Mustangs ride four-goal final period to second straight 1A title

For the second consecutive season the No. 2 Breck Mustangs and the No. 1 Warroad Warriors met in Class A title game.

Despite the Warriors dominating shots on goal, the Mustangs prevailed for a 6-1 win.

Eighth grade goaltender Uma Corniea hasn’t even started high school and yet she’s already helped Breck to two state titles.

“No one does it alone,” said Corniea. “We are a team and you have to have all six people play at their best to win game.”

Breck, which averaged over six goals per game in the regular season, netted the first goal from senior Carly Beniek. Warroad tied things up less than two minutes later but were never able to capture the lead.

The Mustangs took things over in the second period for good and ended up scoring five-unanswered goals in the victory. Elly Klepinger, Olivia Mobley, Sadie Lindsay, Carly Beniek and Ashley Halverson all found the back of the net for Breck.

Mobley, who scored five goals at the State Tournament this year said winning it all again never gets old.

“They’re both such an honor,” said Mobley. “It’s so unbelievable and the feeling’s the same. These girls, and this team; it’s been awesome and it’s just as sweet.”

Breck goaltender Uma Corniea makes one of her 41 saves in helping lead the Mustangs to a 6-1 win over Warroad in Saturday night’s Class 1A championship game at Xcel Energy Center. (MHM Photo / Tim Kolehmainen – Breakdown Sports USA)

Warroad put 42 shots on net but only lit the lamp once. There was a moment in the third period where it appeared the Warriors had cut the deficit to 3-2, but the officials blew the puck dead despite replay clearly showing Corniea never controlled the puck.

Minutes later in the Warroad defensive end, the same official ruled a penalty shot, which the Mustangs converted. Warriors head coach David Marvin felt it changed the course of the game.

“She makes a mistake, everyone makes them,” said Marvin. “And then goes down to the other end, can’t find her whistle and then all of the sudden comes up with a penalty shot? The sequence is terrible.”

Even though Marvin disagreed with the calls, he credited the Mustangs as the better team at the end of the day.

“We had a lot of shots,” said Marvin. “We didn’t get the same quality shots that they got on Quinn. We weren’t playing bad and it was 3-1. Breck’s a good hockey team; congrats to them.”

Between the two schools, eight players were selected to the All-Tournament team.

• Breck Goaltender, Uma Corniea
• Breck Defenseman, Katherine Solohub
• Breck Forward, Olivia Mobley
• Breck Forward, Carly Beniek
• Warroad Goaltender, Quinn Kuntz
• Warroad Forward, Hannah Corneliusen
• Warroad Defenseman, Genevieve Hendrickson
• Warroad Defenseman, Kaitlyn Kotlowski
• Rochester/Dover Forward, Emma Schmitz
• Proctor/Hermantown Defenseman, Ella Anick
• Fergus Falls Forward, Jade Zierden
• Fergus Falls Defenseman, Hallie Sheridan

The post Breck Goes Back To Back appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.

Coming into the semifinal round at the 2019 girls’ state tournament, the West Tonka White Hawks hadn’t lost a game all season posting a 23-0-5 record.

But the Breck Mustangs – last year’s state champs in Class A – had other plans as they trotted to a 11-1 win in dominating fashion with six goals coming in the first period alone.

“The first period is a testament to moving the puck and crashing the net,” said coach Steve Persian. “We really wanted to set the tone and we knew this team would be coming at us. There’s a reason they’re in the state tournament; they’re well coached and we thought if we came out with a lot of urgency it would dictate the flow for us.”

Both Sadie Lindsay and Olivia Mobley had hat tricks while eight different players lit the lamp for the Mustangs.

“We had a couple of awesome moves and it was fun,” said Lindsay. “Our defense really got the puck up well and got it to us in front of the net. So from there it was just on us.”

White Hawks goaltender Taylor Smith was a brick wall in the regular season having allowed just 28 goals in 26 games while posting six shutouts and is finalist for the Ms. Goalie award. But the senior wasn’t quite as sharp on Friday.

“I don’t know, they just really knew how to put the puck in the net,” said Smith who faced 42 shots in the loss. “I think it’s just tough when they get ahead like that staying mentally strong and coming back and staying in your zone when you see the score up like that.”

“Just because that was the score,” said co-head coach Claire Goldsmith. “We didn’t feel it was due to Taylor’s lack of effort or anything. So we didn’t want to deprive her of that.”

With the win, Breck moves on to the Class A title game for the chance to repeat as state champions.

“It’s awesome,” said Mobley. “We’re all really excited in the locker room. It’s a dream a lot of us have had for a long time and it’s such an honor to go back and fight for the title again this year.”

The post Breck spoils West Tonka’s undefeated season appeared first on Minnesota Hockey Magazine.