Edina junior forward Katie Davis moved from Idaho last summer hoping to add grit and goal scoring to the two-time defending Class 2A girls' hockey state champions.
She delivered both as the No. 2 Hornets beat No. 1 Blake 3-2 in Friday's Section 6 championship game at Parade Ice Garden in Minneapolis.
A hard-charging Davis drew a checking penalty along the boards to create an Edina power play in the third period. She administered the best kind of payback 13 seconds later — a goal to give the Hornets a 2-1 lead.
"We told our kids, 'Teams are going to have to drag us down if we keep moving our feet,' " Edina coach Sami Reber said. "Katie Davis is someone who takes that to heart and she's not going to be someone who is dragged down easy.
"She got a little chip on her shoulder after that penalty and buried a huge goal," Reber added.
Davis got to know Blake as the two teams split their regular-season meetings. She also knew Friday's matchup was worthy of a state championship game stage.
"I definitely had people telling me that this was the big game," Davis said. "But I try to prepare for every game the same. I try to bring a work ethic and never stop moving my feet."
Blake coach Shawn Reid lamented that his players weren't doing likewise. Motivation shouldn't have been an issue since Edina (24-4) ended Blake's season in the section finals last year as well, the Bears' first in Class 2A after winning seven titles in Class 1A.
"I actually thought we outplayed them in the first two games," Reid said. "Tonight, we just didn't find our legs and Edina played extremely well."
Blake (25-3) did strike first. Izzy Daniel, one of three Ms. Hockey finalists on the ice, finished a textbook passing sequence for a power-play goal at 5:19. But Tella Jungels answered 22 seconds later for the Hornets.
"Huge lift," Reber said. "We didn't let them get settled in and feel good. That's a team that if they feel good, they'll start rolling."
Said Reid: "You get the lead and you want to sit on it for a little while or build on it. But they get one right away and it's back to square one."
In the third period, Hornets goals from Davis and Mallory Uihlein provided the winning margin.
The Bears outshot Edina 29-18, but Hornets goalie Elli Strittmater turned away all but one shot until two seconds remained. That's when Blake scored its second goal.
"This was by far the best game she's played all season," Reber said.
