Edina senior midfielder Cooper Anderson couldn’t put any weight on his right leg late in his boys lacrosse team’s state semifinal victory on Thursday.
Two nights later, sitting out the Hornets’ first state championship game appearance was never an option.
“I just want to thank the training staff at Edina,” said Anderson, who shifted into an attacking role due to limited mobility caused by a deep bone bruise in his right leg. “[Some] of the best in the business. [I did] a lot of icing.”
Edina, the tournament’s No. 1 seed, built a six-goal advantage and held on to defeat No. 2-seeded Stillwater 9-7 in Saturday’s championship game at Eden Prairie High School.
Anderson scored a game-high three goals, including the contest’s final tally.
When Hornets coach Andy Lee’s squad jumped out to a significant early lead, Anderson said he knew a response was coming. The Ponies held most of the third and fourth quarters’ possession, but the Edina defense, which came up huge in Thursday’s semifinal victory over Lakeville North, had a few more critical stops in store.
“We were really high right at the get-go,” Anderson said. “But we knew they were going to go on a run. We just had to stay true to ourselves.”
The victory marked a dream ending for the Hornets’ history-making senior trio of Anderson and attackers Eli Busse and Drew Stocco. They have played together since they first picked up sticks in elementary school, led Edina to its first state tournament since 2012 and concluded their five-year varsity careers as state champions.
