It’s not often that a section’s No. 7 seed can include a win over a No. 2 seed on its resume. But here we are with Rochester John Marshall, which won just twice in its first 11 games and ended the season with wins in 10 of its final 12. Included in that late-season surge was a stunning 5-3 triumph over intracity rival and Thursday’s playoff foe Rochester Mayo on Jan. 14.
The Rockets finished the regular season with a 14-10-1 record and were voted as the No. 7 seed by the section’s coaches. Senior Mason Decker (22 goals) and sophomore Ole Fevold (16 goals) lead the Rockets’ forwards. Decker has scored two goals in five of his last eight games. Junior Jayden Veney, a 6-foot-7 defenseman, is one of the state’s top-scoring defensemen with 13 goals among his 34 points.
Counting this season, No. 2 seed Rochester Mayo (18-5-2) has won more than 17 games twice since posting a 24-4-0 mark in 1999-2000. The Spartans enter the playoffs having lost just once in their last seven games and twice in their last 12. Two of Mayo’s losses came in its first two games against state powerhouses Minnetonka and Chanhassen, ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in Class 2A, respectively.
Four players have 12 or more goals for the Spartans, led by senior Ethan Dennis’ 18. Senior Cohen Ruskell leads Mayo in points with 37. He’s one of five Spartans with 30 or more points.
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