Despite that early success, the game became a battle of defense and trying to gain good looks at scoring opportunities. 

“Give them credit,” Benilde-St. Margaret’s head coach Scott Helling-Christy said. “We had some good chances. I think we had more chances than they did. Unfortunately, we just didn’t put them in the goal.” 

Spartans senior goalie Harper Randolph helped keep Orono in the game, coming up with numerous saves, ultimately totaling eight saves on the night. That effort helped keep No. 1 Benilde-St. Margaret’s (11-0) out of the net for the remainder of the game. 

That didn't seem to matter as the Red Knights suffocated Orono (5-4-1) any time the Spartans got the ball into the zone. That effort and tenacity, led by senior defender Avery Junker, helped keep the Spartans off the scoreboard. 

“We’re all playing defense as a team,” Junker said. “We all have a lot of trust in each other and we are all just constantly communicating marks and making sure we got each other’s backs.” 

That trust and level of communication has paid off this season. Benilde-St. Margaret's has allowed just three goals all season long, and Tuesday’s shutout was the team’s ninth of the season. 

“That’s one of the things that our defenders, our goal keeper … that’s their pride, to be able to get the shutout,” Helling-Christy said.

The Spartans had just three shots on goal, a marker for how effective the Red Knight defense was, and how difficult it was for the home team to find scoring chances. 

“We’re going into the games with the same mindset,” Junker said. “We’re here to play, to work hard, we’re here to work for each other.” 

Hopes and aspirations for a team this successful are high. Nine of the 11 starters for Benilde-St. Margaret’s are seniors who have been together and played together for numerous years. Those seniors were a part of the 11-1-1 season last year, which was cut short and ended after the section tournament, a tournament in which the Red Knights are reigning champions. 

“A lot of us have been on the team for three years now,” Drees said. “This has been a dream for us, our senior year. We knew this was going to be our year to do it.” 

Winners of 11 section titles since 2005, the Red Knights will have to do it again if they want a chance at the top prize. 

“This year we’re just coming out hard and working to get back there,” Junker said. ‘Because as Sydney was saying, we really have a great group of girls here and we’re all just working really hard for it again.”