Searles lands on hockey’s honorable mention list for third time

ALL-GNC BOYS HOCKEY

For the third time in his four seasons with the Medford Raiders, Logan Searles was named to the honorable mention list in the voting for the All-Great Northern Conference hockey team. Searles, a defenseman and one of six seniors who led this year’s Raiders to a 6-14-1 overall record and a 2-8 mark in GNC games, is one of 10 honorable mentionees on this year’s team, which includes six first-team and six secondteam selections.

Searles also earned honorable mention last year and as a freshman after the 2017-18 season.

One of two seniors on the Raiders’ blue-line crew, Searles also pitched in offensively, scoring seven goals during the season and adding nine assists. Six of those goals and four assists came in conference play. Searles had a hat trick and added two assists in Medford’s top offensive performance of the year, a 12-2 win over GNC rival Tomahawk on Jan. 7. He had a goal and two assists in the Raiders’ 6-0 win over the Hatchets Feb. 1 in the seventhplace game of the GNC tournament.

He had three assists, helping fellow senior Carter Pernsteiner score four times in a 6-3 win over Chequamegon on Jan. 14. Searles also scored goals in games at Rice Lake Jan. 16, at Mosinee on Jan. 26 and at Antigo on Jan. 28.

Defensively the roles he and senior Warryck Leonhardt played on defense were key as they led the way in helping out junior Ben Brunner, a first-year goalie who was thrown into the position just before the season started due to a football injury suffered by projected starting goalie Blaine Seidl.

Medford allowed 6.6 goals per game overall and 6.7 goals in its 10 conference games.

The Northland Pines Eagles, Mosinee Indians and Rhinelander Hodags all earned pieces of the Great Northern Conference title with 8-2 combined records, including round-robin play and the season-ending GNC tournament. The Hodags, who were the fourth seed in the tournament, won the tournament to jump into the championship mix. Rhinelander won all three of its meetings with Northland Pines and beat Mosinee 5-3 in the GNC tournament’s championship game.

Lakeland, however, wound up having the best finish of league teams. The thirdseeded Thunderbirds won their WIAA Division 2 sectional bracket by knocking off GNC foes Antigo, Mosinee and Rhinelander. The T-Birds finished 13-5 overall after losing 4-1 to Superior in a state semifinal game Feb. 18.

Medford’s season ended with an 11-0 loss at New Richmond in a Feb. 5 WIAA Division 2 regional final.

This year’s All-GNC first team features five seniors and one junior. Lakeland’s Max Toijala and Riley McGee of Northland Pines were repeat selections from a year ago. McGee, a defenseman who also was among the leading scorers for Pines, was a unanimous pick and chosen as the 2020-21 Great Northern Conference Player of the Year. Mosinee goalie Tucker Stepan and Rhinelander’s Harlan Wojtusik were also unanimous picks.

Northland Pines senior Max Brown and Lakeland junior Teag Wagner rounded out the first team.

MJ Laggis of Rhinelander was named the 2020-21 Coach of the Year.