Hornets Playing Hill-Murray for State Hockey Title Saturday Night

After trailing 1-0 for the first two periods of a grueling state tournament semifinal matchup against Duluth East, the Edina Hornets found their groove.

Better late than never seemed to be the theme of the night, as the Hornets (24-6) scored three unanswered goals in the third period of the game to punch their ticket to the Class 2A championship game.

The Hornets fell behind early in the first period, when Duluth East's Alex Toscano snuck one past Edina goalie Willie Benjamin. The second period saw a defensive battle between the two squads, with Edina still trailing 1-0 at the top of the third period.

Junior forward Miguel Fidler finally got Edina on the board at 4:11 into the third period, with a beautiful rebound shot off a pass from Parker Reno.

A little more than seven minutes later, Tyler Nanne gave Edina its first lead of the game with a second goal. The Hornets wouldn't wait long for another, as Andy Jordahl found the net to make it 3-1 Edina at 11:38 in the third period.

The Greyhounds kept pushing to even things up—with Meirs Moore scoring a second goal at 15:14 in the third—but the Hornets held on to their lead to advance to the state title game.

They'll face last year's runner-up in Hill-Murray at 7 p.m. on Saturday, Mar. 9, at the Xcel Energy Center. The Pioneers (27-2-1) defeated Edina in overtime earlier this season, 2-1.

The Pioneers lost the 2012 state title game to Benilde-St. Margaret's. Saturday night's game is also a rematch of the 2008 title game, when Hill-Murray defeated Edina 3-0 to claim the championship.

The Hornets are hoping to bring home an 11th state hockey championship with a win Saturday—seven have been won as Edina, three as Edina East—and the district's first since 2010.

Like Edina Patch on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter | Sign up for our daily newsletter