WATERTOWN – The Aberdeen Cougars used explosive offense and aggressive defense to set the tone early and fuel a 10-0 win over the Sioux Center Storm in the opening round of the State Girls’ Hockey Tournament at the Prairie Lakes Ice Arena on Friday.

The Cougars scored early and often in the opening period, putting four pucks at the back of the net to take a commanding 4-0 lead into the second period. Alyssa Roehrich had two of those goals, while Olivia Sandvig and Addyson Keller each added one goal in the period.

Aberdeen had 18 shots on goal during the first period, while the defense made things difficult for Sioux Center, which managed just three shots on goal in the period. Cougars coach Rob Weinmeister was pleased with how his team began the contest.

“I thought we came out strong in the first period,” Weinmeister said. “We were moving the puck and creating some good opportunities.”

Although Allison Woehl and Rachel Siefken each scored goals in the second period to stretch the Cougars lead to 6-0, Weinmeister felt his team did not play as aggressive in the middle period.

“The second period was not as clean,” Weinmeister said. “Seemed like we were slapping the puck to areas and chasing a little bit.”

However, Aberdeen tightened things up in the final period as they cashed in on four more goals. Roehrich, Siefken, Woehl, and Morgan Jones each had goals to give the Cougars the convincing win. Weinmeister was glad to see his team respond after making adjustments before the third period.

“We discussed things between the second and third period, made a few adjustments, and I really like how we responded in the third period,” Weinmeister said. “We were moving the puck, communicating more, and created some really good looks.”

Roehrich led the Cougars with three goals, while Siefken and Woehl each had two. Jones, Kalin Hepper, and Kailyn Poppen each had two assists.

Aberdeen now moves into the semifinal round today where they will face the Mitchell Marlins, with the puck set to drop at 4:30 p.m. The two split a pair of games during the regular season.

Sioux Center Storm 0 0 0 – 0

Aberdeen Cougars 4 2 4 – 10

First Period: 1, AC, Alyssa Roehrich (Kailyn Poppen, Kalin Hepper), 11:36; 2, AC, Olivia Sandvig (Roehrich, Allison Woehl), 6:45; 3, AC, Addyson Keller (Morgan Jones, Rachel Siefken), 5:33; 4, AC, Roehrich (Poppen, Sandvig), :23.

Second Period: 5, AC, Woehl (unassisted), 6:45; 6, AC, Siefken (Hepper, Keller), :52.

Third Period: 7, AC, Roehrich (unassisted), 5:58; 8, AC, Jones (unassisted), 3:43; 9, AC, Siefken (Raniesa Mattke, Jones), :46; 10, AC, Woehl (unassisted), :02.

Shots on Goal: Sioux Center Storm 9; Aberdeen Cougars 36.