DAVENPORT -- Head coach Shawn Weinke and the rest of the Waterloo Warriors showed the classy side of high school hockey Sunday, as they began the third-place game of the Midwest High School Hockey League state tournament against the Kansas City Junior Stars a little short-handed.

As the puck was dropped, there was an empty spot on defense that would normally be filled by Zach Hester. The Cedar Falls senior left Saturday's semifinal after he was viciously checked into the boards from behind and taken to the hospital with a separated shoulder.

Hester could not suit up for the game, but his teammates honored their fallen teammate and "held the rope," leaving the Quad City Sport Center with the third-place trophy, thanks to a 2-1 victory over the Junior Stars.

"That was really thoughtful, and I wish that I could have been out there with them," Hester said. "I have had to sit enough this year with my knee injury, and not being out there wasn't a good feeling. We actually should have been playing for the championship."

The Warriors' dream of a title was erased by the Quad City Blues on Saturday.

Sunday, the Warriors were not going to let the Outlaws take anything away.

"We have a saying around her, 'Hold the rope'," Warriors head coach Shawn Weinke explained. "Hester has been holding the rope for us all year, and we just wanted to go out there and hold the rope for him one last time.

"We were very disappointed about yesterday, and we got punched in the mouth," added Weinke. "We talked about why we are here and that we still had to take care of business. We had to show up and show everyone we deserve to be here and play with the big boys.

"Tyler Mahncke said it best when he told me that 'expectations have changed here,' and each year we have gotten better."

After skating through two scoreless periods, the Warriors' offense came to life, and Waterloo East senior Jacob Schutte got it started on an odd-man rush. Schutte planted his big frame in front of the net and waited for Jake Irey to pull the trigger. Irey let go of a blast that was tipped to Schutte by Jayson Beal, and Schutte poked it home.

"I saw Jake coming down, and I just sat in front and waited for his shot. When it came into the slot, I just shoved it in," Schutte said.

"To tell you the truth, I was a little more excited to get out there and play hard after reading what the Quad City coach said about me. Sometimes the puck just doesn't bounce your way and, after the first period, it was like I couldn't even buy a goal."

Schutte cashed in with the game-winner midway through the final period.

"I heard coach yelling at me, and when I looked over, it was me and Irey going against three of them," Schutte said. "Jake just kind of shoveled it over to me, and I knew I could deke this guy, and I just made the shot."

The Junior Outlaws sandwiched a single tally between Schutte's goals with 7:55 left in the game.

"This is a good feeling getting the win, but it is a little bittersweet after the loss yesterday," added Schutte.

The Warriors still had their work cut out for them as Kansas City turned up the heat. The Jr. Outlaws unleashed a furious attack on Warriors goalie Brian Dobes, but Dobes turned them away.

With Waterloo already a few men short, Weinke reached into his bench and picked the next Warrior to respond to the challenge.

"Trevor Tix and Michael Thompson really came through today," Weinke said. "They went out there and played hard every shift and gave us the spark we needed. They held the rope just like everyone else has done this year. Next year, we will take that next step up and, like Mahncke said, the expectations are changing each year."

As the final buzzer sounded, the Warriors held their heads high and received their third-place medals. After the presentation, captains Mahncke, Dobes and Irey hoisted the hardware high and acknowledged their fans.

Several of the Warriors were recognized for academic achievement at the close of the tournament. Waterloo East senior Tyler Mahncke received the President's Award for maintaining a GPA of 3.5 or better.

Other recipients were:

EAST HIGH -- MacKenzie Cain (sr), Clint Cole (jr), Mitch Seemann (sr); WEST HIGH -- Jayson Beal (sr), Will Becker (so), Taylor Harris (fr), Jake Irey (jr), Jeremy Wright (so); CEDAR FALLS HIGH -- Marshall Cook (fr), Mitchell DenHartog (so), Zach Hester (sr); IOWA FALLS " George Pfaltzgraff (jr); SUMNER -- Dawson Kuhlmann (so); DIKE-NEW HARTFORD -- Josh VanGundy (jr); UNION -- Kirk Mahood (fr); COLUMBUS -- Landon Weber (so).

Contact Rod Payne at sportsdoor@wcfcourier.com

Kansas City 0 0 1 -- 1

Waterloo 0 0 2 -- 2

FIRST PERIOD -- No scoring. Penalties -- Jordan Sheeley, Wat. (interference) 8:57; Jake Irey, Wat. (slashing) 9:40; Jake Nichols, KC (slashing) 9:40; Bryce Johnson, KC (hooking) 12:11.

SECOND PERIOD -- No scoring. Penalties -- Jake Wiggins, KC (roughing) 9:32; Jayson Beal, Wat. (interference)13:25.

THIRD PERIOD -- 1. Waterloo, Jacob Schutte (Irey, Beal) :26pp; 2. Kansas City, Mike Rogers (Joey Arkeilpane) 7:05pp; 3. Waterloo, Schutte (Irey) 7:45; Penalties -- Dion Hill, KC (tripping) :17; Schutte, Wat. (tripping) 4:50; Beal, Wat. (tripping) 6:07; Arkeilpane, KC (interference) 8:59; Matthew Huderle, KC (interference) 10:34.

SHOTS ON GOAL

Kansas City 12 10 14 -- 33

Waterloo 5 4 12 -- 21

Goalies -- Waterloo, Brian Dobes (32 saves), Kansas City, Aaron DeWitt (19 saves).

Officials -- Referee, Chad Evers. Linesmen, Njell Cooley and Tim Frazee.