Watertown Hockey: Laker varsity girls, boys set to open their seasons at home this weekend

Roger Merriam, Watertown Public Opinion
·6 min read
Senior forward Jaclyn Lloyd (11) is one of the leading returnees for the Watertown Lakers' varsity girls hockey team this winter. The Lakers kicked off their season by hosting Mitchell at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday in a South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association game in the Maas Ice Arena. The Lakers also host defending champion Aberdeen at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday.

The Watertown Lakers’ varsity boys and girls hockey teams are set to kick off their 2021-22 seasons with home games this weekend in the Maas Ice Arena.

The Laker girls host Mitchell at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday and defending South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association (SDAHA) state champion Aberdeen at 11:30 a.m. on Sunday.

The Laker boys entertain Mitchell at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Here is a preseason look at each of the Laker squads:

VARSITY BOYS

• Head Coach — Evan Witt, second year. Witt played on Watertown’s 1996 state championship squad.

• 2020-21 Record — The Lakers went 5-17 overall and 0-2 in the state tournament, opening with a 7-0 loss to No. 1 seed and eventual champion Brookings.

• 2020-21 Season Summary — Watertown went 3-3 in SDAHA games through mid-January last winter before dropping its next nine games and 12 of its final 14 the rest of the way..

Brookings won the league title with an 18-1 record last winter and also went on to defeat Rushmore in the championship game of the state tournament. Oahe finished 17-2 and Rushmore 17-3 in league play.

• Top Returnees — Senior forward Austin Green (9 goals, 15 assists), senior forward Blair Boomsma (7-11), junior forward Logan Austad (1-2), junior forward Brayson Bohling (6-2), sophomore forward Jake Bramer (0-3), junior forward Jacksyn Wirkus (4-7), junior forward Trey Allard (3-3), sophomore forward Thomas Foley (1-2), sophomore forward Austin McBride (2-0) and senior goalie Owen McBride (682 saves).

Also back are junior forward Jacob Rieffenberger (1-0), senior forward Kaden German (1-0), senior forward Nicholas Lenssen, senior forward Mason Thompson, sophomore forward Karter Ragels, sophomore forward Gabriel Holien, sophomore forward Hudson Hendricks, sophomore forward Wyatt Knopf, junior forward Ethan Skott and senior forward Dakota Woertink.

• Newcomers — Senior forward Mason Witt, junior forward Ryan Roby, freshman goalie Caleb Schmaltz, sophomore forward Gunnar Van Gilder, freshman forward Kowynn Muhl and sophomore forward Jackson Espland.

• Coach’s Comments — “Definitely, the expectations are going to be higher this year,” said Coach Witt. “We have a really good core group of guys who were expecting to contribute. Really the goal is to be competitive in every game this year. Obviously, we want to get wins but we need to start doing things right and the wins will take care of themselves.

“(Owen) McBride kept us in game last year, but we just didn’t score enough. We’re not where we want to be yet, but right now, we’re way ahead of where we were last year. The expectation with the guys we have on our first two lines is that we’re going to score more goals.

“The favorites in the league are the usual suspects … Brookings, Rushmore and Sioux Falls. There’s going to be a little bit more parity throughout the league. A lot of teams could surprise and be competitive in any game.”

Junior forward Brayson Bohling and the Watertown Lakers' varsity boys hockey team are set to open the season on Saturday by hosting Mitchell in a South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association game at 8:30 p.m. in the Maas Ice Arena.
Junior forward Brayson Bohling and the Watertown Lakers' varsity boys hockey team are set to open the season on Saturday by hosting Mitchell in a South Dakota Amateur Hockey Association game at 8:30 p.m. in the Maas Ice Arena.

• Schedule — The Lakers will play primarily the SDAHA schedule, but are also scheduled to compete Dec. 10-12 in the Great River Winter Classic at Onalaska, Wis. (near La Crosse).

