The Monona Grove boys hockey team celebrates with their fans that made the trip to Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24 for a Sectional 3 semifinal game.
Monona Grove senior goalie Wyatt Godfrey (1) skates up to congratulate senior Brady Femrite (19) after scoring a goal in a WIAA sectional semifinal game at Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
Monona Grove senior defenseman Jack Schiefelbein fires a shot in a WIAA sectional semifinal game at Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
Sports Editor
The Monona Grove boys hockey team enjoyed a phenomenal run through the 2026 Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletic Association (WIAA) state tournament to bring the 2025-26 season to a close.
The Silver Eagles took on Sectional 3 of Division 1 as the No. 3 seed. They backed up that prestigious seeding by pummeling their first two opponents. Monona Grove dispatched No. 14 seed Stoughton 8-0 and followed that up with a convincing 7-0 win over No. 6 seed Madison Memorial to reach the sectional semifinals.
The Monona Grove boys hockey team celebrates with their fans that made the trip to Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24 for a Sectional 3 semifinal game.
There, the level of competition took a steep incline. The Silver Eagles played their first road game of the postseason as they headed to Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24 to face No. 2 seeded Sun Prairie. The co-op of Sun Prairie East and Sun Prairie West won the Big Eight conference this winter and had already scored a 4-3 win over Monona Grove in the regular season.
The Silver Eagles had revenge on their mind in the rematch. Despite Sun Prairie scoring the first goal and outshooting Monona Grove 39-19 for the game, the Silver Eagles cruised to a 4-1 victory.
The first period ticked away without a goal for either side but established momentum for Sun Prairie. Monona Grove committed three penalties while Sun Prairie had none, allowing the forwards to warm up and get 17 shots off.
This paid off less than three minutes into the second period as Sun Prairie broke the scoreless streak. A shot from United’s blue line whizzed past Monona Grove senior goalie Wyatt Godfrey for a 1-0 Sun Prairie lead. This was the lone mistake Godfrey made all evening. He was tremendous with 38 saves on 39 shots and survived all three of Sun Prairie’s power play opportunities.
Immediately after Sun Prairie’s goal, it was called for a tripping penalty. This began an avalanche of mistakes, including two more penalties in the second period.
Monona Grove was able to punch back less than two minutes after Sun Prairie’s goal on the power play as senior Brady Femrite sent home an equalizer. The United mistakes continued with three minutes remaining in the period. A pair of Sun Prairie defenders ran into each other, giving Femrite a free run back at the goal. He buried it, a go-ahead score to put the Silver Eagles up 2-1 heading to the third period.
Monona Grove senior goalie Wyatt Godfrey (1) skates up to congratulate senior Brady Femrite (19) after scoring a goal in a WIAA sectional semifinal game at Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
Monona Grove did not relent in the final period, taking advantage of two more Sun Prairie missteps. A United defenseman whiffed while trying to clear the puck directly in front of his own goa, giving Monona Grove senior Ryder Bible a free score to boost its lead to 3-1. Four minutes later, Sun Prairie lost control of the puck near its own blue line. Monona Grove snagged it and shoved it ahead to senior Stanley Paune, who punched it home to bring the game to its final score of 4-1.
This victory catapulted Monona Grove into the Sectional 3 championship against a worthy opponent in No. 1 seed Edgewood. The Crusaders are the defending Division 1 champions and also won their sectional in 2024. The Silver Eagles took them on at Verona Ice Arena on Friday, Feb. 27. Despite an impressive start, Monona Grove couldn’t hold off Edgewood’s late comeback in a 7-4 loss.
The Silver Eagles scored the lone goal of the first period as Femrite and Bible assisted on a goal from Payne. While the Crusaders punched back with the first goal of the second period, Monona Grove had a response of its own by scoring the next two.
Next to score was senior Jack Schiefelbein, who punch the go-ahead goal in off of an assist from senior Jack Hovde. 20 seconds later, Femrite got in on the goal-scoring fun thanks to assists from both Bible and senior Ajay Motelet. This quick one-two punch put Monona Grove ahead 3-1.
Monona Grove senior defenseman Jack Schiefelbein fires a shot in a WIAA sectional semifinal game at Sun Prairie Ice Arena on Tuesday, Feb. 24.
11 minutes remained in the second period. Edgewood managed to retake the lead in that time. The Crusaders rattled off three straight to take a 4-3 lead into the third period. There, they scored a demoralizing short handed goal on the Monona Grove power play to go up by two scores.
Even so, the Silver Eagles continued battling. Motelet responded with a goal with about six minutes to play, assisted by Femrite and Payne. Edgewood would not entertain any notion of a comeback, though, as it scored an insurance goal and a late empty netter to finish off the 7-4 victory.
The loss caps off a stellar season for Monona Grove, which finished with an overall record of 18-7-1. This included a 9-3-0 record in Badger Conference play for fourth in the final standings and a trio of postseason wins. This postseason success becomes even more impressive considering it’s Monona Grove’s first season at competing in the Division 1 bracket.
Sports Editor
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