A run to the section finals would be the first in school history
International Falls might be the most confident No. 6 seed in the state of Minnesota right now heading into the Section 7A tournament.
And they have reason to be.
“I don’t want to be cocky, but I think we can make it the whole way. This is the team that could go,” Broncos senior Nadine Mayer said following the final regular season game.
Mayer’s fellow captains — Sydney Gordon and Mackenzie Raboin — agree with the comment and believe it’s never been a question of talent.
“We were hoping for a better (seed), but it didn’t work out as well as we wanted it to,” Gordon said.
After opening the season 8-3-3, the Broncos went into a dive spurred by a rash of illnesses and injuries. Broncos head coach Gerald Bolstad never wanted to use it as an excuse, but the shortcomings were so prevalent it had to be reported. The Broncos finished the regular season 11-11-3.
“It’s going to boil down to effort. It’s not going to boil down to if someone is sick or if someone is hurt,” Bolstad said.
The Broncos are healthy now, however, and believe they can make a run through the section. The only big loss is defenseman Alyssa Bergstrom, who was ruled out for the season last week.
“The girls have just been amazing, and the thing that we have is chemistry,” said Gordon, who thinks this is the best team she’s been on in five years.
Raboin, a four-year varsity player, agreed.
“Even in the games with people gone, we’ve lost some, but we stayed with teams,” Raboin said.
Gordon leads the Broncos in scoring with 34 points (19 goals, 15 assists), and she’s followed by Amy Auran (11G, 15A), Raboin (14G, 7A), Michele McDonald (3G, 12A), Ashley Bahr (4G, 6A) and Bailey Bernard (4G, 6A). Netminder Taylar Nelson, who’s suited up for all but one game, is 11-10-3 with a .879 save percentage and a 3.125 goals against average.
The Broncos open section play at Princeton (6-11-7), a team the Broncos tied 2-2 earlier in the season in the Silver Bay Tournament. Bolstad thought his team deserved better than a No. 6 seed, but he’s not worried about hitting the road.
“It won’t be that big of a deal,” he said. “We’ve actually played well when they travel that far.”
The Broncos have defeated or played close games against every team in the section except No. 2 Chisago Lakes Area, which it didn’t play, and are planning to make the school’s first trip to the section final. It would make the season all the more memorable.
“It’s been a wonderful year. It really has,” the first year head coach said. “And I’m hoping to extend it.”
If you go:
WHAT: Section 7A Quarterfinals
No. 6 I. Falls vs. No. 3 Princeton
SHOWTIME: 7 p.m. Thursday
WHERE: @ Princeton H.S.
