BOYS: Quarterly Section Check in (Part III)

Our final section check in before we get the official seeds and playoffs begin. There have been upsets. There has been movement. This is going to be a wild playoff season - buckle up!

Section 1

Front Runner - Lakeville North

Challenger - Farmington

Dark Horse - Rochester Mayo

Lakeville North continues to be dominant and is the odds on favorite to win the section. Their ability to win face offs and be extremely efficient on offense makes them very hard to play against. They can go on runs and put games away before halftime. However, they are not invincible as their loss to Shakopee suggests. If teams can find a way to get the ball and get possessions, they have a chance to win, but, that is a BIG if.

Farmington has been hot and cold. They beat eagan. Played PL and The Valley tough. But also got blown out by Rosemount and Lakeville North. So, kind of depends what team shows up. They do have athletes to battle and have an improved defense this year but being able to win face-offs and be efficient on offense will be the biggest question heading into sections.

Rochester Mayo had their hiccup against Wayzata but they are another team that has a ton of athletes and a very good face-off guy. I think this is their best team in years and are definitely good enough to make the section final. Mayo has played a much weaker schedule than Farmington and North, so, not sure if that will be a factor or not, but, as someone who has personally played agains them, they are the real deal and are a true dark horse, if not challenger, in the section. I put them #3 simply because Farmington beat them earlier in the year.

Section 2

Front-Runner: Chanhassen

Challengers: Shakopee

Dark Horse(s): Minnetonka/EP

Chanhassen hasn’t looked AS dominant in the last couple weeks, but, they still have been able to get the job done. They have the elite pieces in all areas and they have been able to lean on their defense until their top dogs on offense get going. When they do… they score in bunches. They maybe lack some midfield depth, but, I am not sure that will be much of an issue in sections, especially with having a good defense and Face Off guy, they can get their attackmen the ball.

Shakopee is right there. I strongly considered putting them above Chan. At this point, it’s probably even. They are physical and tough on defense. They do a great job on ground balls and have talented shooters to score goals. They also may lack some midfield depth like Chan, but, not sure if it matters as everyone deals with that in HS. They are well coached and find ways to win. If they can cause problems between the boxes for Chan like they did for Lakeville North, they can beat anybody.

Neither Minnetonka or Eden Prairie is really separating themselves here as the dark horse. Minnetonka is in a slump the last few weeks but the talent is there no question. Eden Prairie, while maybe less talented than MTKA seems to be the grittier of the two teams and finds a way to stay in games even if they don’t win, it is always interesting. Both teams have solid defenses and will pick their spots on offense. Do they have the team to run all the way through the section? I don’t think so. But, still won’t be an easy out for a team like Chan or Shakopee. No matter how you spin it, section 2 is going to be a test of mental toughness for any of these teams to get through to state.

Section 3

Front-Runner: Woodbury

Challenger: STA

Dark Horse(s): Eagan/CDH

I could probably swap STA & Woodbury and keep things the same, but, for the sake of shaking things up I switched it. Simply because Woodbury beat STA in game 1 and has a better record. That being said, they are extremely close. Woodbury has taken care of business and looked extremely strong, but, got beat pretty good by Stillwater, which surprised me. STA, Except for the game against Chan, has played the top teams as tough as anyone. This is classic case on if the tougher regular season schedule will pay dividends in the playoffs. I think it will. Woodbury gets the 1 here simply based on record and head to head, but, I think the long term investment of tough scheduling by Clark and his staff will be fortuitous come playoffs.

The Cardiac Cats of Eagan have had some epic games this year. A group of kids that they have rolled with since they were sophomores are in their final leg of the HS Lax career and seem to be having fun and playing loose. They don’t have the depth as some of these other teams, but, they have good players and play a unique style of lacrosse that can catch teams off-guard. I would not be surprised if they cause problems in the playoffs.

CDH on the other hand started off slow, but has been hitting their stride. They don’t play as tough of schedule as Eagan and STA, but, they are playing their best lacrosse when it matters. Tonight’s game against STA will be a great litmus test on where they actually are at. CDH v STA is ALWAYS a high energy rivalry game and the stands will be packed tonight. If you pick a game to go to, this is the one.

Section 4

Front-Runner: Stillwater

Challenger: WBL

Dark Horse(s): Mahtomedi/Hill Murray

Section 4. What I thought would be the most competitive section this year has just dropped off in my opinion. Honestly, I think all of these teams could beat each other. Stillwater gets the top spot right now mainly because they own the head to head and aside from the losses to BSM and Edina (two top 5 teams) they have taken care of business. They don’t look as explosive as years past, but they do get the job done.

White Bear Lake had that weird loss to Duluth and just dropped one to Eagan, but they also played Woodbury and Stillwater to one goal games. I have no idea what to think about them, but, based on the other teams in the section, they are my challenger. I have seen them play and there is some elite talent there, but, just don’t seem to play 4 quarters. If they are on, they are as tough as they come.

