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Girls: First-half goal enough for Blake

By Brian Stensaas, Star Tribune, 11/03/11, 4:15PM CDT

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The Bears won the Class 1A title, shutting out Benilde-St. Margaret's.


Benilde's Alyssa Hoffman (18) and a teammate battled in front the Blake net with Bears goalie Maddy Crawford and teammates Jess Horick (9) and Lauren Kelly (14) during Thursday's Class A title game at the Metrodome. Star Tribune photo by Elizabeth Flores.


Teammates celebrate with Blake's Grace Boatmen, center, after she scored the first and only goal during the first half of the Class 1A girls soccer championship game Thursday at Mall of America Field. Star Tribune photo by Elizabeth Flores.

 The screams were ear-piercing.

Not from the rows upon rows of Blake fans who showed up to the Metrodome to watch the Bears play in their third Class 1A girls' soccer championship game in five years.

Not from the players after the final whistle blew to end their 1-0 victory over Benilde-St. Margaret's.

No, perhaps the loudest shriek came a good 20 minutes after the game ended, when Blake coach Paul Menge broke the team huddle behind the bench.

"It's going to be one heck of a banquet," he said.

The roars of approval were the icing on top of a sweet season that featured only one loss -- by a goal to Class 2A top seed Lakeville North on Sept. 10.

Thursday's game was the Bears' 15th shutout of the season -- they did not allow a goal in the state tournament -- and their first state title since 2000. Blake (21-1) lost in the final to Totino-Grace in a shootout in 2007 and to Orono in 2009.

"We played solid defense all year and [Benilde-St. Margaret's] had, too," Menge said. "That said, I wasn't sure one goal was going to hold up to be honest. But the girls were motivated. We've played some strong competition all year and that really prepared us."

The teams appeared headed to a 0-0 tie at halftime when Grace Boatman took a crossing pass along the penalty-kick line from Hannah Randolph and scooted it by keeper Mikayla Coulombe with 21 seconds left.

Each team took four shots over the final 40 minutes, but could not connect.

"The whole year, we never underestimated a team," Boatman said. "And it paid off."