Defending champs advance to semifinals

by Rob Brent

No. 2 seed St. Cloud Cathedral started their title defense with a bang in a 3-0 shutout victory over no. 7 seed Mahtomedi. Joey Gillespie scored twice and Bo Schimdt added a goal in an effort that cemented the Crusaders as one of the teams to beat in the Class A Tournament. 

The Crusaders and Zephyrs faced off Wednesday morning in the first game of the Class A Boys State Tournament slate. The game was a rematch from a matchup on February 15th, in which St. Cloud Cathedral emerged victorious 4-3 in overtime. 

Mr. Hockey nominee John Hirschfeld made his presence felt almost immediately when he used his speed through the neutral zone to force Mahtomedi to take a tripping penalty. The Crusaders’ potent powerplay couldn’t break through, and the Zephyrs survived a key early moment in the game.

Joey Gillespie opened the scoring for the Crusaders minutes later when Jaegar Wood made a nifty behind-the-back pass from below the goal line to Gillespie alone in front. Gillespie’s goal was his 21st of the season and first of the tournament. Neither team could break through the rest of the first frame.

The score remained 1-0 Crusaders with 11 minutes left in the second period. Mahtomedi had registered 12 shots on goal to St. Cloud Cathedral’s 7, but The Zephyrs couldn’t solve Keaton LeGrande. 

With 5:18 remaining in the second period, the Crusaders doubled their lead when freshman Bo Schmidt wired a shot into the short side top corner of the Zephyr net from the faceoff circle. The goal was his 16th of the season. Schmidt’s goal was the lone tally of the second period, leaving the Zephyrs at a two-goal deficit with their season on the line in the third period.

Mahtomedi appeared to have a chance to cut the Crusaders’ lead in half with a powerplay in the early minutes of the third period. St. Cloud Cathedral flipped the script when Joey Gillespie scored a shorthanded goal. John Hirschfeld started the play when he streaked down the wing and cut to the front of the net. The Zephyr goaltender was able to stop Hirschfeld’s attempt, but the speedy winger corralled his own rebound and sent a pass to Gillespie with an open net.

Crusaders’ goaltender Keaton LeGrande registered a shutout for St. Cloud Cathedral, making 24 saves. Zephyrs’ goalie Wes Strub made 20 saves on 23 shots by the Crusaders.

With the victory, the Crusaders advanced to the semifinals of the Class A tournament. St. Cloud Cathedral will take on the winner of no. 3 seed Northfield vs. no. 6 seed Orono. The semifinal game will take place Friday at 11:00 AM, with a trip to the championship game on the line. 

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