Rosemount beat Prior Lake 6-3 when these two met last month to end their respective regular seasons. It was the first time the Irish had beat the Lakers since 2014 -- and that win got the Irish the top seed in the Section 6 tournament.

While a changing of the guard looked like it may have been happening in Section 6, Prior Lake re-established the status quo on Thursday night, beating top-seeded Rosemount 11-2 to earn a trip to its third straight state tournament.

“Our guys came out ready to play,” Prior Lake coach Chris Fleck said after the win. “Kudos to Rosemount, they played hard too, but we executed. We did some nice plays and we took advantage of the opportunities we were given today.”

The opportunities they were given were some uncharacteristic mistakes from the Irish, who struggled with “catching and passing,” said coach Lance Kuehn.

“At times we played nervous, lost our composure…we weren’t ready for this big stage today, and it shows.”

Kuehn also gave credit to the Lakers for how well they played.

“Kudos to them, they seemed hungrier on the ground balls, those 50/50 chances, looks like they were running all over the field a little bit more than we were and they’re a good program.”

While the game was kept close in the first quarter, with the Lakers leading 1-0 after the first 12 minutes, the Lakers scored six goals in the second quarter, blowing it wide open, before the Irish got on the board. Brock Penton had two goals in that second quarter, and he would add another in the third quarter, and he said his team’s mentality was the key to how well they played.

“We always just keep the mentality of a 0-0 game. We never let the scoreboard affect us, if we’re even down by a lot or up by a lot. So we just played smart and kept it a 0-0 game,” Penton said.

During the regular season, inclement weather forced these two teams to play inside the dome at Rosemount. While the Lakers didn’t use that as an excuse for the loss, Kuehn knows it gave his team an advantage.

“I think our last game, because we played in the dome gave us a huge advantage because we know how to play in there and because it’s a smaller field. When it’s a big field like this, and it’s a neutral site, it’s a little bit different,” he said.

The Lakers are on to their third-straight state tournament, and they’ll be doing so with a healthy roster, which has plagued them all season. They beat Mahtomedi, who will be playing in the state tournament, 10-2 earlier in the year when they were healthy, and now they’ve beaten Rosemount. Those kinds of wins have given Penton and his team a lot of confidence.

“I think we can keep the momentum going after a good win like this and I see the future being bright,” he said.

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