Feb. 20—ST. PAUL — For a handful of years in the 2010s and early 2020s, Jeremy Gunderson would schedule his Dodge County girls hockey team to play in a holiday tournament in Warroad.
A 425-mile bus ride the day after Christmas wasn't always ideal, but once the Wildcats got to Warroad, they understood why their coach scheduled the trip.
"We played up there for years," Gunderson said Friday afternoon. "We'd take our kids up to the holiday tournament and take them out ice fishing. ... There are a lot of good stories."
On a different sheet of ice, the Dodge County and Warroad teams have written a different kind of story. They've played one another for three consecutive seasons, on the state's biggest stage, the Class 1A state tournament.
Friday, Warroad's story had the happy ending.
Junior forward Jaylie French found herself alone behind the Dodge County defense, with the puck and with Wildcats goalie Faith Humphrey standing between her and another trip to the state championship game for her team.
"I knew we had to win," French said. "We had to win the game there."
French delivered. She faked a shot, then pulled it around the outstretched pad of Humphrey and tucked it into the net to give the Warriors a 6-5 victory 2:42 into overtime at Grand Casino Arena.
The game marked the third consecutive season that Dodge County and Warroad met in the state tournament. In 2024, Warroad beat the Wildcats 5-2 in the state championship game. A year ago, Dodge County got its revenge, winning the state title 4-3 in overtime.
Friday, the teams met in OT again, and Warroad got the last break to go its way.
"Nobody wants to lose, but that was a fun game," Gunderson said. "I think we gave the fans, everyone, a game they could watch. We all saw and felt the roller coaster. We had our ups and downs, the late-game comeback, and these girls never quit. They have a lot of grit."
That the game was even in overtime is a testament to the level of perseverance the Wildcats have shown all season, and especially in the postseason. They rallied from two goals down to beat Albert Lea 3-2 in the Section 1-1A championship game. On Wednesday, they let a two-goal lead slip away before they bounced back and beat Proctor/Hermantown 3-2 in overtime in a state quarterfinal game.
Friday, the Cardiac 'Cats were at it again. Down 5-3 late in regulation, they scored two goals in the final 85 seconds to force overtime. The first was by last year's state championship game hero, Zoe Heimer. This time, Heimer won a net-front battle and hammered a puck past Warroad goalie Peyton Rolli with 1:25 remaining to make it a 5-4 game.
The Wildcats pulled their goalie again after Warroad was called for icing with 1:19 to go. Dodge County kept the pressure on and with 20 seconds remaining, senior defender Alexa Van Straaten put a shot on net from the point. Rolli made the save, but Wildcats junior Bryn Spreiter was on the spot and put the rebound in to complete her hat trick, tie the score and force OT.
"I went straight to the net and was in the right spot at the right time," Spreiter said, "but I give all the credit to my teammates."
"Brynn, she's a joy to the team," Wildcats' junior forward and top-line center Maysie Koch said. "Everybody loves her. She's kind of one of the quiet ones on the team, so we have to get her going. But she does a lot for the team. She's a fast player, a smart player."
The game was tied 3-3 entering the third period, but Harren scored 42 seconds in, then Taylor Reese capped her hat trick with 5:22 to play, making it 5-3 Warroad. The odds seemed stacked against Dodge County at that point, but Heimer and Spreiter made sure they had a chance to play OT.
"We definitely thought we could do this," junior defender Sophia Buesking added, about the game going to OT. "We were just really confident, confident in all our players. We were in the zone and ready to go."
Reese (3 goals, 1 assist) and French (2 goals, 4 assists) combined for 10 points in the win. Spreiter added one assist for the Wildcats, for a four-point game. After Wednesday's quarterfinals, Reese said she was hoping to face Dodge County in the semifinals so the Warriors could "make them feel like we felt last year."
She didn't back down from her statement after Friday's game, but Warriors coach Izzy Marvin credited Dodge County's effort and skill.
"We knew Dodge County would be tough," Marvin said. "They're a motivated group. It was like a heavyweight fight at times."
Dodge County (21-7-1) will play for third place at 10 a.m. Saturday against Blake or Breck, at Grand Casino Arena.
Warroad (23-5-1) will play in the state championship game against Blake or Breck at 4 p.m.
WARROAD 6, DODGE COUNTY 5, OT
Dodge County 2-1-2-0 — 5
Warroad 0-3-2-1 — 6
First period — 1. DC, Bryn Spreiter 13 (Alexa Van Straaten 24, Maysie Koch 30) 12:30. 2. DC, Kylie Meyer 8 (Daisy Harens 16) 14:22. Second period — 3. W, Taylor Reese 20 (Jaylie French 36, Elin Rolli 1) :13 (sh). 4. DC, B. Spreiter 14 (Josie Fulton 5) 1:08. 5. W, French 20 (Vivienne Marcowka 21, Olivia Anthony 28) 3:50 (pp). 6. W, Reese 21 (French 37, Reagan Haley 11) 9:57. Third period — 7. W, Linnea Harren 7 (Reese 13, French 38) :42. 8. W, Reese 21 (Harren 20, French 38) 11:38. 9. DC, Zoe Heimer 12 (B. Spreiter 11, Meyer 9) 15:35 (ex). 10. DC, B. Spreiter 15 (Van Straaten 25). Overtime — 11. W, French 21 (Marcowka 22).
Shots on goal — DC, 14-5-9-0 — 28; W, 10-9-10-4 — 33. Goalies — DC, Faith Humphrey 27 saves (33 shots); W, Peyton Rolli 23 saves (28 shots). Power-play opportunities — DC, 0-for-2; W, 1-for-3. Penalties — DC, 3-6 minutes; W, 2-4 minutes.