“I’m proud of our guys,” senior center and team captain Zachary Silver said. “We battled the whole time, but it’s tough to put in the work all season. This is the second year that we fell short, but we got a resilient group.”

Churchill (14-4-4), which boasts 10 MSHL titles, was eager to reclaim its spot after losing to Walter Johnson last year. But having beaten Oakdale (20-1-0) twice before in championship finals — first in 2018 then in 2022 — the Bears were also hungry.

The Bulldogs started fast and strong Friday. Sophomore forward Aiden Pham chased a runaway puck and scored to give his team its first and only lead two minutes into the game. Oakdale relied on strong passing and physicality and responded swiftly with two goals from defenseman Gavin Timberlake.

Churchill freshman Alexander Bazyluk recharged the Bulldogs’ momentum in the second period with a breakaway goal that tied the game. But two goals within 30 seconds from the Bears in the third created separation. Churchill forward Daniel McNelis found the back of the net on a power play with eight minutes to go in the fourth before Oakdale scored once more to stymie Churchill’s hopes.

“As soon as you put in a goal to get one away and then you get scored on, it’s a momentum-killer, it’s a dagger,” Churchill Coach Steve London said. “ … All the heart, sweat and tears that they put into this year, it sucks it had to end this way.”

Despite losing more than a dozen seniors to graduation from last year’s team, the Bulldogs displayed a plucky youth movement.

As his players trickled out of the locker room disappointed, London was already thinking about next season.

“When I first got this job last year, everybody told me it’s a rebuilding year,” he said. “But Churchill is more of a reload instead of a rebuild program.”