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Spirit of Duluth: Championship Sunday

By Peter Odney, 12/03/17, 4:45PM CST

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Osseo-Maple Grove takes PWAA title, Minnetonka upends Hermantown for BAA crown.


Blake Anderson (4) scores for Minnetonka in the Skippers' 7-1 win over Hermantown on Sunday.

Leafbirds Edge Hornets in Overtime

Sunday's culmination of the Spirit of Duluth featured a tale of two games, with the Peewee AA title game going into overtime after a thrilling three periods and the Bantam AA final being decided after the second period. 

Osseo-Maple Grove and Edina played out the first battle, with the lead changing eight times as two talented squads raced up and down the ice at the Duluth Heritage Sports Center.

A 1-1 tie after the first period was broken by Edina's Charlie Hoch, who's go-ahead tally was answered by Leafbird goals from Jack Kernan and Jay Ellingson. Jimmy Clark knotted the score at 3-3 for the Hornets, and again the Leafbirds answered with two goals of their own. Kernan and Ellingson both netted their second goals of the game to give OMG a 5-3 lead entering the final stanza. 

Not to be swatted so easily, Edina battled back in the third, getting goals from Tommy Cronin and Jimmy Clark to force the extra session. Cronin's goal was his second of the contest, while Clark's goal came with just over two minutes to play in regulation. 

Three minutes into the sudden-death period, Osseo-Maple Grove's Danny Nelson ended the game on a rebound chance from close range.


Osseo-Maple Grove, Spirit of Duluth PWAA Champions.

Skippers Cruise Past Hawks

In the BAA championship, tiebreaker darlings Minnetonka cruised to a 7-1 win over Hermantown, who until Sunday afternoon had been unbeaten during the tournament and had outscored its opponents 25-8. 

The Skippers broke the game open in the second period after taking a slim 2-1 lead after the first, powered by two goals from Blake Anderson and a third by Hunter Newhouse. Joey Sorenson and Joe Brink each scored once in the first for the Skippers, while Joey Pierce scored what would be the lone goal of the game for the Hawks.  

With a 5-1 lead entering the third period, the Skippers refused to slow down, tacking on two more goals for the winning score of 7-1. Newhouse and Brink each scored their second goals in the third frame to ice the game for Minnetonka.  

Defensively, Minnetonka goaltender Ian Meyer made 24 saves and played just as large a role in the win as the goal-scorers. 


Minnetonka, Spirit of Duluth BAA Champions.

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