Huskies’ Hockey Falls to Ranked Twin Cities Foes
Owatonna's girls' and boys' hockey teams made treks into the Twin Cities Saturday for non-conference games against ranked opponents. The OHS girls lost 6-0 to No. 9AA Wayzata. Owatonna's boys dropped a 5-2 decision at No. 15A South St. Paul. Playoffs begin for the Owatonna girls Wednesday.
The OHS girls faced a Trojans' team that has held its own against many of the ranked teams in the state. Wayzata stormed out to a quick lead with three goals in a two-and-a-half minute span midway through the first period. They led 4-0 after one and tacked on two more in the second. Wayzata outshot Owatonna 30-13.
The Huskies (15-8) open the Section 1AA playoffs Wednesday, February 7 at Rochester Mayo (20-5). Owatonna is the No. 6 seed and Mayo is third. The Spartans have defeated the Huskies in two out of three meetings this season. In each of those games, Mayo scored late in regulation and won in overtime. Owatonna also has a 4-2 win over Mayo. Wednesday's game will be heard on KRFO AM1390 with a 7PM face off. Owatonna is back in 1AA after spending the last two seasons in Section 1A, making the finals two years ago.
The Owatonna boys travel the state seeking the best possible competition. South St. Paul is top twenty ranked and one of the top defensive teams in the state. OHS jumped ahead 1-0 and 2-1 at Doug Woog Arena, but saw those leads evaporate. Tyler Wencl and Nick Smith scored Owatonna's goals.
The game was tied at 1-1 after the first period and 2-2 after two. The Packers scored three times in the third and out shot Owatonna 23-19 for the game. OHS (10-9-1, 7-3-1 Big Nine) plays at Rochester Mayo (10-11, 5-6) Monday, February 5 at 7:15PM on KRFO AM1390. The Huskies beat the Spartans 3-2 December 21.