Top seed Minneapolis Washburn advances to Class 1A final by beating Hill-Murray

ST. CLOUD – Minneapolis Washburn goalkeeper Taylor Cottew has spent countless hours in goal, marveling at her talented teammates.

So when the Millers needed her most on Wednesday, the sophomore with the quick smile was happy to oblige.

Cottew stopped two point-blank shots, keeping the game scoreless until No. 1-seeded Washburn got its vaunted offense on track to oust feisty Hill-Murray 3-0 in the Class 1A semifinals.

"I've seen them do so many amazing things," said Cottew, who finished with six saves. "I knew that if I let one in, we might lose hope. I had to keep their energy up until we got going on offense."

Few teams have had as dominant a season as the Millers. They improved to 20-0 with the victory and haven't allowed a goal since August, a span of 17 consecutive shutouts.

But Hill-Murray (10-7-4) controlled much of the game, cutting off speedy Washburn's running lanes. Washburn, which has scored an even 100 goals, finally broke into the scoring column when Ella Stout turned a short pass from Brooke Innes into a goal in the 66th minute.

"I'll admit I was a little worried for a while," said Stout, a senior forward. "But I had faith in my teammates that we would come through."

"We just needed that one goal and then we would have the confidence," assistant coach Reuben Ndely said.

Washburn plays No. 2-seeded Orono, a team it defeated 1-0 on Sept. 15, for the Class 1A state championship. It will be just the second time since the creation of a two-class tournament that two public schools have met for the 1A title. Rogers defeated Mahtomedi 3-1 in 2010.