Minneapolis and SLP Orioles All Even at Five

Playing their final game before the Christmas holiday, the St. Louis Park Orioles got the tying goal from Griffin Krone with :12.4 left in regulation time to tie Minneapolis 5-5 on a frigid Friday night at The Rec Center.  

Teddy Dahlin would put the Orioles ahead as he scored off a pass from Max Rider.  Minneapolis would tie the game at one on Hank Davis' goal.  St. Louis Park would strike twice, starting with Krone's rebound goal, followed by Max Rider :46 later.  

Minneapolis would score the first two goals of the second period, both coming from Max Pankratz.  The Orioles would get their lone goal of the period when Henry Schultz lined a shot from the left face off circle and it would land in the net.  Pankratz would get the hat trick :26 later.  Ronan Davis would wrap up the second period scoring when he got a pass from Andrew Lybeck and sent it to the net.  

It looked like Minneapolis would get their second win of the season in the third period as the scoreboard did not budge.  But wait.  With 1:31 left in regulation time, St. Louis Park head coach Tyler Brodersen pulled goalie Josh Middleton for a sixth attacker and they would capitalize on the extra man when Krone drove the puck past the right side of Minneapolis goalie Griffin Simpson and over the goal line with :12.4 to go and the game would enter overtime where nobody would score the game winning goal.  

Minneapolis improved their record to 1-4-1 and they will play in the opening round of the Herb Brooks Holiday Classic on Monday, December 26 at 1:30 PM at the Super Rink in Blaine.  The game will be played on Rink 4.  St. Louis Park extended their unbeaten streak to four games and now has a record of 3-3-1.  They will be back in action in the opening round of the Tradition Classic on Tuesday, December 27 at noon against the Champlin Park Rebels.  

BSM Red Knights Blast Holy Angels

 It was a Saturday matinee matchup between two top ranked Class AAA girls basketball teams as Olivia Olson scored 23 points to lead the third ranked Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights to an 88-73 victory over the second ranked Holy Angels Stars at Haben Center in St. Louis Park.  

The Stars got off to an early 6-0 run with three pointers from Kaylee Caron and Jenna Buer.  The Red Knights got on the board with four straight points from Kendall McGee.  McKenzie Wells would score a three point play to cut the Holy Angels lead to two and McGee's two free throws tied the game at 14.  Buer would regain the lead for the Stars with a three pointer.  The Red Knights would vault into the lead as they would go on a 12-0 run that included two three pointers from Sierra Lumpkin.  Celia Lund would end the run for Holy Angels and McGee would hit a three to put BSM ahead by 14.  Olson would heat up on offense, scoring five straight points to spark a 7-0 run and the Red Knights led 46-27 at the half.  

Kaylee Caron would begin the second half scoring for the Stars on a free throw awarded due to an intentional foul by McGee.  And speaking of fouls, the fouls began to pile up for Holy Angels and they would lose Kaylee Caron, Ella Pritchard and Buer to fouls.  The Red Knights would lead by as much as 20.  Olson, a junior who committed to Michigan, made an outstanding pass to McGee for a basket. Defense also was a factor as Josie Nnjai blocked Molly O'Malley's shot and Olson recorded five steals.  Holy Angels did have some late life as Lind hit three pointers but Lumpkin scored four straight points to clinch the win.  

Other Red Knights in double figures were McGee with 22 points.  Lumpkin added 18 and Zahara Bishop came off the bench to score 14.  Lind led the Stars with 17 points.  Also in double figures were Buer with 14 points, Kiera O'Rourke and Elizabeth Pierce 11.  

BSM improved their record to 4-2 and will head to Minneapolis to face the DeLaSalle Islanders on Tuesday, December 20 at 5:30 PM.  Holy Angels ended their six game winning streak and fell to 6-1.  They also return to action in the 20th as they host they host the Chanhassen Storm at 7 PM.  

Brodersen's First Career Win is Shutout

 Chalk up win number one in the Tyler Brodersen Era.  Max Rider scored two goals and Henry Schultz recorded two assists to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 4-0 shutout of the Hopkins Royals Tuesday night at The Rec Center.  

The game was originally scheduled to be played on The Rec Center's outdoor rink but was moved to the Orioles usual West Rink home due to rain.  

The Orioles got on the board in the first period on Schultz's center slot shot that was tipped in by Max Rider.

St. Louis Park added two goals to their ledger in the second period.  The first came when Griffin Krone scored on a rebound.  The second goal would while the Royals Malaki Berry was serving a two minute roughing penalty that put the Orioles on the power play.  Max Rider would score his second goal of the game from the left side to put St. Louis Park ahead by three.  

But St. Louis Park was not finished putting the puck into the net.  They would conclude the scoring with the lone third period goal as Mason Amelse went top shelf from the left point.  

The Orioles improved their record to 1-2 and will play their first road game of the 2022-23 campaign Saturday, December 17 against the Armstrong/Cooper Wings at 7 PM at New Hope Arena.  The Royals fell to 1-3 and will return to action on Thursday, December 15 when they host the Waconia Wildcats at 7 PM at the Hopkins Pavilion.  

Waconia Wildcats Edge SLP Orioles

 Though the St. Louis Park Orioles dominated the shots on goal, outshooting the Waconia Wildcats 35-14, it was the visitors from Carver County who would prevail as Charles Vacek's game winning goal with 1:17 left in regulation time to lead Waconia to a 2-1 win over St. Louis Park Friday night at The Rec Center.

Both teams would tally in the first period.  The Orioles broke out of the starting gate when Henry Schultz fed Phil Hirte on the left side of Wildcat goalie Matthew Johnson, found an opening and put it in the net.  The Wildcats even the score on Luke Puchner's center slot goal.  

Neither team would score in the second period.  The third period looked like the game would head into overtime as the score stayed even at one. St. Louis Park kept Johnson busy in goal as he made some outstanding saves.  But it was Waconia who would break the deadlock when Vacek would rebound the puck off the boards and he would fire it across the goal line with 1:17 to go.  The Orioles would call time out and head coach Tyler Brodersen pulled goalie Brett Middleton, who replaced his brother Josh in the third period for a sixth attacker.  Could St. Louis Park get the equalizer to send the game into overtime?  They would have several chances but Johnson prevented them from scoring to end the game.

The Wildcats improved their record to 5-2 and will face the Hopkins Royals on Thursday, December 15 at 7 PM at the Hopkins Pavillion.  The Orioles fell to 0-2 and will also face the Royals in an outdoor game at The Rec Center Tuesday, "December 13 at 7 PM.  

St. Louis Park's Elijah Puchner and Drew and Luke Puchner of Waconia are cousins.  

Five Goal Outburst Leads Chaska Hawks in SLP Orioles Home Opener

Tyler Brodersen's maiden voyage as head coach of the St. Louis Park Orioles boys hockey team would turn into a sunken ship as Ty Broten scored two goals in a five goal third period to lead the Chaska Hawks to a 6-1 win over the Orioles Thursday night at The Rec Center.  

Both teams would tally in the first period.  The Hawks would struck quick, 1:30 into the period when Nathan Hinze rebounded Tristin Wassengeso's shot.  The Orioles would even the score pn Cole Taylor's goal.  

Neither team would erase the ones from their end of the scoreboard in the second period.  In the third period, Chaska would break the game open with four goals in a period of 3:02. The first would come on a power play goal from Matthew Magnusson, followed by two straight goals from Broten.  The first came unassisted and the second was from the center slot.  Luke Iverson would put the Hawks up by four on his goal from the right corner and they would conclude the scoring when Zach Markwell got a pass from Ryder Herrmann and Zach Markwell would score from the left point.  

Chaska improved their record to 1-2 and returns to action as they host the Chanhassen Storm on Tuesday, December 6 at 7 PM at the Chaska Community Center.  St. Louis Park, playing their first game of the season after their opener on November 29 against Bloomington Kennedy was postponed due to the  snowstorm fell to 0-1 and will host the Waconia Wildcats on Friday, December 9 at The Rec Center at 7 PM.  

The game against Kennedy has been rescheduled for Wednesday, December 21 at 7 PM at the Bloomington Ice Garden.  

2022 Prep Bowl Preview Part Two

 If Friday's Prep Bowl games were a dandy, then the three Saturday games should also fit that description as HSGN previews the three championship games.  

10:03:  Nine Man:  Mountain Iron-Buhl vs. Spring Grove.  It's North vs. South in the day's first title game as the Mountain Iron-Buhl Rangers battle the Spring Grove Lions.  The Rangers are in their ninth state tournament and in Mountain Iron's first title game since they won the 1972 Class B Championship.  Mountain Iron-Buhl beat Kittson County Central top ranked Wheaton-Herman-Norcross as five different Rangers reached the end zone.  The Lions are in their fifth state tournament and in the hunt for their first state title since winning two consecutive state titles in 2017 & 2018.  Spring Grove has a strong running game anchored by quarterback Elijah Solum, who scored three touchdowns in the semifinal game against Fertile-Beltrami and Hunter Holland ran for 130 yards.  Can the Rangers end their 50 year state title drought or will the Lions bring another title trophy south?  

1:00:  Class AAA:  Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton vs. New London-Spicer.  Five towns.  Two teams.  One Class AAA championship to be decided.  The Rebels are in their fourth state tournament and their first game for a state championship.  D-G-F advanced to the finals with wins over Esko and Fairmont.  The Rebels are led by running back Jordan Summers, who ran for 168 yards and a touchdown against Fairmont.  The Wildcats make their seventh trip to state and will play in their fourth title game.  Last time New London-Spicer won a state title was 2009.  They got a couple of close wins in the tournament, starting with Milaca in the quarterfinals and Watertown-Mayer in the semifinals.  In the semifinals, Brycen Christensen reached the end zone three times.  Will fans in Dilworth, Glyndon and Felton be celebrating their first state title or will New London-Spicer take home their first championship trophy in 13 years?  

4:00:  Class AAAAA: Elk River vs. Mankato West.  It's been a great year for the Elk River School District as all three District 728 schools have played at US Bank Stadium.  Rogers and Zimmerman were eliminated and now the Elks are the last school standing.  Head coach Steve Hamilton has relied on the run all season as quarterback Cade Osterman ran for 218 yards in the semifinals against Mahtomedi. Memo to PJ Fleck.  Come to the Class AAAAA final.  You could use Osterman next season in the backfield when Mo Ibraham graduates.  As for the Scarlets, they are the defending Class AAAAA champions and are playing in their 14th state tournament.  Mankato West is 5-0 in state title games, including foiling a district showdown against Elk River with a 14-10 semifinal victory over the Rogers Royals.  Will Governor Tim Walz cheer on his former school to state title number six or will the Elk River rushing attack ground the Scarlets.  

Plenty of high school football action coming up December 2 & 3.  

