MASON CITY, IA (November 8-9th, 2024) — After last week’s home series, the Shamrocks hit the road to Mason City, Iowa to continue the fight against the North Iowa Bulls. The Shamrocks’ record moves to 2-13-1-1 after the weekend and the North Iowa Bulls maintain their number six spot in conference standings with a record of 6-11-0-1.
Game 1 – November 8th, 2024:
The physicality from last weekend came right back with a tripping penalty from Jack McMinn at 2:36. The Bulls were quick to respond with a powerplay goal from Parker Osborn at 2:59. Shamrocks kept the offensive fires hot coming in with a goal from Ryan Whiterabbit at 5:22. Both teams put the pedal to the medal trying to get shots on net; Shamrocks led the first with 11 shots, and the Bulls were not far behind with 9 shots. Another Bulls powerplay came their way after a slashing call from Travis Lefere at 10:13, but were unable to capitalize on the chance. Moments later, Bulls’ forward Sangyeob Kim found the back of the net while Owen Chartier simultaneously received a high-sticking penalty at 16:39. Closing the first with a Shamrock powerplay, the Bulls held their ground keeping the score 2-1.
Equal efforts started the second period with each team putting seven shots on the board. With their horns up, the Bulls were ready to brawl with a roughing call from Noah Diemer at 11:37. Continuing the combat, the Bulls were first to bang the gong with a late goal from Parker Osborn at 13:45. The Shamrocks were not shy to come back with a vengeance ultimately leading to a slashing call from Breck Hirrschoff at 14:01. Final score of the second period was 3-1.
Heading into the third period, the Shamrocks fell behind in their defensive efforts after a Bulls goal from Davis Higley at 3:16. Moments later, Higley struck again with his second goal of the night at 11:10. The Shamrocks gained a powerplay chance which quickly changed to a 5-on-3 from a hooking call on Jackson Shouten and a tripping call on Kash Crawford. The Shamrocks worked to utilize this advantage, resulting in a goal from Cam Markham at 12:09. The Bulls caught up just moments later with a shorthanded goal from Max Ferkodic. Closing out the game, Noah Diemer was called on a tripping penalty at 19:22. The final score was 6-2 Bulls.
The Shamrocks led in shots with a total of 27 compared to the Bulls with 25. In the net, Alexander Sabev recorded 19 saves on 25 shots, and Kyle Ozgun put up 25 saves on 27 shots.
Game 2 – November 9th, 2024:
The first period was off to a quick start with a Bulls goal from Jackson Shouten at 2:50. The Shamrocks attempted to tilt the ice but let up another goal coming from Michael Malatino at 5:23. Trying to push the pace, the Shamrocks were given a powerplay opportunity at 11:57 after a cross-checking call on Davis Higley. The Shamrocks took extra man and put up a goal from Ryan Gingher at 12:45 with the help of Alexander Visnapuu and Zach Boren. The Bulls tallied one more goal just a minute later with efforts from Cole Wirun. The score of the first period was 3-1.
The Shamrocks made their presence known with an opening goal from Kody Moyer at 1:42. Jackson Shouten and Thomas Manzella III laid it all out getting called for fighting at 2:46; Shouten had an additional call for slashing. The Shamrocks led the offensive efforts in shots 15-13. Keeping their cool, the Shamrocks held their own by eliminating any scoring chances for the Bulls. After several minutes of battling, the Bulls were called on a holding penalty at 12:39 from Eli Miller. Staying tough on the ice, the Shamrocks recorded a cross-checking penalty at 16:44. But, they protected River Leslie-Toogood locking in on defense. The score was neck-and-neck at 3-2 ending the second.
The ice was tilted beginning the third with shots going 13-7. The Shamrocks looked to even the score when the Bulls took over with a goal from Denis Hodas at 5:46. Leslie-Toogood kept the shots at bay for the remainder of the period with the help of Shamrocks defense. At 7:33, DJ Parouse headed to the box for high-sticking giving the Shamrocks the advantage. The Bulls kept the score sheet packed with two more penalties from Denis Hodas at 11:42 for checking from behind and at 15:47 for head contact. The Shamrocks were unable to even the score leaving the final to be 4-2.
The Shamrocks led the offensive forces with total shots 39-31. Back in net, River Leslie-Toogood recorded 27 saves out of 31 shots total for the Shamrocks. Jack Hirshorn had 37 saves on 39 shots for the night.
The Shamrocks will hit the ice this weekend with a home-and-home series against the St. Cloud Norsemen. Game one will be home at Prairie Lakes Ice Arena at 7:00 pm CST on Friday, November 15th. The Shamrocks will then hike to St. Cloud, MN. to the St. Cloud Municipal Athletic Complex to hit the ice at 6:30 pm CST on November 16th. Both games can be found on NAHL.tv or listened to live on Star 98.1 with Jeff Anderson on the call.