Hermantown vs. Duluth East
What: Section 7A boys final
When: 5 p.m.
Where: Public Schools Stadium
Records: Hermantown 15-3-1; East 15-4-1
ADVERTISEMENT
Outlook: The second-seeded Hawks looked solid in beating Grand Rapids 4-1 in Tuesday's semifinal after edging Cloquet-Esko-Carlton 4-3 in a shaky quarterfinal. Brandon Crusan scored two goals Tuesday to give him a team-high 13 this season and a team-high 19 points. Charlie Comnick (11 goals) and Jacob Flanagan (nine goals) also scored as Hermantown moved within one victory of reaching its first state tournament. East won 1-0 in the teams' Oct. 1 meeting at PSS. ... The third-ranked Greyhounds outshot Chisago Lakes Area 17-1 in posting a 2-0 semifinal win. Sean Klun scored his team-high 10th goal and Evan Odean recorded his area-leading 10th shutout. Tim Beddow (9-6--15), Joe Nelson and Mitchell Johnson provide other scoring options while Odean lowered his goals-against average to less than 0.40. East's lone state appearance came in 1995.
Hermantown vs. Cloquet
What: Section 7A girls final
When: 7 p.m.
Where: Public Schools Stadium
Records: Hermantown 18-2; Cloquet 15-2-2
Outlook: The Hawks slipped past Chisago Lakes Area 5-4 in a shootout after playing to a 2-2 tie in the quarterfinals and edged Two Harbors 2-1 in the semifinals at home. ... The Lumberjacks blanked Hibbing 3-0 in the quarterfinals at home and topped Esko-Carlton 4-2 in a shootout after a 1-1 draw in the semifinals at PSS. ... Cloquet handed Hermantown its first loss of the season and ended its 31-game Lake Superior Conference unbeaten streak, 3-0 on Sept. 20 at Cloquet, after the Hawks started 11-0. The Hawks won the first meeting 3-1 at home Sept. 4. ... Lumberjacks sophomore goalkeeper Kaitrin Rathe has a 0.70 goals-against average and 11 shutouts this season. Haley Bassett (11-11--22) is the team's top scorer. ... Hawks senior goalkeeper Kaylee Steen has 12 shutouts this season, but has given up five goals to Cloquet senior midfielder Hannah Roy in their previous three meetings, when the Lumberjacks won 4-0.