For the first time in school history, Rosemount is heading to the section finals in boys' lacrosse.

“It’d be a huge relief after all the work we put in," senior midfielder Conner Yepsen said Tuesday after the top-seeded Irish beat No. 5 Eastview 13-6 in a Section 3 semifinal at Rosemount High. "You get so close every year -- we just want to get out of the ‘Section of Death’ and hopefully make it to state. I think we have a good shot."

Yepsen is referring to a spinoff of a term coined by Rosemount coach Lance Kuehn, referring to the South Suburban conference as the “The Conference of Death." Seven of the league's 10 teams were ranked among the state's top 15 in the final coaches' poll. Six South Suburaban teams compete in Section 3.

Eastview was the only team to limit Rosemount’s high speed offense to single digits during the regular season.

“They had a great game-plan against us the first time,” Kuehn said. “We made adjustments to get to their end -- it worked -- we put in several different looks.”

The only antidote for the Irish’s potent offense is to control possession, play physical and slow the game down.

With Conner Yepsen in the faceoff circle for Rosemount, all that is much easier said than done.

Rosemount won 14 of 23 draws, and on two occasions the Irish converted on fast breaks after gaining possession off faceoffs, the goals coming from Carter Yepsen and Trent Woodcock.

“It was huge, going into this game," Yepsen said. "It really opens up the lane when I’m coming down trying to get some momentum going.”

“Getting those fast break goals and those settled six-on-six goals is a big deal,” Kuehn said.

Conner Yepsen and Eastview's Michael Stillings both drew plenty attention from the opposing defense. At one piont they bumped heads chasing down a loose ball. Yepsen eventually chased it down and scored with Stillings' stick in his face, winning a polarizing battle. 

Stillings, matched up mostly against senior defenseman Justin Crowell, was held to one goal.

“We told Justin, ‘You got the green light, you’re going to be put on one of the best attackmen in the state, we believe you’re one of the best defensemen in the state,’ " Kuehn said. 

“Things just clicked today,” Crowell said. “Communication was huge. I knew what I had to do against Stillings -- I knew he was a good player and did the best I could to shut him out.”

Rosemount goaltender Shaun Skrbec made several impressive saves, holding Eastview to six goals for the second time this season.

Now entering the section finals, an ominous opponent awaits the Irish.

“We want to show that one loss was a fluke,” Kuehn said about the Irish’s lone loss this season -- at the hands of No. 2 Prior Lake. “We want to show that outside -- in nice weather -- we’re going to take them. I have the biggest respect for Prior Lake, it’s going to be a great battle and can’t wait to see the Lakers.”

Prior Lake edged Rosemount 12-10 in the beginning of May, and after defeating No. 10 Eagan in double overtime, both teams seem prepared for the inevitable No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup.

“They’re a good squad and have a great goalie," Conner Yepsen said. "They’re definitely our rivals and it’s gonna be good to get back and show them what we can do."

First Report

Rosemount senior Carter Yepsen made the most of his fast break opportunities, opening the game with two goals in a span of 12 seconds and adding two more goals in the third quarter to lead the top-seeded and top-ranked Irish to a 13-6 victory over over No. 5 seed Eastview on Tuesday in a Section 3 semifinal at Rosemount High School.

The Irish will face No. 2-seeded and No. 2-ranked Prior Lake in the Section 3 championship game at Burnsville High School on Thursday night. Prior Lake beat Eagan 15-14 in double overtime in Tuesday's other section semifinal.

Yepsen cut across the slot two minutes into the game and fired a shot past Lightning goaltender Jeremy LeClaire. On the ensuing draw, Yepsen’s twin brother, Conner, sent the ball back to Carter, leading to another scoring opportunity in the slot.

Both teams’ leading scorers were keyed on from the start, and Eastview's Michael Stillings and Rosemount's Conner Yepsen each were held to one goal.

Conner Yepsen compensated by dishing out three assists against the Lightning. Circling the net in the second quarter, Conner Yepsen faked a point-blank shot and lobbed a pass behind to Luke VanOverbeke who scored from just outside the crease. That goal gave the Irish a 4-3 lead at the end of the half.

Conner and Carter Yepsen each scored in the early minutes of the second half as Rosemount built its lead to 8-3. Eastview's Joel Iverson scored back-to-back goals to cut the Irish lead to 8-5 late in the third quarter.

Trent Woodcock and Mason Hille each scored their second goals in the fourth quarter as Rosemount continued to pull away in a dominant second half. 

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