Glenn Strandberg
Sports Editor

Last weekís three up and three down performance by the girls varsity hockey team was about as good as it gets. The Rangers brilliant play was evident on the ice, and also shows up in a quick breakdown of a few numbers.

In the weekly trifecta, Forest Lake outscored Park, Duluth East and Mounds View by a total score of 11-2. Two games against conference rivals, one versus a section school and the Rangers allowed less than one goal per game. The two-headed monster of Kim Fredrick and Cassi Carpenter in front of the net should look rather intimidating for upcoming opponents.

ìOur goalies give our team a lot of confidenceî head coach Paul Kendrick said. ìWe can go and make something happen on offense; we know theyíre there for us.î

In front of Carpenter and Fredrick is a defense that limited scoring opportunities, which has been helped by a more aggressive forechecking strategy that was instituted two weeks ago. On average, Forest Lake (9-2-1) saw only 19 shots on goal during its three straight wins.

On the flip side, the Ranger offense is averaging 28 shots and putting so much pressure on the opposing goalie du jour that a variety of players are popping up in the box scores.

In Saturdayís 4-0 victory over Mounds View, the scoring started in its typically slow manner as neither team could do much in the opening 17 minutes. Come the second period, though, if the other team isnít already up a few goals on Forest Lake, theyíre going to be in trouble.

Junior center Torri Shelafoe got the offense flowing when she scored at the 7:50 mark, and then came back with Kate Haglund to assist Alexa Nelson for the teamís second goal. Toward the end of the second, freshman Charise Kendrick chipped in with assists from Stephanie Haider and Briana Gray.

The third period started with a bang when Paige Patchin put in the fourth and final goal with just 49 seconds gone, on assists from Kathy Crudo and Kelsey Blum.

In Thursdayís contest against Duluth East, it was the Northern Stars who scored quickly and held a 1-0 lead going into the first intermission.

The second period went past the halfway point until the freshman Kendrick got the team on the board with help from sophomore Ashley Grell. That ignited the Rangers as Nelson scored two goals ó both on passes from Shelafoe ó to close the scoring and give Forest Lake the 3-1 win.

ìThat really sets the tone for a very positive seed in the sectionî coach Kendrick said, ìwhich we thought was very important that we get some home games during the sections.î

The winning streak started on Tuesday night with a trip down to Cottage Grove, which resulted in a 4-1 victory.

The teams ended the first period in a scoreless tie, but it was Park that actually took the lead when they scored with 4:15 gone in the second. Forest Lake answered the challenge when Nelson began her scoring binge on a shorthanded goal. Patchin assisted Crudo for the game-winner, with a little more than five minutes to go in the second period.

But the Rangers werenít done as Crudo took a pass from Blum to make it 3-1 in the third, and then Nelson matched Crudoís two-goal total when she scored on another shorthanded shot.

Forest Lake will get a well-deserved breather after they played St. Francis on Tuesday, Dec. 19, as they wonít take to the ice until Wednesday, Dec. 27 at the Schwan Cup.

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