Head coach Brian Ripley gave the ultimatum Saturday evening: There was no way the Glenwood Springs hockey team would defeat Steamboat Springs three times this season. 

He was right. 

The No. 1 seeded Demons had No. 2 Steamboat’s number all year, winning both regular season matchups by big margins. That changed Monday night when the Sailors earned the last laugh, winning the program’s first-ever state championship, 4-2, at Magness Arena in Denver. 

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Ripley said his confidence in the team was a product of how quickly his players bought into the program’s standards.  

“For me, it starts with team values and ours are respect; effort; attitude; commitment and honor,” Ripley said. “When they buy into that first, and then they can buy into whatever systems, you just know they are listening and coachable.” 

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Steamboat was poised to get on the board first against the Demons on Monday night, something the team had struggled with in their first two meetings. 

The Sailors did just that, notching the first goal of the game when Finn Baier crossed a pass over to Sawyer Vietanen on a 2-on-1. Vietanen took the pass and ripped the puck high above the reaching glove of the Demons’ goaltender for Steamboat’s first-ever state championship goal in the school’s history.

“(Finn) hit me perfectly on the tape, I looked up and saw the top-right corner of the net was open and it went in,” Vietanen said. “Everything stopped for a second, my heart and everything. Everyone got really quiet too and then just erupted. It was a crazy feeling.”

Steamboat carried their 1-0 lead into the second period, but was down a man due to a slashing penalty late in the first. 

The Sailors managed to kill the Demons’ power play, but seemingly seconds later it was Glenwood who would tie the game at 1-1.

The Glenwood goal managed to light the fire back under the Sailors who quickly responded with two more goals of their own. 

First was Austin Shorland who found the puck out in front of the net, crossing by the Glenwood goaltender and flicking it over his left leg for a Sailors goal. Seconds later, it was Gavin Wittlinger who added to the Steamboat lead with a slapshot from the top of the face-off circle. 

Entering the third period, the Sailors held a 3-2 lead. 

It was a flashback moment for a number of the players who had seen Steamboat earn the No. 2 seed and come up short in the playoffs in each of the last two seasons. Ripley said those experiences shifted the focus of this year’s team, especially for its nine seniors. 

“Those seniors have been through a lot of that rollercoaster,” he explained. “I also think because of that, they had an approach to this playoff where they took it in stride and really wanted to make it a business trip. They didn’t decorate the bus or do anything to add pressure, they just wanted to play their game.” 

Entering the thrid period, Sailors goalie Jakob Ducklow filed an impressive performance, including several show-stopping saves in the final minutes as the talented Glenwood team tried to find an equalizer. 

But any hope to knot the game was sunk with Angus Frithsen netting a gorgeous goal through the open legs of the Demon’s tender with just over three minutes remaining in regulation. 

“I don’t remember much from the goal,” Frithsen said. “I knew I had space and was skating hard, I found myself in front of the net and the goalie had his five-hole open.” 

The goal provided by the captain put an exclamation mark on an impressive season for the state champion Sailors squad, and for Frithsen, who scored 23 goals and registered 19 assists in his senior year campaign. 

The regular season ended on a dicey note for the Sailors who suffered two losses to close the season. The team then would not play another game for three weeks leading to its quarterfinal matchup against No. 7 Colorado Springs. 

“Adversity is going to come,” Ripley told his team. “That was our mountain we had to climb, and they did that very well… I knew in practice mentally they were there, they faced that and had moved on.” 

The Sailors ultimately cruised through the quarterfinal 5-0 with a number of dirty goals and strong defensive play. 

Reaching the state semifinal Saturday for the second time in three seasons, the Sailors were up against No. 3 Pine Creek at Robson Arena in Colorado Springs. Steamboat struggled with puck possession early in the game but two late second period goals and a double overtime snipe by Frithsen sent the Sailors to their first state championship game. 

Following the semifinal victory, Frithsen and the Sailors quickly set their focus on the state championship.

They knew winning the state title was their only option. 

“I feel like I’m floating, it doesn’t feel real,” Frithsen said after the game. “Here we are, we did it, we worked hard and the job is finished.”