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Maple Grove Surprises Hill-Murray to Cap Exciting Semifinal Round

02/20/2016, 7:00am CST
By Peter Odney

Championships of Girls' State Tourney Are Set: Maple Grove vs. Eden Prairie (AA), St. Paul United vs. Blake (A)

St. Paul United overcame an early two-goal deficit to defeat Warroad and advance to the Class A title game. Credit: Steve Mann.

St. Paul United overcame an early two-goal deficit to defeat Warroad and advance to the Class A title game. Credit: Steve Mann.

Girls' Class A Semifinals Recap

Class 1A Semifinal No. 1: St. Paul United 4, Warroad 3

Junior forward Joie Phelps converted a power-play opportunity midway through the third period to give St. Paul United (23-5-1) a 4-3 win over No. 2 seed Warroad (24-4-1) in the first semifinal in Class 1A.

Senior forward Sena Hanson, sophomore forward Sam Burke and senior forward Lauren Boettcher also added goals for the United, which had trailed 2-0 and 3-1 in the game. Junior forward Mariah Gardner continued her outstanding tournament for the Warriors, scoring a goal and adding two assists while continuing to play with a broken arm. Senior forward Demi Gardner and freshman defender Kaitlyn Kotlowski also scored for Warroad.

St. Paul United took advantage of nine power play chances, converting on three of them, in this extremely physical semifinal contest.

Class 1A Semifinal No. 2: Blake 5, Proctor-Hermantown 1

Senior forward Carly Bullock notched a hat trick for top-seeded Blake, giving her seven goals in two tournament games, to lead the Bears (25-2-2) to another impressive State Tournament victory, this time 5-1 over Proctor-Hermantown.

Blake, which has outscored State opponents 15-1 and outshot them 93-15, scored three goals in the second period, with freshman forward Izzy Daniel scoring between a pair of Bullock goals. Sophomore forward Sarah Chute scored in the first period for Blake.

Senior forward Sophie McGovern scored the lone goal early in the second period for the Mirage (20-8-1). 

Blake has outscored its State Tourney opponents 15-1 and outshot them 93-15. Credit: Steve Mann.

Blake has outscored its State Tourney opponents 15-1 and outshot them 93-15. Credit: Steve Mann.

Girls' Class AA Semifinals Recap

Class 2A Semifinal No. 1: Eden Prairie 1, Edina 0

In a battle of Lake Conference rivals, Eden Prairie edged Edina (20-8-1) 1-0 to advance to the Class 2A finals.

Senior forward Kelly Wolfe scored the lone goal of the game in the second period, and sophomore goaltender Alexa Dobchuk earned the shutout with 25-save performance for the Eagles (21-7-2).

Class 2A Semifinal No. 2: Maple Grove 1, Hill-Murray 0

Junior forward Taylor Wente scored midway through the second period and junior goaltender Breanna Blesi made 43 saves to backstop No. 4 seed Maple Grove's (22-5-2) surprising win over Hill-Murray, propelling the Crimson to their first State Tournament title game appearance.

Freshman goaltender Ava Bailey made 14 saves in the loss for the defending champion Pioneers (28-1-1), which saw their 40-game unbeaten streak come to an end. 

Edina struggled to generate offense in its 1-0 semifinal loss to Eden Prairie. Credit: Steve Mann.

Edina struggled to generate offense in its 1-0 semifinal loss to Eden Prairie. Credit: Steve Mann.

Consolation Results - Feb. 19

Class AA (Ridder Arena)

Eastview 5, Forest Lake 3

Lakeville South 3, Sartell-Sauk Rapids 1 

Today's Games

CLASS A CONSOLATION (Ridder Arena)

Alexandria vs. New Prague, 9:00 a.m.

CLASS AA CONSOLATION (Ridder Arena)

Eastview vs. Lakeville South, 11:00 a.m.

CLASS A THIRD PLACE (XEC)

Warroad vs. Proctor-Hermantown, 9:00 a.m.

CLASS AA THIRD PLACE (XEC)

Edina vs. Hill-Murray, 11:00 a.m.

CLASS A CHAMPIONSHIP (XEC)

St. Paul United vs. Blake, 4:00 p.m.

CLASS AA CHAMPIONSHIP (XEC)

Eden Prairie vs. Maple Grove, 7:00 p.m.

Warroad made nine trips to the penalty box, leading to three St. Paul United power-play goals, in this physical semifinal battle. Credit: Steve Mann.

Warroad made nine trips to the penalty box, leading to three St. Paul United power-play goals, in this physical semifinal battle. Credit: Steve Mann.

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Tag(s): State Of Hockey