It took nearly a full half, but Eden Prairie’s high-powered offense woke up when it needed to. The Eagles (18-1) overcame an early deficit to win their second consecutive state championship, besting Blake 11-9.

Blake (16-3) dominated early, jumping out to a 6-0 lead Saturday at Chanhassen High School, behind sophomore Emma Burke and senior Annie Lyman’s playmaking abilities.

But the Eagles’ defense made a few adjustments and held the Bears to just three goals the rest of the way.

“Not many teams can spot another team, a good team, six goals in the first half and come back,” said Judy Baxter, Eden Prairie’s co-head coach. “Our defense won this game. …We relied on our defense in the end.”

Naomi Rogge and Sara Woodring jumpstarted the Eagles’ comeback. Woodring, a senior forward, was a willing distributor and tallied five assists. She also scored two goals to lead the game in scoring with seven points.

Woodring said emphasizing communication helped the Eagles’ defense step up in the second half.

“Our defense was starting to talk more in the second half,” she said. “I think everything just came together really well and everyone was doing what they needed to do.”

Eden Prairie also focused on stopping Lyman and Emily Johnsrud, a junior forward who led Blake in scoring this season. Those adjustments were key to the Eagles’ comeback.

“We face guarded their two best players,” Baxter said. “Annie Lyman is a fabulous player and [the draws] were going right into her stick. She was finding a way. …We kept making adjustments and eventually we got it to come away.”

Eden Prairie took its first lead of the contest at 9-8 with a Sammie Morton goal early in the second half. The Eagles scored two more goals in a row, from freshman midfielder Brooke Lewis and Rogge.

Blake tried to close the gap, but was stymied by Eden Prairie goaltender Emilie Bloyer and lost critical draws. Bloyer, a freshman, led the game with nine saves.

“I think it was just as simple as we weren’t winning the draws,” said Blake coach Sarah Fellows. “We knew that winning the draws was going to be absolutely key.”

Blake won five consecutive state titles from 2010 to 2014, until Eden Prairie won last season. With a sizeable 6-0 advantage early, it looked like Blake was going to get back on top this season. But Eden Prairie adjusted and eventually found a way.

“We could have lost this game today, but the girls had the character and the ‘never say die’ attitude and they just kept working and working and working,” Baxter said. “Even though they fell behind, they never lost sight of what they were here to do.” 

First report

It took nearly a full half, but Eden Prairie’s high-powered offense woke up when it needed to. The Eagles (18-1) overcame an early deficit to win their second consecutive state championship, besting Blake 11-9.

Blake (16-3) dominated early in the game Saturday at Chanhassen High School, jumping out to a 6-0 lead behind sophomore Emma Burke and senior Annie Lyman’s playmaking abilities.

But the Eagles were not deterred. Eden Prairie slowly chipped away at the deficit and tied the score at seven apiece at halftime.

Naomi Rogge and Sara Woodring jumpstarted the Eagles’ comeback. Woodring, a senior forward, was a willing distributor and tallied five assists. She also scored two goals to lead the game in scoring with seven points.

Eden Prairie took its first lead of the contest at 9-8 with a Sammie Morton goal early in the second half. The Eagles led the rest of the way behind an impressive defensive performance. 

The two programs have won all 10 of the high school league state tournament championships. The Eagles have now won four, including the last two. The Bears have six titles.

Check back later for more on the game.

 

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