Sections: Day 1

I hope everyone enjoyed their weekend. First, thank you to all of those, past and present, who served our country in the armed forces. It was your sacrifice that allows me to enjoy the beautiful weather on a long weekend and ramble on cluelessly about high school lacrosse on my website. So, thank you, we have a debt of gratitude to all of you.

Playoffs are here. Seems just like yesterday we were talking about season opener’s. Now, it’s win or go home. The first round of section play is always interesting. There are a lot of lopsided matchups but there is always a few interesting games and definitely always some upset potential.

Section 1

This section has a lot of lopsided quarterfinals (on paper) - but this section’s has a very interesting 4v5 quarterfinal between Mankato and New Prague.  These two teams played a 14-13 overtime game, that Mankato won, just last week Monday.  I will be curious to see how each team’s adjust but I believe that are very evenly matched.  I think Mankato has more senior leadership and bigger game experience after going to the section semi’s a year ago but NP has a core group that will be good once they start clicking.

Section 2

This section is crazy because it is by far the largest section. There are 5 play-in games to even get into the quarter finals.

Mound-Westonka just beat Holy Family last week to secure the wright country conference, and now, rematches for their chance to move on to play Chanhassen in the quarters. This should give Holy Family some fuel as maybe they lost the battle but can win the war, so to speak. I think Mound Westonka is the better team, but Holy Family has had a nice season of their own.

Outside of that game, it looks like the rest of the play-in games have heavy favorites for the higher seeded teams and they should prevail to set up the full round of quarterfinals.

Section 3

This section has two interesting games out of the gate

STA vs Tri-Mac - this one is interesting because it’s the classic case of a team with a great record (TriMac) that plays a very weak schedule vs a team with an average record (STA) that has played the top teams in the state.  I think STA wins this game but, I am most curious by how much.  For the sake of entertainment, Id love to see TriMac compete in this game, they have had a heck of a season, but this will be by far their toughest opponent. STA has some of the best players in the state and have been battle tested all year. I don’t think Tri-Mac has had any experience playing at the speed/level that STA has played at all season. Tri-Mac does have the state’s leading goal scorer, however, and he will need to carry them in this game.

EastRidge vs CDH - Both teams have been hot/cold this year and kind of become a question of “which version of them” shows up.  Eastridge has a very talented young group of guys that can play at a high level, but, I think get a bit over powered at times with older/bigger/stronger athletes.  CDH has played some top teams close, but, also has been blown out a couple times… I have no idea what to think.  I assume this will be a close game, but, at this point, I actually know nothing haha. I think whatever team comes out firing and gets an early lead will have the best chance in this game. Both teams seem to really feed on confidence early and are not built to play catch-up. Possessions will be key. CDH has an experienced senior goalie while Eastridge has an 8th grader in net. Both have played well this season, but, curious how the big game pressure with phase Eastridge’s netminder. I’ll be honest, when Farmington played them, I had no idea he was an 8th grader til later on, so, he definitely doesn’t show it.

Section 4

Mahtomedi has a tough QF draw against Irondale.  While the knights havent had the season they thought they’d have, I still think they will be ready to compete and give Mahtomedi everything they have.  Mahtomedi struggled early but is playing their best lacrosse over the last 10 days.  They are rolling, but, this is not an “easy” game by any means. Irondale will compete. They are a proud program and have enough there to give the Zephyrs a game. However, Mahtomedi has won 6 of their last 8 games with wins against EP, Minnetonka and Shakopee in that span. They have only given up 33 goals total in those 8 games and only given up double digits once (STA) all season. What was thought to be the big question mark for Mahtomedi coming into the season has turned into the strength of their team. If they can get the offensive production and Tacheny continues to win face-offs that lead to good possessions, they will be a tough team to beat.

Hill Murray has been up and down this year and gets moundsview, a team that was on a roll early and then tailed off.   The Mustangs have lost 5 of their last 6 games.  Hill Murray has taken care of business in the games they “should win” this year but has struggled against the better teams.  I think HM wins this one, but, maybe Moundsview can give them a game if they find their earlier season form.  The one hiccup for the Pioneers in the games I have seen has been getting into penalty trouble. If they stay out of the box, I think they are the more talented team and will prevail.

