Senior forward Rylee Bartz developed a fan in Warroad girls hockey coach David Marvin while scoring 58 goals this season.
Bartz's tremendous skills helped her complete a hat trick Wednesday against Albert Lea in the Class 1A state tournament quarterfinals. She got the puck near center ice and took off to create a mini breakaway finished by sweet stick work and a goal.
"We've seen it a few times this year," Marvin said. "But I'm still very impressed. We expect her to do that now. Right Bartzie?"
Bartz, seated to Marvin's left after the game, smiled. Her first state tournament experience since transferring from Fargo went almost perfectly. Her four goals led Warroad to a 15-1 victory — a single-game tournament record for team scoring.
Bartz, who signed with St. Thomas, erased any chance of drama with a hat trick in the first period, part of an early 4-0 Warriors advantage.
Linemate Talya Hendrickson, who signed with Bemidji State, tied the single-game tournament record shared by many players with five assists.
"Those two and [senior] Kate [Johnson] bring it every game," Marvin said.
No. 1 seed Warroad (24-3-1) dominated, outshooting Albert Lea 67-7. The Tigers (18-8-1) celebrated a second-period goal from sophomore forward Shelby Evans.
"Mika [Cichosz] got that shot on net, and I was just right there for it," Evans said. "So it was a pretty good deal right there. We showed a lot of hustle the whole game so it was nice to have a little reward."
