2017 CLASS A STATE GIRLS HOCKEY TOURNAMENT QUARTERFINALS
GAMES PLAYED AT XCEL ENERGY CENTER IN ST. PAUL
11:00: Mankato East/Loyola vs. St. Paul United (Seed 2)
1:00: Hibbling Chisholm vs. Warroad (Seed 3)
6:00: Alexandria vs. Blake (Seed 1)
8:00: Northfield (Seed 5) vs. Mound-Westonka (Seed 4)
Examining the Field: The 2017 edition of the state girls hockey tournament opens with the Mankato East/Loyola Cougars facing second seeded St. Paul United, who lost to Blake in last year's Class A final. It's the first trip to St. Paul by a Mankato based team since a combined Mankato East/West team played in the 1999 tournament. St. Paul United, comprised of students from St. Paul Academy and Visitation came back after losing their last two regular season games to Hill-Murray and Breck to win their two Section 4A games and advance to their third state tournament. SPU is one of the favorites to go to the Class A final, losing only five players from last year's team.
The afternoon session concludes with the Hibbing/Chisholm Bluejackets going up against the third seeded Warroad Warriors. The Bluejackets will be playing in their 10th state tournament and their first under Emily Erickson, who took over the head coaching reigns from Pete Hyduke. They have finished second in the Class A tournament four times since winning their last state title in 1997 and it will a tough one against Warroad, who is in their eighth state tournament. The Warriors are on a roll, winning eight of their last nine games. Last year, they took home the third place trophy. Can they advance to their sixth Class A title game?
The evening session opens with the Alexandria Cardinals making their fifth consecutive trip and 11th overall down I-94 to the X. That's the good news. The bad news is they go up against the top seeded and defending Class A champion Blake Bears. The Bears are playing in their ninth state tournament and looking for their seventh state title. Madeline Wethington led Blake in their quest for state with two goals in the Section 5A final as they bounced back from a 3-2 deficit against the rival Breck Mustangs. Blake has good young talent and only three seniors on their roster. Head coach Shawn Reid has kept the winning tradition alive since he took over for the late Brano Stankovsky following the 2009 state Class A title. They are the definitive favorites for the Class A title and perhaps several more to come.
Closing out the first day's festivities will be the fifth seeded Northfield Raiders and the fourth seeded Mound-Westonka Whitehawks. The Raiders make their second straight trip down Highway 3 to St. Paul and hope to erase the zero from their side of the scoreboard for the first time in three games. Last year, they were shut out by Warroad 3-0 in the quarterfinals and 2-0 by Luverne in the consolation semifinals. Mound-Westonka, which also has students from Watertown-Mayer and Southwest Christian in Chaska is back in the Class A field for the first time since 2013. It's also the first trip to state for head coach Jack Gravel, who was a long-time assistant to David Herbst at Benilde-St. Margaret's. He replaced Chris Erickson, who is now the Hopkins/Park head coach. The
Whitehawks enter the state tournament with a five game winning streak and beat top seeded Delano/Rockford in the Section 5A final. Can they make it six straight wins against the Raiders?
Next up, the state Class AA preview.
No comments:
Post a Comment