Defending Class 1A champion Benilde-St. Margaret’s has a thing for scoring late in the half to take the lead.

Trailing by a goal in the first half against Hill-Murray in the Class 1A semifinal on Monday, the Red Knight got two goals from Vivian Shinall, the second with just over a minute left.

In the second half, the game was tied 2-2 with just over two minutes left. Benilde-St. Margaret’s junior Madison Stoks sent a corner kick cross to Claire Van der Heide, who gathered the pass and rifled a shot past Hill-Murray goalie Elise Potvin.

The goal lifted the No. 1 seed Red Knights to a 3-2 victory and into the title game on Thursday.

“It was a great ball from [Stoks] and we all knew that it was probably the last chance we were going to get,” said Van der Heide, a member of last year’s championship team. “We knew we had good people in the box, and a person kicking it and we just took care of it.”

Hill-Murray (14-8), which had defeated Benilde-St. Margaret’s 2-0 on Aug. 30, took a lead 1-0 when Katherine Schindler headed in a corner kick at 25:41 of the first half. After Shinall gave the Red Knights the lead, Pioneer midfielder Claire Cater tied it at 2-2 early in the second half.

Despite graduating its four starting defenders and two leading scorers from last year, the Red Knights are now in position to win back-to-back championships.

“This was a match between two good teams,” Hill-Murray coach Simbo N’diaye said. “It just happened that on [Aug. 30] we out played them and today, they came to play.”

A late goal by Claire Van der Heide lifted defending champion Benilde-St. Margaret to a 3-2 victory over Hil-Murray in the Class 1A semifinals Monday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Junior forward Vivian Shinall scored twice. Van der Heide’s game-winning goal in the 78th minute advances the No. 1 seed (17-4-1) Red Knights to the championship game at 12:30 p.m. on Thursday against the winner of Mankato West and Dover-Eyota.  

The Pioneers tied the game early in the second half when Claire Cater scored, but Van der Heide’s strike in the final minutes ended Hill Murray’s (14-8) championship game hopes.

Check back later for more on the game.