BRAINERD – Defense wins championships and the Brainerd Warriors happen to have an experienced defense.

Their next goal is to win a Section 8-3A championship.

Last season, injuries caused the Warriors to stumble into the playoffs with a 1-5 record in their final six games. Then Brainerd, a sixth seed in the sectional playoffs, beat No. 3 Sartell 2-1 before losing to No. 2 Buffalo 1-0. The improved play has Brainerd hoping for big things this year.

“We had a great graduating class last year, but at the end of the season we had to play a lot of those girls due to injuries and some other things,” Warriors head coach Grant Gmeinder said. “They just gained a lot of experience last year and that was the big core that we relied on towards the end of the year when we made that little playoff run. We have a lot of veterans coming back. Girls that got to play a lot of minutes as younger players. We’re excited about this group and we talked about goals for this year at the end of last year that we want to build on. They want to build on that and take that next step after a really positive end to last season.”

One reason for the improved performance last year and the optimism this year is the return of junior goalie Chloe Patrick. In 1,380 minutes last season, she posted a 1.51 goals-against average and a .75 save percentage. She was named team MVP and All-Central Lakes Conference.

Her reserve junior Mia Sypnieski also returns to give Brainerd experience and depth.

“With Chloe and Mia, our goalkeeping situation is better than ever,” said Gmeinder. “We have three really talented newcomers who will fight for playing time on the junior team. We are in a great position and that starts with Chloe.”

“She improved her game so much from her freshman year to her sophomore year. From what I saw, she put in even more work after her sophomore season. It’s fun to see a kid have that success and then not settle for that success. She put in the work and the time and came back stronger and faster and ready to take a bigger step this year.”

The Warriors will need to find someone to replace graduate transfer Molly Pohlkamp, ​​who was voted the team’s top defensive player, but there are candidates. Senior captains Elsie Johnson and Ava Lust return, as do senior Madilyn Bertram, juniors Gracie Jackovich, Sophia Menghini, Myia Nelson and Sophia Porter, and sophomore Kahlan Johnson. Jackovich was named the Most Improved Player last season and earned All-CLC along with Lust.

“We return four girls on defense and only really have to replace one, but that was Molly Pohlkamp,” said Gmeinder. “You won’t find another Molly Pohlkamp, ​​but we’re excited about this defensive team. Ava Lust and Elsie Johnson are returning as seniors. They both have a lot of experience, so we’re excited about that leadership role. Gracie was an all-conference kid and Kahlen Johnson played a lot as a freshman. She’s still young, but she has a lot of experience.

“I think our defense is going to be our strength and that’s what we want to build on. If we start getting those forwards and midfielders to score more goals, I think we’ll have a lot of success. With Chloe and our defense, they’re going to keep us in the game every game.”

Another luxury the Warriors have on their roster is the return of four of their top five scorers from last season. This group is led by junior forward Lilly DeRosier. The three-sport athlete and All-Central Lakes Conference selection finished with nine goals and five assists.

Right behind DeRosier was another three-sport athlete: sophomore Macy Castle, who scored seven goals and had five assists. Castle was named Newcomer of the Year.

“It’s definitely been several years since we’ve had a one-two punch like Lilly and Macy,” Gmeinder said. “I think the two had a nice sophomore and eighth year and started to develop some chemistry and understanding. Those two showed up in big moments. They both scored in the playoff game against Sartell and have a knack for elevating their game in big moments.”

“Now we’ve brought them together with Lindsay Hunt and Levi LeMieur and talked about their experience, but even more so, demanded that they score more goals. Seven or eight goals are not enough. We need this team to put the ball in the net. That was a struggle for us last year.”

Young striker Lindsay Hunt was fifth on the team with two goals and two assists.

Junior Levi LeMieur was Brainerd’s third-leading scorer with five goals and two assists. She will man the midfield alongside captains Haylie Crutcher and Kylee Soens.

“Levi is coming back from injury, so we’re excited to see her back in action,” Gmeinder said. “Kylee didn’t start on the varsity team last year, but she finished there and was a key part of that team. She got a lot of experience last year and we’re excited to see what she does this year. Haylie is coming back and sophomore Ellen Germundson has had a great offseason. She’s been working hard. She looks strong and fit and we think she’ll fit in the midfield as well.”

Soans and Crutcher each finished the game with an assist.

Rounding out the middle are senior Abby Larson, juniors Holly Bergin, Madeline Maurer and Avery Vagts, and sophomores Sophia Lundy and Claire Lust.

Much like last year, Brainerd is still young and has only six seniors on the roster. Gmeinder hopes that by the end of the regular season, Brainerd will be significantly better like last year.

“That’s what these girls saw last year,” Gmeinder said. “We didn’t have a great regular season last year, but at the end of the year I would put this team up against any other team I’ve coached. I think we bring a lot more experience than we did last year, but we’re still young. There’s also going to be new roles for a lot of these girls and more playing time and all that. Where we start is not where we expect to end up.”

That, Gmeinder said, will likely make St. Michael-Albertville the favorite in the section. They won the title last year and didn’t graduate many players. Gmeinder likes where Brainerd is compared to the rest of the section.

“Our roster is really good this year and it was one of the more difficult tryouts,” Gmeinder said. “We have a strong group with a large group of juniors and a handful of sophomores. We’re sorting through all of those players. We have 24 players on our roster and I don’t think we play with 24 kids, but we have enough players that we can envision playing with this varsity team all year long. Our team motto is ‘Together we are stronger.'”

“We saw that last year. How many injuries did we have to end the season? But just knowing that we have so many players who are working and waiting and getting healthy again is a good feeling.”

JEREMY MILLSOP can be reached at 218-855-5856 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at

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