Bears head into Hockey Day on a roll

BY BRUCE STRAND SPORTS CONTRIBUTOR

The excitement is building for White Bear Township’s day in the spotlight as Hockey Day Minnesota host on Saturday. Also building is the Bears’ winning streak.

“Our entire hockey program is so excited to have the opportunity to play in Hockey Day Minnesota,” coach Tim Sager said. “The memories the boys will have from this day will last a lifetime. We are so grateful to have this opportunity and want to say thank you to everyone who made this possible.”

White Bear Lake has nine straight wins after tripping Woodbury 6-2 and Grand Rapids, both at home. The No. 10 ranked Bears are 13-2 overall, 7-1 in conference.

At 4:30 p.m. Saturday, the Bears take on section arch rival Hill-Murray on the specially-constructed outdoor rink at Polar Lakes Park, televised by Bally Sports North. The Pioneers, a perennial power, are having a rare below .500 season (6-8-1).

The White Bear Lake girls will open the day against Stillwater at 9:30 a.m., and the Mahtomedi boys face state Class 1A champion Her-

Girls Basketball

A barrage of three-point shots in the second half highlighted a 2-0 week by White Bear Lake as the Bears beat Irondale 58-37 and Mounds View 77-54, both at home. The Bears (14-3 overall, 8-2 conference) trailed Mounds View 29-27 at halftime, then hit 10 of their 12 three-pointers during a 50-point second half. Heidi Barber, junior forward, tossed in six trifectas and hit a career-best 22 points. Jordan Schmittdiel added 18 points, Nicki O’Brien 15 (four treys), Blessing Adebisi eight and Anna Sommerhause six (two treys). Against Irondale (3-14) Schmittdiel sank 23 points and Sommerhause added eight.

Girls Hockey

White Bear Lake lost to a strong South St. Paul squad 4-0 and rebounded to defeat North St. Paul/ Tartan 3-0, both on the road. The Bears are 7-14 overall but 3-1 in their last four. South St. Paul (17-4-1) posted its eighth shutout against the Bears while Lily Pachl drilled three goals. Against North/Tartan (8-10), the Bears notched their third shutout with Maya Marston making 26 saves. Hailey Dawe, Madelyn Lee and Ava Johnston scored. The Bears will face longtime rival Stillwater at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at Hockey Day Minnesota at Polar Lakes Park.

Boys Basketball

White Bear Lake has a five-game streak after conference wins last week over Irondale 65-59 in overtime and Mounds View 64-46, both on the road. The Bears (8-4 overall, 6-2 conference) roared to a 28-9 lead over Irondale but the Knights (6-7) chipped away until they caught up mantown at 1 p.m.

Last week against Woodbury (10-5-1), sophomore Jack Stanius drilled three goals and made two assists. Also scoring were Joe Belisle, Charlie Olsen and Nolan Roed. The Bears outshot the Royals 37-14. Against Grand Rapids (11-7) Aiden Welch, Roed and Grady Gallatin had the goals. Leo Gabriel made 26 saves for the shutout.

“We have had a solid year so far,” said Sager. He cites captains Gallatin, Belisle, Welch and Brady Borgestad for leadership, Roed (35 points) and Welch (33) as top scorers and “many players contributing in different ways.”