Friday
Game 1: Omaha Jr. Lancers 3, Des Moines Oaks Leafs 6
The 1st of 4 upsets came early when the 6th-seeded Oak Leafs topped the 3rd seed Omaha Jr. Lancers, 6-3. The Jr. Lancers scored early at 1:33 of the 1st period on a goal by Jacob Braun. Then it was all Oak Leafs, scoring 6 unanswered goals to hold a 6-1 lead at the end of 2 periods. The Oak Leafs Kyle Norris and Jason Brown each had 2 goals, while Lucas Du Bay and Mike Braune added 1 apiece. The Oaks' special teams accounted for 3 of the 6 goals, recording 1 short-handed and 2 power-play goals. Omaha added 2 power play goals in the 3rd period from the sticks of Kyle Schneiderwind and Kyle Sheldon to finish the scoring. Both Schneiderwind and Sheldon were selected to the West All-Star team.

Game 2: Des Moines Capitals 4, Kansas City 1
The 7th-seeded Kansas City team returned to the state tournament after missing the cut last year to face the 2nd-ranked Capitals. The only scoring in the 1st period came at the 5:00 mark when Eric Keese scored for the Capitals. Kansas City netminder, Scott Smith, continued to hold the Caps to 1 goal until Jamie Gordon-Kamm scored at the 7:03 mark of the 2nd and Roch Naert scored again quickly at 8:14, giving Des Moines a 3-0 lead. KC's All-Star forward Stephen Knutter responded with his team's only goal of the game at 9:57 in the 2nd. Jamie Elliot added the Capitals final goal in the 3rd period. Des Moines outshot Kansas City 47-17.

Game 3: Mason City 3, Lincoln 2, OT
This was 1 of the most exciting games of the weekend. Although Lincoln came in as the 8th seed, they had taken the top-seeded Mohawks into overtime twice during the regular season, 1 of the games ending in a tie. Lincoln struck first at 5:37 of the 1st when Charlie Davis scored on an assist from Michael Lucchino. Lincoln then tightened their defense, and with some stellar goaltending from Mitch Pope, held the Mohawks scoreless for 2 periods. Mason City then struck early in the 3rd on a power play from the League's top scorer, Cole Despenas with an assist from the League's 3rd top scorer, Kyle Abben, tying the game at 1 apiece. Mason City then took a 2-1 lead on Abben's goal from Carter Angell and Kyle Burgmeier at 11:38. Then with only 1:36 left in the game, Lincoln's Lars Nielsen scored the game-tying goal with assists from Lucchino and Davis, sending the game into overtime. In a game that featured low-scoring and tight-checking, the contest ended quickly at :39 of overtime when Mason City's Mike Murtaugh scored the game winner with assists from Despenas and Abben.
Mason City Globe Gazette Coverage

Game 4: Waterloo 7, Sioux City 10
As a tradition, the host team draws the Friday night, prime-time slot to attract the local fans, and they got their money's worth. This was an old fashioned shoot-out. Both teams left the defense in their locker rooms and lit up the scoreboard for 17 goals. With only 3 minutes into the game Waterloo held a 2-0 lead on goals by Jason Dobes and Brice Thompson. Sioux City's All-Star defenseman, Aaron Limoges, scored Sioux City's 1st goal at 6:12. Dobes answered with his 2nd goal of the period to regain a 2-point lead for the Warriors. Kevin Lohry closed out the 1st-period scoring with Sioux City's 2nd goal. Sioux City then outscored the Warriors 8-4 in the final 2 periods. In the 2nd period, Thompson of Waterloo and Lohry of Sioux City both notched their 2nd and 3rd goals of the game. The Metros Cody Muir scored 2 and Alex Lukehart added 1. The 2nd period ended with Sioux City holding a 7-5 lead. In the final period, Waterloo's All-League player, Daniel Kaaihue, finally got on the board with 2 goals. Sioux City's Lohry recorded his 4th goal of the game, Lukehart his 2nd and Rick Chartier scored 1. The final score was a 10-7 upset win for the 5th-seeded Metros over 4th-seeded Waterloo. Special team play was key for Sioux City, scoring 4 power-play goals and 1 short-handed goal.

