High School Football and Volleyball to Return in October

 Minnesota high school sports fans!  Are you ready for some football and volleyball?  

That's the good news for athletes and fans throughout Minnesota as the Minnesota State High School League Board of Directors, in a special virtual meeting Monday, approved the return of high school football and volleyball to a fall schedule.  

However, it will be a shorter season than usual with teams playing a six game schedule starting Friday, October 9 and ending November 13.  There will be two playoff weeks and the season will come to a close at the latest, November 28.  

Since the playoff format will be two weeks, will there be a Prep Bowl in 2020.  To the knowledge of the author of this blog it is doubtful because of restrictions on the number of fans in attendance and also that no fans have been allowed in US Bank Stadium for Viking games due to the pandemic.  

As for regular season and section games played outside, the maximum number of spectators will be capped at 250.  

The St. Louis Park Orioles will be one of many teams opening up the 2020 campaign on October 9 as Jason Foster begins his maiden voyage as head coach in Chaska at 7 PM.  The Orioles home opener is the following week, October 16 as they will host the Waconia Wildcats at 7 PM.  

Going inside to volleyball, practice begins September 28 with regular season match play starting October 8.  The regular season will consist of 14 matches with no weekend tournaments.  That means that the most prestigious of regular season tournaments, the Apple Valley Invitational will not be held this season.  

Also, fans will not be allowed to attend due to COVID 19 restrictions.  

St. Louis Park opens their season on Thursday October 8 at Benilde-St-Margaret's and travel to Bloomington Kennedy on the 13th.  Their home opener will be against the Chanhassen Storm on Thursday, October 15, also a 7 PM start.  

Get ready for an exciting though later football and volleyball season.  

SLP Orioles Split With Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars

 A warm Tuesday night brought out the fans to the St. Louis Park stadium to see the boys and girls soccer teams in action with the boys shutting out the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars 4-0 and the girls coming up short against the Jaguars 2-1.  

First up was the boys game as four players scored one goal apiece to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 4-0 win over the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars.  

Both of the Orioles first half goals came on penalty kicks due to a couple of Jaguar fouls.  Bennett Kouame would strike first followed by the first goal of the season for Alex Ruiz-Shimada that would put St. Louis Park ahead 2-0 at halftime.  

The Orioles would double their first half output in the second half.  Their first goal would come from Mason Boesche when he fired a shot to the left side of Jaguar goalkeeper Cormac Merrill and it entered the net.  Dan Lainsbury would wrap up the scoring for St. Louis Park as he line a shot on the right side of Merrill.  

St. Louis Park won their third straight game and improved their record to 4-1.  They will return to action on Thursday, September 17 at 5 PM in Chanhassen against the Storm.  Jefferson fell to 0-5 and will host the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights on Saturday, September 19 at 11 AM.  In their first five games, the Jaguars have been outscored 17-2.  

On to the girls game where Rachel Hall's second half header turned out to be the game winning goal that led the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars to a 2-1 win over the St. Louis Park Orioles.  

It didn't take long for the Jaguars to find the net.  Ayah Makled's shot barely crossed the goal line :55 into the game.  But the Orioles bounced back, taking advantage of a Jefferson foul that awarded Alma Beaton a penalty kick.  She put it past Jaguar goalkeeper Cayla Jungwirth and the game would be all even at one at halftime.  

Jefferson would vault into the lead 3:37 into the second half.  Jolie Gunn's shot headed toward the crease in front of St. Louis Park goalkeeper Sophia Romero and Hall got into position to head the ball past Romero and into the net..  It was all the Jaguars needed to clinch the win as their strong defense prevented the Orioles from evening the game at two.  

Both teams return to action on Thursday, September 17 at 7:15 PM.  The Jaguars improved to a record of 2-2-1 and will host the Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights at Bloomington Stadium. The Orioles fell to 1-3-1 and head down Highway 212 to face the Chanhassen Storm.  

A Split Shutout for SLP Orioles over Cooper Hawks

 Thursday night was "A Tale of Two Shutouts" for the St. Louis Park soccer teams with the girls losing to the Cooper Hawks 1-0 and the boys shutting out the Hawks 5-0.  

First up was the girls game where one goal turned out to be enough for Kaidin Camp as she scored the game's only goal in the first half to lead the Cooper Hawks to a 1-0 win over the host St. Louis Park Orioles.  

