Panthers stake their claim on SSC championship

North skaters clinch tie for first after defeating South

Senior forward Addie Bowlby scored two goals – her 37th and 38th of the season – as Lakeville North defeated Lakeville South 3-1 on Tuesday night and clinched at least a share of the South Suburban Conference girls hockey championship.

The victory gives the Panthers (19-2-1 overall, 14-0-1 SSC) a two-point lead in the conference over Lakeville South (18-2-3, 12-2-3). South has one conference game remaining Thursday night at home against Eastview while North has three SSC games left, meaning a victory or tie in any of the Panthers’ last three games would clinch the outright championship. A Lakeville South loss or tie against Eastview also would give the solo title to North.

Streaks were on the line when the Panthers and Cougars met at Ames Arena. Lakeville North, ranked seventh in Class AA by Let’s Play Hockey, had won eight in a row. Tenth-ranked Lakeville South had a 12-game winning streak and 19-game unbeaten streak. The Cougars had not lost since Nov. 21 against Farmington. Their unbeaten streak included a 1-1 tie against Lakeville North on Dec. 14 at Hasse Arena.

Lakeville South jumped in front of a weary North team when forward Brynn O’Neill scored at 6 minutes, 6 seconds of the second period. The Panthers, however, were able to find another gear after that, taking a huge territorial advantage. North outshot South 29-10 over the final two periods and 34-13 for the game.

The Panthers’ Ashley Wagenbach scored at 12:30 of the second period to tie the game. Wagenbach’s initial shot from the point was blocked by the South defense but the puck came back to her and she fired a slap shot past Cougars goalie Claire Bronson.

Bowlby scored in a crowd in front of the South goal with 31 seconds left in the second and added an empty-net goal with 4.7 seconds remaining in the third period.

The Panthers might have had some tired legs after their trip to Warroad last week to take part in Hockey Day Minnesota (North defeated Warroad 4-3 in an outdoor game Jan. 27), but coach Buck Kochevar said he was pleased with how they responded.

“The kids were not in their own beds Thursday, Friday or Saturday, and we rode back on the bus Sunday,” Kochevar said. “We had a light practice Monday, and then Tuesday we’re playing our biggest rival. We rolled three lines and spotted a fourth, while (South) rolled two lines all night. We hoped we could eventually outwork them.”

Bowlby leads the South Suburban Conference in goals and is tied with Apple Valley’s Makayla Moran for first in points with 55. After playing for a Burnsville team that qualified for the Class AA state tournament in 2022, Bowlby and several other teammates transferred to a North program that already was on the rise. The Panthers are 40-11-1 over the last two seasons.

“She’s always been a sniper, and she’s also a really good playmaker,” Kochevar said of Bowlby, who will play in college at Sacred Heart. “This year, I think she trusts her teammates a little more. She can score a lot of goals down low because she has such great hands.”

In Warroad, the Panthers watched a lot of hockey, attended some of the affiliated events, browsed the Hockey Day Village and had some team bonding time. As for the game, Warroad took the lead one minute in but North responded with a first-period goal by Bowlby and goals by Gracie Hanson and Wagenbach in the second period. Anna Tomas scored for the Panthers in the third. Addie Oettinger made 17 saves in goal.

It helped the Panthers get over memories of their previous trip to Warroad, where they lost to the Warriors 10-0 in a holiday tournament in December 2022.

“Believe me, that was on our minds, the shellacking we took,” Kochevar said. “That wasn’t going to happen this year. Warroad is a very good team, but I thought we had a little more depth.”

Even if the Panthers had lost, the trip would have been worth it. “I think that was the most fun game I’ve ever been a part of,” Kochevar said. “Warroad did a great job of putting it on. It was like a state tournament championship game.”

The demanding schedule continues this week for North, which will play at Apple Valley – currently tied for third in the SSC – at 7 p.m. Thursday. The Panthers are at Prior Lake at 1 p.m. Saturday and have a makeup game at Shakopee at 4 p.m. Monday, Feb. 5, to end the regular season. The postseason starts two days after that with the Section 3AA quarterfinals. Lakeville North will be the No. 1 seed in the section and appears headed for a first-round game against Eagan on Wednesday, Feb. 7.

With a game every other day for the next week, Kochevar said the Panthers likely will skate four lines in games and shorten or cancel practices to keep players fresh for the playoffs. But there are still things they want to accomplish in the regular season.

“Something crazy would have to happen for us not to win the conference, but it’s still important to us. We haven’t won the conference in a while,” Kochevar said. “We have a tie in the conference, but we’d like to finish with no losses. I don’t think we’ve ever been undefeated in the conference since I’ve been the coach.”

Lakeville South ends its regular season with a challenging non-conference game against Centennial/Spring Lake Park at 3 p.m. Saturday at Hasse Arena. Centennial/SSP is 21-1-2, won the Northwest Suburban Conference and has a 16-game winning streak.

Next week the Cougars begin play in the Section 1AA tournament, where they, Northfield (23-1) and Farmington are among the contenders.