Lilly Mittl’s goal with just over two minutes remaining snapped a 3-3 tie, and Eleanor Adams scored her second goal of the game into an empty-net goal in the closing seconds, to lift the third-ranked St. Croix Valley Fusion girls hockey team to a 5-3 victory over Hudson Thursday night in River Falls.
The win was the sixth straight for the Fusion and kept them in first place in the Big Rivers Conference at 5-1, two points ahead of the fifth-ranked Eau Claire Area Stars.
The game was tied three times before Mittl scored off an assist from Sophia DeLong with 2:21 remaining to give the Fusion a 4-3 lead. Adams put an exclamation point on the win with an empty net goal with six seconds left with Morgan Kivel assisting.
Adams broke a scoreless tie with a power play goal 4:44 into the second period, assisted by Jenna Volgren, but Hudson answered less than two minutes later when Laura Johnson converted a pass from Erin Madigan.
Johnson gave Hudson a 2-1 lead with a shorthanded goal later in the second, before Kivel tied it for the Fusion with two minutes left in the period off assists from Ella Stanley and Kalie Lansing. It was Lansing’s first varsity point.
Kendra Harmon put St. Croix Valley up 3-2 at the 10:19 mark of the third period, assisted by Kivel and Oaklie Holldorf, but Hudson responded a minute later off the stick of Julianna Cahoon with an assist from Johnson.
St. Croix Valley goalie Katelynn Gustafson finished with 25 saves, and Hudson’s Emma Amundson stopped 24 shots, as the Fusion outshot the Raiders 29-28.
St. Croix Valley, now 15-4 overall, will host Superior (8-9) Saturday at 2 p.m. in Baldwin, while Hudson, 6-12 overall and 1-4 in the BRC, will play a conference game against the second-ranked Western Wisconsin Stars (11-9, 3-2) Friday night at 7 p.m. in New Richmond.