Offense Breaks Free In 8-2 Win Over St. Olaf

MOORHEAD, Minn. (11/19/21)---Concordia entered their 2-game series with St. Olaf having scored 10 goals in their first four games of the year. The Cobbers nearly matched that mark on Friday when the exploded for six goals in the second period alone and rolled over St. Olaf 8-2.

The eight goals are the most by the Cobbers in a single game since they also scored eight against St. Olaf at the end of the 2015 season.

The offensive eruption helped Concordia record their first conference win of the season. CC is now 3-2-0 in all games and 1-2-0 in league play. St. Olaf loses for the third straight game and is now 4-3-0 overall and 0-3-0 in the MIAC.

The Cobbers had a pair of players score their first collegiate goal in the game, and also had a duo score a pair of goals.

Freshman Lexi Woodward opened the 8-goal night when she chipped in a rebound from the slot. The goal at the 8:37 mark was Wodward's first collegiate goal and first collegiate point.   

The score would stay at 1-0 until the final 1:05 play in the first frame. Sophomore Jerica Friese scored the first of her two goals in the game when she settled the puck in the right faceoff circle and then snapped a laser into the top left corner of the net. It was Friese's first goal of the season and third of her career.

The floodgates opened at the 5:22 of the second period when senior Brenna Mjoness got the first of her back-to-back goals. She was able to slide the puck into the side of the goal and have it carom of the St. Olaf goalies' skate.

Mjoness would push the lead to 4-0 when she finished off a breakaway from the blueline at the 8:54 mark. The goal was Mjoness' team-leading fourth of the season.

Fellow senior Libby Hinrichs scored the third goal of the period only 32-seconds later. The Cobbers were awarded a power play on Mjoness' second goal and then Hinrichs 1-time a shot that found the back of the net at the 9:26 mark.

Josie Hell would become the second Concordia player to post her first collegiate goal when she took a feed from the left faceoff circle and calmly found the top left corner of the net from the top of the left slot area.

Brooke McMillen added the seventh goal of the game for the Cobbers when she netted her first goal of the year at 11:58. She was able to get her stick on the puck from the left side of the net and have it fly end-over-end over the goalie's shoulder and drop down inside the right post.

Friese finished off the 6-goal second, and her fourth point of the night, when she scored on the power play at the 17:04 mark of the period. McKenzie Oelkers was credited with the assist on the final goal of the game – it was her third helper of the night.

Hinrichs also had a 3-point game as she added a pair of assists to her goal

Concordia had a double-digit shot total in all three periods and outshot the Oles 47-27. The Cobbers have now posted back-to-back 40-plus shot games and have put up at least 40 shots in three of their five games this year. CC now leads the MIAC in total shots this season. The Cobbers have 201 shots in their five games.

Concordia split the goaltending duties for the 60 minutes. Kiana Flaig played the first 46:41 and made 20 saves to record her second win of the year. Sophomore Madison Kisor saw her first collegiate action between the pipes and made five saves in the final 13:19.

UP NEXT: The Cobbers will look to continue their goal-scoring ways when they host St. Olaf in the series finale on Saturday, Nov. 20 at 2 p.m. at the Moorhead Sports Center.