Halfway through Saturday’s first period, Merrill was locked in a tight 1-1 battle with visiting Valley foe Marshfield.
A period later, Merrill was cruising with a 4-1 lead on the way to a 5-3 triumph.
“Overall a solid Valley conference win for these kids” MHS coach Chase Nelson said. “We had some breakdowns that led to all three of Marshfield’s goals but we were able to capitalize on their mistakes as well.
“Austin (Burgener) and Dylan (Heller) each had three-point nights, and all four of our defensemen played solid, fundamental defense all night. Overall, our defensive zone was pretty sharp as well as we only allowed 24 shots on goal.
“Tonight was our first of twelve games in January, so we have a long month ahead of us. A win is a great way to start out the new year!”
Merrill improved to 4-5 overall with the victory and 1-1 in the WVC.
Just 13 seconds into the game, Burgener netted a Heller assist. The Tigers’ Zach Leggon tied it with 7:21 elapsed.
Brian Root pushed it to 2-1 less than a minute later with help from a Heller pass, and Burgener scored back-to-back unassisted goals with 12:03 gone in the first and 6:27 used up in the second.
Marshfield converted its second power play on a Collin Borth goal with 12:58 gone, but Heller bumped the lead back to three goals with :27 left in the second. The Tigers’ Jarod Rachu tallied a short-handed goal with 1:11 left in the game
Saves–MHS–Bryce Broeking 9-2-10–21; Marsh–Chris Sanford 3-9-*–12, 5 G; Scotty Berg *-*–5–5, 0 G.