Dennison's Hat Trick Leads SLP Orioles to Third Straight Win

 The key to the St. Louis Park Orioles hot start has been senior Vesna Dennison and for the third straight game she got the hat trick to lead the host Orioles to a 4-1 win over the Minneapolis South Tigers Thursday night.  

Depth would be a key for the Orioles in the first half as reserve player Jana Faust would score from the left side to put St. Louis Park ahead.  Dennison would score her first goal as she went top shelf with 2:35 left in the half.  

The Tigers would open the second half scoring on a goal from Ella Tennant to cut the lead to one.  But the Orioles would bounce back with two straight goals from Dennison to put the game away.  

In three games, Dennison has scored 11 goals and St. Louis Park has outscored the opposition 26-1.  

The Orioles improved their record to 3-0 and will wrap up their three game homestand on Tuesday, September 5 against the Minneapolis Southwest Lakers at 7 PM.  The Tigers will also return to action on the 5th as they head up to New Hope to take on the Cooper Hawks at 7 PM.  

Second Half Outburst Leads SLP Orioles to Rout of Kennedy Eagles

 Picking up where they left off after their season opening rout of Park Center, Vesna Dennison scored four second half goals to lead the host St. Louis Park Orioles to a 10-1 rout of the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles Tuesday night.  

The Orioles struck early as Hanna Wilsey scored on a rebound goal.  Ava Krueger would put St. Louis Park ahead by two with 15:03 left in the first half.  The score would have been higher but keeping the Eagles in the game was the spectacular goalkeeping of senior Stephanie Duran.  She made a couple of outstanding saves.  The first came from reserve player Stella Bentley and the second when Krueger headed downfield toward the net, sent the ball toward the net but it was Duran who prevented any further first half goals.  

Heading into the second half, the Orioles would get two straight goals from Dennison, followed by a liner from Anna Turcotte that landed in the net and increase the St. Louis Park lead to five.  Dennison would get the hat trick and Krueger would tally a second time, extending their unanswered goal streak to 19.  The streak would come to an end as Kennedy's Kelsey Cruz Rojas would end any hopes of a shutout.  The Orioles would respond :14 later on Wilsey's second goal.  Dennison would find the net a fourth time and Alicia Margalli would conclude the scoring with 1:32 to play.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 2-0 and will host the Minneapolis South Tigers on Thursday, August 31 at 7 PM.  The Orioles have outscored their opponents in two games 22-1.  Bloomington Kennedy fell to 1-1 and will host the Cretin-Derham Hall Raiders on Tuesday, September 5 at 7 PM at Bloomington Stadium.  

Wayzata Trojans Shut Out SLP Orioles in Boys Home Opener

 The St. Louis Park boys soccer team opened their home season against the defending Class AAA champion Wayzata Trojans but for the second straight game they were held to zero goals as the Trojans scored a goal in each half to beat the Orioles 2-0 Saturday morning.

The Trojans got their lone first half goal when Aiden Judickas made a left side pass to Charlie Piller and he piled a shot past oriole goalkeeper Wes Smith that landed in the net to give Wayzata a 1-0 halftime lead.  

It didn't take long for the Trojans to increase their lead in the second half as Smith faced a flurry of shots.  The first bounced off the top post, the second, he made the save and on the third shot, Lassi Koivukangas sent the ball over the goal line, 2:41 into the half.  That was all Wayzata needed to clinch the victory.  

Wayzata began the season with a 1-0 record and will travel to Rosemount on Tuesday, August 29 to face the Irish at 7 PM.  The Orioles fell to 0-2 and embark on a four game road trip beginning Thursday, September 7 at 7 PM against the Chanhassen Storm.  In two games, St. Louis Park has been outscored 5-0.  

Fall Sports Practice Start August 14

 Though temperatures are still hovering past 80 degrees, it's a sign that mid August means the start of practice for the fall sports season in Minnesota on Monday, August 14.  

Football, soccer, volleyball, girls tennis and cross country players get their equipment out of storage and get ready for the 2023 season, even in St. Louis Park.  Here's when the Oriole athletic teams begin their regular season.  

Thursday, August 24, girls tennis and boys and girls soccer begin regular season competition.  The only team home is the girls tennis team as they open up against the Southwest Christian Stars at 4 PM.  The boys soccer team begins a brutal stretch to start 2023 as they travel to Eden Prairie to ace the Eagles at 5 PM and open the home season on Saturday, August 26 against the defending Class AAA champion Wayzata Trojans at 11 AM.  The girls soccer team heads up to Brooklyn Park to face the Park Center Pirates at 5 PM and their home opener is on the 29th against the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles at 7 PM.  

In addition to the girls soccer team's home opener on the 29th, it's also the season opener for the girls volleyball team as they host the Park Center Pirates in a 7 PM start.  

Oriole football fans might consider leaving work early September 1 since the team will head down Highway 169 for their season opener against the Mankato East Cougars at 7 PM.  They will also be on the road for a Saturday matinee September 9 as they head to south Minneapolis to take on the Washburn Millers at 1 PM.  

Also on September 1, the boys and girls cross country teams open their season in the Rosemount Invitational that begins at 8 AM.  

There's plenty of exciting season opening action for the St. Louis Park athletic teams in late August and early September.  If the weather is nice, head outside and see these fine young athletes begin their season.