Simple gesture gets big reaction

Steve McKee's battle with cancer did not prevent him from sitting matside last March at Xcel Center to watch his son Mitch, then a sophomore at St. Michael-Albertville, achieve his dream of winning the Class 3A 120-pound championship. When the championship match was over, McKee's opponent, Blaine's Malik Stewart, walked over to Steve McKee and hugged him. The emotional gesture of sportsmanship and humanity, shared by media organizations and social media, captured attention across the world. Steve McKee died of cancer on Dec. 7.

Slowdown to buzzer-beater

Few basketball programs generate the type of drama that seems almost routine for Hopkins. But the Royals' 2014 Class 4A semifinal game against Shakopee had even the most jaded fans shaking their heads. With 2:40 left in regulation and the score tied 41-41, Hopkins went into a stall, with guard Kamali Chambers simply standing near midcourt, holding the ball and trying to draw Shakopee out of its zone defense. The Sabers refused and basketball's version of "chicken" — which team would blink first? — went on for most of four overtimes as boos rained down from the Target Center seats. If that wasn't enough, Hopkins added a hefty helping of flair when Amir Coffey ended the lengthy affair by swishing a 60-foot prayer of a shot as time ran out in the fourth overtime, giving Hopkins a 49-46 victory. The game-winner was listed at No. 12 by ESPN on its season-ending list of the 50 Top Plays of 2014.

Eden Prairie four-peat

Winning state football championships has become a way of life at Eden Prairie. Despite fielding a team that coach Mike Grant admitted may not have ranked among the 10 best he's had, the Eagles tied a state record for consecutive state titles with their fourth consecutive Class 6A championship, beating Totino-Grace 28-27. It was the 10th championship for Eden Prairie, which completed its second consecutive undefeated season and heads into the 2015 season with a 30-game winning streak.

Malik Stewart, who had just been defeated in a state wrestling title match by Mitchell McKee, hugged Mitchell’s father, Steve McKee,who was dying of cancer.

Edina-sty

Harkoning back to its glory days of the 1970s and '80s, Edina became the first boys' hockey team to win back-to-back Class 2A state championships since Bloomington Jefferson in 1993 and 1994. The Hornets dominated the Class 2A state tournament field, never trailing in the tournament and winning three games by a combined score of 17-4.

Kennedy can't hang on

Behind ultra-quick guard Kenisha Bell, the Bloomington Kennedy girls' basketball team built what looked to be a commanding 57-45 lead over Eastview with seven minutes left in the second half of the Class 4A state championship game. But the Eagles suddenly went cold, making just one of their final seven shots from the field. They committed six turnovers and seven fouls down the stretch as Eastview outscored them 19-4 to pull out a 64-61 victory.

The rise of Minneapolis North

Less than five years ago, the Minneapolis school board was seriously considering closing Minneapolis North, the oldest high school in the city, due to rapidly declining enrollment. But the school witnessed an athletic rebirth in 2014, with the boys' basketball team coming within a game of making the state tournament for the first time since 2003. The Polars' football team posted a 12-1 record while advancing to the Class 1A semifinals.

Edina-sty, part deux

It's been 19 years since any team OTHER than Edina has won a Class 2A girls' tennis state championship. The Hornets' 6-1 victory over Prior Lake in late October was their 18th consecutive team title, a national record for the most consecutive state championship for a girls' tennis team. How impressive is the streak? None of the members of the team were alive in 1996, the last season Edina failed to win the title.

Blake sends Marks out on top

As the popularity of lacrosse booms across the metro, no girls' team has become more synonymous with excellence than Blake. Under coach Laura Marks, the Bears have won six state championships and played in the championship game in all eight seasons since the Minnesota State High School League sanctioned the tournament. The Bears won their fifth consecutive title with an 11-7 victory over Eden Prairie in the 2014 finals. It was a fitting close to Marks' high school coaching career, as she stepped down afterward.

Another top recruit escapes

University of Minnesota football has steadily improved under coach Jerry Kill and his staff. And while Kill has been vocal in his desire to keep the state's top recruits at home, he, like many of his predecessors, have found that to be challenging. After losing two of the top three recruits from 2013 (J.C. Hassenauer and Frank Ragnow) to SEC schools, Minnesota failed to land the state's top two prospects in 2014. Cretin-Derham Hall defensive lineman Jashon Cornell opted for Ohio State and DeLaSalle lineman Drayton Carlberg, whom many believed would stay home, announced in November that he would play at Oregon.

Sisters lead Edison to track title

It's rare, but not unheard of, for two dominant individuals to lead a team to a track and field team championship. It's even more rare when those two are sisters, as was the case for Minneapolis Edison's Jia and Jada Lewis. Jia, an eighth-grader, won the 100- and 200-meter dashes at the Class 1A girls' state meet. Jada, a freshman, finished third in both events. Those finishes accounted for all 40 of Edison's team points, enough to win the team championship.