Warroad forward Geno Hendrickson (17) got a rebound past Willmar goaltender Bryton Carlson (1) in the first period. Photo: Shari L. Gross ¥ shari.gross@startribune.com
For a minute there — well, one minute and one second to be exact — Warroad’s collar on underdog Willmar in the Class 1A girls’ hockey state tournament quarterfinal loosened.
Two quick Willmar goals erased a three-goal Warroad lead in the second period, prompting Warriors coach Dave Marvin to call timeout.
The regroup worked. Three consecutive goals by Warroad restored order and fueled a 7-4 quarterfinal victory Wednesday at Xcel Energy Center.
“Just taking a break,” Marvin said of the timeout’s purpose. “There were no magic words.”
An enchanted feeling overtook Willmar (18-9-1), playing in its first state tournament since 2003. Ashley Larson and Tanna Christensen scored 1:01 apart to force the timeout by No. 2-seed Warroad (22-4-2).
Photo gallery: Willmar vs. Warroad
“We were so excited,” said Christensen, who scored off the faceoff.
Cardinals coach Eric Setrum said, “You get a goal like that and get momentum going — you’re feeling pretty good. The bench was electric.”
Willmar erased a two-goal deficit in the Section 6 semifinals and shook off an early goal against in the section final. Could Warroad be next?
“We talk about belief all the time,” Setrum said. “They called timeout and I said, ‘Hey, they’re feeling it, just like we were feeling it. It’s time to keep going.’ ”
Instead, Warroad found its game.
“We had to keep working as hard as we can, trust each other and not get down on ourselves,” forward Geno Hendrickson said.
Hendrickson and Hannah Corneliusen each scored a power-play goal as part of Warroad’s answering salvo.
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