Chanhassen advanced to its second consecutive state tournament on Thursday despite being without two key "teammates." 

In an attempt to keep a light atmosphere this season, the Storm purchased two fish to serve as unofficial mascots. Unfortunately, Tormenta (the Spanish word for storm) and Deodorant did not get to see how the year finished, dying prior to the section tournament.

Adopting the tetra was one of antics Chanhassen players employed to alleviate pressure throughout the year, and it seems to have paid. The Storm got to relax a bit more after defeating Eden Prairie 6-3 in the Class 4A, Section 2 championship game at Miller Park on Thursday to advance to next week's state tournament.

As Chanhassen (21-3) made its way through pregame warmups, there was no sign of stress. The girls danced to music blaring through the loud speakers and cheered on teammates as they fielded ground balls and pop-ups.

Storm coach Joe Coenen said the fun nature is just part of the team’s pedigree.

“They’re really good at not putting pressure on themselves,” Coenen said. “They do some crazy stuff to try and take the pressure off.”

Once the first pitch was thrown, Chanhassen turned its fun nature into success.

Taylor Manno scored the Storm’s first run on a passed ball. While the she was sliding into home, eighth-grader Tori Tollefson made it from first base to third base.

On the next pitch, Tollefson capitalized on her smart base running by scoring on an infield single.

Manno stayed loose in the circle, cruising through the first four innings unscathed. The junior only ran into trouble in the second, when the Eagles loaded the bases. Manno struck out Eden Prairie sophomore first baseman Zoey Brooks to get out of the jam.

Coenen said the desire to play against tough competition is what makes his players special, and the Storm showed it against the Eagles (17-7), a team that had defeated No.1-seeded Bloomington Jefferson twice in the section tournament and had home-field advantage against Chanhassen on Thursday.

“These girls live for those moments when there’s a question,” Coenen said. “When they play the best (teams), they’re at the best. It’s fun to watch and be a part of.”

The Storm’s chances of winning came into question with one out in the top of the fifth inning as Eden Prairie senior shortstop Lauren Oberle's three-run home run cut Chanhassen’s lead to 4-3

Manno, however, responded by getting the next two batters out in order and sending her team back to the plate.

In their next at-bat, the Storm put the game away when junior catcher Jessica Bren hit a two-run homer to extend the lead to 6-3.

“It was a 3-1 count,” Bren said of her home run. “She left it right over the middle and I just did what I could with it. We needed all the runs we could get.”

From there, Manno kept the Eagles in check and helped clinch the section title.

Eden Prairie needed to defeat the Storm twice on Thursday to secure the state bid, but Chanhassen avoided an all too familiar winner-take-all second game by winning Game 1. 

A year ago, the Storm were forced to win a second game in order to qualify for state. Both Bren and Manno said they remember how stressful last year’s Game 2 was and didn’t want to relive it.

“Our coach just kept telling us, ‘One game, one game,’ ” Bren said. “Two games wasn’t an option tonight.”

When Chanhassen opens state tournament play June 9, it has the luxury of a roster with eight returning starters from last year's squad.

The Storm lost in the state quarterfinals a season ago, but Coenen said his team has a different attitude heading into this year’s tournament.

“Last year, it was all about the experience,” Coenen said. “We were just happy to be there. This year, their expectation is a little higher. They’re going in believing they can win the whole thing.”

Chanhassen is headed to the state tournament after the Storm capped a perfect run through the Class 4A, Section 2 playoffs by defeating Eden Prairie 6-3 at Miller Park on Thursday.

After scoring on a passed ball and infield single in the second inning, Chanhassen broke the game open on two-run home runs from juniors Marybeth Olson and Jesicca Bren in the third and fifth innings, respectively.

Senior shortstop Lauren Oberle paced the Eagles offense with a three-run home run off Storm junior pitcher Taylor Manno. However, Manno proved to be too much, striking out six in a complete-game effort.

Chanhassen advances to its second straight state tourney, which begins June 9 at Caswell Park in Mankato.

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