As head coach for the most decorated girls’ hockey program in Minnesota history, Dave Palmquist has seen plenty from behind the South St. Paul bench.

Friday’s 4-2 Class 1A semifinal victory over two-time defending champion and No. 2 seed Warroad at Xcel Energy Center ranks right up there.

“This is one of the finest victories we’ve had,” the Packers coach said afterward.

The Packers were on their heels when the Warriors’ Lisa Marvin scored 22 seconds into the third period to tie the game 2-2. Then Emily Reibert changed the tone with two wrist shots.

The first came when she took a perfect drop pass from Riley Viner at the top of the faceoff circle in front of the Warroad goal and buried a shot into the lower right-corner of the net to break the tie with 5 minutes, 25 seconds left.

The second came when Reibert’s flutter puck from the neutral zone trickled to an empty net with 32.9 seconds left to clinch third-seed South St. Paul’s seventh trip to a state championship game.

“The best game I’ve ever played in,” said Sam LaShomb, who was credited with the second assist on Reibert’s game-winner. “Nobody quit.”

Certainly not freshman goaltender Sydney Conley, who stoned Warroad’s leading scorer Kayla Gardner on a pair of point-blank opportunities in a severely one-sided first period.

The shy newcomer let out a hushed “a lot” when asked how much confidence it gave her the rest of the way, making 17 saves.

LaShomb – Conley’s roommate for the state tournament – piped up for her.

“She gave me some spark just because of all her intense play,” LaShomb said. “She picked everyone up.”

Added Palmquist: “[Conley] put us in the position we were in at the end of the game still tied, still in position to win. The way she played is the way you need your goaltender to play and I couldn’t be more proud.”

The victory avenged lopsided losses to Warroad in last year’s Class 1A championship game and earlier this season in a holiday tournament, but …

“We still have unfinished business,” Reibert said.

Emily Reibert, South St. Paul
Warroad looked to have gained momentum at the start of the third period after scoring their second goal and controlling the puck for long periods of time. Reibert would put the Packers on her back and carry them to the state championship game herself. Scoring two goals in the final five minutes of play, she would punch her team's ticket to the championship game.