Photo by Jake McNeill: Marshall forward Brooklyn Mauch reacts after scoring the game-winning goal in a prep girls hockey game against Eden Prairie on Tuesday night at Red Baron Arena in Marshall. Mauch netted a pair of third-period goals to aid the Tigers' comeback efforts in a 5-4 win over the Eagles.

MARSHALL — The Marshall girls hockey team’s undefeated start to the season nearly came to an end on Tuesday night when the Tigers hosted Eden Prairie. Nearly. Despite facing a third-period deficit, some late-game heroics from Brooklyn Mauch and Lily Stelter helped the Tigers come from behind for a 5-4 win and their 14th consecutive victory to start the season.

“We came into this game knowing we could beat them, but I feel like in the back of our minds we still weren’t as confident as we should have been,” Mauch said. “I think we just proved to ourselves that we can beat anyone and we will beat anyone.”

After Abbey Foley was called for a hooking penalty, Ella Konrad scored a go-ahead power-play goal to give Eden Prairie a 4-3 lead. Despite falling behind, Marshall didn’t get deflated. Brooklyn Mauch came up clutch for the Tigers with 8:49 remaining in regulation, capitalizing on the feed from Abbey Foley to tie the game up at four goals apiece.

Kendal Beernaert was called for a tripping penalty two minutes later, putting the Eagles on the power play. Yet, it was the Tigers that took advantage of the situation. Mauch took the puck away in the defensive zone and zoomed down the right side of the rink. As she approached the crease, she turned parallel to the goalline and backhanded in what would be the game-winner with 5:38 to play.

“It felt amazing just knowing that my teammates were there and I didn’t do it alone,” Mauch said of her thoughts after the goal. “We were on a PK and were working it around just doing everything we could to get it out [of the defensive zone], so when I got that, I was just so happy.”

The goal was Mauch’s 23rd of the season, as well as her 48th point. 

Even with the lead in hand for Marshall in the waning minutes, the game was far from over. The Eagles turned their offense into overdrive, bombarding Stelter with shots. With 2:27 remaining, Eden Prairie pulled its goalie to get an extra attacker in the offensive end. Still, Stelter stood tall when it mattered most, recording 15 third-period saves to secure the victory.

Assistant coach Chris Foley said that he feels Stelter plays her best when she’s competing against top-tier opponents, even back when he coached her in 10U hockey.

“She’s always come up big and big games. She steps up for the moment, she’s never fazed mentally,” coach Foley said. “She can let a goal in now and she steps right back up into the game and says, ‘Alright, that was one, we’re going to forget about that one and move forward. I think it’s her mental toughness that really allows her to come up and step up big in those moments.”

Stelter finished the night with 39 saves on 43 shots faced, good for a .907 save percentage. Her 39 saves also surpassed her previous career-high of 35, set in a 7-1 road win over Mankato West last season, and bested her season-high of 32 that she set in a 2-0 shutout victory over Litchfield/Dassel-Cokato on Saturday.

Tuesday’s meeting marked the fourth consecutive season the Tigers and Eagles have met. In the last three meetings, Eden Prairie defeated Marshall 7-0, 4-1 and 7-0. Still, the Tigers remained undaunted in the face of an opponent that’s played them tough the last several seasons.

“I think [Mauch] hit it on the head that you’re confident, but you also have that fear in the back of your head that we’re playing these big dogs from the cities,” coach Foley said of the team’s approach to the game. “The thing about the organization is, you look at [head] coach Cassie [Weiss], and she trusts [assistant coach] Derek [Smith] and me out there. Derek’s awesome with the team, we’ve got two great team managers and we just have built this great bond where our confidence never breaks and everybody has everybody’s back.

“I talked to Lily after the game and just said, a common quote, great players come up big in great moments. She did, and we always have someone that does that, whether it’s Brooklyn or Lily or just the team as a whole, someone’s always going to step up and we always believe that late in the game.”

Eden Prairie dominated the game’s early minutes, even when they went on the penalty kill for a cross-checking minor called on Sara David in the first minute. Yet, Mauch got the puck on the fast break and, after beating a defender, passed it laterally to Peyton DeMuth. Gliding just ahead of the crease, DeMuth fired the Tigers’ first shot on goal of the night into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead with 11:38 to play in the first period.

The Tigers’ lead, however, was short-lived. Kate Petrie scored off an assist from David to tie the game for the Eagles just a minute later.

Quick responses to Marshall goals were a theme throughout the night for Eden Prairie. Aubree Metheny scored the first goal of the second period eight minutes into the frame, when Beernaert got the puck behind the net, skated around and fired off a shot, and Metheny recovered the rebound for a second-chance goal. Yet, Ava Moe put the Eagles back on top less than 40 seconds later, taking a feed from Addy Mitchell for a 3-2 Eagles lead.

“[Eden Prairie] is really good. We’re not used to playing that high a level of competition, and I think you just go out there, you’re on your heels a little bit, you score one and feel a little bit comfortable there for a second,” coach Foley said of Eden Prairie’s immediate answers to Marshall goals. “Once you score on them, they’re going to get themselves fired up and come down and put one in right away, so I just feel like it’s just a high-paced speed of game that we’re just not used to playing all the time.”

When Eden Prairie answered Metheny’s goal to pull ahead, Marshall did the same just 17 seconds later. DeMuth gained possession of the puck off a feed from Mauch, deked and weaved her way through the defense and shot the puck for the equalizer to knot the game up at three goals apiece.

The first period seemed destined to end in a tie until, with 15 seconds left, Mitchell fired off a shot from the right faceoff circle. Marshall goaltender Lily Stelter made the save, but the puck drifted between her legs and behind her, sitting just ahead of the goalline. Before she could locate it, Moe made the tip to give Eden Prairie a 2-1 lead heading into the second period.

The Eagles outshot the Tigers 14-3 after the first frame and finished the night with a 43-16 advantage in shots on goal. 

Eden Prairie was called for four penalties on the night while Marshall was called for three, all minors. 

More than halfway through the regular season now, Marshall remains undefeated at a perfect 14-0-0 (6-0-0 Big South). The Tigers will look to keep the trend going when they host conference foe Fairmont (9-5-0, 6-2-0 BSC) on Thursday at 7 p.m. From there, the Tigers will host Minnesota River (10-1-0, 6-0-0 BSC) in a battle for first place in the conference on Saturday at noon.

“This is just one of those teams that their drive and how bad they want it is absolutely unbelievable,” coach Smith said of Marshall’s strong start to the season. “You really don’t see this very often out of any team anywhere… One girl makes a mistake, someone is right there to pick them right back up. That’s how this team is run. If you’re on the bench with us, you feel the energy from the girls that haven’t played yet, that are right there. They know that they’re not necessarily going to get on the ice, but their energy is there picking up the team. This is a family and they’re just there to pick each other up and that’s what’s keeping us going.”