Given the rare luxury of shooting on a mostly open net, Hill-Murray's Brittney Anderson and Jessica Bonfe made sure not to miss.
Their third-period goals provided a cushion as the No. 3 seed Pioneers defeated Eagan 6-2 Thursday in their Class 2A quarterfinal game at Xcel Energy Center.
On Anderson's goal at 5:37 of the third, the puck squirted loose from a pileup of bodies in and around the Eagan goal. With much of the right side open, Anderson aimed for the lower corner.
"My heart was racing," Anderson said. "I was just hoping I wouldn't miss the net."
Officials reviewed the play to see if the net was off its pegs and whether a Hill-Murray player entered the crease before the puck before confirming the goal.
On Bonfe's goal at 10:13, Eagan goalie Sophia Lundquist was hugging the post and did not see a quick pass from Becca Zarembinski to a waiting Bonfe.
"I looked up and saw the goalie off to the side," Bonfe said. "I really didn't know what was happening."
Hill-Murray's Jac Kaasa gave her team a 1-0 lead at 3:08 of the first period. Eagan senior Megan Wolfe tied the score 1-1 with a shorthanded goal in the second period.
The goal failed to unnerve Hill-Murray, which pumped in the next three, starting with Sarah Bobrowski's 20th of the season near the end of the second period and continuing with Anderson and Bonfe.
"We probably beat ourselves more than we got beat," Eagan coach Tom Younghans said. "But don't take anything away from Hill-Murray. They outhustled us and beat us to pucks."
DAVID LA VAQUE