DEFENDING THE NET — Fairmont Area goaltender Ilana Moeller (1) keeps a watchful eye on the puck as Cardinal teammates Bella Larson (far left) and Abi Sundeen (back far right) battle Princeton’s Maddy Knaack (second from left) and Jada Reese near the net during nonconference hockey action Saturday at Martin County Arena in Fairmont. (Photo by Greg Abel)

FAIRMONT — The Fairmont Area Cardinals girls hockey squad came out on top of the Princeton Tigers 3-0 Saturday afternoon for its second shutout in a row.

Bella Larson scored two goals to go with her stellar play on defense to cement the Cardinals’ victory.

Larson didn’t take long to get on the board as she scored a goal with 4:38 remaining in the first period off an assist from Karissa Newville.

Larson went on to score her second goal with 4:22 left in the second period off a find from Maia Goerndt.

“She gains the ability to see what is down ice when we play her (Larson) on defense,” Cardinals head coach Eric Householder said. “And then she has the speed to make the rushes down ice and get into the offensive zone, so it’s definitely been a good move for us putting her back there.”

With the two-goal cushion, the Cardinals could have played more passively but they wanted one more goal before the period ended.

The Cardinals focused on getting the puck into advantageous positions on offense.

“It’s been a full week of practice, setting it up where we work the puck into the middle,” Householder said. “We focused on getting the puck deep into our offensive zone and setting up in front of the net and just looking for that cross-crease pass for that back-door shot and it’s definitely been working the last two games.”

It was Abi Sundeen who implemented the practice plan into the game plan for the Cardinals. Sundeen established herself around the net throughout the afternoon and finally converted with 3:23 left in the second period to put the Cardinals ahead 3-0 off an assist from senior forward Alex Martin.

With the previous shutout, Cardinals junior goaltender Ilana Moeller earned the first two shutouts of her career. Moeller made 30 saves over the course of the clean sheet win for the Cardinals.

As for Princeton, they struggled to stay out of the penalty box throughout the game.

The Tigers faced an uphill battle, having earned multiple penalties in each period as well as a couple of major penalties later in the game.

Princeton goalie Alayna Boe made 31 saves on the game.

Fairmont Area (4-12) plays host to Marshall at 7 p.m. Thursday night at Martin County Arena.

Princeton   0 0 0–0

Fairmont    1 2 0–3

Scoring Plays

1st Period

FA–Bella Larson (Karissa Newville), 4:38.

2nd Period

FA–Bella Larson (Maia Goerndt), PP., 4:22.

FA–Abi Sundeen (Alex Martin), 3:23.

3rd Period

No scoring.

Shots–Fairmont Area 34; Princeton 30.

Saves–Alayna Boe (Princeton) 31; Ilana Moeller (Fairmont) 30.

•

Boys Hockey

Fairmont Area 7, Redwood Valley 1 — Jace Teveldal netted a pair of third-period goals, while teammate Luke Kester collected one goal and two assists to engineer Fairmont Area’s six-goal triumph over Redwood Valley during ice action Saturday in Redwood Falls.

Lucas Sommers distributed two assists, while Gavin Kester contributed one goal and one helper to the visiting Cardinals’ winning ways.

Eric Determan, Dayton Draper and Tyson Pankow contributed goals to Fairmont Area’s point-producing performance, while Jace Meade and Jace Prindle chipped in assists.

Carson Johnson turned away 24 shots on net to earn the win between the pipes for the visiting Cardinals, who recorded 33 shots on goal.

Fairmont Area (2-13) travels to Marshall on Friday night for a 7 p.m. conference game.

Fairmont   1-2-4–7

Redwood   0-0-1–1

Scoring Plays

1st Period

FMT–Luke Kester (Jace Meade), 12:08.

2nd Period

FMT–Eric Determan (Luke Kester), 16:13.

FMT–Dayton Draper (Jace Prindle, Lucas Sommers), 14:31.

3rd Period

FMT–Gavin Kester (unassisted), 14:59.

RV–Erik Rasmussen (unassisted), 11:27.

FMT–Jace Teveldal (unassisted), PP., 6:07.

FMT–Jace Teveldal (Gavin Kester, Luke Kester), 1:44.

FMT–Tyson Pankow (Lucas Sommers), 0:09.