Saturday
Game 5: Consolation Semi-Final - Omaha Jr. Lancers 5, Kansas City 4, OT
Saturday's 1st game of the day went into overtime. The Omaha Jr. Lancers were matched with the Kansas City Jr. Blades after both teams lost their opening games. First-period action saw Stephen Knutter score KC's 1st goal of the game. Omaha responded with a Justin Witzke power-play goal and Omaha's Drew Kleymann ended the scoring in the 1st with an unassisted goal. Omaha scored 2 more goals in the 2nd period off the sticks of Jacob Braun and Tim Smith, while KC tallied only 1 goal, by Matt Bruch. The 2nd period ended with a 4-2 Omaha lead. In a penalty-filled 3rd period, the Jr. Blades got back in the game with 2 unanswered goals by Bruch and Knutter sending the game into overtime. Omaha's Phil Reagan scored the unassisted, game-winning goal at 3:59 of overtime, sending the Jr. Lancers into Sunday's game for 5th place.

Game 6: Consolation Semi-Final - Lincoln 5, Waterloo 1
In the 2nd matchup of teams losing their 1st-round games, Lincoln played another strong defensive game against Waterloo, the League's 3rd highest regular-season scoring team. Waterloo's Dan Kaaihue scored the Warriors' 1st, last and only goal of the game at 3:54 of the 1st period with assists from Brice Thompson and Matthew Metcalf. Lincoln then scored 5 unanswered goals by 5 different players. Sean Heard and Jeff Thoman scored in the 2nd and Eric Klotz, Jordan Ross and Ryan West scored in the 3rd. The win advanced the Jr. Stars into the 5th-place game against the Jr. Lancers and Waterloo would play Kansas City in the 7th-place contest.

Game 7: Championship Semi-Final - Mason City 4, Sioux City 6
This was the 1st of 2 Saturday semi-final contests to determine who would advance to Sunday's championship game. Sioux City had topped Waterloo in the 1st round and Mason City had escaped Lincoln in overtime. The Mohawks looked like they were going for the throat when Brandon Millard scored just :26 into the game and Mike Murtaugh scored at 3:01. Sioux City then started climbing back in the game when Sam Schweigert scored on Brandon Lind, the League's top regular-season goaltender, at 6:14. Ben Miller answered back for Mason City at 8:50 and then Sioux City's Kevin Lohry finished the 1st-period scoring with a red lighter at 10:24. Mason City went into the locker room with a 3-2 lead. Mason City again stunned the Metros with a quick goal by Cole Despenas at :57 of the 2nd. Sioux City answered with a quick goal of their own when Lohry scored his 2nd at 2:45. The teams went scoreless the rest of the period. In a dramatic 3rd period, Sioux City's All-League goaltender, Beau Erickson held the Mohawks scoreless, while the Metros scored 3 times. Lohry lit the lamp at 5:21, tying the game and giving him his 2nd hat trick in 2 games. Jack Brooks scored the game winner at 6:51 and Chase Kinchen added an empty-net goal giving the Metros a 6-4 win over the top-seeded Mohawks.
Mason City Globe Gazette Coverage