2022 Prep Bowl Preview Part One

 While winter sports are already underway, the 2022 Minnesota Prep Bowl wraps up the football season a week late due to the  Vikings Thanksgiving game, as seven title games will be played December 2 & 3 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.  Here's a preview of the four games to take place December 2.  

10:03:  Class A:  Springfield vs. Minneota.  Two southern Minnesota teams will venture north for the Class A final.  The Springfield Tigers are in their eighth state tournament and on a quest for their first Class A title since 2005.  The Tigers beat Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunberg and Deer River to head into the finals.  They will have a tough task in the Minneota Vikings, playing in their 16th state tournament and 11th championship game.  Chad Johnston's bunch held off Lester Prairie in the quarterfinals and stopped a fierce Fillmore County Central rally in the semifinals.  Last year, the Vikings lost to the Mayer Luther Crusaders in the Class A championship. Can the Vikings earn their eighth championship trophy or will the Tigers end their 17 year state title drought?

1:00:  Class AA:  Barnesville vs. Chatfield:  The Barnesville Trojans make their fifth trip down I-94 to state and and are 0-3 in state title games.  Barnesville shutout Moose Lake/Willow River in the quarterfinals and bulldozed Jackson County Central in the semifinals., thanks to John Roller rushing for 150 yards and two touchdowns.  The Chatfield Gophers are in their 10th state tournament and their seventh championship game.  They are 6-0 in championship games.  Chatfield beat Eden Valley-Watkins in the semifinals as quarterback Sam backer ran for two touchdowns.  Can the Trojans finally bring a state title trophy up I-94 or will Chatfield stay unbeaten in championship games.  

4:00:  Class AAAA:  Simley vs. Hutchinson.  Good news for Inver Grove Heights football fans.  Your Simley Spartans will be playing for their first state title thanks to Reid Ramackel's game winning field goal against the Rocori Spartans.  Simley is in its fifth state tournament and playing for their first state title.  Now the bad news.  they will face the defending state champion Hutchinson Tigers, playing in their 25th state tournament and eighth championship game where they are 6-1 in title games.  Hutchinson high powered offense has averaged 51 points in two state tournament games, including a 42-28 win over the Zimmerman Thunder.  Andrew Ladwig reached the end zone three times for the Tigers.  Will Simley fans head back happy to Inver Grove Heights or will Hutchinson bring a seventh state title home down Highway 7?

7:00:  Class AAAAAA:  Maple Grove vs. Rosemount.  The Class AAAAAA title game concludes the days festivities as the Maple Grove Crimson, in their 10th trip to state, return to US Bank Stadium by beating the team they lost to in last year's finals, the Lakeville South Cougars.  They will face another Dakota County team, the Rosemount Irish.  The Irish have been unbeaten all season and they are playing in their 12th state tournament with a chance to win their first state title since the last year of the pre-Prep Bowl Era, 1981.  Irish eyes fans were smiling when they beat Centennial and Eden Prairie, using an offense similar to Elk River (more on them in Part Two) where they run run and run.  In the game against Eden Prairie all the yards were by runs.  Can the Crimson redeem themselves from last year's title loss or will the Irish end their 42 year state tournament drought.  

Next:  The three Saturday championship games.  

Osseo/Park Center Shuts Out Hopkins/Park

 The Osseo/Park Center girls hockey team held host Hopkins/Park to the first and last letter of their hometown as Tessa Strand scored two goals to lead them to a 6-0 win Saturday night at The Rec Center in St. Louis Park. 

Osseo/Park Center put the game away in the first period with four goals.  Strand would receive a pass from Lauren Rainerson in the center slot and she put it past Hopkins/Park goalie Evelyn Osland.  They would tally again :30 later on a goal from Gabby Edlund.  The margin would extend to three when Reanna Cruz would score on a rebound.  Osseo?Park Center would conclude the first period scoring on Strand's second goal with 3:04 left in the period.  

Rainerson would reign for Osseo/Park Center in the second period as she headed through the center slot, found an open spot on the left side of Oslund and sent the puck to the net.  

The game would head into running time in the third period as Maya Anderson got a pass from Strand and scored from the right side to end the scoring.  

Osseo/Park Center outshot Hopkins/Park 43-12.  

Osseo/Park Center improved their record to 3-0-1 and will host the Dodge County Wildcats on Tuesday, November 22 at 7 PM at Dick Vraa Arena in Osseo.  Hopkins/Park fell to 1-2 and also returns to action on the 22nd when they head to Waconia to take on the Wildcats at 7 PM at the Waconia City Ice Arena.  

And the Battle of the Spartans Goes to Simley

 Thursday afternoon's Class AAAA semifinal game was a Battle of the Spartans and came down to Reid Remackel's field goal with 5:22 left that led Simley to a 17-16 win over Rocori at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.  

Simley's running back tandem of La'tayvion McCoy and Gavin Nelson helped control the clock on their opening drive lasting 6:15.  Nothing would come of it as they lost the ball on downs.  The good news for Simley was that McCoy would reach the end zone on a three yard run four seconds into the second quarter.  Rocori would take the lead when Jack Spanier's pass deflected on Simley's Dez Smith and into the hands of Gabe Johnson for a 22 yard touchdown.  Simley would regain the lead as Caden Renslow passed to David Gogins and he ran with the speed of the nearby light rail trains into the end zone for a 69 yard touchdown.  Rocori would wrap up the first half scoring as Spanier lined up in the shotgun and bulged through an opening in the line for a four yard touchdown and Rocori led at the half 16-14. 

Nobody would advance the numerals on the giant US Bank Stadium scoreboard in the third quarter.  There would be good news for Simley in the fourth quarter as they were faced with fourth and goal at the Rocori 16 yard line.  Head coach Chris Mensen brought in Remackel to attempt a field goal.  His kick barely went over the crossbar to put Simley ahead.  Would the red and blue clad Simley fans head back to Inver Grove Heights happy?  They would when Daniel Martin sacked Spanier and Simley got the ball back on downs with 3:26 to go.  They would get to the Rocori five yard line before Renslow took a couple of kneels and that would be the game.  

Gavin Nelson would lead Simley with 32 carries for 167 yards.  The defense would prevail, holding Rocori to 123 yards of total offense.  Spanier completed nine of 16 passes for 78 yards.  

Simley improved their record to 11-1 and will advance to the Class AAAA championship game against the Hutchinson-Zimmerman winner on Friday, December 2 at 4 PM at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.  Rocori wrapped up their season with a record of 9-3.  

Spring Grove Lions Bloom in Nine Man Football Semifinals

 Though the weather outside was snowy and chilly, the Spring Grove Lions blossomed inside US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis as Elijah Solum ran for three touchdowns to lead them to a 27-6 victory over the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons Thursday afternoon in the state Nine Man Football Semifinals.  

All the first half scoring was done in the first quarter.  The Falcons would take their only lead of the game on Caiden Swenby's 24 yard touchdown pass to Ryan Van Den Einde. .  The Lions would get the ball next and Solum would score his first touchdown on a 14 yard keeper run.  It wasn't just Solum that was in the Spring Grove spotlight.  On fourth down, Fertile-Beltrami was forced to punt and Swenby's punt was caught by Tysen Grinde.  He would dash down the left sideline for a 76 yard touchdown and the Lions would lead 14-6.  

Neither team would tally in the second and third quarters but Spring Grove had a chance to extend their lead.  Solum heaved the ball toward Jaxon Strinmoen in the end zone but the Falcons Isaiah Wright batted the ball away.  The Lions would put the game away with two fourth quarter touchdowns from Solum.  The first would come from two yards and the second, following Grinde's interception of Swenby would come from two yards.  

Solum would lead Spring Grove with 12 completions out of 18 for 116 yards.  He carried 19 times for 70 yards.  Hunter Holland rushed 17 times for 134 yards.  

The Lions improved their record to 12-0 and will face the Mountain Iron-Buhl Ranger in the Nine Man Championship Game Saturday, December 3 at 10:03 AM at US Bank Stadium.  Fertile-Beltrami concluded their season with a record of 12-1.  

Hopkins/Park Opens Home Season With Overtime Win

 The home season for the Hopkins/Park girls hockey team opened in the great outdoors as Avery Shaw scored the game winning goal with 2:38 left in overtime to lead them to a 4-3 win over the Hutchinson Tigers Saturday afternoon at The Rec Center in St. Louis Park.  

The Tigers took the lead with two first period goals from Elle Schweim.  The first came when her shot deflected off Hopkins/Park goalie Evelyn oslund and rolled into the net.  The second would come on a rebound.  

Hopkins/Park would bounce back to even the score with two goals in the second period.  Lindsay Schuchard would go top shelf following a pass from Camryn Witham and Linden Loos would score from the left side.  

Heading into the third period, Hopkins/Park would regain the lead on Lucy Johnson's left side goal.  Hutchinson was not out of it yet.  With Sofia Hoffman serving a tripping penalty, Audrey Hanson would tie the game with 1:43 left in regulation to force the game into overtime.  

The frigid fans from both Hopkins and St. Louis Park would go home happy as Avery Shaw would score a power play goal with 2:38 left in overtime to seal the victory.  

Hopkins/Park improved their record to 1-1 and returns to action on Tuesday, November 15 at 7 PM against the Moose Lake Area Rebels at the Minnetonka Ice Arena.  The Tigers fell to 0-1 and will also be in action on the 15th as they face the Willmar Cardinals at 7:15 at the Willmar Civic Center.  

Gopher Women's Basketball Team Has Bright Future-Still a Work in Progress

 The mid 1980s rock group Timbuk 3 couldn't have put it better about the Minnesota Golden Gopher Women's Basketball Team.  "The future's so bright. " And it looked bright in the Gophers lone exhibition game as they trounced the UW-River Falls Falcons 104-64 Sunday afternoon at Williams Arena on the University of Minnesota campus.  

It was the first opportunity for fans to see the new freshman class in action that included Mallory Heyer of Chaska, Amaya Battle of Hopkins and Mara Braun of Wayzata.  The other member of head coach Lindsey Whalen's recruiting class, Nia Holloway of Eden Prairie is out for the season due to an injury.  

Heyer and Braun were two of the starters against the Falcons and Braun really stood out in the first half as she hit five three pointers and scored 21 points in the first half.  She finished the game with a team high 23 points.  Heyer looked like the complete player not just on offense but also on defense.  Though she scored only six points, she also had six rebounds  and blocked a couple of shots.  She boxed out really well and her defense is going to be an important asset when they enter Big Ten play.  

What about Battle?  She was a battler when she was the first player to come off the Gopher bench.  She would make her presence known, scoring 16 points, seven rebounds and also had four assists and steals.  Could she be a starter this seasdon if she continues to play like that?  

