.

Babik finished with two goals and two assists, while Scheid recorded two assists. Glavine Schugel knocked in two goals and Landon Stong and Nick Banal, who doled out two assists, added a score apiece.

Brandon Mehlhop provided the Eagles with three assists, and Nate Miller and Sam Berg pocketed two each. Cole Wellmann, Jack Fairbairn, Kasey Schmitz and Bayler Kraus all finished the game with an assist.

Goalie Colby Kuhl turned away an incredible 59 shots for the Cardinals, who generated only nine shots.

Fairmont Area (0-7) plays Morris/Benson Area at 3 p.m. Saturday in Benson.

FA         0-0-0–  0

NU        5-5-0–10

Scoring Plays

1st Period

NU — Brady Asmus (Nick Banal, Sam Berg), 16:37.

NU — Glavine Schugel (Nate Miller, Brandon Mehlhop), 6:10.

NU — Tomas Babik (Asmus, Luke Scheid), 4:40.

NU — Landon Stong (unassisted), short., 3:30.

NU — Babik (Mehlhop, Bayler Kraus), pp., 1:10.

2nd Period

NU — Asmus (Banal, Babik), 12:23.

NU — Glavine Schugel (Mehlhop, Miller), 5:52.

NU– Asmus (Babik, Berg), 3:56.

NU — Asmus (Cole Wellmann, Scheid), pp., 0:45.

NU — Banal (Kasey Schmitz, Jack Fairbairn), 0:01.

3rd Period

No scoring.

Shots on goal: New Ulm 21-33-15–69; Fairmont Area 2-1-6–9.

Saves: Colby Kuhl (FA) 16-28-15–59; Jack Raymond 2-1-6–9.

Penalties: Fairmont Area 3 for 6 minutes; New Ulm 1 for 2 minutes.

Power-play chances: New Ulm 2-for-3; Fairmont Area 0-for-1.