After an early hiccup, Warroad swallowed up Monticello in a 7-1 victory.

Monticello (13-15-1) gained the early edge as Quintin Brooks buried a rebound for a 1-0 lead at 10:44 of the first period. The goal conjured memories of 2017, when the Moose started fast and engineered two upsets to reach the championship game.

No. 2 seed Warroad (25-3-1) killed that buzz a little more than two minutes later. Carson Pilgrim tied the game with an absolute snipe, and the Warriors found their game.

“Right when I saw it hit the net, I was like, ‘Here we go,’” Warroad junior forward Jayson Shaugabay said. “That was big.”

Warroad took flight while Monticello began its fall. Murray Marvin-Cordes spurred the go-ahead goal with deft stickwork and a sent a puck for Jack Jones to slam home.

“We knew to get any life, we were going to have to pop the first one,” Moose senior forward Wilson Dahlheimer said. “But they regrouped, came back strong and took the life out of us.”

Shaugabay kept the Warriors in control. His wrap-around goal in the second period required video review to confirm, and his team led 3-1. Just 54 seconds later, Daimon Gardner tallied his 40th goal of the season. Gardner added two goals in the third period to complete the hat trick.

“We played some tough competition this year,” Monticello coach Eric Nelson said. “But they’ve got some kids that are on another level than we faced.”