Another post player that will be a key reserve is Arkansas transfer Destinee Oberg.  It's a name that will be familiar to Minnesota girls basketball fans since she first played at Holy Angels and later at B;loomington Kennedy.  She's the first Kennedy Eagle to wear maroon and gold since Tanisha Bell and she did not disappoint, contributing six points and six rebounds.  Also in the mix was former Watertown-Mayer Royal Maggie Czinano.  Czinano went four of six from the field and scored 13 points.  

Other in-state players who saw brief action were Angelina Hammond of Hopkins, Maria Counts of Providence Academy and Alexa Ratzlaff of Rosemount.  They will get their minutes but hopefully not just in mop up situations.  

So there you have it.  The future of a program that's a work in progress. The regular season starts Monday, November 7 at The Barn against the Western Illinois Leathernecks at 5:30 PM.  Get to a game this season.  They could be a surprise in the Big Ten.  

Armstrong Falcons Advance to Section 5AAAAA Final

 Saturday afternoon was sunny for the Armstrong Falcons as Reggie Carter scored four touchdowns and Marquan Tucker and Kevon Johnson reached the end zone twice to lead them to a 62-31 rout of the St. Louis Park Orioles in Plymouth.  

It was the Orioles who took the early lead as Zach Helfmann, moved to quarterback by head coach Jason Foster, fired a 74 yard touchdown pass to Stefano Giovannelli.  The Falcons would tie the game when Jamen Malone thrown a deep end zone pass to Tucker and he would grab it from 32 yards.  Armstrong would get the ball back after an interception by Nick Brandner and Carter would score from one yard to put the Falcons ahead.  The Zach Helfmann-Giovannelli tandem would strike again, this time on an 81 yard touchdown pass.  Armstrong would be armed with offensive weapons who would score the next two touchdowns.  The first would come on Carter's 66 yard tun down the right sideline and Tucker would haul in a 40 yard pass from Malone that put the Falcons ahead 27-14.  

Armstrong would make two more trips to the end zone in the second quarter on a couple of three yard runs.  The first would come on Malone's keeper and the second on Carter's third touchdown with :58 left in the first half that bolstered the Falcons lead to 41-27.  

There would be some good news for Orioles fans in the second half thanks to the defensive play of Henry Bendickson.  He would intercept Malone's pass and send the ball across the goal line.  On the next possession, the Falcons began their drive at the Oriole 10 yard line and Carter would score his fourth touchdown, this one from seven yards.  Another aspect that would prevail for St. Louis Park would be special teams.  On the Armstrong kickoff, Mason Amelse would drive down the right sideline like traffic on Highway 169 and enter the end zone.  Johnson would wrap up the third quarter scoring for the Falcons with an 11 yard touchdown run and Armstrong led 55-25 at the end of the third quarter.  

The Falcons would send the game into running time in the fourth quarter as Johnson broke through the line and score a 60 yard touchdown.  As time ticked away on the Orioles season, they would end the game when Zach Helfmann bobbled the center snap, recovered the ball and scored from one yard.  

Armstrong improved their record to 7-2 and will host their district rival the Cooper Hawks on Friday, November 4 at 7 PM.  Cooper beat Minneapolis Washburn in the other semifinal game 44-20.  St. Louis Park ended their season with a record of 3-7.  

A Section Shutout for SLP Orioles

 Last May, Stefano Giovannelli pitched a no-hitter to help lead the St. Louis Park baseball team to the state tournament.  On a chilly Tuesday night in October, the Oriole senior quarterback helped pitch a shutout by scoring two touchdowns to lead the host Orioles to a 21-0 shutout of the Minneapolis Southwest Lakers in the Section 5AAAAA Football Tournament.  

The Orioles got the ball to start the game and Giovannelli concluded a 3:39 drive with outstanding footwork.  He kept the ball, cut to the center of the field and went around right end to score a 14 yard touchdown.  St. Louis Park would reach the end zone a second time as AJ Foster got the handoff and sprinted up the middle for a 36 yard touchdown to give the Orioles a 14-0 lead.  

In the second quarter, St. Louis Park got the ball back after Southwest lost the ball on downs.  Once again, it was Giovannelli who would reach the end zone from 14 yards with 1:08 left in the first half.  The Orioles would get the ball back when the Lakers punted on fourth down and Mason Amelse returned the ball, breaking several tackles and displaying outstanding moves like the famed dancer Rudolf Nureyev. Unfortunately, Amelse did not cross the goal line and the first half came to a close.  

Neither team would tally in the second half though Southwest would come close but they were hurt by penalties that set them back and they would come up empty on fourth and 11.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 3-6 and will travel to Plymouth on Saturday, October 28 to face the Armstrong Falcons at 3:30 PM.  Southwest finished their season with a record of 2-7.  

Mpls. Southwest Lakers-SLP Orioles Section 5AAAAA Football Preview

 The regular high school football season has concluded and the road to US Bank Stadium will go through Plymouth, where the Armstrong Falcons are the top seed and will host the winner of the Minneapolis Southwest-St. Louis Park game Saturday, October 28.  Here's a preview of the lone quarterfinal game.  

if there's one common thread between the Lakers and the Orioles, is that both teams ended their regular season with 2-6 records.  Last Wednesday, Southwest snapped a five game losing streak, that included shutouts from Minneapolis North and DeLaSalle to beat the Minneapolis South Tigers 24-6.  The Lakers backfield is well stacked with two players who broke the 100 yard mark last Wednesday, Connor Klemmensen and Andres Ramos.  Klemmensen was the only one who reached the end zone.  Another running back scored two Southwest touchdowns, Mar'Kwon Frelix.  Frelix concluded the regular season on a high note, scoring his first two touchdowns of the season.  

The key to the game for the Lakers is for the running game to wear down the Orioles defense.  

The Orioles finished the regular season on a free fall, losing their last four games as they were outscored 183-27.  Part of the reason was the loss of quarterback Declan Gaines for the rest of the season due to a concussion, leaving the quarterbacking duties to Stefano Giovannelli.  Also factoring into St. Louis Park's slump was losses to tough opponents Holy Angels, Waconia and Chaska.  In the game against Chaska last Wednesday, the Orioles were beaten 42-6.  Giovannelli completed nine of 17 passes for 46 yards, including a touchdown pass to Manny Kaplan.  The bright spot on defense was Zach Helfmann, who recorded 13 tackles.  

The key to the game for the Orioles is for Giovannelli to get into an offensive rhythm and for the running back duo of Jimmy Hager and AJ Foster to reestablish the running game that has been missing.

The weather picture for Tuesday night is for temperatures in the low 50s to the high 40s so you might want to bring a jacket as well as a blanket.  Game time, as usual is 7 PM.  

Chaska Hawks End Regular Season Soaring Over SLP Orioles

 On a chilly Wednesday night in St. Louis Park, the high school football season concluded with Reese Turner rushing for two touchdowns and Jamarrius Courtney throwing for two more to lead the Chaska Hawks to a 42-6 rout of the host St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Hawks got the game off to a flying started with a kickoff return into Oriole territory.  Turner would move Chaska closer to the end zone with a 27 yard gain and score from one yard.  The Orioles had a couple of opportunities to even the score but they went 0-2 on fourth down conversions.  

In the second quarter, Courtney threw a left side pass to Aiden Fontaine and he went down the right sideline for an 85 yard pick up that would result in first and goal for the Hawks.  Once again, Turner would put the ball in the end zone, this time from two yards.  St. Louis Park would erase the shutout when Stefano Giovannelli, the new Oriole quarterback after Declan Gaines was ruled out for the season due to a concussion, threw an eight yard touchdown pass to Manny Kaplan and the Orioles cut the deficit to 14-6.  But Chaska was not finished in the first half as Courtney fired a 13 yard strike to Aidan Whicker with :01.7 left to give the Hawks a 21-6 halftime lead.  

Courtney would throw his second touchdown pass in the third quarter when he found Nevin Krause deep in the end zone from 13 yards.  The Orioles did have some life on a trick play.  Zach Helfmann passed to Giovannelli but on the next play, the Hawks Preston Lorenz recovered a fumble so Chaska was back in business.  The Hawks did take care of business as the clock hit :00 and Courtney scored on a two yard keeper touchdown.  

With the game pretty much decided in the fourth quarter, Chaska head coach Bryan Dahl started to utilize his bench and it paid off when Xavier Harvieux ran up the middle from 10 yards to send the game into running time due to the wide margin.  Defense also paid off for the Hawks thanks to an interception from Russell Gillette.  

Chaska concluded the regular season with a 6-2 record and St. Louis Park fell to 2-6.  Section play begins next week.  

Chaska Hawks-SLP Orioles Football Preview

 The 2022 high school football regular season wraps up Wednesday night as the St. Louis Park Orioles host the Chaska Hawks.  

In their last two games, the Hawks tallied 35 points in victories against the Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders and the Orono Spartans.  Not so last Friday against the team that's very likely to be the top seed in St. Louis Park's section, the Armstrong Falcons.  Chaska broke a 7-7 tie on Reese Turner's second quarter touchdown that would eventually be the game winner since the scoreboard result remained stationery in the second half.  The Hawks improved their record to 5-2 with a 14-7 win over the Falcons.  Turner had 34 carries for 140 yards, the highest total since he gained 235 yards against Orono the previous week.  

The keys to the game for Chaska are for Turner to have another outstanding ground game and for quarter back Jamarrius Courtney to be a dual threat like he was most of the season.  He has rushed for four touchdowns against Benilde-St. Margaret's and Cretin Derham Hall.  

As for St. Louis Park, last Friday's game was very Munsterlike, just like the dark and gloomy weather.  The Orioles were washed out by the Waconia Wildcats 55-7.  The St. Louis Park defense was decimated by Max McEnelly's 272 yard performance that also included four trips to the end zone.  St. Louis Park was also minus Declan Gaines for the second straight week due to a concussion, so Stefano Giovannelli ran the Oriole offense.  Giovannelli did not fare well, completing five of 18 passes for 43 yards.  St. Louis Park's only touchdown came from AJ Foster, who led the Orioles with 15 carries for 53 yards.  There was one bright spot on defense as Zach Helfmann recorded 15 tackles.  

The keys to the game for St. Louis Park.  Will this be the week Gaines returns?  Foster has to continue his momentum from Waconia and the defense needs to slow down Courtney and Turner.  

The weather picture for Wednesday should be a little better with the high temperature around 50 degrees.  Dress warm for the regular season finale.  Game time is 7 PM.  

SLP Orioles-Waconia Wildcats Football Preview

 Friday night will be the final road game of the regular season for the St. Louis Park Orioles as they head down Highway 5 to take on the first of two straight Carver County opponents, the Waconia Wildcats.  

