ST. JOSEPH, Minn. -- As the minutes ticked away and the pressure continued to mount during last Saturday's (March 7( MIAC women's hockey championship game, College of Saint Benedict first-year goalie Lexi Badali turned to the same source of support and guidance she's been drawing from all season.
 
That would be her goaltending partner on the Bennies' roster: veteran senior Ellynor Haack.
 
"Before every period, she came up to me and said something to help put me at ease," said Badali, who had 33 big saves as her team held on to beat Gustavus 2-1 and earned the program's first NCAA Division III tournament bid in its 29-year history. "It always gives me so much confidence to know she has my back. That's the way it's been this whole year."

 

Haack – a St. Paul Central High School graduate - tore a labrum in her hip this past October, and though she's been able to tough it out and continue practicing with the team, the injury has limited her own playing time to just three games – including a lone start in a 7-0 win over Dubuque (Iowa) in early January.
 
But as frustrating as that's been, she's thrown herself wholeheartedly into her role as a mentor for Badali, who has started 21 games and boasts a .941 save percentage and a goals-against-average of just 1.75.
 
"Lexi and I have become incredibly close this season," Haack said. "She's one of my closest friends on the team and that's been such a special experience to get to have. When I was a freshman, Ally Frantzick was my senior goalie partner. She took me under her wing and helped me get adjusted to college hockey. That meant so much to me, and I wanted to do that for Lexi as well. She's been such a rock for us this season. I'm so impressed with her as an athlete and with all the things she's been able to do."
 
Badali said that those things might not have been possible had Haack not been there beside her.
 
"I can't imagine what this season would have been like if she hadn't been here," said Badali, whose team (16-7-4) takes on No. 5 Amherst (Massachusetts) (19-2-6) in the first round of NCAA play at 2 p.m. Saturday (March 14) at Amherst's Orr Rink.
 
"She's been so supportive to everyone on this team. She's like a mom who wants the best for everybody. She's one of the sweetest people I've ever met and having her as a goalie partner has made me so much better as a player," added Badali.
 
That's a sentiment echoed by CSB head coach Lindsay Macy.
 
"She's the glue gun for our team," Macy said of Haack. "Without her, we don't have the success we're having this season. She does all the little things and takes care of the team before and after games. She pushes Lexi hard every practice, but she's a mentor to her as well. This team would not be where it is without having Ellynor here."
 
Saturday's win was indeed a historic one for the Bennies, who had never won a postseason game before this season. This was just the fifth time in 29 years the program has even qualified for the conference playoffs, as well as the fifth time it has compiled a record of .500 or better. And, this season, the team, which has set a season record of 16 wins, has received votes in the national polls for six straight weeks.
 
Haack hasn't been there for all that history, of course. But she has been around for plenty of highs and lows as Macy has built CSB hockey to where it's at now.
 
"It's so great to have the chance to be part of this season," said Haack, whose first season at CSB coincided with Macy's. "I don't know if I even imagined we'd ever get here. But now that we are, it's gratifying to see all the hard work we've put in the past four years finally paying off. It's the most fulfilling feeling in the world."
 
Badali said Saturday's win was even more special because she got to share it with Haack and the team's five other seniors.
 
"All six of them have been so great," said Badali, a St. John, Indiana native who first became aware of CSB when she crossed paths with Macy at a summer camp. "Their leadership on and off the ice has meant so much – especially with how many of us came in as freshmen this season. They've all been so welcoming."
 
The victory over Gustavus Adolphus carried additional meaning for Haack. She was a close friend of Gusties goalie Jori Jones, who was killed in a car crash in 2023 at just age 19.
 
And Jones too was on her mind when the final horn sounded.
 
"That made the whole game such an emotional moment for me as well knowing that she would've been there," Haack said. "Being able to continue playing for her was also such a big reason I knew I needed to continue no matter what. Holding her memory with me has been a big contributor to helping me push through every obstacle I face."
 
Haack – an exercise science major who already has a post-graduation job lined up as an exercise physiologist with Discover Strength near her home in St. Paul – will undergo surgery later this month.
 
But until then, she'll continue to suit up and play whatever role is asked of her as long as the memorable run the Bennies are on continues.
 
"It's really been a combination of my medical professionals telling me I couldn't make things  worse by continuing to practice, and just trying to draw on mental toughness," she said of her decision to continue playing. "I've played hockey my entire life and I knew this was my last chance to be out on the ice every day with my teammates.We've all worked so hard to get to this moment. There was no way I wasn't going to be here to share in it."