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Warroad seniors' dedication pays off

By David La Vaque, Star Tribune, 02/26/11, 8:36PM CST

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Sylvester, Amsley-Benzie help Warriors win back-to-back championships

Warroad coach David Marvin talked after Saturday’s Class 1A championship game about his players “paying a big price to be champions.” In the case of Warriors’ senior standouts Karley Sylvester and Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Marvin’s words weren’t just coach speak.

Sylvester, a forward, and Amsley-Benzie, a goaltender, moved to Warroad from Little Falls and Grand Rapids, respectively, to chase their hockey dreams.


Amsley-Benzie

The payoff was two-fold. They helped the Warriors win back-to-back Class 1A championships. And on Sunday in St. Paul, both could receive some personal hardware. Sylvester is one of five Ms. Hockey finalists and Amsley-Benzie is one of three finalists for Senior Goaltender of the Year.

“The accolades have never gone to their heads,” Marvin said. “They are just super-motivated, at times maybe even too much. I worry about them enjoying the moment sometimes because they are so focused.”

A determination to excel in hockey is part of the reason both girls moved to Warroad, a tradition-rich hockey town of about 1,700 people near the Canadian border. Amsley-Benzie arrived as an eighth-grader, one year before Sylvester. Both were awestruck by the town’s hockey environment.


Sylvester

“I needed a new place to go; It wasn’t working out where I was,” Amsley-Benzie said. “The culture of Warroad, Hockeytown USA, is exciting. I really wanted to go there. The opportunity came and we took it.”

Said Sylvester: “In Little Falls, there really wasn’t a girls’ hockey program and you have to pay for open skating. In Warroad, you can go to the rink when you want to. There’s always open hockey. Or if there’s a team on the ice, they’ll let you skate with them.”

Marvin admires the girls for more than changing addresses.

“Both of their families have made a lot of sacrifices,” he said. “But they didn’t just move, they took advantage of everything Warroad has to offer. In Karley’s first practice she got in front of the line as a ninth-grader and she’s never left that spot. Shelby has this high expectation to win. She wants to be perfect. She goes into games thinking, 'If I don’t give up a goal we’re going to at least be tied.’ ”


Amsley-Benzi

Warroad coach David Marvin talked after Saturday’s Class 1A championship game about his players “paying a big price to be champions.” In the case of Warriors’ senior standouts Karley Sylvester and Shelby Amsley-Benzie, Marvin’s words weren’t just coach speak.

Sylvester, a forward, and Amsley-Benzie, a goaltender, moved to Warroad from Little Falls and Grand Rapids, respectively, to chase their hockey dreams.

The payoff was two-fold. They helped the Warriors win back-to-back Class 1A championships. And on Sunday in St. Paul, both could receive some personal hardware. Sylvester is one of five Ms. Hockey finalists and Amsley-Benzie is one of three finalists for Senior Goaltender of the Year.

“The accolades have never gone to their heads,” Marvin said. “They are just super-motivated, at times maybe even too much. I worry about them enjoying the moment sometimes because they are so focused.”

A determination to excel in hockey is part of the reason both girls moved to Warroad, a tradition-rich hockey town of about 1,700 people near the Canadian border. Amsley-Benzie arrived as an eighth-grader, one year before Sylvester. Both were awestruck by the town’s hockey environment.

“I needed a new place to go; It wasn’t working out where I was,” Amsley-Benzie said. “The culture of Warroad, Hockeytown USA, is exciting. I really wanted to go there. The opportunity came and we took it.”

Said Sylvester: “In Little Falls, there really wasn’t a girls’ hockey program and you have to pay for open skating. In Warroad, you can go to the rink when you want to. There’s always open hockey. Or if there’s a team on the ice, they’ll let you skate with them.”

Marvin admires the girls for more than changing addresses.

“Both of their families have made a lot of sacrifices,” he said. “But they didn’t just move, they took advantage of everything Warroad has to offer. In Karley’s first practice she got in front of the line as a ninth-grader and she’s never left that spot. Shelby has this high expectation to win. She wants to be perfect. She goes into games thinking, 'If I don’t give up a goal we’re going to at least be tied.’ ”

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