SLP Orioles Batlle Rain to Sweep Cooper Hawks

On a wet Thursday night, the St. Louis Park Oriole soccer teams battled heavy rain and a lightning delay to sweep the Hawks with the boys winning 6-2 and the girls shutting out the Hawks 2-0. 

Neither heavy rain or a lightning delay could keep the St. Louis Park boys soccer team from getting two goals apiece from Dan Lainsbury and Nick Riley that led the Orioles to a 6-3 win over the Cooper Hawks. 

The Orioles got on the scoreboard when Bennett Kouame went down the left side of the field and fed Lainsbury but the ball deflected off his left foot and entered the net.  Lainsbury helped set up the second St. Louis Park goal :56 later with a centering pass to Riley and he sent it into the goal.  Riley would pick up an assist on the third goal on a pass to Lainsbury for his second goal of the game.  Unfortunately, the game was stopped with 23:49 left in the first half due to lightning and according to Minnesota State High School League, there would be a minimum delay of 30 minutes.  The good news was the game resumed following the delay as Abdirahman Mohamed would help the Hawks avoid a shut out and the Orioles led at halftime 3-1. 

St. Louis Park would score two second half goals in a span of 1:01.  Riley would score his second goal from the left side and Kouame lined one to the net to put the Orioles ahead 5-1.  They would increase the margin to five on a penalty kick goal from Andrew Kneiser.  The Hawks would conclude the scoring with 2:13 to play.  Following the game, the identity of the Cooper goal scorer was revealed.  It was Henry Suah. 

Orioles head coach Chato was not present because he was out of town and assistant coaches Pat Hartman and Bob Decker ran the team in his absence. 

St. Louis Park remains unbeaten at 8-0 and will have a tough test coming their way on Tuesday, September 17 when they host the unbeaten Blake Bears at 7 PM.  The Bears have won their last six games via shutout and have outscored their opponents 38-0.  Cooper fell to 1-6 and hosts the South St. Paul Packers on Saturday, September 14 at 5 PM. 

Now to the girls game as Lola Ruff and Alma Beaton tallied in the first half to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 2-0 win over the Cooper Hawks. 

Ruff would open the scoring for the Orioles with a left side goal and Beaton would score from the center slot to put St. Louis Park ahead by two at halftime. 

Neither team would score in the second half though Beaton almost scored her second goal of the game but the ball bounced off the right crossbar. 

St. Louis Park improved their record to 4-2-2 and heads to Minneapolis South on Monday, September 19 to take on the Tigers at 6 PM.  Cooper dropped to 4-3 and will head down I-694 to Stillwater on Saturday, September 14 to face the St. Croix Prep Lions at 10 AM.