Goodhue has won two of the last three Hiawatha Valley League Blue Division titles, with Hayfield edging the Wildcats by a game for the crown last season.
It's no surprise that entering this week, they are again locked in a competition for the top spot in the standings, where they are tied with identical 6-1 conference records. If both take care of business in their midweek games — Goodhue versus Triton and Hayfield against Kenyon-Wanamingo — Friday's matchup in the regular-season finale will decide which team claims this year's crown.
Hayfield (19-4, 6-1) may hold a slight advantage in the rematch after picking up a 51-45 home win over Goodhue on Jan. 9 behind a game-high 21 points from Carrie Reutledge.
Lexie Lodermeier led Goodhue (18-6, 6-1) with 16 points and could be key — along with the play of her sister, Sydney Lodermeier — to a win on the Wildcats' home court, a victory that counts in more than in the conference title chase. It could help determine section seeding.
Hayfield lost in last season's Class 2A, Section 1 semifinals to Rochester Lourdes, and the Vikings are looking for an extended postseason run following a move down to Class 1A and into Section 1 with the Wildcats. Expectations are high, and a second victory by No. 3-ranked Hayfield over No. 4 Goodhue — the defending Class 1A champion — could boost the Vikings' confidence heading into March.