Wayzata capped off its impressive run through the Section 8 tournament with a 15-3 thrashing of St. Michael-Albertville Wednesday evening in Brooklyn Park, sending the Trojans back to the state tournament for the second time in three years.

Attacker Amar Batra finished with six goals, five of which came in the first half which fueled a fiery charge that helped the Trojans turn a close game into a rout. 

The score was tied 3-3 tie after one quarter, but Batra sparked a run of seven straight goals in the second that allowed Wayzata (9-6) to effectively seize the balance of the game before halftime. 

It's an especially rewarding experience for a program that began the season in rebuilding mode with a large contingency of underclassmen expected to contribute after an underachieving finish a year ago.

"We've got a lot of young guys who have improved a lot from the beginning of the season to now," Trojans coach Chad Herr said. "We lost a lot from last year, and we had a lot of holes to fill, and you never know how that is going to develop. But we just kept working and being patient, and here we are."

Wayzata's defensive effort proved impressive, silencing the Knights' scoring after the opening 12 minutes, but it's been the offense that's sparked the sixth-seeded Trojans' playoff push.

Entering the postseason with a .500 record and a goals-per-game average at 10, Wayzata picked up convincing section victories over third seed Osseo/Park Center (16-10) and second seed Elk River (13-3), and easily eclipsed its regular season average by halftime Wednesday night.

"We've been hitting a lot of posts early, and it just felt like things were going to start to unravel in our favor," Herr said. "Once we got going, everything worked well."

Batra's performance put him at 12 goals for the postseason and 59 total on the year.

The ride continues for the senior, who was a forward on the Trojans' hockey team that won the Class 2A state championship in March, as he looks to add one more accolade to a most memorable school year.

"When the playoffs started, we felt like we could compete with anyone," he said. "Now that we've done it, we feel we can keep this going. Everybody in our lineup is contributing, and we've developed depth. That's how you put up big numbers."

Junior defenseman Ryan Copeland finished with two goals to lead fourth-seeded St. Michael-Albertville, which saw its season end with an 11-5 record.

Spotlight Game Coverage