![Goodhue players celebrated their 89-64 victory over MCA to win the Class 1A Championship. ] JIM GEHRZ ï james.gehrz@startribune.com / Minneapolis, MN / March 19, 2016 /12:00 PM ñ BACKGROUND INFORMATION: Action and reaction from the championship game of the Class 1A Girlsí 2016 State High School Basketball Tournament at Williams Arena, between Goodhue High School and Maranatha Christian Academy.](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/6LU5EWUMWBVTZ6NWKHWIOX4SYE.jpg?&w=1080)
Goodhue's Sydney Lodermeier slapped her hand on the Williams Arena court after unsuccessfully diving for a teammate's errant pass.
Never mind that her Wildcats were ahead by 21 points with less than three minutes remaining in the Class 1A state championship game Saturday.
Her reaction provided a window into Goodhue's dominance en route to its first state championship. Unyielding effort pushed the No. 1 seed Wildcats to three lopsided victories, culminating in a 89-64 rout of Maranatha Christian.
Goodhue (30-4) went undefeated against Class 1A opponents this season and won its three tournament games by an average of 31.6 points. The Wildcats' competiveness remained steady, however.
"These games, even though the score says something, on the court you can definitely feel that it was not like that," said Lodermeier, a sophomore forward who scored 24 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. "I've never been (so) uncomfortable with the double-digit leads we've had."
The Wildcats' vaunted press forced 24 turnovers by third-seed Maranatha (26-7), miscues that led to 26 points. Chris Buerman, coach of Maranatha, said the turnover number was only three more than his team's season average. A greater concern was that the Wildcats outrebounded the Mustangs 57-42, leading to a 21-6 edge in second-chance points.
"Coming into the postseason we really preached, 'Win the rebound battle and you'll win the game,' " Lodermeier said.
Said Buerman: "We gave them three, four, five shots on some of their possessions, which made it hard for us to get out and run."
