The Great River Stars look to capture their third straight state championship, but last season’s runner-up, the Apple Valley Eagles, are looking to make some history of their own. If Great River is able to complete the three-peat, they will be tied with Cretin-Derham Hall (’06-’08) and Cathedral (’09-’10, ’12) with the most state titles in the girl’s division. Apple Valley is seeking their first Championship. In a rematch of last year’s finals, recent history suggests the MN Ultimate community is in for a treat on Thursday night.

The Stars entered the state tournament as the overall one seed for the third straight year, and have been untouchable in the state championship play. Coach Trevor Ruwitch credits the team’s ability to peak at the end of the season. The coaching staff’s strategy of teaching as situations arise, while “also heckling the players (in an encouraging way)” clearly supports the team culture, which Ruwitch describes as “Competitive, but we keep it light. There will always be music playing and dancing around whenever we have a free moment.” It seems to be paying off. As defending champions, the Stars have outscored their opponents 138 to 50 between the 2016 and 2017 state tournaments.

On Saturday, Great River made quick work of their pool. Pool play started against Hopkins. They came out strong, but as this was the third time the Stars had seen them throughout the year, they made sure to focus on what would lead to success, finishing at time cap 13-5. Next up was Eden Prairie. This was the first time the two teams matched up this season and the score is not representative of how the game went. Eden Prairie played some strong person defense and they were able to generate a handful of blocks, but were not able to convert in the endzone. Coach Ruwitch credits the Star’s experience as the difference in this game, coming out ahead 14-1. Their final game of pool play was against Mounds View and a rematch of East Metro Conference Finals. With history and familiarity between these rivals, Great River came out hot and set the tone early, taking half half 8-1. The final score was 15-3.

Relatively unchallenged through pool play, Great River was greeted Sunday morning by a talented and determined Cooper team in the quarterfinals. “This was by far the most competitive game that we have played all season. This game was streaky and very back and forth. Cooper came out hot going up 3-1. We kept in it and got up 4-3. They proceeded to break us back going up 6-4. Then we were able to get our offensive flow back and punch in a few breaks. We took half 8-6. Out of Half we held our first O point, but not without Cooper generating a turn or two. The rest of the game we traded points on offense and won 11-9. Each team had opportunities to break, with gritty defense coming from both teams,” Ruwitch describes.

The final team standing in the way of Great River’s return to the finals was Eagan, the surprise challenger from the South Metro Conference. Eagan, who did not even play in the division 1 tournament last year, hoped to upset the favorite and become the story of the tournament. As the wind picked up for the 11am round, Great River received to start the game, but Eagan generated a block and punched in the game’s first score and first break. This game was a back and forth bout between two contenders. Long points and the strong crosswind gave each team plenty of opportunities. In the end, The Stars wouldn’t be denied and punched their ticket to the finals with an 8-5 victory.

While not as dominant on paper, Apple Valley entered the tournament determined to return to the finals and take another shot at the championship. Both of their first two pool play games started out close, before Apple Valley pulled away, winning 15-9 over St. Louis Park, and 15-8 over Open World Learning Community. Like several teams at the tournament, the Eagles had graduation conflicts to contend with, in addition to their opponents. Head Coach Collin Meyer knew he would be without their seniors for the second half of their final pool play game against Cathedral and pumped is squad up to come blazing out of the gates. They enjoyed an 8-2 lead at the half and said goodbye to their seniors. The rest of the team maintained their play and traded points to close the game out 14-8.

Coach Meyer gives a lot of the team’s success to some up and coming underclassmen. “Hope Losby (Fr) won MVP on the State weekend, almost unanimously. She's a hockey player that has great field vision and instinct, which generally puts her in the right position at the right time. She plays great D and is very disciplined. Similarly, Brooke Kierzek (Fr, All-State ROTY nominee) has started to become a natural deep threat. Sophomore MaKenzie Miller (So) has become a very solid, composed complement to our ratchet handlers and generally starts on our O-line. We're pretty pumped about our future.”

Rejoined by the recently graduated seniors, the potential of that future was on full display on Sunday. Apple Valley’s first opponent was Armstrong, a reloaded program of champion pedigree. The Armstrong program had made three straight finals experiences between 2013-15, before missing the bracket in 2016. While the game started out close, Apple Valley pulled away quickly and reinforced their position as one of the few championship contenders in the division. Lead by the Freshman, Hope Losby, who scored four goals, the Eagles secured a 15-5 victory.

Apple Valley was matched up with Edina for the semifinal round, and their trend of quick starts continued, scoring the game’s first two points and breaks. Seemingly unfazed, Edina countered with the three-point run of their own, combining give and go handler movement with precision deep looks. A person to person defensive team, Apple Valley countered with a zone defense to minimize Edina’s deep looks. The wind and many calls from both teams slowed the game with the Eagles taking half 8-4, but with only 15 minutes before the hard cap went on. Apple Valley would score the only point of the second half and secure their return trip to the finals.

Meyer was thankful to have his seniors back, with all three captains playing critical roles in the win, “Lexi Kocken (Sr, Captain) had one of her best games this year, with a few stunning catches and plenty of Ds. The Lake twins took over on offense and accounted for roughly half of our goals.”

Since the 2016 state finals, Apple Valley and Great River have matched up twice; once to kick off the season, and in the final week of the regular season. The Stars have maintained their dominance in the series, but the results suggest that there may be no better time than now for Apple Valley to come out on top. When the teams meet up in early April, Apple Valley only scored 1 point, in a Great River rout. But on May 23rd, Great River only eked out an 11-9 victory. The Apple Valley coaches point to that result as the confidence boost that has gotten them back to the title game. Will that confidence be enough to disrupt Great River’s attempt to be counted among the best teams in Minnesota history?

The girl’s final is the second act of a double-header, with the boy’s final kicking off the event. The boys' game will begin at 6:15pm, with the girls taking the field at 8:10pm. Both games will be played in the Benilde-St. Margaret’s stadium. Fans are encouraged to carpool and arrive early.