2022 MINNESOTA STATE HIGH SCHOOL CLASS AAAA BASEBALL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
(Games played Tuesday, June 14 at CHS Field, St. Paul)
10:00: Park (Cottage Grove) vs. Farmington (Seed 1)
1:00: St. Louis Park (Seed 5) vs. Maple Grove (Seed 4)
4:30: Sartell-St. Stephen vs. Stillwater (Seed 2)
7:30: Chanhassen vs. Andover (Seed 3)
Examining the Field: The opening game of the Class AAAA tournament is a rematch of last year's Class AAAA final as the Park of Cottage Grove Wolfpack faces the defending Class AAAA champion Farmington Tigers. The Wolfpack, in their fifth trip to state, have won eight of their last nine games and that includes a victory over the Rosemount Irish in the Section 3 final. The Tigers, in their third trip to state have been the dominate team in Class AAAA this season and got a two hitter from Hunter Frost in the Section 1 final against the Lakeville South Cougars. Two of their three losses have been to South Suburban Conference rival Lakeville North. Can the Tigers remain in the hunt to bring their second straight title trophy down Highway 3?
Next up is the St. Louis Park Orioles, in their first state tournament since 1952 battling the fourth seeded Maple Grove Crimson. The Orioles were seeded second in Section 6 and bounced back from a loss against the top seeded Hopkins Royals to take home the championship trophy. The key to the Orioles season has been the one two pitching punch of Kristofer Hokenson and Stefano Giovannelli. Giovannelli pitched a no-hitter in the first section game against the Minneapolis South Tigers. They will have a difficult task ahead in the Maple Grove Crimson, playing in their ninth state tournament. The Crimson won a pair of one run games in the Section 4 tournament and beat Andover 3-2 in the regular season. Can the Orioles set up a showdown with Farmington or will Maple Grove dash their hopes of a state title?
The third game of the day pits the Sartell-St. Stephen Sabers and the second seeded Stillwater Ponies. The Sabers, in their fifth trip to state, were seeded six in Section 8, beating the top three seeds St. Michael-Albertville, Rogers and Elk River. It gets tougher for the St. Cloud suburb as they face a tournament tested Stillwater Ponies, playing in their 11th state tournament. This season, they have scored more than 10 runs in 11 games and are 10-1 in that department. The Ponies have a legitimate shot to end Farmington's title reign.
Wrapping up the day's festivities is the Chanhassen Storm and the third seeded Andover Huskies. It's the first trip to state since 2015 for the Storm since 2015 and they beat the fourth seeded Shakopee Sabers to head to St. Paul. The Huskies are in their second consecutive state tournament and look to build on last year's third place finish. In four section games, Andover has outscored the opposition 25-0. It's been a great year for the growing Anoka County metropolis, winning section titles in boys and girls hockey. Can they add another trophy to wrap up the school year?
Be sure to drink plenty of fluids if you head to CHS Field on the 14th. It's going to be hot and it's not just the action on the field.
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