Feb. 21—ST. PAUL, Minn. — Breck had a near-spotless record this season.
The second-ranked girls hockey team in Class A had just one blemish, a 3-1 loss on Dec. 6 against Warroad.
It was only fitting that the two schools met again on the state's grandest stage.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementBehind a 37-save showing from freshman goaltender Clara Milinkovich, the Mustangs outlasted the top-seeded Warriors, winning 4-1 to claim the program's fifth state championship on Saturday evening at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul.
"Not only today, she's been a rock all season," Breck head coach Tricia Luoma said. "We just have a lot of confidence in her, and I think that really helps us play better in front of her. We're strong from the goaltender out, so I think it's just a big team effort. But knowing that we have her gives them a little extra something."
Milinkovich saved her best period for last.
Clinging to a 2-0 lead after two periods, Breck was outshot 17-6 in the final 17 minutes. Even after Warroad junior forward Jaylie French scored just under two minutes into the third period to make it 2-1, Milinkovich stood tall.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHer best sequence was on a Warroad power play with five minutes left in the third period. Milinkovich stopped a one-time shot from French before turning aside Vivienne Marcowka's rebound chance.
"She's the best person to have on your team and the worst person to be practicing against," Breck sophomore defenseman Alexis Ulrich said. "She says these little comments that get under your skin because she knows she's good, but she isn't cocky about it. . . It adds a level of competitiveness. But then, when you're playing with her, she's the goalie you want back there. She's the most lighthearted freshman I know, but she's also super competitive."
French finished off a Taylor Reese's threaded pass on the back door 111 seconds into the third period for her fourth goal of the tournament. It was the only time the Warriors broke through.
Ashley Babbitt regained the two-goal edge for the Mustangs midway through the third period. Mackenna Schlieman scored an empty-net goal, her second in the title game, with 39 seconds left in regulation to ice the win.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I never stopped believing in our team," Reese said. "Even at the end there, after they got an empty-netter, I still thought we could do it."
Molly Larson got the scoring started on a shot through traffic from the point with just under three minutes left in the first period.
Schlieman made it 2-0 two and a half minutes into the second period with a shorthanded breakaway goal, capitalizing on a Warroad turnover near its own blue line.
"I thought we played pretty good," Warriors head coach Izzy Marvin said. "We gave them the second (goal), but we played pretty good. We threw a lot of pucks at them. For how young they are, they're a damn good team. The goalie was really good two days in a row, so I guess she's pretty good."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementSaturday was the fourth time Warroad and Breck met with a state title on the line. The Mustangs beat the Warriors in 2018 and 2019 after Warroad won the first championship meeting in 2010.
Breck's (28-1-1) defeat against the Warriors on Dec. 6 was at the Warroad Ice Gardens.
"I think we learned a lot from that loss in early December against Warroad," Luoma said. "I think we recognized or identified areas we needed to solidify if we wanted to be successful in January and February. I think the players really committed to those areas, and I think that led to our success today."
Warroad's French, Reese, Marcowka and Olivia Anthony were named to the All-Tournament Team. The Warriors played in their fifth consecutive state championship game in their 11th straight trip to state, though they finished as the runner-up in each of the last two seasons.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I can already tell you how proud I am of them, but I can also already tell you how pissed they are," Marvin said. "You know, it's back-to-back. They wanted better, and that's the competitors they are. It's a hell of a lot to be proud of. I told them that already. I know how I feel about them, but you head back to work. Back to work, for sure."
Warroad holds the longest state-appearance streak in Class A and is second only to Edina's run of 12 straight section titles in Class AA.
"I feel like the teams get better every year," senior forward Emmie Hardwick said. " These girls are really young. We have a young team and they're working their way to get back, but it's never going to get easier to get back here. It's going to be a harder battle each year for the rest of the girls to get back here."
Warroad finished with a record of 23-6-1 and graduates Reese, Hardwick, Marcowka, Linnea Harren, Samantha Earhart, Reagan Haley, Kate Johnson and Payton Rolli.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"I got to meet all of these girls that I call my best friends," said Rolli, a University of Minnesota goaltending commit who finished with 19 saves. "I'm really grateful for that."
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