Game 8: Championship Semi-Final - DM Capitals 0, DM Oak Leafs 3
Could the Oak Leafs follow game 7 with another semi-final upset against their inter-city rival Capitals? The Oaks had come close, but had not beaten the Capitals during the regular season. If you like hard-hitting, low-scoring games with great goaltending, this was your favorite game of the tournament. All-Star goaltenders Geoffrey Miller was in net for the Oaks and Kyle Walsh guarded the Capitals goal. Although the 1st period ended in a 0-0 tie, the Oaks let the Caps know they meant business with a 9-3 shots-on-goal advantage. In the 2nd stanza, the Capitals reversed the shots on goal advantage firing 15 shots at Miller, but could not score. The only goal of the period came at 7:42 off the stick of Oaks All-Star defenseman Lucas Du Bay with an assist from another All-Star, Kyle Norris. The tight checking continued into the 3rd period. The Oak Leafs scored early in the 3rd on an unassisted goal by Mike Braun giving the Oaks a 2-goal edge. The Caps gave it everything they had but could not score on Miller, who recorded the only shutout of the tournament. Jason Brown, with an assist from Norris added an empty net goal to make the final score 3-0. The Oak Leafs would advance to their first ever state tournament championship since joining the League in 1998.

Mason City head coach, Mark Hicks (far left), was honored as the Coach-of-the-Year. Coach Hicks stands with the first-ever All-League Team.

Tournament Banquet:
Almost 500 players and parents attended Saturday night's IHSHL Banquet and Awards Ceremony at the Five Sullivan Brothers Convention Center in Downtown Waterloo. Tournament committee chairman, Gary Iverson, was the emcee. Instead of a quest speaker, the event committee opted to invite 3 IHSHL players to each present a short talk between awards presentations on what high school hockey meant to them. Beau Erickson of Sioux City, Molly Buehner of Waterloo, and Kyle Abben of Mason City were the presenters. All 3 of these young people did an excellent job and their message made everyone present proud to be a part of the Iowa High School Hockey League. Plaques were presented to the Top-Ten Scorers, Top-Three Goaltenders and Mason City was presented the Regular-Season Championship trophy. Academic players with a 3.0 GPA were announced. Members of the first-ever "President's Senior Academic List" were announced and presented with a plaque by League President, Shawn Spencer. This new category of academic achievement recognizes seniors graduating with a 3.5 GPA or better. Also new this year was the presentation of the "All-League" team. This annual honor is only revealed at the State Tournament Banquet. The team represents the top 3 forwards, 2 defensemen and 1 goaltender in the League as voted on by the coaches from a ballot containing the names of the First-Team All-Stars. Mason City's Mark Hicks was announced as the 2002-03 Coach-of-the-Year.

Sunday
Game 9: 7th-place - Waterloo 5, Kansas City 6, OT
Oh, the dreaded Sunday morning game - playing at 7 a.m. for 7th place. Both Waterloo and Kansas City must like morning games because this was an up tempo game that saw KC come back from a 2-0 deficit to take the lead and Waterloo come back late to tie the game and send it to overtime. Waterloo took an early 2-0 lead on goals from Nate Nerison and Dan Kaaihue. Kansas City's Stephen Knutter scored a short-handed goal at 9:42 to end the 1st period scoring. KC outscored the Warriors 3-1 in the 2nd with goals from Matt Bruch, Jonathan Spellman and Bryan Beaman. Jason Dobes scored for the Warriors, but the Jr. Blades surged in front 4-3 at the end of 2 periods. Cory Miller put KC up by 2 goals when he scored at 11:38 of the 3rd. At 12:29 Waterloo's Brice Thompson scored to pull within 1 point of Kansas City. Then with only :34 left in the game Justin Guess slapped home a short-handed goal to tie the game and send it to overtime. At 2:45 of overtime, Kansas City's Stephen Knutter ended the Warriors' chance of a come-from-behind victory when he scored his 2nd goal of the game earning the Jr. Blades their 1st win of the tournament.

Game 10: 5th place - Omaha Jr. Lancers 5, Lincoln 3
Omaha's Joey Kalina and All-Star forward Kyle Schneiderwind scored all 5 goals against Lincoln in this consolation match for 5th place. Kalina and Schneiderwind each scored in the 1st period to give the Jr. Lancers a lead that they would never give up. Michael Lucchino scored 1 goal for Lincoln to end the 1st period. Kalina and Schneiderwind both scored again in the 2nd, while Lars Neilsen tallied Lincoln's only 2nd-period goal. Lincoln's Ryan West scored early in the 3rd period cutting Omaha's lead to 4-3. But Kalina completed his hat trick at 13:57 to seal the 5-3 Jr. Lancers victory and earn the 5th-place trophy.

