Heise’s Southern Minnesota Pride

ST. PAUL — Taylor Heise said she is 2-for-2.

No, she wasn’t talking about any of her hockey stats as a Minnesota Frost center. She was referring to her connections with the 2025 girls’ high school state hockey tournament champions: Class 2A Hill-Murray and Class 1A Dodge County.

“I did two captain’s practices, and one was with Hill (-Murray) and one was with Dodge County,” Heise said on Sunday afternoon following the Frost’s 2-1 loss to Toronto in St. Paul.

“So, 100% on my part,” Heise quipped.

The Frost returned to Xcel Energy Center on Sunday afternoon for a game against the Toronto Sceptres following a four-game road trip. Crews at the arena had the on-ice and board advertising changed over quickly for the 12:30 p.m. puck drop following the four-day girls’ state hockey tournament. Both Class 1A and Class 2A girls’ championship games were decided in overtime, a first in tourney history.

In Class 1A, top-seeded Dodge County – a co-op of Kasson-Mantorville and Byron in southeastern Minnesota – took a 3-1 lead before three-time defending champ Warroad tied the game with a pair of goals in 21 seconds in the middle of the third period by Vivienne Marcowka. In overtime, it took an official review to determine the puck crossed the goal line to give Dodge County the win. Zoe Heimer scored with 1 minute, 3 seconds left in the first overtime period to secure Dodge County’s first girls’ hockey state championship.

Red Wing’s Taylor Heise’s game-winning shot touches the twine as South St. Paul goalie Sydney Conley helplessly looks on in the Wingers’ 3-2 Class 1A girls’ state third-place game in 2013 at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Mackenzie Marinovich)

Heise, a Red Wing graduate from southeastern Minnesota, watched the game online.

“I honestly turned the game off when it was 3-1 with about eight minutes left because I had to go do something,” Heise said. “And I came back and I saw it was 3-3.”

She flipped the game back on and saw the Wildcats earn their title, after getting second place a year ago against the same opponent. The championship was the first for a girls’ hockey program in southern Minnesota.

But Dodge County had to wait a few minutes to celebrate. The teams waited by their benches as officials reviewed the final play. When the official signaled “good goal,” the Wildcats rushed off the bench across the ice toward their ecstatic student section, traditionally tossing their sticks, gloves and helmets along the way.

“I love that for them,” Heise said. “You could see how excited they were. I saw girls crying. I would have cried if I made it there, too. But you could just see the pride in their eyes that they knew they could do it.

“They obviously got stuck in that championship game last year, obviously didn’t make all the way through that they wanted to. But I’m really proud of them. I’m proud of any of the teams that came there. State tournament’s a hard place to play. Playing in a big arena with your whole town watching you, I know the feeling. It’s not easy but really happy for them.”

Close connections to Dodge County hockey
Heise, the 2018 Ms. Hockey winner, played in four state tournaments during her high school career with Red Wing. But she never reached the state championship game. She helped lead the Wingers to three consecutive Class 1A third-place finishes in 2012-14 before finishing as the consolation runner-up in 2018.

Though Heise graduated from Red Wing, she called her connection to Dodge County “southeast Minnesota.” Since basketball was more the sport of choice where she grew up, she remembers playing hockey for Red Wing and going to Dodge County for scrimmages.

She also knows Dodge County coach Jeremy Gunderson and his staff well. Gunderson and her high school coach were friends, so the teams scrimmaged before the regular seasons started. She also gives lessons to Wildcats player Alexa Van Straaten, along with the captain’s practice. During last year’s state tournament, Heise also spoke with the Wildcats before their big game.

“Southern Minnesota pride,” Heise said.

Mercury Bischoff (left), the 2025 Ms. Hockey winner, and the Jori Jones Award recipient, Layla Hemp, watch the Frost game Sunday after receiving their awards at a banquet. (MHM Photo / Heather Rule)

During Sunday’s Frost game, an in-arena announcement and team championship photos shown on the videoboard recognized Dodge County and Hill-Murray. In the Class 2A title game, Hill-Murray upset top-seed and defending champion Edina with a 5-4 win in double overtime.

Next door on Sunday, this year’s Ms. Hockey and Jori Jones Award for goaltender of the year award winners were announced. Mercury Bischoff, a Grand Rapids/Greenway forward who scored 58 goals and 86 points in 28 games this season, won Ms. Hockey, while Minnetonka goaltender Layla Hemp took home the Jori Jones Award. Bischoff is committed to play for Minnesota State next season, while Hemp is off to play for the Minnesota Gophers.

At a TV timeout in the third period, Bischoff and Hemp were acknowledged with an announcement and shown watching the Frost game from a suite. They were wearing their green Minnesota Wild jerseys, traditionally given to the winners of these annual awards. They received a round of applause from fans, and Heise noticed them watching the game, too.

“Even before the game, I thought it would have been a great idea for them to get Frost jerseys,” Heise said. “To be here to see what it could be like for them later in life when they get through college and they get to see what we’re part of. It’s cool.”