A hockey and soccer standout, Kelly Pannek brings her scoring touch to the lacrosse field as well. 

Pannek’s three first-half goals kept the No. 5-ranked Red Knights in striking range as they rallied to defeat No. 8 Edina 11-9 on Thursday night at Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School.

“It was great to see them struggle a little bit and then put it together and rally as a team,“ Benilde-St. Margaret’s coach Ana Bowlsby said about her teams' five-goal run in the second half. 

Pannek's final two goals of the opening half came late and ended a run of six unanswered Edina goals. Both were fundamental plays that the first-year player executed with ease.  

Pannek's third goal came after she dodged through three defenders, switched hands and beat Edina goaltender Tara Bastings. Pannek has 72 combined goals in her three sports in her senior year, and doesn't look like she picked lacrosse up two months ago. 

“Great game sense, knows when to attack the ball and when to pull away and settle,” Bowlsby said about Pannek’s performance.

The Red Knights’ second half came in stark contrast to the first. Their defense make correct double teams, knew when to chase and battled for the ground balls.

“We really emphasized getting the ground balls,” Bowlsby said about the second-half game plan. “Talking a lot more on defense. We were miscommunicating or not communicating period.”

Pannek started taking the draws late in the game. The ground balls started to go the Red Knights way. 

“They’re so fast, you can’t even keep up with them, and they just go to the net,” Pannek said.

“Our speed is our biggest asset," Red Knights’ assistant coach Makenna Borg said. "We told them - especially in this game - if you get the ball, take off."

Pannek gathered her own draw several times and dashed straight toward the net, causing confusion amongst the Hornets.

“We knew we had a lot to prove,” Pannek said. “Winning those 50-50 balls on the ground, getting possession and making something from it.”

Edina (2-4) was the first big test for Benilde-St. Margaret's (4-0) this season.

"That was really exciting to see because we have quite the gauntlet coming up,” Bowlsby said about the comeback.

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