ASHLAND, Wis. – The Northland College Women's Hockey team wins its second game in a row as they top Aurora University 2-1 in overtime in a nonconference game Saturday night in Ashland, Wis. Sophomore Kate Holtz scored the game-winning goal a minute and 26 seconds in overtime.
 
The win improves the LumberJills to 5-9-1 overall and the Spartans drop to 7-7. With the win the 2023-24 season already ranks fourth for most wins in a season for the program.
 
The first was relatively quiet with no goals or no penalties. Aurora had the edge in shots 10-to-5.
 
Freshman goaltender Karlee Lehner was tested early in the second period turning away five shots in the first five minutes. Seven minutes in the Spartans were on the powerplay. The Northland defense came up big down a man, blocking five shots and Lehner making two saves to keep the game scoreless. Four minutes later, the Jills were down in numbers and killed off another powerplay. When it ended, NC got to the other side of the ice where Kyleigh Moffatt put Northland ahead with the opening goal. Nearing the end of the second period, Northland was on its first powerplay but suffered a shorthanded goal in the dying seconds of the period.
 
The third period was similar to the first with no penalties and no goals. Lehner made 11 saves in the third period to keep the game tied as the offense was only able to muster four shots. Despite being outshot 43-to-17 the game was going to overtime.
 
Eight seconds in the extra period, Maddy Bloedel sent a shot the goaltenders away then ended up being saved. Lehner made two more big saves before Holtz ended the game with a shot by the Northland College logo that found the back of the net.
 
Four student-athletes earned a point in the victory. Moffatt scored her second goal of the season and is second on the team with nine points. Holtz has moved to third on the team with eight points with her sixth goal of the season. Hannah Baumann and Daphne Gray each picked up a point from an assist. Senior Taylor Richmond tallied a team-high five shots in the win with two coming in the second and third periods. Behind her was Audrey Ellerington who totaled four in the contest.
 
Lehner earned her fourth win of the season and second in back-to-back games. She was one save away from tying her season-high of 45 and had her best save percentage at 97.8 percent. The defense continued to show why they are second in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in blocks tallying a season-high 27. Kennedy Gruhlke stopped five shots with Kiley Sims behind her with four.
 
Northland and Aurora end the two-game series tomorrow (Sunday) with a 2 p.m., puck drop at the Bay Area Civic Center.
 
Northland College is an NCAA Division III institution located in Ashland, WI. The LumberJacks and LumberJills sponsor 14 varsity sports and compete in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference, Midwest Lacrosse Conference, and the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.