Girls Hockey: State Tournament Advance

Minnesota high school’s two top girls hockey coaches have their teams in postseason form when the Minnesota State High School League’s State Tournament is played over four days at two venues in St. Paul. The quarterfinals, semifinals, third place and championship games in two enrollment classes will be played at the Xcel Energy Center beginning on Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2023. Consolation-bracket games will be played a short distance away at TRIA Rink at Treasure Island Center.

South St. Paul’s Dave Palmquist and Warroad’s David Marvin, with a combined 30 state tournament appearances between them, have their teams in the Class A portion of the tournament. Warroad is the top seed and the defending Class A champion. Marvin has led the Warriors to 13 state tournament trips, three titles, three runner-up finishes and four third-place trophies.

Palmquist, the only remaining coach from the inaugural girls hockey season in 1994-95 has a state-best 17 state tournament trips. In that run, the Packers have won four state championships and been the runner-up three times. South St. Paul has also secured three third-place trophies. The Packers are the only school to win state titles in both classes. In 2005, the Packers were the Class AA champion and the following year, they captured the Class A crown.

If both advance with quarterfinal victories, Marvin and Palmquist would square off in the Class A semifinals on Friday.

Here is a look at the schedule and quarterfinal matchups:

Wednesday, Feb. 22

Class A

• Mankato East (20-6) vs. No. 2 Proctor/Hermantown (19-6-2), 11 a.m. --- Mankato East won the Section 2A crown for the second consecutive season. In last year’s state tournament, the Cougars finished sixth after a loss to River Lakes in the consolation final. Mankato East scores nearly five goals per game and surrenders 1.27. The Mirage were the No. 3 seed in 2022 en route to a runner-up finish to Warroad. Hannah Graves lead a balanced offense with 14 goals and 21 assists.
• Luverne (21-6-0) vs. No. 3 Orono (20-3-4), 1 p.m. --- Luverne advanced to the state tournament for the fourth consecutive year with a 4-0 victory over New Ulm in the Section 3A title game. The Cardinals average more than five goals per game and are led by Kammryn Van Batavia, who has 59 goals and 20 assists in 27 games. Orono placed third in the 2022 tournament. This season’s squad has a penalty-killing unit of nearly 86 percent. Zoe Lopez has 34 goals and 12 assists to pace the Spartans.
• Albert Lea (18-7-1) vs. No. 1 Warroad (23-3-1), 6 p.m. --- Albert Lea finished second in the Big Nine Conference to Owatonna, a Class AA school. The Tigers are 7-1-1 over the past month in making their second consecutive state tournament appearance. Warroad is attempting to win back-to-back Class A crowns since 2011. Two of the Warriors’ three losses are to Edina and Andover, participants in the Class AA tournament.
• No. 5 Fergus Falls (22-4-1) vs. No. 4 South St. Paul (21-5-1), 8 p.m. --- Fergus Falls is the only team in the Class A field that didn’t also qualify in 2022. The Otters prevented that with a 2-1 overtime victory over River Lakes in the Section 6A final. Fergus Falls is 14-1-0 since mid-December. South St. Paul makes its seemingly annual trip behind a 10-2-1 run since the turn of the calendar. Both losses were to Simley during the Metro East Conference schedule. Those losses were reversed by the Packers with a 4-1 victory over the Spartans in the Section 4A championship game last week.

Thursday, Feb. 23

Class AA quarterfinals

• Rosemount (15-11-2) vs. No. 2 Andover (25-3-0), 11 a.m. --- The Irish used overtime to record a 3-2 victory over Cretin-Derham Hall in the Section 3AA championship game to qualify for the state tournament for the first time since 2011. Sophie Stramel leads a balanced Rosemount attack with 14 goals and 19 assists. Andover is the defending Class AA champion. The Huskies boast potent scoring and average nearly six goals per game. Ella Boerger leads the way with 40 goals and 33 assists. Andover enters the game on a 12-game winning streak.
• Lakeville North (21-7-0) vs. No. 3 Edina (21-4-2), 1 p.m. --- Lakeville North finished second in the South Suburban Conference to Lakeville South. A rematch was expected for the Section 1AA final, but the Cougars were upset by Northfield. Lakeville North then eliminated Northfield with a 5-3 win in the section final. Addison Bowlby leads the Panthers with 48 points on 23 goals and 25 assists. Edina is no stranger to the tournament either. Since 2017, the Hornets have four Class AA crowns. The Hornets have perhaps the stingiest defense in Minnesota, surrendering 0.85 goals per game.  Senior all-state goalie Uma Corniea has a .958 ssave percentage and nine shutouts.
• Centennial/Spring Lake Park (21-6-1) vs. No. 1 Minnetonka (25-2-0), 6 p.m. --- Since a 5-1 loss to Maple Grove on Jan. 17, Centennial/Spring Lake Park is 8-2. One of those victories was a 2-1 win in the Section 5AA championship game over Maple Grove that avenged the two losses during the Northwest Suburban Conference season. Lauren O’Hara has 35 goals and 20 assists for Centennial/Spring Lake Park. Minnetonka was tabbed as the top seed and the favorite to win the big-school crown. The Skippers won three in a row from 2011-13 and then were runner-ups in 2015 and 2022. Minnetonka split two games with Andover during the regular season and also has a loss to Edina during the Lake Conference schedule. Ava Lindsay leads the way with 23 goals and 18 assists.
• No. 5 Moorhead (20-8-0) vs. No. 4 Gentry Academy (24-2-0), 8 p.m.--- Junior defenseman Kate Kosobud scored two goals to give Moorhead a 3-1 victory over Roseau in the Section 8AA championship game to earn a state tournament trip for the first time since 2006. The Spuds are on a four-game winning streak entering the tournament. Two of Moorhead’s past three losses were two to Warroad and another to Andover. Gentry Academy, the Class A runner-up in 2021, makes its third consecutive state tournament trip and second in the Class AA field. The Stars are on a nine-game winning streak since losing to Proctor/Hermantown in mid-January. Cara Sajevic leads Gentry Academy with 32 goals and 38 assists.  

For additional information on the Girls Hockey State Tournament, go to www.mshsl.org/girlshockey