NEW ULM &045; The Albert Lea 12-and-under girls’ hockey team advanced to the regional level with a second-place finish in last weekend’s District 4 tournament at New Ulm.

Seeded No. 2 based on their 14-2 league record, the girls received a forfeit from Luverne in the opening round.

On Saturday the girls played Austin and won 6 – 4. Scoring were Katie Nelson, Brittany Osmundson and Jenna Christensen, with assists by Christensen, Lauren Draayer, Nelson and Sophia Jepson. Playing strong on defense were Morgan Walton and Ashton Larson. Kelli Larson played well in goal, totaling 16 saves.

Albert Lea led 3-1 before Austin got hot and tied it at 3. After Jepson’s goal put the locals on top 4-3, Austin pulled its goalie, and Christensen added an empty-netter with 5 seconds left.

That put Albert Lea into the championship game against top-seeded Mankato Purple. Albert Lea had given Purple its only loss of the year earlier in the Mankato tournament, but this game was different as Mankato won 7-3.

It was very close through two periods as the locals were only behind 3-2.

Scoring for Albert Lea were Christensen and Nelson, with assists going to Sophia Jepson, Walton and Christensen.

The girls worked very hard in the third period but Mankato scored four times to put the game away.

Scoring for Albert Lea in the third period was Haley Habana on a strong shot from the point.

Playing a strong defensive game were Habana and Jacqui Jepson. Molly Yokiel was in the nets and did an excellent job, stopping 40 shots.

The girls qualified for the regional tournament in Luverne Feb. 28 through March 2.

The team improved its record to 28-5-1 overall.