Bears’ Season Ends in GLHL Tournament Semifinals
2026-03-30
Fond du Lac opened the GLHL Tournament with two dominant wins in group play, outscoring opponents 25–6, before falling to Eagle River in the semifinals.
The Fond du Lac Bears saw their season come to an end in the GLHL Tournament semifinals.
Entering as the tournament’s No. 2 seed, the Bears swept through Group B with decisive wins over Calumet and Fox Cities before falling to the Eagle River Falcons in the semifinal round.
Fond du Lac opened the tournament Friday with a commanding performance against Calumet, using balanced scoring and consistent offensive pressure to control the game throughout.
The Bears built an early lead and continued to add on in each period, finishing with 13 goals and contributions from across the lineup. Multiple players recorded multi-point games, including Blake Spies, Nolan McDermott, and Niles Owen, as the Bears established momentum to begin tournament play.
That carried into Saturday morning, where Fond du Lac again dictated play in a 12-3 win over Fox Cities. The Bears scored five times in the opening period and never looked back, maintaining control through the second and closing out another high-scoring performance. Blake Spies and Eric Macejewski each recorded hat tricks, while several others added multi-point efforts as Fond du Lac secured a perfect 2-0 record in group play.
Advancing to the semifinals, the Bears faced Eagle River in a matchup that proved more tightly contested. After a scoreless first period, Eagle River took control in the second with three goals, including two that came in the final two minutes, while Fond du Lac answered once to stay within reach. The Bears continued to push in the third period, cutting the deficit to 3-2, but were unable to find the equalizer.
Eagle River added a late goal and an empty-net tally to secure a 5-2 win and end Fond du Lac’s tournament run.
Justin Davidson handled the workload in net throughout the weekend, with Alex Kurger entering briefly towards the end of game two against Fox Cities while the game was well out of reach.
The Falcons would end up falling in the championship to Portage Lake 10-3, who repeated as tournament champions.
(image by @chirs.galleryyy)