Click the thumbnails to see photos and videos taken by Lizzie Taylor, and to hear post-game comments from both coaches. Also click the AUDIO button to hear Cale Carter's player spotlight interview.

MARQUETTE---Connor Stade scored two goals, Nash Rippi added a goal and a three-assist playmaker, and Tony DeMattia registered four assists, as the Marquette High School hockey team defeated the Escanaba Eskymos, 7-1, in the MHSAA Division Three Regional Semifinals Thursday night at Lakeview Arena.

The win moves Marquette into the regional championship game against Sault Ste. Marie next week. The Blue Devils eliminated the Manistqiue Emeralds, 4-1, in Thursday's other semifinal game.

Riipi redirected a Tony DeMattia point shot for a goal just 34 seconds into the game to set the tone for Marquette, which improved to 20-5-1 on the season. The Sentinels (new nickname, replacing the traditional “Redmen” monkier) routinely put traffic in front of Escanaba goaltender Cully Hayes in firing 40 shots at the Eskymo netminder.

“We wanted to start early, and get a lead as quick as we could,” Marquette Coach Doug Garrow said. “Obviously, the longer you let Escanaba hang around, they're going to make it hard for you. It was how we wanted to play. We had some pressure in front of Cully (Hayes). He made some good saves and he's going to stop the puck when he sees it. We tried to take his eyes away as much as we could, and I thought we did a pretty good job of that tonight.”

Escanaba had a great chance to tie the game halfway through the first period when Graham Johnson was sprung on a breakaway, but Marquette goaltender Parker Nevenhoven made the save. One minute later, C.J. Carter tipped in a point shot to give Marquette a 2-0 lead, and then Adam Heikkila scored off another point shot, with traffic in front of Hayes, and the Sentinels had a 3-0 lead after the first period.

Marquette went ahead 4-0 on a pretty goal by Stade as he wiggled between two defenders, made a move, and beat Hayes in a 1-on-1 situation.

The Eskymos got on the board with a power play goal from Nolan Bink after Owen LaBonte won a faceoff, got it to Ben Sands, who passed to Bink for the one-timer.

But Marquette got a power play of its own seconds later and Stade scored again, this time on a tipped shot in front of Hayes, making it a 5-1 game.

“I thought that took the wind out of their sails,” Garrow said.

Before the period was over, Caleb Beerman scored to make it 6-1, and it was all over except for the final score.

“It wasn't a great first two periods,” Escanaba Coach Andy Johnson said. “We didn't match their intensity. Marquette was flying, and we weren't playing good Eskymo hockey. I think we came out in the third and matched their intensity, but it just wasn't enough.”

Caleb Fries scored a cosmetic goal with 16 seconds left in the game to make it 7-1.

Marquette ended up outshooting Escanaba, 40-24, with Hayes stopping 33 shots and Nevenhoven stopping 23.

The win was the 200th in the eleven-year coaching career of Garrow (200-80-16).

“I'm happy and extremely thankful for that,” Garrow said. “I've been blessed to have a great staff. I've had a lot of guys who know a lot about the game and really have helped me. It's not me. It's them. I've been blessed, too, over the last eleven years, to have a lot of good kids. Great kids. Great leaders. Good men. That's really all that counts.”

For the Eskymos, a team running just two lines, with no back-up goaltender, and only two seniors, it was the end of the line. The team managed to post a 13-14-0 record this season, something that Johnson says they can build on heading into the future.

“I'm happy with the boys on their season,” Johnson said. “We saw some good improvements this year. We saw some good things. The boys learned a lot. All in all, I'm happy with our seniors (Isaiah Boyce, Brett Labre), and happy with our group.”