Last week's Homecoming game wasn't a happy one for the Orioles as they fell to the Holy Angels Stars 34-8 to bring their record to 2-4.  St. Louis Park was minus their starting quarterback Declan Gaines who was sidelined due to a concussion.  So who would step in to run the Oriole offense?  The answer, Stefano Giovannelli.  Giovannelli's inexperience at quarterback showed through most of the game as he completed five of 16 passes for 56 yards and was intercepted twice.  But there were a couple of bright spots for the Oriole senior.  He ran 13 times for 79 yards and threw a 10 yard touchdown pass to Teddy Dahlin.  On defense, Tony Kruse recorded nine tackles and Mason Amelse had seven plus the game's lone interception.  

The keys to the game for St. Louis Park:  Will Gaines return at quarterback?  If not, will Giovannelli get another chance to prove himself as the Orioles signal caller?  Also, the defense needs to slow down the high powered Waconia offense.  

That leads to a look at the Wildcats, who came up shot last Friday against their Carver County rival, the Chanhassen Storm 37-35.  You'll need only two words to describe the Waconia offense, Max McEnelly.  He made three trips to the end zone against the Storm and ran for 175 yards, giving him 1,137 yards this season along with 17 touchdowns.  McEnelly will head to Minnesota next season and join the wrestling team.  Come on PJ Fleck.  You've got to get him out for football in 2023, you could use him next season when Mo Ibrahim graduates.  On defense, McEnelly also excels, recording eight tackles.  BBrayden Kaczmarek led the Wildcat defense with 10 tackles and Tate McDonald had an interception.  

The keys to the game for Waconia are for McEnelly to have another stellar game and wear down the St. Louis Park defense and the Wildcat defense has got to slow down whover is calling the signals.  

The weather picture is going to be a chilly one on Friday, with temperatures in the 40s.  If you plan to make the trip to Waconia, bring your winter coat as well as a blanket.  Game time is 7 PM.  

Wayzata Trojans Sweep Minnetonka Skippers

 The high school sports week began Monday night with the defending Class AAAA champion Wayzata Trojans facing their Lake Conference rival, the host Minnetonka Skippers.  The Trojans held off a ferocious Skipper offense in the second set to sweep Minnetonka three sets to none.  

Both teams would trade leads in the first set before the Trojans went up 5-3.  But the Skippers would battle back to eventually tie the set at ten.  Wayzata would get a couple of service aces from Bianca Nistor and played strong defense with three players on the right side of the net to take the first set 25-16.  

In the second set, the Trojans would jump out to an early lead as a result of Skipper attackers putting too much spin on the ball.  Minnetonka head coach Karl Katzenberger called time out and they would bounce back to take a 12-11 lead. Defense would keep the Skippers in the set on Keely Campuzano's right side block.  The lead would go back and forth like a pendulum on a grandfather clock.  Whenever both teams had a set point, the score would be tied.  It would continue in that manner until Olivia Swenson's kill spart Wayzata to a 29-27 victory.  

Fatigue from a grueling second set would begin to plague Minnetonka in the third set as Wayzata jumped out to a 5-0 lead and they would never look back as defense once again factored into the equation thanks to a block from Stella Swenson and Reilly Kurth that helped the Trojans wrap up the match 25-16.  

Wayzata improved their record to 22-3 and will host the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars on Thursday, October 13 at 7 PM.  Minnetonka fell to 15-11 and will also be in action on the 13th, wrapping up the regular season hosting the Buffalo Bison at 7 PM.  

Prior to the start of the match, HSGN caught up with former Hopkins head coach Vicki Swenson, who was interviewed in a previous story for the late examiner.com.  Her twin daughters, juniors Olivia and Stella committed to the University of Minnesota.  

Swenson described the Gopher coaching staff, led by Hugh McCutcheon as such a great coaching staff.  "The best in the country."  

Swenson, who retired from coaching in 2020 coached against Wayzata head coach Scott Jackson numerous times.  "i have a great deal of respect for him," Swenson said.  She also commented on the Trojans 65 match winning streak that was ended by the Northfield Raiders,  "Let's be honest, there's a lot of pressure and I don't know if it will be matched for a long, long time.  

She also gave an update on her oldest daughter Samantha, who was a four year setter with Minnesota.  Samantha played professionally for two years in France and is now married to an Italian professional volleyball player.  she's also the mother of six month old Luca.  

Wrapping up the interview, Swenson mentioned that the state of high school volleyball in Minnesota has a lot of parity and the level of play has increased.  

Minneapolis Washburn Millers and SLP Orioles Split Regular Season Finale

One goal was enough to decide the regular season soccer finales Saturday afternoon for both the Minneapolis Washburn Millers and the host St. Louis Park Orioles with the Millers winning the girls game and the Orioles coming though in the second overtime in the boys game.  

Though the first game was played in a chilly environment, the Washburn Miller offense heated up early as Sydney Ruckett fired a rocket shot into the net in the first half to lead them to a 1-0 win over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

Rockett got into position on the right side of the Oriole net and fired a shot from the 15 yard line that landed in the goal.  The Washburn sophomore almost scored her second goal when she was awarded a free kick.  She would go up against a three player St. Louis Park wall, set the ball aloft with her right foot and the Orioles Vesna Dennison made the block.  

The Millers ended their regular season with a record of 10-5 and the Orioles finished with a record of 3-10-1.  Section 6AAA play gets underway Thursday, October 13.  

Heading into the boys game, the weather picture was getting warmer and it looked like the regular season would end in a scoreless tie.  But wait.  The St. Louis Park Orioles would count their blessings of finishing the regular season on a winning note, thanks to Bjorn Bleske's game winning goal with :28.5 left in overtime to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 1-0 win over the Minneapolis Washburn Millers.  

There would be no scoring in the first half but it looked like the Orioles would win the game in regulation time as Abdi Abdullahi had an open net ahead but his shot was blocked by Miller goalkeeper.  Grayson Pickar.  On to a pair of five minute, non sudden death overtimes.  

The time would tick away in the overtime periods and it looked like neither team would send the ball over the goal line.  That wouldn't be the case as Bleske lined a shot from the center slot and landed past Pickar with :28.5 left in the second overtime. 

The Orioles ended their regular season with a record of 5-4-4 and open Section 6AAA tournament competition Thursday, October 13.  The Millers fell to 9-5 and will host the annual Twin City game against the St. Paul Central Minutemen on Monday, October 10 at 5 PM.  

Holy Angels Stars Dims SLP Orioles Homecoming

 The stadium bleachers were packed on a chilly Friday night for the St. Louis Park Orioles Homecoming football game but it was Aaron Boarman who spoiled the celebrations with two touchdown passes to lead the Holy Angels Stars to a 34-8 win.

A trick play from Stars head coach Jim Gunderson would result in Ryan McGuire heading to the end zone from four yards after the Orioles came up short on downs.  

Holy Angels would add another touchdown in the second quarter as Boarman threw an 11 yard pass to Jacob Pung with :14.6 left in the half and the Stars led at halftime 14-0.  

In the third quarter, the Stars would shine in the end zone twice.  The first came on a beautifully thrown 50 yard touchdown pass to Charles Gilbert III.  They would increase their lead to 28 on Joe Miller's 14 yard run.  

Holy Angels was not finished in the fourth quarter.  Miller muscled his way through the St. Louis Park defense and went into the end zone from six yards.  There would be no shutout for the Orioles as the weather picture got colder.  Stefano Giovannelli, making his debut at quarterback with Declan Gaines out due to a concussion, struggled throughout the game with two interceptions but he would throw his touchdown pass, and 11 yard strike to Teddy Dahlen with 1:04 to play.

The Stars improved their record to 5-1 and will head to Chanhassen on Friday, October 14 to take on the Storm at 7 PM.  The Orioles fell to 2-4 and also returns to action on the 14th, heading down Highway 5 to Waconia for a 7 PM game against the Wildcats.  

An Overtime Sweep for Orono Spartans

 It was a chilly Senior Night for the St. Louis Park soccer teams as they played a couple of overtime time games against the Orono Spartans with the boys losing 3-2 and the girls coming up short 1-0. 

First up was the boys game as the St. Louis Park Orioles were on the verge of an upset against the top ranked team in Class AA the Orono Spartans. But two late goals, including the game winner from Avery  Anderson 1:17 into overtime led the Spartans to a 3-2 win.  

The first half looked like it was going to be a scoreless deadlock until the Orioles John Ryan was awarded a penalty kick.  He put the ball past Spartan goalkeeper Adam Trongard with :08.5 left in the half to give St. Louis Park a 1-0 halftime lead.  

Orono would erase the St. Louis Park lead on Tierman Bonner's goal.  The Orioles regained the lead as Tyler Puentes fed Bjorn Bleske in the center slot and he sent it to the net.  The Spartans would even the score on Franklin Schwendimann's left side goal with 4:39 left in regulation time.  Could St. Louis Park pull off the upset?  They almost did but Lucas Tangleson's shot bounced off the crossbar and the game would head into overtime.  

It wouldn't take long for Orono to clinch the win when Anderson scored from the left side 1:17 into overtime.  Neither team would tally the rest of the way.  

The Spartans improved their record to 14-0-0 and ends their season on Saturday, October 8 in Hopkins as they face the Blake Bears at 1 PM.  The Orioles fell to 4-4-4 and will also wrap up their season on the 8th, hosting the Minneapolis Washburn Millers at noon.  

On to the girls game and what looked like a game that would end in a scoreless tie would not be the case, thanks to Kayla Kallenbach's game winning goal 1:01 in the second overtime period that led the Orono Spartans to a 1-0 win over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

In the first half, the Orioles almost took the lead but Vesna Dennison's goal was disallowed.  Both team had scoring chances but came up empty and so the game would go into overtime.  

Heading into overtime, there were still zeros on the scoreboard.  But in the second overtime, Kallenbach would tally 1:01 in the period to secure the victory.  

The Spartans improved their record to 7-8 and will head to Hopkins on Saturday, October 8 to take on the Blake Bears at 11 AM.  The Orioles fell to 3-9-1 and also concludes their season on the 8th, hosting the Minneapolis Washburn Millers at 10 AM.  

Holy Angels Stars-SLP Orioles Football Preview

 John Denver couldn't have put it better for the St. Louis Park Orioles that it's good to be back home again.  After two road games, the Orioles are back at their home stadium for the annual Homecoming game against the Holy Angels Stars.  

The Stars will play their second straight game against a St. Louis Park based opponent.  Last Friday, Holy Angels battered the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights 41-7 to improve their record to 4-1.  Their only loss was to the Cooper Hawks 33-26 on September 23.  The Stars offense hasn't been a bore this season with quarterback Aaron Boarman completing 13 of 15 passes against BSM for 237 yards and rushing for 95 yards that included two trips to the end zone.  He comes into the game needing 197 passing yards to reach 1000 for the season.  But the offense isn't just Boarman.  Also in the backfield is Reid Davenport, who scored a touchdown last week.  Boarman's top receiver is Charles Gilbert III, who reached the end zone twice against the Red Knights.  The Stars defense had eight tackles last week by Damian Devine and Ryan McGuire.  