White Bear Lake v Totino Grace is a very cool matchup.  Totino has been scoring goals and has had one of their better seasons in recent years.  However, their schedule hasn’t been the strongest and they have struggled against the better teams they have played. White Bear Lake has had some close losses to tough teams but has yet to have that signature win.  I think WBL is the better team in the sense they are a more complete team but they have been susceptible to weaker teams this year - playing closer games than I would have thought. Maybe they have been holding some stuff back for the playoffs or maybe have lacked focus in the games against weaker opponents. Totino Grace has enough talent to make this a game if WBL is not buttoned up. If the Bears play to their potential, I think they could win the section.

Section 5

The Wayzata v Rogers matchup is one of the best games of the first round! Rogers was on an absolute heater until their last game and Wayzata is quietly 9-4 this year. They played earlier in the year and Wazyata won easily but, Rogers looks like a much different team in the second half. I think Wayzata does win this game but, I think it will be closer than the first meeting. That being said, Wazyata hs been great in the final leg of the season with a win over WBL, OT loss to Edina, and win vs Rochester Mayo.

Blake vs Armstrong should be an interesting one because while Armstrong has not problem scoring goals, their defense hasn’t been as strong this year. Blake maybe hasn’t had the season they had hoped, but, they have been making some adjustments over the year that I think will pay dividends for them long term. If Blake can get possessions, I think they can score but they will just have to find a way to slow down the 3 headed monster of Armstrong. I think Armstrong is the better team but I am pulling for the bears to make this interesting!

Section 6

This section has the best potential round 2 matchups, but, round 1 will be pretty low key except for one game, the 4/5 matchup between Jefferson and Rosemount. I think Jefferson was the most hyped team heading into the season but a young team with an extremely tough schedule, they just couldn’t snag those signature wins. However, I think they are the best #5 seed you’ll find in all of the state.

Rosemount has had tough losses to good teams but also had a huge win against the Valley late in the regular season. Rosemount has been strong offensively hitting double digits in all of their games in May. When their defense locks in, they are extremely tough.

Jefferson has been defensively elite this year, only giving up 84 goals in 13 games. They have played the #1, #2, #3, #4, #7, #8, #10 teams in the state this year. If they can score 10 goals against Rosemount, I think they can win this game. Both goalies in this game are strong and should be tested quite a bit. I think the face off edge goes to Jefferson, but, he is young. Rosemount’s FOGO is not as skilled but is much bigger/stronger so, that will be a very interesting battle to watch.

Section 7

Despite the loss to STMA, Chisago still claimed the #1 seed in the tournament and will be able to host throughout which is huge for a section that is so spread out amongst the state.

The first round doesn’t look to have any major upset potential although the 4/5 game between Anoka and Blaine is interesting. These two teams played to an 8-6 game (Blaine win) back in late April, so, it has been a while and I think both teams will be a different version of themselves. Both of these teams have sort of taken care of the games they “should win” and lost to the teams that should lose to. However, Blaine has that signature win against Totino Grace but Anoka only lost by 1 to them, so, I think these two teams are about as evenly matched as it can get. I smell overtime in this one!

Section 8

Another section where Home Field is extremely beneficial due to geography. Like Section 7, I think round 1 is mostly going to go according to plan, but, the 4/5 matchup is interesting. St Cloud and Sartell/Sauk Rapids will play each other for the third time this year in the rubber match - the Granite City Showdown. Winner moves on. St cloud won the first game 11-7, S/SR won the second game 6-5. St Cloud will lean on their leader Connor Waverin and his comrades Harrens and Torborg who have had the majority of their points this season. S/SR will lean on, DTA all-name team and 71% Save Pct goal keeper Rudolph Ruegemer to slow down that St Cloud offense. If S/SR can slow down the big guns for St. Cloud, they have the chance at the upset. I expect this to be a pretty high intensity game of two teams that know each other very well.