By Riley Schmidt, UWEC Sports Information
EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire skated onto the ice for their last home game of the season against University of Wisconsin-River Falls on Saturday afternoon. The final tally was in favor of River Falls at 3-2 after a hard fought battle.
Box Score | Video | WIAC Championship Website
UW-River Falls was quick to find the back of the net just 15 seconds into the first period. The second period started off all too similar to the first, as UW-River Falls put another power-play tally on the board just 24 seconds into the second period.
Eau Claire found their rhythm soon after the setback as Holly Turnbull (Fr.-Hayward, WI), assisted by Paige Dale (Jr.-Andover, Minn.) and Ashley Baugher (Sr.-Crystal Lake, Ill.), put the first goal on the board for the Blugolds at 3:31 into the second. Not long after that, Dale fired a shot to the back of the net at 4:57 into the second, with an assist by Erin Gooddell (Fr.-Maplewood, Minn.). The second period would end in a 2-2 tie and the win was up for grabs going into the third.
The beginning of the period started out strong with the a tough Blugold defense, but the Falcons managed to sneak past Eau Claire and scored the game winning goal at 10:18 in the third.
Paige Turner (Sr.-Iron River, Wis./Duluth East) played well on Senior Night, recording 29 saves.
Eau Claire ended the regular season with a record of 9-12-4, 2-8-2 WIAC. The Blugolds will be the No. 4 seed in the WIAC tournament and will have a rematch with the top-seeded Falcons for the semifinal round Friday and Saturday, Feb. 26-27 in River Falls.
