ABOVE: Fairmont’s Preston Cepress leads the pack on a breakaway during a Big South Conference boys hockey game against New Ulm Thursday at the New Ulm Civic Center. Photo by Ari Selvey/New Ulm Journal.

NEW ULM — The Fairmont Cardinals fell 11-2 to New Ulm on Thursday in a Big South Conference boys hockey game.

The loss dropped the Cardinals to 0-3 to start the season.

New Ulm scored twice in the first minute, quickly putting the game into gear. The offense was clicking during the first two periods, with no more than eight minutes passing between each goal for the first two periods.

Eleven different Eagles earned a point in the game, led by a hat trick by Carson Uecker. Talan Helget had two goals, while Brecken Neuman and Hunter Larson each had a goal and three assists. Ian Brudelie had a goal and an assist, and Brody Nordby had three assists. Ben Alfred, Brody Wenner and Kayden Klein each had a goal, and Jackson Griebel and Bodee Schmiesing each had an assist.

New Ulm did let up two early goals to Fairmont’s Eric Determan and Klay Beemer in the first period, with both goals coming unassisted on breakaway action.

But the Eagles cleaned that up in the final two periods, allowing a total of 11 shots on goal during the game while putting the puck on net 52 times.

Alfred scored the first goal of the game just 20 seconds into play, assisted by Griebel and Schmiesing. Uecker followed that up with a goal at the 57 second mark on the power play, assisted by Brecken Neuman and Nordby.

Determan scored his goal on even strength at 4:59, but New Ulm responded with another goal by Uecker, assisted by Larson, just two minutes later. Brudelie made the score 4-1 on an assist by Nordby, then Wenner extended it to 5-1 on an assist by Brecken Neuman. Beemer cut it down to 5-2 with an unassisted goal down the left slot 15:26 into the game before the period came to a close.

Helget broke the Eagles’ second-longest scoring drought of the game at the 5:39 mark of the second period, assisted by Larson. Brecken Neuman scored his goal at the 8:44 mark of the second, assisted by Brudelie, followed by an unassisted goal by Larson at 9:30. Klein collected New Ulm’s ninth goal of the game at 11:15, then Uecker earned his hat trick with a power-play goal at 14:22, assisted by Nordby and Brecken Neuman. Helget finished out the scoring with a goal late in the third period, assisted by Larson, to complete the 11-2 win.

Fairmont travels to play Austin at 11 a.m. on Saturday.