Hill-Murray, St. Thomas Academy win boys’ state hockey titles

CLASS 2A CHAMPIONSHIP

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - Roseau and Edina were set up for an epic matchup. The Hill-Murray Pioneers muscled their way past both of them to win the Class 2A championship.

Ryan Furne had a pair of first-period goals and goalie Joe Phillippi shut out the tournament’s No. 2 seed on Saturday night in a 3-0 victory over Edina.

Delaney Metcalf also scored for No. 4 seed Hill-Murray (26-3-1), which blew by No. 1 seed and defending champion Roseau 6-2 on Friday and left no doubt the next night who Minnesota’s best boys’ hockey team was this season. This was the third title for the Pioneers, who have made the state tournament 22 times.

Furne led the Pioneers into the locker room for the first intermission after turning the opening frame into a personal highlight film. He took four shots, and two of them went in.

Just 2½ minutes into the game, he jumped on a loose puck after a Hornets turnover at mid-ice and plowed through the defense like a fullback chasing a first down. Furne, the second-leading goal scorer for Hill-Murray this season behind Dan Cecka, fired a shot right before he reached the slot that zipped past Edina goalie Derek Caschetta.

Then, as period neared conclusion, Furne sent a for-the-heck-of-it slap shot on the net from well behind the blue line. It clipped Caschetta’s armpit and stunningly ricocheted into the net with one-tenth of one second left on the clock.

The Pioneers muscled their way past the favorite, Roseau, in a surprisingly decisive victory in the semifinals. That ended a 42-game winning streak by the Rams.

Hill-Murray stayed strong on the boards in this one, too, creating many more prime scoring chances than the Hornets, who looked a step slow and mostly out of sync. Though Edina owned a 31-26 advantage in shots on goal, including a 15-4 edge in the second period, most of those tries seemed out of desperation.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

CLASS 1A CHAMPIONSHIP

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - When Tom Vannelli joined his brother Greg five years ago as co-head coach of the St. Thomas Academy boy’s hockey program, all they wanted was to create a competitive program. They’ve gone far above that modest goal.

The top-seeded Cadets dominated Duluth Marshall from start to finish en route to a 5-1 victory over Duluth Marshall in the Class 1A boys state hockey tournament championship on Saturday, their second title in three years.

Christian Isackson and James Saintey each scored twice in handing Marshall its third straight loss in the small-school final.

“We just wanted to make the program respectable,” Tom Vannelli said. “The kids really bought into what we were trying to teach. We’re a contender. We can play.”

Two years ago the Cadets rallied from a two-goal deficit in the third period to beat Marshall for their first title. This time, St. Thomas Academy broke out early, with Isackson scoring his first goal of the game 37 seconds after the opening faceoff.

It was the third consecutive quick start for St. Thomas Academy, which scored 16 seconds into its semifinal game on the way to an 8-2 victory over St. Cloud Cathedral on Friday. In the quarterfinals on Wednesday against Little Falls, St. Thomas scored at the 1:36 mark of the opening period of their 5-3 win.

“That first goal, that really put a momentum swing in our team,” said Saintey, who blasted in his first goal of the afternoon just before the first period ended.

So overpowering was St. Thomas Academy that Marshall goaltender Willie Paul was replaced early in the second period after giving up his third goal on just nine shots. Paul had allowed just one goal in each of the Hilltoppers’ first two wins of the state tournament, and just a day earlier stopped 33 shots in Marshall’s 3-1 semifinal win over Warroad.

The title game victory avenged the Cadets’ 8-2 thrashing at the hands of the Hilltoppers eight weeks ago on their own rink in Mendota Heights.

“They came in our home building and embarrassed us,” said Ryan Walters, who scored his sixth goal of the tournament in the second period. “We couldn’t hold anything back.”

Duluth Marshall’s only score was by Pat Mahoney late in the second period, with their other 13 shots stopped by Cadets goaltender Kurt Altrichter.

“Heartbreaking,” said Marshall forward Zach Mausolf of his team’s latest failure in the championship game. “But you can’t be disappointed for making it this far, because how many kids dream of being here.”

St. Thomas Academy scored right after the opening faceoff and just before the first period ended to take control of the game. Isackson barreled down the left wing and backhanded the puck toward the net, and it trickled between Paul’s legs just 37 seconds into the game.

The lead was extended 39 seconds before the first period ended when Saintey pounced on a loose puck in the high slot and beat Paul on his stick side.

The Cadets made it 3-0 when Walters, a sophomore who has made a verbal commitment to Minnesota, blasted in his sixth goal of the state tournament from the right circle, sending Paul to the bench. Isackson and Saintey each picked up their second goal of the afternoon in the game’s final six minutes.

The Hilltoppers, who came into the state tournament as the No. 2 seed, lost in the finals two years ago to St. Thomas Academy and last year to Hermantown.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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