The key to the game for the Stars is for Boarman to be a dual threat like last week against BSM.  He's had three games with two touchdowns.  Could he make it four against St. Louis Park.

If you attended last week's game between St. Louis Park and the Orono Spartans, you would have probably headed toward Highway 12 at the end of the first quarter.  At that point, the Orioles were in a massive hole, trailing 28-0 and ended up falling to the Spartans 52-6.  The only touchdown was scored by Stefano Giovannelli.  The St. Thomas bound senior, usually a receiver, ran 67 yards for St. Louis Park's only touchdown.  The Orioles were plagued by turnovers and an ineffective game from quarterback Declan Gaines as he completed 5 of 11 passes for 36 yards.  Jimmy Hager, who ran for 163 yards against BSM, was held to 49 yards.  There was a bright spot on defense in Zach Helfmann as he recorded 13 tackles.  

The key to the game for the Orioles is to get the offense back on track and put pressure on Boarman.  

A couple of things to be aware of if you plan on attending the game.  The weather picture is going to be a chilly one with the temperature in the mid 40s so get your winter jacket out of storage.  And since it's Homecoming, you might want to get to the game early to get a good seat.  Game time is 7 PM.  

 

Elk River Elks Run Past Rogers Royals

 The Rogers defense couldn't play keep away against Cade Osterman as the Elk River quarterback ran for three touchdowns to lead the Elks to a 35-14 win over the Royals Friday night at Jerry Schremf Field in Elk River.  

The Royals got the inter battle off to a good start when Kalvin Eull broke a couple of Elk tackles and ran 33 yards into the end zone.  The Elks would bounce back facing a third down and nine.  Osterman kept the ball and ran down the left sideline 49 yards to tie the game at seven.  

Osterman would reach the end zone again in the second quarter as he scampered down the field like cars going through the construction on Highway 169 and scored a 76 yard touchdown.  They would extend their lead on Myles Gordon's four yard touchdown run.  But Rogers was not out of it yet.  Anthony Powell would run 69 yards into the end zone with :06.4 left in the first half and the Elks led 21-14 at halftime.  

Neither team would tally in the third quarter though Osterman left the game due to an injury and was replaced by Darioh Balisidya.  There would be good news for the red and black clad fans.  Osterman's injury was not serious and he did return to the game.  His presence was vital to the Elks in the fourth quarter when it looked like he scored on an eight yard run but he came up short of the goal line.  The next play would result in his third touchdown on the game.  Elk River would wrap up the scoring on a 32 yard run up the middle from Logan Bunker and he put the game out of reach for Rogers.  The Royals headed closer to the end zone on two pass interference penalties by the Elks but they lost the ball in the end zone and Elk River would down the ball twice to end the game.  

At half time, member of the 1982 Elk River team were honored.  They played in the Class AA semifinals and lost to eventual champion Stillwater.  

The Elks improved their record to 5-0 and will host the Moorhead Spuds in their Homecoming game Friday, October 7 at 7 PM.  The Royals fell to 2-3 and will also be home on the 7th against the Brainerd Warriors at 7 PM.  

SLP Orioles-Orono Spartans Football Preview

 For the second straight week, the St. Louis Park Oriole football team will be on the road.  Friday night they will head to Pesonen Stadium in Long Lake to take on the Orono Spartans.

Last Saturday the Orioles headed to Benilde-St. Margaret's and they were victorious in the Battle of St. Louis Park 33-28.  Jimmy Hager scored the winning touchdown with :30 in regulation and rushed for a season high 163 yards to spoil the Red Knights Homecoming.  His best game since Week Two when he rushed for 158 yards and entered the end zone.  Stefano Giovannelli caught only two passes and they were both for touchdowns.  

Defense also factored into the equation as Tony Kruse intercepted two Nirvaan Yogarajah passes, the first was a 53 yard touchdown.  Zach Helfmann recorded 11 tackles.  \

The key to the game for the Orioles is to stay focused and for Hager to have a solid running game.  

This season, there have likely been a lot of long faces in Long Lake since the Orono Spartans enter Week five with a record of 1-3.  The Spartans three losses have been to Holy Angels, Waconia and last week to the fifth ranked team in Class AAAAA the Chanhassen Storm 10-7.  The Spartans were up 7-3 in the fourth quarter until Storm quarterback Grant Muffenbier scored on a one yard touchdown run that would be the game winner.  The bright spot for Orono was junior running back Liam Rodgers who had his best output since the opener against the Cooper Hawks, rushing 26 times for 191 yards.  On defense, Nash Tichy had 11 tackles.  

The key to the game for the Spartans is for quarterback Charles Kraus to get into a rhythm.  He has not had a game this season where he has completed more than 50% of his passes.  

It will be a favorable weather picture with a high in the low 70s but you might want to bring a jacket since the temperature my cool down in the second half.  Game time is 7 PM.  

SLP Orioles Win Football Battle of St. Louis Park

The battle lines were being drawn for Benilde St. Margaret's Homecoming football game against its intercity rival the St. Louis Park Orioles but it was Jimmy Hager who scored the game winning touchdown with :30 to play to lead the Orioles to a 33-28 win Saturday afternoon.  

The Orioles would score the lone touchdown of the first quarter on a 14 yard pass from Declan Gaines to Stefano Giovannelli.  

In the second quarter, the Red Knights would even the score when Naarvann Yogarajah threw aa 20 yard left side touchdown pass to Jack Shull and both teams went into the locker rooms even at seven.  

If you arrived for the game at halftime, you didn't miss a lot of third quarter scoring.  BSM would take the lead on a 11 touchdown pass from Yogarajah to Luke Guggenberger.  The Red Knights would get the ball back after a shotgun snap to Gaines went awry that William Frattalone recovered at the Oriole one yard line and on the next play, Yogarajah kept the ball and entered the end zone.  The Orioles would bounce back as the Gaines to Giovannelli combination would prevail for a second time, which would be a 37 yard touchdown.  BSM would counter :18 later on Yogarajah's pass to Khalif Brown on the left sideline and he scampered down the field for a 70 yard touchdown.   St. Louis Park would come close to BSM on a 67 yard touchdown pass to Javaris Ellis and AJ Foater's two point conversion cut the Red Knight lead to 28-21.

Defense would be the key for the Orioles in the fourth quarter.  The Red Knights had the ball and Yogarajah's pass was intercepted by Tony Kruse.  He went into cruise control and went 53 yards for a touchdown to to cut the lead to 28-27.  BSM had a chance to send the red and white clad fans home happy on Homecoming but Yogarajah's pass was intercepted by Kruse that gave the ball back to St. Louis Park.  Facing a fourth down conversion, Hager would come up big to give the Orioles first and goal, followed by a four yard touchdown run with :30 left in the game.  The Red Knights had another chance to win the game with :01 remaining but after a couple of laterals following a Yogarajah pass, they would come up short to end the game.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 2-2 and will head to Long Lake next Friday, September 30 to face the Orono Spartans at Pesonen Stadium at 7 PM.  BSM fell to -04 and they will also return to action on the 30th as they head to Richfield for a 7 PM game with the Holy Angels Stars.  

SLP Orioles-Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights Football Preview

 It's a rarity for both St. Louis Park schools to play a Saturday afternoon football game as the St. Louis Park Orioles head to Benilde-St. Margaret's to battle the Red Knights.  

The Orioles enter Week 4 with a record of 1-2.  Last week against the Two Rivers Warriors, a team who came into the game scoring only eight points in two games,  St. Louis Park came up empty on their final drive and lost to Two Rivers 20-15.  All the scoring was done in the first half that started with a 77 yard touchdown pass from Declan Gaines to Stefano Giovannelli and a rushing touchdown from Jimmy Hager.  Hager had 28 carries for 75 yards.  On the defensive side, Bryson Huntley recorded 15 tackles.  

The key to the game for the Orioles is to take care of the football and cut down on turnovers.  Also the Gaines to Giovannelli combination can also be a factor.  

This season, the Red Knights armor hasn't been shining as much as they head into their Homecoming game with a record of 0-3.  Bear in mind that two of their three losses have come to Class 5A powers Spring Lake Park and Chaska.  Last week, BSM fell to the Chaska Hawks 28-7.  Hawks quarterback Jammarius Courtney ran for four touchdowns.  The Red Knights lone touchdown came from Luke Guggenberger, who caught 11 passes for 121 yards.  

The keys to the game for the Red Knights is for quarterback Nirvaan Yogarajah to have a big game and for the defense to put pressure on games.  

After a wet Friday night, the weather picture for Saturday is expected to be much better with the high temperature close to 70 degrees.  Game time is 12 noon.  

SLP Orioles Pound Park Center Pirates

There was no Saturday morning confusion for the host St. Louis Park Orioles as Vesna Dennison,  Halima Bigirindavyi and Lucia Versailles scored two goals apiece to lead them to a 9-1 rout of the Park Center Pirates.  

The Orioles got their first goal when Anna Williams made a centering pass to Bigirindavyi and she sent the ball to the net.  They would go up by two on Dennison's penalty kick goal.  St. Louis Park wasn't finished yet.  They would increase their lead to three after the ball deflected off a Pirate and into the net.  Versailles was credited with the goal.  It would be a four goal lead when Alicia Margalli fed Maren Wilsey and put it past Park Center goalkeeper Nefertari Moor.  The Orioles would capitalize on Moor played out of the net, enabling Dennison to find an opening and build their halftime lead to six.  

It wouldn't take long for St. Louis Park to further distance themselves from Park Center in the second half.  Sophia Dvorak was awarded a corner kick and getting into position was Versailles who received the kick and put the ball into the net.  Even the reserves got into the scoring column as Jana Faust would tally :53 later.  Birgirindavyi would round out the Oriole scoring.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 2-5-1 and embark on a four game road trip Monday, September 19 at 7 PM in Chaska against the Hawks.  Park Center fell to 0-6 and will also be in action on the 19th when they head up Highway 65 to Spring Lake Park for a 7 PM game with the Panthers.  

It's Win Number One for Two Rivers Warriors

 Two Rivers football fans would head home over the Mendota Bridge happy when Adam Suchy scored the game winning touchdown with 1:30 left to lead the Warriors to a 20-15 win over the host St. Louis Park Orioles Friday night.  

The Warriors, who came into Friday's game scoring eight points in two games, got off to a tough start on their first drive.  A bad snap to quarterback Nate Schaffer was recovered in the end zone and resulted in an Oriole safety.  St. Louis Park would go up by nine on Declan Gaines' 77 yard touchdown pass to Stefano Giovannelli.  Two Rivers would conclude the first quarter scoring on Mason Moynihan's seven yard touchdown run.  

Both teams would tally in the second quarter.  The Warriors would vault into the lead when Schaffer passed to Suchy.  He broke an Oriole tackle and scampered 54 yards for a touchdown.  The Orioles would go back in front on Jimmy Hager's three yard touchdown run and they led 15-14 at halftime.  

