The battle for second place in Big Nine girls’ hockey didn’t turn out to be much of a battle.

Friday, February 01, 2002

The battle for second place in Big Nine girls’ hockey didn’t turn out to be much of a battle.

It was more like a pummeling.

The Albert Lea Tigers clinched second place in the conference with a convincing 6-0 shutout of Rochester Mayo at the City Arena Thursday night. Albert Lea improved to 16-5-1 overall and 11-5-1 in the conference, three points better than the Spartans.

Although it was the fifth shutout in seven games for goalie Danika Porter, an eighth-grader, Tigers coach Mike Miller said she had plenty of help from her teammates.

&uot;It was a team effort that got her the shutout,&uot; said Miller. &uot;Any time you hold a team to three shots on goal in one period and 16 for the game, it’s not just your goaltender, it’s also your forwards and defensemen. We back checked very well. We moved the puck very well. When you do that, it shows in the net.

&uot;This was another big team victory.&uot;

The Tigers put the puck in the net once in the first period, at 9:35 when Laura Hillman scored on a Tessa Christensen assist.

Jasey Porter made it 2-0 at 2:25 of the second. Christensen set up Hillman for another goal at 11:19.

Hillman’s fourth goal came on a power play at 1:43 of the third period. Christine Tubbs and Brittany Arendt assisted.

Defender Frances O’Donnell got the sixth goal at 12:30. Jasey Porter and Christensen assisted.

The Tigers outshot the Spartans 30-16. Both teams had four penalties.

Jasey Porter scored twice Tuesday as the Tigers won 5-2 at Faribault. Lacey Oyer, Arendt and Hillman also had goals.

The Tigers are seeded second among 16 teams in Section 1A and open tournament play Tuesday against No. 15 Worthington at 7 p.m. at the City Arena. If they win, they’ll host No. 7 Luverne or No. 10 Mankato West Saturday, Feb. 9.