Staff Photo by Jake Olson: Fairmont's Lauren Bettin snipes a shot on goal attempt during the first period of Thursday night's Section 3A Girls Hockey match against Windom Area at Martin County Arena.

FAIRMONT – Fairmont’s opening round of the Section 3A Girls Hockey tournament started on the wrong foot for head coach Aaron Haycraft’s team. In fact, it began with a one-goal deficit.

Seconds into the contest, Windom Area’s Alicia Meyeraan found herself with the puck after the initial face-off, finding teammate Ashlyn Koch on the left side of the ice for a quick one-timer to give the Eagles an early advantage.

“Giving up a goal nine seconds into the game is certainly not how you want to start that off,” coach Haycraft said with a chuckle.

However, the Cardinals responded with a purpose. After attacking Windom Area goalkeeper Fiona Robillard with 11 shots on goal, Alexis Haycraft finally got her team on the board with a swift score of her own to tie things up.

This propelled an ensemble of goals throughout the rest of the period. The Cardinals scored four more times before the first intermission, using their dominant puck possession and passing to fuel a 12-2 victory over the Eagles during Thursday night’s clash at Martin County Arena.

“I am very proud of how they responded to that,” coach Haycraft said. “They knew that was wrong, and came out and answered very quickly with five more goals in the net.”

Fairmont (14-9-2) scored at least three goals in the final two periods to secure its 14th victory of the season and set up a second-round matchup against No. 2 Luverne (17-9) this Saturday.

Alexis Haycraft led the efforts with four goals and one assist. Lauren Bettin had a hat trick herself after notching two goals in the final period. Halyn Haycraft and Carly Gustafson each had two assists, while Kennedy Murphy had three. Goaltender Alexis Sundeen recorded 19 saves.

After Bettin and Mariel Parish continued to attack the net with looks on goal, the Cardinal offense struck again with Halyn Haycraft forcing the puck under Robillard’s padding at 9:33 left in the first period, giving Fairmont an advantage that never ceased until the final horn.

Fairmont forward Joslyn Meyer kept the train rolling with her lone score of the night less than a minute later. The junior collected the puck on the left side of the ice before maneuvering through a sea of blue jerseys and striking one home from the slot.

Alexis Haycraft and Bettin tacked on two more scores during the final five minutes of the first period, with Bettin’s goal coming from an Alexis Haycraft assist on a breakaway opportunity at the 3:59 mark.

“We possessed and moved the puck really well in the offensive zone,” coach Haycraft said. “We worked the puck down low, we found the open teammates and got her [Fiona Robillard] moving side to side. Anytime you are playing against a good goalie, that’s what you have to do.”

Fairmont began the second period with the same momentum they had at the end of the first, much to the liking of coach Haycraft and his staff, who emphasized the same sense of urgency coming out of the first intermission.

This time, it was the Cardinals scoring in the opening moments of play, with Alexis Haycraft recording her hat-trick goal 10 seconds into the period off an assist from Murphy. Parish added another score three minutes later after rifling a strike from the left circle to take a 7-1 advantage.

“That’s what we talked about doing,” coach Haycraft said in regard to his team’s hot second-period start.

Windom Area scored one more goal at the 13:21 mark of the period in hopes of mounting the monumental comeback. It was Koch again who found her shot at the back of the net, taking advantage of a steal at mid-ice and ripping the puck past Sundeen to cut into Fairmont’s lead.

This was the last of the Eagles’ offense, however, with Fairmont notching two more second-period scores to ensure a running clock heading into the final period.

At 11:37 in the second period, Parish scored her final goal of the night after prompting herself off the ice and using her momentum to wrap around the net for another score. Kynlee Beemer took advantage of an open ice situation two minutes later, placing herself in the slot and firing the puck past the nylon.

Alexis Haycraft and Bettin combined for the final three scores in the last period of play to seal off the 10-goal victory.

Looking ahead

All eyes are on Luverne for the second round of the Section 3A Girls Hockey bracket. The two teams are set to face off for the third time this season, with both Fairmont and Luverne earning regular-season wins over each other entering the grudge match.

Fairmont took down Luverne in the initial matchup held in Martin County Arena on Tuesday, Dec 9, with coach Haycraft’s team outlasting their opponent in a 2-1 battle. Luverne got its revenge a month later in dominant fashion, winning 8-0, in what was only the sixth time Fairmont has been shut out this season.

Since then, Fairmont has rattled off six consecutive wins by a combined score of 38-6. Momentum is a major factor in the sport of hockey, and coach Haycraft hopes to seize this late-season surge into another win over its Big South Conference rival.

“They are an extremely fast team, and we know that,” coach Haycraft said. “Confidence in hockey is huge. In all sports, it’s huge. Right now, they [Fairmont] have a lot of confidence because of the success we have had. I’d like to think that carries on to Saturday.”