Neither team would score in the third quarter.  Heading into the fourth quarter, Two Rivers would follow up a key fourth down conversion with Suchy's second touchdown, a 27 yard pass from Schaffer.  St. Louis Park would get the ball, looking to wrap up the win.  But Gaines' pass was intercepted by Jonny Youness.  The Warriors did not run out the clock and would eventually punt the ball back to the Orioles and give them another chance to become victorious.  Unfortunately, it didn't happen as they were stopped past midfield.  

Two Rivers improved their record to 1-2 and will host the Hill-Murray Pioneers on Friday, September 23 at 7 PM.  St. Louis Park fell to 1-2 and will head to Benilde-St. Margaret's on Saturday, September 24 for a noon game with the Red Knights.  

Friday night's game was a Tackle Cancer Game to raise money for the Randy Shaver Cancer Research and Community Fund.  The total amount raised was $524.  

Battle of St. Louis Park Soccer a Split Decision

 Thursday night was The Battle of St. Louis Park Soccer as the St. Louis Park Orioles hosted their city rival the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights with the girls routing the Orioles 6-1 and the boys holding off BSM 2-1.  

First up was the girls game where Kiya Gilliand broke open a close game with two goals in a four goal second half to lead the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights to a 6-1 victory over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Red Knights would take the early lead when Nicolette Bisson made a left side pass to Lauren Hillins and she would connect.  They would go up by two on Grace Horejsi's center slot goal.  The Orioles would end the shutout as a result of BSM goalkeeper Clara Luger playing far out of the crease.  Vesna Dennison headed downfield, saw the opening on Luger's right side and sent the ball past the goal line.  The Red Knights led 2-1 at halftime.  

BSM would put the game away in the second half with four unanswered goals.  Siena Carver would score from the left side and Gilliand would tally twice, the second goal on a rebound.  Brooklyn Miller would wrap up the Red Knight scoring as she received a pass from Kayla Smart and sent it to the net.  

The Red Knights, ranked fifth in Class AA improved their record to 4-3-2 and will head up I-35 on Saturday, September 17 to take on the Hermantown Hawks at 3 PM.  The Orioles fell to 1-6-1 and will also be in action on the 17th, hosting the Park Center Pirates at 11 AM. 

Since Anson Opara took over for Chato as head coach of the Orioles soccer team, they have gone 4-1-2 since the season opening loss to Wayzata.  Opara and the Orioles got a big win Thursday night as they upset the fifth ranked team in class AA, the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights 2-1.  

St. Louis Park got on the scoreboard when Robel Tefara, making his first start of the season, lined an indirect free kick into the net.  BSM would tie the game on Matthew Robinson's goal from the far right side of the net.  The Orioles would regain the lead on Abdi Abdullahi's goal with 14:34 left in the first half and it would eventually be the game winner since both teams would play solid defense the remainder of the game.  

The Orioles improved their record to 4-2-2 and will return to action on Monday, September 19 as they head to Chaska for a 5 PM game against the Hawks.  The Red Knights fell to 4-2-1 and return to action on Saturday, September 17 as they head to Minneapolis Southwest to face the Lakers at 3 PM.  It was the first game this season where BSM has given up two goals.  

Two Rivers Warriors-SLP Orioles Football Preview

 The St. Louis Park Oriole football team goes for their second straight win Friday night as they host the Two Rivers Warriors.  

Two Rivers, based in Mendota Heights, has had a couple of weeks where their opponents have been shooting at the walls of heartaches for Warrior fans the last two weeks as the Warriors have been outscored 61-8.  Last week, Two Rivers was shut out by their city rival the St. Thomas Academy Cadets 51-0.  Savion Hart ran for three touchdowns for the Cadets.  The Warriors only touchdown so far has been a six yard reception by Ramzi Rislove against Tartan.  

The key to the game for Two Rivers is to establish a running game and generate some offense.  

On a rainy Bloomington Stadium field last Friday, the St. Louis Park Orioles got their first win 28-15 over the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars.  

The big story for the Orioles last week was Stefano Giovannelli.  He threw a touchdown pass to Mason Amelse and intercepted two Jaguar passes that he took to the end zone, including a 65 yard run.  Jimmy Hager also recorded a touchdown as he rushed 13 times for 158 yards.  

In addition to Giovannelli's defensive success, another player who also excelled on defense was Zach Helfmann with 13 tackles.  

The key to the game for St. Louis Park is for Hager to have another outstanding running game and the defense to come up big against a Warrior team that hasn't found their offensive rhythm.  

If you're planning to go to the game, you might want to take an umbrella.  The weather picture calls for showers around the second half.  Game time as usual is 7 PM.  

SLP Orioles Split With Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars

 Like a Schoolhouse Rock song from the early 1970s, three was a magic number Tuesday as the St. Louis Park girls soccer team was shutout by the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars 3-0 and the boys blanked the Jaguars by the same score.  

First up was the girls game as McKenna Long scored a goal and an assist to lead the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars to a 3-0 shutout of the host St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Jaguars scored the lone goal of the first half when Sarah Totten fed Long in the center slot and she put Jefferson ahead.  

Long would help set up the Jaguars first goal in the second half on a pass to Becca Brendalen and she would score from the left side.  They would score their final goal on a throw in that deflected off of Ayah Makled and rolled into the net.  

Jefferson won their third straight game and improved their record to 6-1-1.  They will travel to New Prague on Thursday, September 15 for a 5 PM game with the Trojans.  

The Orioles fell to 1-5-1 and will also return to action on the 15th, hosting the Benilde-St. Maragret's Red Knights at 5 PM.  

On to the boys game as the St. Louis Park Orioles used a three goal second half to shout out the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars 3\-0.  

Neither team erased the zeros from their end of the scoreboard in the first half as both teams played solid defense.  

The Orioles would erase the deadlock in the second half when Tyler Puentes kick was fielded by Elijah Puchner and he sent the ball to the net.  They would go up by two on Amanuel Shetaye's liner from around the 30 yard line that landed past the goal line.  St. Louis Park concluded the scoring on Bjorn Bleske's shot that hit the crossbar and landed in the net.  

Tuesday night was also Youth Night where two teams of Park Valley United U10 teams scrimmaged at halftime of both games.  

The Orioles improved their record to 3-2-2 and return to action on Thursday, September 15 as they host the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights at 7 PM.  

The Jaguars fell to 5-2-1 and will also be in action on the 15th when they travel to New Prague for a 7 PM game with the Trojans.  In four of Jefferson's wins this season, they have outscored their opponents 10-0.  

SLP Orioles Split With Chanhassen Storm

 Thursday night was the first home Metro West Conference soccer double header as the host St. Louis Park Orioles battled the Chanhassen Storm with the boys coming out on top 1-0 and the girls blown out by the Storm 9-1.  

First up was the boys game where one goal turned out to be enough, thanks to Tylor Puentes second half goal that led the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 1-0 win over the Chanhassen Storm.  

Neither team would tally in the first half.  The Storm had an opportunity to take the early lead when Aayan Shrestha went two on one downfield but his shot was blocked by Oriole goalkeeper Luis Benitez Matias.  

St. Louis Park would find the net in the second half as Abdi Abdullahi fed Puentes on the left side of the net and he propelled the ball to the goal.  It would turn out to be the deciding goal of the game.  

The Orioles improved their record to 2-2-1 and return to action Saturday, September 10 at noon in Bloomington against the Kennedy Eagles.  The Storm fell to 2-3-1 and will host their district rival the Chanhassen Storm on Thursday, September 15 at 7 PM.  

The girls game would turn out to be a stormy stormy night for the St. Louis Park Orioles as Grace Fogarty scored a record six goals to lead the Chanhassen Storm to a 6-1 win.

Fogarty, who will be wearing a maroon and gold jersey next season at Minnesota scored her first goal from the center slot.  The Orioles tied the game on Vesna Dennison's goal 1:30 later.  But Chanhassen came right back to take the lead for good on Fogarty's second goal.  The Storm would add four more goals to their ledger with two coming from fogarty and Bella Naples to take a 6-1 halftime lead.  

Chanhassen continued their goal run in the second half with three more goals.  The first came from Kaia Burroughs, followed by two more from Fogarty in a span of 1:31.  

The Storm improved their record to 4-1 and will host the Chaska Hawks on Thursday, September 15 at 5 PM.  The Orioles fell to 1-4 and return to action on Saturday, September 10 at 2 PM against the Kennedy Eagles in Bloomington.  

SLP Orioles-Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars Football Preview

 Hearts will be heavy Friday night when the St. Louis Park Orioles face the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars at Bloomington Stadium following the news that Jaguar freshman Ethan Glynn suffered a paralyzing injury in last week's freshman team's opener against the Chaska Hawks.

Glynn lost feeling in his shoulders following a tackle and could be paralyzed from the waist down.  The good news is that his surgery was successful.  

More important, there will be a varsity game as both the Orioles and Jaguars are on a quest for their first win this season.  Last week, St. Louis Park was shut out by the Simley Spartans 20-0 and Jefferson fell to the Chaska Hawks 35-7.  

In the Orioles season opener, freshman quarterback Declan Gaines made his varsity debut and his inexperience showed completing 10 of 25 passes for 69 yards, 61 of them were to Stefano Giovannelli.  The ground game was led by Jimmy Hager, who had 12 carries for 55 yards.  The bright spot on defense was Zach Helfmann, leading the Orioles with 22 tackles.  

The key to the game for the Orioles is for Gaines to become more comfortable running the offense and spreading the ball around to his receiving corps.  The Helfmann anchored defense has to stop the Jaguar passing attack.  

Looking at the Jaguars, junior quarterback Tyson Schultz in their opener against Chaska completed 16 of 33 passes for 249 yards and accounted for Jefferson's only touchdown, a seven yard pass to Daniel Freitag.  If the name Freitag sounds familiar, he's also an outstanding basketball player for Jefferson.  He also excelled on defense, recording an interception.  

The key to the game for the Jaguars is to test the Orioles pass defense and for Schultz to have a solid game.  The defense last week gave up 213 yards and three touchdowns by Reese turner so they need to stop the running game.  

There could be a wet weather picture Friday night so you might want to pack an umbrella to the game.  Game time is 7 PM.  

SLP Oriole Soccer Teams Swept in Nonconference Play

 It was a warm Tuesday night but things got chilly for the St. Louis Park soccer teams at home as the girls were beaten by the Minneapolis Southwest Lakers 3-1 and the boys lost a heartbreaker to the DeLaSalle Islanders 3-2.  

First up was the girls game that featured balance scoring from three different players to lead the Minneapolis Southwest Lakers to a 3-1 win over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The first half looked like it was going to be scoreless but Wren VanDeWalker let a shot fly into the net to put the Lakers ahead.  They would go up by two at the half when the ball deflected off Elika Vahhaji's foot and rolled into the net.  

