Building on that early momentum, Benilde-St. Margaret’s junior defender Emma Peschel buried a one-timer to give the Red Knights a 1-0 lead in the second period. The goal provided a roar from the crowd, something not often heard during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to games with limited attendance, social distancing and the wearing of face masks. 

Once the second period concluded, Benilde-St. Margaret’s had a one-goal advantage while the Hornets headed to the locker room trailing for the first time all season.

“I think all of us knew we were starting to panic in the second period,” said Conner, a senior who leads the team and is among the state’s top goal scorers with 23 goals this winter. “We weren’t playing our game. When we came off the ice for the third period, we said we wanted to forget about that last period and start fresh.”

Despite the rare obstacle for the Hornets, Reber gave a message to her team but did what she usually does: rely on team leaders to fire up the rest of the group.

“During games, I’m only in the locker room for a few minutes,” Reber said. “It’s up to our leadership group and seniors to get the team fired up. I think our senior class and our veterans do a really good job of that.”

The message from the leaders had the team hooting and hollering on the bench, something that hadn’t been seen up to that point. Edina also had the luxury of starting the final period on the power play.

While the Hornets didn’t score on their first power play of the period, they eventually got two more opportunities. On the second one, the Hornets broke the scoring drought with Conner’s first tally of the game.

“We knew some of the younger players had not been in this position,” said Conner, a University of Minnesota commit. “We knew it was on us veterans to get things going.”

Minutes later, Edina had the puck with Conner nearing the goal. Off of a pass from junior defender Vivian Jungels, Conner took the puck and blasted it in the net to put the Hornets ahead.

“It’s been fun watching [Conner] transform over the past couple of years into the player she’s become,” Reber said. “She deserves all the credit she’s getting right now because she works her butt off. You see it in the offseason and it’s showing on the scoresheet now.”

Both Jungels and Conner are players with multiple years of varsity experience who are team leaders and top executors. Besides assisting on Conner’s second goal, Jungels made a key play late in the third period where she broke up a two-on-one with her stick. It was a play Reber said could’ve changed the game.

“A two-on-one against anyone, you kind of get a little nervous,” Reber said. “But a two-on-one against Vivian Jungels, you feel pretty comfortable. She plays the puck very well and she plays everything very calmly.”

Though Edina avoided suffering its first loss of the season, the Hornets got the feeling of trailing for the first time. It’s likely not the last time Edina will face that. It’s also likely the Hornets will see the Red Knights again in the section tournament.

“[Benilde-St. Margaret’s] really gave us something,” Conner said. “This game sets up more for sections since we might run into them again. It gets us prepared and we know how it is when you’re down like that.”