Totino-Grace Girls' Hockey Takes Second Place in Section 4A

It was a bittersweet end for the girl's hockey team as they lost in a 7-1 blowout to the South St. Paul Packers in the Section 4A finals on Friday night. Their season and the hopes of a state tournament appearance ended but they were able to take pride in a second-place finish in their section against a very tough South St. Paul team.

It had been an up-and-down season for a talented Eagles team that was put to the test all year, right up through their 3-1 section semifinal victory over St. Paul United on Tuesday. Before Friday's game, Totino-Grace head coach Tom Peart reminded his team about their tough schedule: “Of the 16 teams in the state section finals this year, we played eight of them.” That statistic suggests how much heart and fortitude the Eagle team needed to have throughout the season to even make it to the Section Finals.

In the first period Totino-Grace showed the resolve of a battle-tested team, as they were able to fight back from setbacks. An early Eagles turnover led to a breakaway goal for South St. Paul’s Abbie Wisneski at the 4:43 mark. South St. Paul struck again at the 13:29 mark; this time it was a goal by Emily Reibert off of a faceoff.  

Totino-Grace matched the intensity of the South St. Paul team the remainder of the period. Sophomore Abby Huber scored the only goal for Totino-Grace on a powerplay at the 16:24 mark. At the end of the first period the score was 2-1 and the shot total was 10-8, both in favor of South St. Paul.

South St. Paul dominated the second period. Emily Reibert scored her second goal only 45 seconds into the period making the score 3-1. The Packers added three more goals, including two on the powerplay, to make the score 6-1 after two periods. Totino-Grace managed only three shots in the period, bringing their shot total to 11 in comparison to 19 for South St. Paul.

The final period was almost more disappointing than the second for Totino-Grace. They gave up a goal at the 8:25 mark, setting the time in running mode, with no more clock stoppages. The period was also full of penalties, including a major penalty and game disqualification for senior Shellie Carlson.

“It got a little chippy at the end," Peart said, "but that’s just a little frustration of a couple of kids.”

Before things got too ugly the game ended with Totino-Grace losing by the final score of 7-1.  After the game, medals and trophies were awarded to both teams. There was a mix of emotions on the ice but overall the mood of the Eagles team was one of pride in their accomplishments on the season and their effort in the game. 

Peart had praise for his players. “I thought we came out and played really well in the first [period],” he said. “But [South St. Paul’s] skill took over the second and the rest of the game. But we didn’t roll over and we didn’t give up.”

Eagles senior captain Morgan Olson agreed. “We worked hard even through a bunch of injuries,” Olson said. “We still fought through it and worked our best even until the end. No regrets … that’s our motto.”

Next year Olson will be playing hockey at St. Catherine University in St. Paul while the Totino-Grace Eagles look to build on this year’s season. 

Peart emphasized, “We need to work a little harder at practice and off the ice to get where we want to be going. We need an influx of new kids, but it’s the core group of kids that need to work hard over the summer and all the time to get there.”