Minneapolis Southwest would increase their lead to three in the second half when Anne Layon laid her foot on the ball and drove it to the net.  There would be no shutout for the Lakers since the Orioles would erase the zero from their portion of the scoreboard on a penalty kick from Vesna Dennison.  Neither team would find the net and that's how the game ended.  

Southwest improved their record to 3-1.  The Lakers have won three straight games including two by identical 3-1 scores since losing their season opener to the Minnehaha Academy Redhawks on August 25.  They return to action on Thursday, September 8 as they travel to Minneapolis Washburn for a 5 PM game against the Millers.  

St. Louis Park fell to 1-3 and will also be in action on the 8th when they host the Chanhassen Storm at 7 PM.  

Now to the boys game and just when you thought the game was headed into overtime, there would be a game winning goal from Myles Dillon-Parks with 1:43 in regulation time to lead the DeLaSalle Islanders to a 3-2 win over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Islanders would strike twice in the first half.  The first goal coming from Kenevan Carter and the second on a penalty kick from Dillon-Parks.  

There would be some good news for the Orioles in the second half as they came back to tie the game.  Tylor Puentes would score from the left side and Abdi Abdullahi would line a shot into the net to tie the game.  Would there be overtime on this warm Tuesday night>  The answer would be no when Dillon-Parks scored on a header with 1:43 to go.  

DeLaSalle won their third straight game and improved their record to 3-0.  They will head to Bloomington to face the Kennedy Eagles on Thursday, September 8 at 7 PM.  St. Louis Park fell to 1-2-1 and will also be in action on the 8th as they host the Chanhassen Storm at 5 PM.  

Simley Spartans Shut Out SLP Orioles

 The St. Louis Park defense got a full nelson in their season opener Friday night as Gavin Nelson scored two touchdowns to lead the Simley Spartans to a 20-0 shutout of the host Orioles.  

Defense would prevail in the early going when the Spartans Jake Stanton intercepted Orioles quarterback Declan Gaines on his first varsity possession.  St. Louis Park helped stop a fourth down conversion on Zach Helfmann's sack of Simley quarterback Caden Renslow.  On offense, Simley scored the lone first quarter touchdown when Nelson recovered a fumble inside the end zone.  

Nelson would make his second trip across the goal line in the second quarter.  He went up the middle, broke several St. Louis Park tackles and scored a 19 yard touchdown to put the Spartans ahead 14-0.  Renslow would wrap up the scoring for Simley, scoring on a 10 yard keeper run.  There would be no scoring in the second half as both teams failed to reach the red zone.

Simley opened the season with a 1-0 record and will head to Maplewood on Friday, September 9 to face the Hill-Murray Pioneers at 7 PM.  St. Louis Park fell to 0-1 and will also be on the road the 9th as they head to Bloomington Sradium to face the Jefferson Jaguars at 7 PM.  

Simley Spartans-SLP Orioles Football Preview

 It's a sign that Labor Day weekend is looming.  It also signifies the start of the Minnesota high school football season as the St. Louis Park Orioles begin the 2022 campaign hosting the Simley Spartans Friday, September 2.  

The Spartans, based in Inver Grove Heights advance to the state Class AAAA football tournament last season with a record of 7-4 but the euphoria of a state tournament berth ended in the quarterfinals with a 40-0 rout from the eventual state champion Hutchinson Tigers.  This season, Simley has a couple of key offensive cogs returning in wide receiver Tayvion McCoy and running back Gavin Nelson.  Nelson, who also is part of the school's successful wrestling program will wrestle for the Gophers next season.  His athleticism could pin the Oriole defense and also put the ball in the end zone.  

As for the Orioles, the good news is that 85 players came out for football in 2022.  It's the largest turnout in many years (and likely since the author of this blog has been worked in various press box capacities, including timer and spotter.).  There's quite a bit of experience on both sides of the football, including wide receiver Stefano Giovannelli.  Giovannelli, who pitched a no-hitter in the Section 6AAAA baseball playoffs last may will continue his football career next season at St. Thomas.  

However, there is some bad news is that last year's quarterback will Dvorak graduated and the new St. Louis Park signal caller is sophomore Declan Gaines.  Last season, he played on the freshman team and did not appear in any varsity action.  But he worked hard during the offseason and he has an opportunity to lead the Oriole offense for three years.  The defense has a couple of key returning players in defensive linemen Brian Banks and William Howell.  

Will Simley's state tournament experience continue to this season or will St. Louis Park's new found depth be a factor in Gaines' first game?  The weather picture is going to be a warm one so bring plenty of water because the temperature will be in the 80s for about the first half and drop into the upper 70s when both teams begin their three minute warmup for the second half.  Game time, as usual is 7 PM.  

SLP Oriole Soccer Begins September With a Rout and a Tie

 The first day of September was a scorcher as both St. Louis Park Oriole soccer teams were in action Thursday night as the girls blew away the Minneapolis South Tigers 9-1 and the boys played to a 1-1 tie against the Eden Prairie Eagles.  

First up was the girls and it was a big night for Vesna Dennison who scored four goals to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 9-91 rout of the Minneapolis South Tigers.  

The Orioles would jump out to a three goal lead in the first half that began with Dennison's first goal coming from an indirect free kick.  Hanna Wilsey would put St. Louis Park ahead by two on a shot from the center slot.  Dennison would tally for the second time to increase the lead to three.  There would be no shutout for the Orioles since Ella Tennant would tally.  It would be Minneapolis South's only goal since St. Louis Park would wrap up the first half scoring with two more goals.  Audrey Martin would score from the left side and Dennison would get the hat trick on a penalty kick with 5:55 left in the first half.  

Dennison was not done sending the ball to the net in the second half as she would score her fourth goal on a rebound.  For the second time in the game, the Orioles were awarded a penalty kick and they capitalized on it when Sophia Dvorak found the net.  Jordan Doliner concluded the scoring on a breakaway with :17 left.  

St. Louis Park ended a two game losing streak and now has a record of 1-2.  They will host the Minneapolis Southwest Lakers on Tuesday, September 6 at 5 PM.  Minneapolis South fell to 2-1 and will also return to action on the 6th as they travel to Chaska to face the Hawks at 7 PM.  

Now to the boys game.  Both the St. Louis Park Orioles and Eden Prairie Eagles scored one first half goal and that would be the final result as both teams would play to a 1-1 tie.  

The Orioles would strike first on Tylor Puentes goal and Alexander Yu would tie the game on a penalty kick.  It would be all the balls that would enter the net on this Thursday night.  Both teams had scoring opportunities, including Yu's chance to put the Eagles ahead on a free kick going up against a three player Oriole wall.  But Yu's shot would be blocked and the score would remain even at one.  

St. Louis Park's record stands at 1-1-1 and will be back in action on Tuesday, September 6 at 7 PM as they host the DeLaSalle Islanders.  Eden Prairie recorded their second tie of the season and now has a record of 1-0-2.  Their next game is Saturday, September 3 at 3 PM against the Edina Hornets at Kuhlman Stadium in Edina.  

A Royal Soccer Split

 The 2020 home soccer season opened Tuesday night for the St. Louis Park Orioles soccer teams as they faced their former Classic Lake Conference rival the Hopkins Royals.  The boys team blasted the Royals 6-1 and the girls fell to Hopkins 7-1.  

Chalk up win number one for new St. Louis Park boys soccer head coach Anson Opara as Abdi Abdullabi scored four goals to lead the Orioles to a 6-1 rout of the Hopkins royals.  

The Orioles struck first early as Raul Sanchez Sandoval made a centering pass to Abdullabi and he fired it into the net 1:36 into the first half.  It would be the only goal of the half.  

St. Louis Park would go up by two in the second half as freshman Tylor Puentes scored on a penalty kick.  He almost had his second goal but it was disallowed due to an offside call.  Hopkins would cut the lead to one on Isaac Sanders left side goal.  It would be the only goal for the Royals since the Orioles would score four unanswered goals to put the game away.  The first three would come in a stretch of 2:15.  Puentes would score his second goal, then a ball the deflected off of Abdullabi entered the net.  He would score the Orioles final two goals, including the final goal where he got in front of the crease and rebounded Daniel Bevell's shot.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 1-1 and hosts the Eden Prairie Eagles on Thursday, September 1 at 7 PM.  Hopkins fell to 0-1 and will also return to action on the first as they host the St. Michael-Albertville Knights at 7 PM.  

Heading into the second game, it was Avery Petty and Charlotte Li who scored three goals apiece to lead the Hopkins Royals to a 7-1 drubbing of the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Royals ascended to the throne in the first half with four consecutive goals.  Two were scored by Petty and she would get credited for the assist on Charlotte Li's goal.  Abby Hoiska would also add to the Hopkins ledger :33 later.  

Hoiska would begin the second half scoring for the Royals to give them a five goal lead.  Petty would get the hat trick with 27:00 to go and Li would tally twice to wrap up the Royals scoring.  There would be no shut out for Hopkins that night as Maren Wilsey's left side shot would enter the net.  

Hopkins opened the season with a 1-0 record and hosts the St. Michael-Albertville Knights on Thursday, September 1 at 5 PM.  St. Louis Park fell to 0-2 and hosts the Minneapolis South Tigers, also on the first at 5 PM.  

Practice Begins for 2022 Fall Sports Season

 It's a sign that summer is heading toward the homestretch when high school athletic teams throughout Minnesota open fall sports practice Monday, August 15.  

Teams in football, soccer, volleyball, cross country, girls swimming and tennis get ready for competition.  Here's when St. Louis Park's teams open up their season.  

The first out of the gate is girls tennis as the Orioles host the Hopkins Royals on Tuesday, August 23 at 4:30 PM.  

A new era begins in boys soccer on Saturday the 27th as Anson Opara, who takes over the coaching reigns from Chato leads the Orioles in their season opener against a tough nonconference opponent the perennial power Wayzata Trojans at 3 PM.  

Also on the 27th, the girls soccer team heads to St. Paul for a noon game against the Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders.  

Both the boys and girls teams will be in action on Tuesday, August 30 at Hopkins with the boys underway at 5 PM and the girls at 7 PM.  There's a home opener doubleheader on Thursday, September 1 with the girls hosting the Minneapolis South Tigers at 5 PM and the boys hosting the Eden Prairie Eagles at 7 PM.  

But wait.  There's more action on the 27th as the volleyball team heads to Bloomington to face the Kennedy Eagles at noon.  They will head up Brooklyn Blvd. to face the Park Center Pirates at 7 PM on the 30th and their home opener will be against the St. Paul Harding Knights on September 1 at 7 PM.  

The following night, Friday, September 2, the Oriole football team opens its 2022 campaign as they host the Simley Spartans at 7 PM.  Earlier in the day, the cross country teams will run in the Rosemount Invitational.  

