Nothing easy this time but Edina holds off Wayzata

A year ago on Feb. 14, goaltender Uma Corniea and Breck eased to a lopsided section final victory.

Not so this year. Corniea, who transferred to Edina, found herself under siege in the final moments of the Hornets' 3-2 victory over determined Wayzata in the Class 2A, Section 6 championship game Friday at Parade Ice Garden in Minneapolis.

"Class 2A is so much faster-paced," said Corniea, a ninth-grader with skill and poise beyond her years. "Last year at Breck we won big and this year it almost went to overtime. It was definitely a lot more intense."

Top-ranked Edina escaped with a victory and preserved two streaks in the process. The Hornets, headed to the state tournament for a sixth consecutive season, seek their fourth state championship in a row.

Edina (26-1) controlled the first period and led 1-0 on Emma Conner's goal.

No. 11 Wayzata (17-10-1) held an edge in play through the second period's first seven minutes. The Trojans skated with purpose, moved the puck and got bodies in front of Corniea.

But Katie Davis, Edina's tenacious senior forward, tapped home a loose puck for a 2-0 lead for the Hornets at 9:07 of the second period.

"Section hockey is always different," junior forward Hannah Chorske said. "You can't base anything off previous games. And Wayzata is a team that doesn't give up."

Sure enough, Sloane Matthews' power-play goal at 7:15 of the third cut the Trojans' deficit to 2-1.

Edina answered, however, as Chorske took a pass from Conner and tucked the puck into the Trojans' net with less than five minutes to play.

Wayzata wasn't finished. With their goalie pulled, the Trojans again made it a one-goal game when Sophie Urban scored with 1:24 left. Only once all season had Edina given up two goals in a game.

"We're human and things are going to happen," Hornets coach Sami Reber said. "We expect every team's best game, and hats off to Wayzata, they gave it 110 percent. But I'm glad we faced some adversity and found a way out of it."