Cougar boys can’t make it six in a row
A three-goal flurry by Rochester Century/John Marshall in the second period went a long way toward ending Lakeville South’s five-year reign as Section 1AA boys hockey champion.
An even longer streak came to an end the same night. It had been 15 years since a Rochester school won the section, but Century/JM’s 4-1 victory Feb. 28 sends the Panthers to the state tournament for the first time since 2009.
Senior defenseman Bo Bondy had a goal and assist for Century/JM (22-4-2), which will play Chanhassen in the state Class AA quarterfinals at 11 a.m. Thursday at Xcel Energy Center. Lakeville South, seeking to qualify for state for the ninth time, finished 16-11.
Since 2010, it had become an annual ritual for teams from out of town to win the Section 1AA championship game at Rochester Rec Center. In that period, Lakeville South had won the section seven times, Lakeville North had six titles and Farmington won once.
Instead of watching a South Suburban Conference team skate away with the championship, Century/JM beat two SSC teams on its way to the title. The Panthers defeated Farmington 6-1 in the section semifinals to advance to the final against South, which downed Owatonna 5-0.
Lakeville South appeared to have the better of the play early, although starting goalie Carson Hauger had to stop a breakaway by a Century/JM player who just finished serving a penalty.
About 50 seconds after that save, however, Century/JM forward Calvin O’Reilly scored on a rebound to give his team the lead.
At 4:28 of the second period, Century/JM’s Ole Fevold scored off an assist from Brock Clarey, touching off a celebration that led to a delay of almost 40 minutes. After scoring, Fevold and his teammates skated over to their student section, which is common. Fans jumped over the first two rows of seats, which were supposed to be closed, and pushed on the glass, causing two panes to shatter. One fan nearly landed on the ice.
No players were injured by the broken glass but several fans were treated, including one who needed to go to an emergency room. The teams went to their locker rooms while the mess was cleaned up, the panes replaced and the ice resurfaced.
Century/JM made it 3-0 on a deflection by Brekken DeWeese with 5:42 left in the second. South got a temporary burst of energy on Jackson Ernst’s rebound goal with 4:55 remaining in the period. Bondy scored with 2:50 left in the second, making it 4-1.
The Cougars outshot Century/JM 15-6 in the third period but goalie Kyle Lappi stopped them all. He finished with 32 saves.
South’s Hauger made 16 saves over the first two periods. Brooks Currie played the third period in goal, making six saves.
The Lakeville South loss also means the South Suburban Conference will not have a team in the state boys hockey tournament for the first time since the league began operation in 2010-11. The top three teams in the 2023-24 league standings – Shakopee, Eastview and Rosemount – reached the section semifinal round before losing. Lakeville South finished fifth in the conference.
Lakeville South had five seniors on its roster – Currie, forwards Eiji Hofmann and Matthew Allard, and defensemen Colton Kunkel and Evan Kasal. Players eligible to return include Jackson Ernst, Will Kortan and Brayden Olsen, the team’s top three scorers. All three are junior forwards.
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