Moving into the next week, the girls swimming diving teams open their season in Waconia on Thursday, September 8 at 6 PM.  A week later on the 15th is their home opener against the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights, also a 6 PM start.  

Get ready for plenty of exciting fall sport action.  

HSGN Reviews NBC's Password Revival

This week, Password returned to NBC 33 years after Super Password was the last show to air in the 12 PM ET time period and 13 years after the show's last incarnation Million Dollar Password.  

HSGN did watch the premiere episode and it did some good points and bad points.  

First, let's look at the good points.  The basic set design is back with the two teams on each end of a table and a podium for the host in the middle.  As for the game, it's back to the original version of Password with a few modifications.  

The scoring system has been slightly changed from the first two versions.  Instead of 10 points for guessing the password on the first clue, the top value is reduced to six.  The first team to score 16 points (25 in the original) won the game.  Two games won the match and a chance to play the bonus round.  We'll get to that in a moment.  If both teams are tied at one game, then the contestants pick up signaling devices and are given clues to another word, which resembles Password Plus and Super Password.  The first player to identify the word wins the match.  

Looking at the bonus round, the contestant stands at a podium and 10 words arranged alphabetically like Alphabetics in the later Password runs.  The contestant picks a celebrity, which is regular Jimmy Fallon or in the first episode Jon Hamm and they have 30 seconds to guess as many passwords in the time frame.  Then the second celebrity plays using the words that have yet to be played.  If all 10 words are guessed before time runs out, the contestant wins $25,000.  less than 10, and it's $1000 per word.  

Now for the bad points.  Keke Palmer had no business hosting a show like Password.  She's way too loud and the best way of putting it, her style of hosting is like original host Allen Ludden on steroids.  If you saw Leslie Jones hosting ABC's version of Supermarket Sweep, she was also a screamer.  Palmer fits that description well.  But does the audience have to be so loud.  It was the type of audience that would be attending a rock concert instead of a cerebral word game.  

To sum it all up, it was great to see Password on TV again, the way it should be played but it would be a better show if they got a host like Anderson Cooper or Al Roker who didn't scream all the time.  It's your call.  Give it a shot on Tuesday nights or watch the earlier incarnations on BUZZR and YouTube.  

NBC's Last Soap Opera Moves to Peacock

 "Like sands through the hourglass, so are the Days of Our Lives."  

Those words began each episode of the long running NBC soap opera Days of Our Lives but after 57 years and more than 14,000 episodes, the last sand will go through the hourglass on September 9 as the network will move the show to its streaming service Peacock beginning September 12.  However, it will available to premium subscribers who pay a $4.99 per month fee.  

The switch to streaming marks the end of an era for NBC.  The network, which has been home to soaps such as Another World, The Doctors and Sunset Beach will have none on the air.  

The main reason for the switch is declining ratings.  Days of Our Lives is the lowest rated of the four surviving soap operas, trailing CBS's The Young and the Restless, The Bold and the Beautiful and ABC's General Hospital, the longest running of the daytime soaps.  

Days of Our Lives made its debut on November 8, 1965, replacing a short-lived Canadian produced serial Moment of Truth.  The show struggled in the ratings for three years and was on the verge of cancellation but it gained viewers and by January 1975, it moved to 1:30 ET, which was a problem time period for the last seven years due to the departure of Let's Make a Deal to ABC.  Three months later, Days of Our Lives expanded to an hour and it's been that way ever since.  

There have been many cast members over the show's 57 run, including several who went on to greater success on other shows.  They include Deidre Hall, who starred in a Sunday family drama that featured a young Shannen Doherty, Our House; Jed Allan, who hosted Celebrity Bowling; Alison Sweeney (still on) hosting The Biggest Loser and Charles Shaughnessy, who later played Maxwell Sheffield in the sitcom The Nanny.  

Days of Our Lives has built a solid fan base that includes a number of celebrity fans.  Supreme Court justice Thurgood Marshall was known for calling recess so he can catch up on the latest doings in the show's fictitious town of Salem.  Actress Julia Roberts and a former aide to then president Bill Clinton Monica Lewinsky.  Can the fan base sustain itself when it moves to Peacock?  

HSGN Turns Six August 1

 To quote the title of an AA Milne classic anthology of poems Now We Are Six, that's how many years HSGN will be on the blogosphere Monday, August 1.  

HSGN was started after the author's previous website examiner.com went out of business in 2016.  Since then, there have been more than 700 posts on high school sports and game shows, focusing on St. Louis Park games, since the author of this blog is a long time public address announcer for Oriole athletic events.  

One of the big highlights of the last high school sport season other than writing about St. Louis Park or state tournaments was the volleyball match between two perennial small school powerhouses, the Southwest Christian Stars and the Mayer Lutheran Crusaders in the Stars home gym in Chaska.  Before a packed house, Southwest Christian defeated Mayer Lutheran in five sets.  It was a very well played match and it showed that Minnesota, thanks to the perennial success of the University of Minnesota and Concordia University volleyball teams has become a hotbed just like hockey.

Now for some highlights on the high school front.  Larry McKenzie, who coached the Minneapolis Patrick Henry Patriots to four consecutive state Class AAA titles and added two more when he moved over to Minneapolis North, retired with 481 wins.  He also had a stint on the bench at Holy Angels.  

Kristofer Hokenson, who helped lead the St. Louis Park baseball team to their first state tournament berth since 1952 and will play next season for head coach John Anderson at Minnesota, is playing for the Northwoods League's Minnesota Mud Puppies.  They are the road team of the Thunder Bay Border Cats, due to COVID travel restrictions.  Hokenson the StarTribune Metro Player of the Year has played in 11 games and his batting average is .194.  He has struck out nine times in 36 at bats.  It takes awhile to adjust from high school to college baseball and hopefully he will have a successful college career.  

A sign that summer is  starting to wind down.  Fall sports practice begins in two weeks.  HSGN will have dates for St. Louis Park teams opening games around that time.  

The Passing of a Game Show Pioneer

 Before Wayne Brady asked the audience "Who wants to make a deal?" and Steve Harvey turned the syndicated version of Family Feud into a hit, he was the first African American to host a game show.  

On July 7, Adam Wade, who hosted the short-lived CBS game show Musical Chairs, passed away at the age of 87.  

Musical Chairs featured four contestants who competed to complete the next line of lyrics sung by Wade or a musical guest.  Among the guests who appeared on the show were a young Irene Cara, Search for Tomorrow star Mary Stuart and groups such as The Spinners, The Tokens and Sister Sledge.  Also appearing was kids show host Shari Lewis.  Let's not forget Derek Smith and the Musical Chairs Orchestra.  

In some instances, instead of contestants trying to choose the next line, they were asked a trivia question. 

The show was created and produced by Jerome Schnur and Don Kirschner.  The show's announcer was then WNBC-TV sportscaster, who also worked for NBC,   Pat Hernon.  

Three rounds were played on each show and the contestant who had the lowest score in the third round was eliminated.  Their chair was pulled back, just like the MTV game show Remote Control more than a decade later.  There were two different bonus rounds and in some shows, the winning player had their earnings doubled.  

Unfortunately, the show was a ratings flop and CBS canceled the show after 16 weeks.  But the show's cancellation wasn't all bad news for Wade.  He met his future wife Jeree on the show and in 1989, they were married.  

A footnote on Wade.  He made an early game show appearance in 1960 on the original version of To Tell the Truth after he had a couple of hit songs The Writing on the Wall and Take Good Care of Her.  He also worked with Dr. Jonas Salk on the polio vaccine.  

But for 16 weeks in 1975, Wade was a game show pioneer when he came on stage and sang the last line of the show's theme song "Let's play a game of Musical Chairs and give ourselves a round of applause."  

Busy Week for St. Louis Park Teams in State Tournaments

 St. Louis Park area teams competed in state tournaments this week as the Oriole baseball team made their first trip to state in 70 years and three Benilde-St. Margaret's teams took home medals.  

First up was the St. Louis Park baseball team's first trip to the state tournament since 1952 as they faced the Maple Grove Crimson in the Class AAAA quarterfinals on June 14 at CHS Field in St. Paul.  The Orioles took a 1-0 lead on Kristofer Hokenson's RBI that scored Stanley Regguinti in the top of the first inning but the Crimson, playing in their ninth state tournament, scored twice in the second and third innings to keep the Orioles from playing for the Class AAAA title.  St. Louis Park was plagued by three errors, including Ben Farley's error that would add a run to Maple Grove's ledger and the Orioles were sent to the consolation bracket with a 5-2 defeat.  

Things did not get any better the next morning at Parade Stadium in Minneapolis in the Battle of the Parks as St. Louis Park was routed by the Park of Cottage Grove Wolfpack 10-0 in a game shortened to five innings due to the 10 run rule.  The Wolfpack put the game away with eight runs in the third inning and Jackson Tessman pitched a one hitter and struck out nine batters to end the Orioles season.  But there is a bright spot to the Orioles state tournament run.  Hokenson was one of seven players nominated for the Mr. Baseball award that goes to the state's top player.  

If you're a Benilde-St. Margaret's fan, the news is better.  Both the boys and girls lacrosse teams and the baseball team competed in state tournaments and brought back to campus trophies and medals.  Starting with the girls lacrosse team,  the Red Knights beat the Gentry Warriors in the quarterfinals 8-7 and lost to their Metro West Conference rival the Chanhassen Storm in the semifinals 11-8. BSM was not finished as they faced the Rosemount Irish in the third place game and Maggie Gtaczyk scored a hat trick to lead them to an 8-7 victory.  

As for their male lacrosse counterparts, the Red Knights would win their second consecutive state title.  BSM had no problem with the Moorhead Spuds in the quarterfinals as Carsen Brandt scored four goals and assisted on two others to lead them to a 19-4 win.  Brandt would help BSM earn a championship berth with seven assists as they beat the Stillwater Ponies in the semifinals 15-10 and set up a rematch with the Prior Lake Lakers.  The Red Knights would win the championship trophy on Mitch Dokman's overtime goal 10-9.  

It all leads to the week's top highlight as the BSM baseball team took home their first Class AAA title trophy. In the quarterfinals, BSM capitalized on four Winona errors to beat the Winhawks 4-1.  The Red Knights battled back in the semifinals with three runs in the bottom of the sixth to beat the Grand Rapids Thunderhawks 10-8.   Facing the top seeded Mankato West Scarlets, the score was tied at three son the game went into extra innings.  The Scarlets failed to tally in the top of the eighth inning.  In the bottom of the inning, Tomas Lee singled and Sam Monk lined the ball off the left field wall to clinch the Class AAA championship.  Caleb Koskie, son of former Twin Corey Koskie pitched six and one third innings and struck out 12 batters.  

A big week for St. Louis Park area teams.  There were highlights.  There were lowlights.  And that concludes the high school sports season in Minnesota.  Fall sports practice begins August 15.