The Hawks would find the net in the first half when Clare Snapko snapped the ball in bounds toward Oriole goalkeeper Sophia Romero and it deflected off of Kaidin Camp into the goal that put Cooper ahead 1-0 and that would be the halftime score.  

The red one on the St. Louis Park stadium scoreboard would remain stationery in the second half though St. Louis Park had a chance to tie the game.  But Alma Beaton's shot against a three player Hawk wall bounced off the crossbar.  

Cooper ended a three game losing streak and improved their record to 1-3.  They will return to action on Tuesday, September 15 as they head down Highway 212 to Chanhassen to take on the Storm at 7:15 PM.  St. Louis Park fell to 0-3-1 and will also be in action on the 15th as they host the Bloomington Jefferson at 7:15 PM.  

In the boys game, Dan Lainsbury scored two goals to highlight a four goal first half for the St. Louis Park Orioles as they shut out the Cooper Hawks 5-0.  

The Orioles would put the game away in the first half with four goals.  Lainsbury would score the first two.  His first goal came when he was awarded a penalty kick after a Hawk foul.  His shot was saved by Cooper goalkeeper Jayden Hove but Lainsbury got into position on the right side of Hove, found an opening and put the ball in the net.  Lainsbury's second goal came off a centering pass from Bennett Kouame with 23:00 left in the half.  Kouame would also score the third St. Louis Park goal when he received a sliding pass from Luca Guerin and sent the ball to the goal.  Guerin would pick up an assist on the Orioles final first half goal as he made a centering pass to Claudy Zua and he would put St. Louis Park ahead by four at halftime.  

To the second half and the Orioles sent the game into running time with one additional goal.  Wilson Recinos picked up a yellow card for unsportsmanlike conduct and Guerin was awarded an indirect free kick.  Guerin would line the ball down the right side of the net and the ball crossed the goal line.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 3-1.  It was their first win this season when they scored more than three goals.  They will be in action on Tuesday, September 15 as the host the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars at 5 PM.  Cooper fell to 0-4 and also returns to action on the 15th with a 5 PM game against the Storm in Chanhassen.  

SLP Orioles Home Season Opens With Win and Tie

 On a windy Thursday night, the St. Louis Park Orioles hosted their first soccer doubleheader of the abbreviated fall season with the boys beating the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles 31- and and the Oriole girls playing the Eagles to a 2-2 tie.  

Masks and social distancing were the norm for the boys soccer team and their fans as three players found the net to lead the St. Louis Park Orioles to a 3-1 win over the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles.  

The Orioles opened the first half scoring on Bennett Kouame's left side goal.  The Eagles would even the score as Diego Fuentes Rodriguez made a centering pass to freshman Justin Arias and he sent it past the goal line.  Diego Fuentes Rodriguez almost put Kennedy ahead since he was awarded a free kick.  Facing a seven player St. Louis Park wall, his shot bounced out of the goal and the scored would stayed tied at one at the half.  

Dan Lainsbury would open the second half scoring for the Orioles as he went through a couple of Eagle defenders, went to the center slot and sent the ball to the net.  St. Louis Park would conclude the scoring on a line drive goal from sophomore Amanuel Shetaye.  

St. Louis Park improved their record to 2-1 and Kennedy fell to 0-2-1.  Both teams return to action on Thursday, September 10.  The Orioles host the Cooper Hawks at 7:15 PM and the Eagles will face the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars at 7:15 at Bloomington Stadium.  

Next up was the girls game as Isabella Lone scored two goals, including the tying goal with :54.2 left in the game to help the Bloomington Kennedy Eagles tie the St. Louis Park Orioles at two.  

Lone, the daughter of Eagle head coach Mario Lone, scored the first half''s only goal from the left side with 21:00 left in the first half to put Kennedy ahead 1-0.  

But the Orioles would strike back in the second half with two goals.  the first came on a left side corner kick from Alma Beaton and the second came when the ball deflected off of Xiomara Leon Vega and into the net to put St. Louis Park ahead 2-1.  Could the Orioles hold the lead to record their first win of the season?  Not on this Thursday prior to the Labor Day weekend as Lone would line the ball past Oriole goalkeeper Sophia Romero to even the score at two with :54.2 left.  No overtime will be played due to COVID 19 restrictions.  