Game 11: 3rd place - Mason City 2, Des Moines Capitals 3
This was the matchup everyone expected to see in the championship game, pitting the top 2 regular season teams and showcasing the top talent in the League. The rosters of both teams included 12 All-Stars and 4 All-League players. If the players were disappointed about not making the finals, they didn't show it. These 2 teams delivered a top-notch game that had fans cheering end-to-end rushes, acrobatic goaltending and some heavy checks. The only goal in the 1st 2 periods came 1:12 of the 2nd when the Capitals' Jamie Gordon-Kamm scored with assists from James Brock and Roch Naert. The Mohawks held a wide margin in quality scoring chances, but Des Moines' All-Star goaltender Kyle Walsh was rock solid in net holding the Mohawks scoreless through 2 periods. The 3rd period started to open up offensively. Des Moines took a 2-goal lead when Brad Krueger scored early at 1:06 with an assist from Brock. Mason City then stormed back with 2 goals to tie the game at 2-2. Mason City's Mike Paulsen scored an unassisted goal at 3:10 and Carter Angell scored a power-play goal at the 10-minute mark with assists from Mike Murtaugh and Kyle Burgmeier. It took the Caps only 32 seconds to regain the lead when forward Tim Ramsey scored the Caps' go-ahead, and eventual, game-winning goal with assists from Eric Keese and Austin Olson. The Capitals victory prevented a season sweep by the Mohawks and earned them the 3rd-place State Tournament trophy.
Mason City Globe Gazette Coverage

Game 12: Championsip Game - Sioux City 5, Des Moines Oak Leafs 4, 3OT
This was an intriguing matchup between 2 teams that earned their way to the finals by winning 2 hard-fought games against higher seeded teams. Was there enough gas left in the tank to win a championship game? Could the Oak Leafs, making their rookie appearance in a championship game since joining the League in 1998, match the tradition of Sioux City, who was making their 10th appearance in the last 16 state tournament championship games? No one was disappointed after this game. If you love dump, chase, shoot and go-for-the-rebound hockey, this was your favorite game of the tournament. For the 3rd game in a row the Metros spotted their opponents a 2-goal lead when Jason Brown and Lucas Du Bay scored the only 1st-period goals for the Oak Leafs. But, the Metros came charging back outscoring the Oaks 4-1 in the 2nd to take a 4-3 lead. Alex Lukehart, Sam Schweigert and Daniel Limoges scored for Sioux City with Chase Kinchen adding a power-play goal. Brian Spring scored the Oaks' lone 2nd-period tally. Both teams picked up the intensity to championship level in the 3rd. Sioux City was determined to hold the lead and the Oaks were desperate for the tie. Des Moines' Jason Steward finally broke through Sioux City goaltender Beau Erickson at the 7:30 mark to tie the game at 4. Grant Erbes and Drew Schade assisted on the goal. The teams went scoreless the rest of the 3rd, extending the battle for a state tournament championship into overtime. Neither team could put the puck past Oak Leafs netminder Geoffrey Miller or Erickson of Sioux City in 2 periods of overtime hockey. The end of the game came quickly in the 3rd overtime. At :29 seconds of the period, Sioux City defenseman Aaron Limoges launched a knuckler slap shot towards the net that was deflected by Kevin Lohry into the Oaks net, earning Sioux City their 6th State Championship title.

Tournament MVP:
Sioux City's Kevin Lohry was picked as the 2003 Varsity State Tournament MVP. The sophomore forward notched 8 state-tournament goals and 4 assists. League President, Shawn Spencer presents Lohry with the MVP plaque.

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