Scheduled home games for Watertown include Nov. 27 (Mitchell, 8:30 p.m.), Dec. 3 (Sioux Falls I, 8:30 p.m.), Dec. 4 (Oahe, 8:30 p.m.), Dec. 30 (Brookings, 8 p.m.), Jan. 22 (Sioux Center, Iowa at 8:30 p.m.), Jan. 28 (Rushmore, 8 p.m.), Jan. 29 (Rushmore, 8:30 p.m.), Feb. 12 (Yankton, 5:30 p.m.), Feb. 18 (Aberdeen, 8 p.m.), Feb. 25 (Sioux Falls II, 8 p.m.) and Fb. 26 (Huron, 8 p.m.).

• State Tournament — March 11-13 at Sioux Falls.

VARSITY GIRLS

• Head Coach — Curt Kranz, first year back as a head coach after previously serving as head coach in 2015-16 and 2016-17. Prior to that, he spent many years as an assistant coach for the Laker girls. He replaces Alex Purdy, who spent the last two years as the team’s head coach.

• 2020-21 Record — The Lakers went 6-10-2 overall in the SDAHA and finished sixth in the state tournament with a 1-2 record. After falling to third-seeded Brookings 4-0 in the first round, the Lakers topped Huron before falling to Sioux Center (Iowa) 6-5 in the consolation championship.

• 2020-21 Season Summary — The Lakers, like the rest of the state, spent the season trying to catch Aberdeen (16-0) and Sioux Falls (13-2) in the league. Aberdeen then added three more wins in the state tournament, including a win over Sioux Falls in the championship.

• Top Returnees — Junior forward Jayda Kranz (10 goals, 13 assists), senior forward Cate Holien (0-3); senior goalie Emma Foisel (519 saves), senior forward Katie Birnell (0-1), senior forward Jaclyn Lloyd (20-11), freshman forward Janel Lloyd (7-9), senior forward Jillian Busch (5-4) and sophomore goalie Angelyn Birnell (42 saves).

Jaclyn Lloyd, a six-year varsity performer, has tallied 84 goals and 49 assists in SDAHA play over the past five seasons.

• Newcomers — Freshman forward Meg Sunde, freshman forward Jada Jenkins, sophomore forward Rylie Redlin, freshman forward Rachel Skott, freshman forward Lily Lalim, freshman forward Kayla Randall, sophomore forward Kaelyn Melville, freshman forward Lillianna Jaton, freshman forward Rei Annon Lafave, sophomore forward Maya Woods and freshman forward April Peterson.

• Coach’s Comments — “We have five seniors and a bunch of new girls. It’s going to be fun to watch the veterans carry the new ones under their wing and get them up to speed,” said Coach Kranz.

“Definitely throughout the whole state, it’s going to be an interesting year. Sioux Falls is going to be a powerhouse the next couple of years. They’re definitely beatable, but they’re going to be tough. Aberdeen lost seven or eight seniors and is going to be very young.”

“We’re trying some new ideas throughout the whole organization and the girls are catching on, but it’s never easy when you try to change things drastically. In general, neither the boys or the girls have been a powerhouse for quite awhile. It’s going to take a few games for the girls to catch up on this new style, but once they do, I truly believe we can finish among the top three teams in the state.”

• Schedule — The Lakers girls also will play primarily the SDAHA schedule. Watertown will also play in the CAN/AM Youth Challenge Cup Jan. 21-23 in Madison, Wis.

Schedule home games for the Lakers are Nov. 27 (Mitchell, 4:30 p.m.), Nov. 28 (Aberdeen, 11:30 a.m.), Dec. 4 (Oahe, 4:30 p.m.), Dec. 10 (Huron, 8:15 p.m.), Dec. 11 (Brookings, 8:30 p.m.), Dec. 19 (Sioux Center, 1:30 p.m.), Jan. 8 (Sioux Falls, 8 p.m.), Jan. 29 (Rushmore, 4:30 p.m.), Jan. 30 (Rushmore, 1:30 p.m.) and Feb. 12 (Yankton, 8 p.m.)

• State Tournament — March 4-6 at Aberdeen.

OTHER WATERTOWN TEAMS

The Lakers also will have junior varsity boys, U14 girls, Bantam A and B, Pee Wee A and C and Squirt A and B teams playing in SDAHA leagues this winter.

Game results and other information on all of the SDAHA teams can be found at sdaha.org.

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Watertown Hockey: Laker varsity girls, boys set to open their seasons at home this weekend