Both Kennedy and St. Louis Park improved to identical records of 0-2-1.  The Eagles will face the Bloomington Jefferson Jaguars on Thursday, September 10 at 5 PM at Bloomington Stadium.  The Orioles will also be in action on the 10th as they host the Cooper Hawks at 5 PM.  

Practice Begins Monday for 2020 Fall Sports Season

 Good news for high school athletes.  After a lengthy layoff due to the COVID 19 pandemic, the start of fall sports practice begins throughout Minnesota Monday, August 17.  

Practice will begin in football, soccer, volleyball, cross country, girls tennis and girls swimming.  

But things will be different this fall.  Due to the health risk of high contacts sports including football and volleyball, their respective seasons will be delayed until late March.  However, the rest of the fall sports can go on as scheduled but with reduced seasons. 

Looking at St. Louis Park's fall schedule on the Metro West Conference website, there seems to be a common thread with each of the fall sports.  No nonconference games are scheduled.  All games are against Metro West opponents.  

The first Oriole athletic team to open the season is girls tennis as St. Louis Park hosts city rival Benilde-St. Margaret's in a 5 PM match on Wednesday, August 26.  

On the 27th, both the boys and girls soccer teams begin their season in Bloomington against the Jefferson Jaguars with the girls game at 5 PM and the boys at 7:15 PM.  This is a change from previous years when soccer doubleheaders were slotted at 5 & 7 PM.  According to Brittani Schroeder, assistant activities director at St. Louis Park, the reason for the time change is that the stadium will be cleared following the first game in order to allow parents to see their sons or daughters play.  Get outside and cheer on these athletes but please exercise social distancing.  

Big Changes Coming in High School Sports

 Are you ready for spring football?  

That will be one of the changes the Minnesota State High School League approved at its August 4 Board Meeting when it decided to switch the football and volleyball seasons to early spring, starting in mid-March and moving the spring sports season into mid May and running into the summer.  

These changes were implemented due to the COVID 19 pandemic that shut down the spring sports season and made the fall season uncertain with the rising number of positive COVID 19 tests throughout the nation.  

But there will be good news for fall sports participants, coaches and fans.  The season will go one for soccer, cross country, girls tennis and and girls swimming but will be a bit shorter than usual.  The boys and girls soccer seasons will be reduced by 20%.  But will there be section and state tournament play?  

Looking at the St. Louis Park soccer schedules (where the author of this blog will begin his 25th season as the public address announcer), many of the nonconference games have been deleted.  How many will there be?  The MSHSL Board stated that teams should play only one or two games per week.

As the fall sports season has been settled, what about winter sports such as basketball and hockey?  Will fans be allowed to attend?  Will the seasons proceed as scheduled?  

Fall sports practice begins August 17.  

HSGN Celebrates Four Years of Blogging

Today, August 1 marks the fourth anniversary of the day HSGN joined the blogosphere, writing about high school sports and game shows. 

Unfortunately, due to the COVID 19 pandemic that shut down the whole spring sports season throughout Minnesota, there has been little to write about for HSGN. 

But there have been things worth mentioning on the high school sports scene.  First, Hopkins girls basketball coach Brian Cosgriff retired after 21 seasons.  The Royals were one game away from a second consecutive state title until the state tournament was cancelled due to the pandemic. 

Next, will there be a fall sports season in Minnesota?  The Minnesota State High School League meets August 4 to render a decision on how fall sports should proceed.  Should it be business as usual or a shortened season.  Or will the season be postponed or cancelled? 

Finally, HSGN would like to extend the best of luck to Brad Brubaker.  Brubaker, according to slpschools.org, retired from his teaching position after 32 years with the district.  He was the head girls track coach, assistant girls soccer coach where his daughter Lydia also played for the Orioles and is now an assistant.  His son, Nathan also played soccer for St. Louis Park.  Brubaker also served as the public address announcer for Oriole girls basketball games. 

On the game show front, it's been a mix of reruns and new episodes due to COVID 19 for ABC's Sunday and Thursday night lineups.  Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy are about to resume taping after weeks of reruns but it will be a different vibe because there will be no studio audience. 

So that's what's happening since the last post.  Happy Anniversary HSGN and hopefully there will be something worth posting soon that would be of interest.