Mahtomedi and Hill-Murray are my dark horses mainly because Mahtomedi has good wins against EP/Centennial but then Hill-Murray beat Mahtomedi. So, they are probably pretty close. I would love to see a rematch of these two teams in sections as I think it could go either way.

Section 5

Front-Runner: BSM

Challenger: Maple Grove

Dark Horse(s): Armstrong/Wayzata/Rogers

BSM just continues to get stronger as the season goes on. It doesn’t seem to matter if they're top guys or in or not, the depth of talent on the team is far superior to anyone in the state. The only way they lose this section or even lose the state title at this point is if they have an off-day and their opponent has a near perfect night. Maple Grove could be gritty/athletic enough to compete with them - but, they struggle with face-offs so they will need to get a lot of stops on defense to get posessions. Armstrong, has no problem scoring goals, but, their defense hasn’t quite been there against the better teams.

Wayzata has been up and down but most recently played Edina to an OT game. They seem to have the defense to play with any team. If their scoring comes alive they are a really strong team, but, this seems to be hot and cold. I don’t think they can win the section, but, definitely good enough to upset someone.

Rogers is a team that is sneaking into the mix though and deserves a shoutout. They have won 7 of their last 9 games. But 3 of their losses are to MG, Armstrong and Wayzata (section opponents)…. so, I would be curious how the rematch goes against any one of those teams because the Armstrong and Wayzata losses were in mid April… A few weeks ago I thought this section was going to be more competitive but BSM is just rolling right now. Would love to see one of these teams at least make it interesting.

Section 6

Front - Runner: Edina

Challenger: PL & The Valley

Dark Horse(s): Rosemount

This section has been a carousel and probably will change again after tonight when Rosemount/The Valley play. Edina has been the best team in the section all year and looks to be the favorite, but, PL is slowly turning their season around. I don’t make excuses for PL and the early season losses, but, something has clicked in the last 10 days and they look to be a way better team. The Valley has been able to squeak out wins but it has not been comfortable - tons of one goal games. Maybe this bodes well for playoffs and that tight game pressure experience. Their defense is legit and they have a couple superstars, but, sometimes it looks a little more chaotic than it needs to be.

Rosemount is another team that has looked GREAT at times, and completely average at others. I do think they are capable of winning the section if they play their “A” game. They have plenty of talent on offense and some good athletes on defense. They have a strong goalie that can potentially get going and keep them in games. However, the losses to PL and Eagan were big ones for section seeding and are probably looking at the 4 right now. Unless of course, they beat The Valley tonight - in which case we scramble it all up again.

Section 7

Front-Runner: Chisago Lakes

Challenger: Centennial

Dark Horse: Blaine/Duluth

Chisago Lakes just continues to dominate their schedule and look like the team to beat in Section 7. I think some (read: me) thought the loss of their top seniors from last year was going to hurt them, but, it looks like it was a reload year to try and make a run back to state. Centennial stood in their way last year, but, like CL, a huge graduation loss has put them in rebuild situation. Centennial plays a much tougher schedule, so, it’s hard to compare these two teams but my guess is if they both get to the finals, it will be a close game.

Blaine hasn’t been lights out by any means, but, they have played teams tough all year. I don’t know if the depth is there to win the section, but, they could be ripe for an upset. They played Centennial to a one goal game earlier in the year, so, maybe just maybe something to look back on as they prepare for the playoffs. Duluth has been a wild team and stays in as a dark horse because of their upset win against WBL…. but they were also beat handedly by their “metro” opponents: PL and Mahtomedi. So, I don’t really know what to think about them. That being said they played CL to their closest game and seem to matchup well against them. If they can get to a game against CL, maybe there is some upset potential.

Section 8

Front-Runner: Moorhead

Challenger: Elk River/Zimmerman

Dark Horse: STMA

Last, but not least, section 8. This section looked like a one horse race with Moorhead, but, some other teams have emerged as being capable of an upset… maybe. Moorhead has been rolling and has huge wins against Shakopee, Minnetonka and Hill-Murray. They are the team to beat. No doubt.

However, Elk River/Zimmerman played Moorhead to an OT game a few weeks ago and has proven that on the right day, they can give teams fits. They finished their season last night, so, they will have a bunch of time to rest and prepare for sections and maybe throw in some new stuff. STMA started off the year rough, but, has been better down the stretch. They got beat pretty easily by moorhead but have played a tough lake conference schedule and have played to a lot of one goal losses. Maybe a couple fixes and those games are different the second time around.

I don’t think Moorhead will have any issue getting through the section, but, if ER/Z or STMA play their best game on the right day, maybe there is a chance for a more competitive section tournament than expected.