Larry Olimb was the co-head coach in girls hockey at Wayzata from 2000-06 before stepping aside to get involved with the activities of his three children. He came back to the hockey bench before this season, taking the head coaching job for Orono girls hockey. And he took his team all the way to the Class 1A state championship game against his hometown Warroad, coached by his childhood buddy, David Marvin.
Together again: Class 1A coaches were Warroad high school teammates
Larry Olimb of Orono and David Marvin of Warroad share many ties from back home.
By David La Vaque,
Star Tribune,
and
Heather Rule
February 26, 2023 at 12:49AM
Could Olimb ever have imagined such a scenario?
"Never in a million years, no," Olimb said via phone Friday night. "If I would have guessed this was how the season would end? No, absolutely not."
Though it's a special moment for Olimb as a coach, he also said he's happy for his players, who he said deserved to be in this spot and were enjoying the moment.
Olimb and Marvin shared an embrace in the postgame handshake line after Warroad's 3-1 victory in Saturday's Class 1A championship game.
Growing up in Warroad a block away from Marvin, Olimb learned to skate and play on a rink set up by David's father, Cal Marvin. Being close in age meant the duo played together on youth hockey teams every other year before playing three years of high school hockey together for Warroad, including in the 1987 state tournament, when they took fourth place. Olimb and Warroad returned to state in 1988, and he scored two goals and had four assists in the tournament before going on to be named Mr. Hockey.
Olimb also played with current Warroad assistant coach Derrick Comstock, a sophomore on the 1988 state tournament team. Comstock's daughter, Katy, is a sophomore for Warroad this year.
"I love Derrick Comstock and his family," Olimb said. "His mom and dad were both schoolteachers. His dad [Blane Comstock] was an Olympic goalie on the '76 team, my elementary phys. ed teacher.
"It's kind of a typical story for a kid from Warroad."
Olimb and Marvin parted ways for college hockey, with Marvin going to North Dakota and Olimb to the Gophers, but they remain good friends. Olimb has always kept track of the success of Warroad girls hockey, a program Marvin has coached for 17 seasons, including when Marvin's daughters Lisa and Layla (now an assistant coach) played for the program.
"Very fortunate to grow up with the wonderful people I grew up with," Olimb said. "And definitely friends today."
Andover reaches unfamiliar territory
Coming into the third period of Saturday's Class 2A championship game, Andover trailed 3-1 in need of at least two goals.
That wasn't a familiar spot for the defending state champs. It marked the first time this season that Andover trailed by multiple goals headed into the third period.
"It's definitely not a spot we had been in," Andover coach Melissa Volk said. "But the girls had faced adversity before. Just understanding that two goals doesn't take much. If they were going to get out there and do it, they had to earn it that period."
Andover was down a goal three previous times this season at the third-period puck drop. The Huskies trailed 4-3 to Gentry Academy on Nov. 19 and lost by the same score, and they trailed 3-2 to Minnetonka in holiday tournament play on Dec. 27, losing 4-2 with an empty-netter. Its only comeback came in the state semifinals, when the Huskies scored a pair of third-period goals after getting down 1-0 to Edina, winning the game 2-1 to return to the state championship game.
Ultimately, Andover finished the season going 1-3 in games when it trailed at the start of the third period, with two of those losses to Gentry Academy. Volk said her team started to get "some flow and having some looks" on Saturday, but it ended up being too little, too late.
No. 4 seed wins it all
Gentry Academy accomplished a rare feat winning the Class 2A championship as a fourth seed. It's only been done three times and not since 2005, when South St. Paul defeated Cloquet/Esko/Carlton 5-1 in the Class 2A title game.
Gentry Academy defeated fifth seed Moorhead 7-0, upset top seed Minnetonka 2-1 in overtime and beat second seed Andover for the second time this season 4-1 for the state championship. Going into the tournament, Gentry was "shocked" when the seedings came out for the tournament, coach Billy Hengen said.
"We thought we'd get the two seed," Hengen said. "But when we got the four seed, we were cool with it. We didn't talk about it much."
The last time a fourth seed made it to the Class 2A championship was in 2016 when Maple Grove lost to third-seeded Eden Prairie in overtime. South St. Paul and Cloquet/Esko/Carlton also met in the 2003 championship, with the fourth-seeded Packers winning 2-1 in overtime.
Herb Brooks Award
Mankato East senior goaltender Anna Rader won the Herb Brooks Award for Class 1A. She led the Cougars to the consolation championship.
Third-place games
Class 1A: Down one goal after two periods, South St. Paul rallied for a 3-2 overtime victory against Proctor/Hermantown. Sophomore forward Bailey Vesper tallied her first hat trick of the season to secure the Packers' victory.
Class 2A: Edina edged Minnetonka for a 3-2 victory, taking the rubber match after splitting two Lake Conference meetings this season. Junior forward Hannah Halverson's goal at 11:08 of the third period held up as the game-winner.
Consolation finals
Class 1A: Mankato East took home hardware for the first time in program history thanks to a 4-3 victory against Fergus Falls. Down 3-2 entering the third period, the Cougars got goals from senior defender Trinity Jackson and senior forward McKenzie Keller.
Class 2A: Moorhead finished its first state tournament appearance since 2006 in style, beating Rosemount 5-1. Spuds senior defender Olivia Dronen had a hat trick.
FINALS RECAP
THREE STARS
- Talya Hendrickson, Warroad senior: Finished the game with a goal and an assist. She scored the eventual game-winner in the second period with a great play from behind the net by linemate Kate Johnson. "Kate, she just put that right on my tape in the slot," Hendrickson said. "I was lucky to be there."
- Alexa Hanrahan, Gentry Academy senior: Scored a hat trick in the Class 2A title game, giving her team the lead each time, first with a power-play goal for 1-0 and then a 2-1 lead in the second period. She finished with four goals in the state tournament.
- JuliAnna Gazdik, Gentry Academy senior: Assisted on the first two Hanrahan goals in the Class 2A title game and helped lead a defensive effort that kept Andover's top line off the scoresheet.
NUMBERS
4
State titles for Warroad girls hockey, coming in back-to-back fashion in 2010-11 and 2022-23, all under head coach David Marvin.
4
Consecutive Class 2A championship games for Andover, winning every other year, in 2020 and 2022.
9
Sophomores on the Gentry Academy roster that finished as the Class 1A runner-up in the 2021 state tournament.
2
Times Andover was held to one goal this season, losing 3-1 to Gentry Academy in the Class 2A title game and 2-1 against Hill-Murray on Jan. 14. Andover came into Saturday averaging 5.90 goals per game this season.
ATTENDANCE
Saturday: 4,735
Class 1A
Wednesday early: 756
Wednesday night: 1,070
Friday: 2,391
Class 2A
Thursday early: 1,578
Thursday night: 1,967
Friday: 2,739
about the writers
David La Vaque
Star Tribune
Heather Rule
Six players plus head coach Garrett Raboin and assistant coach Ben Gordon are from Minnesota. The tournament’s games will be televised starting Monday.
