Johnson's Four Goals Lead SLP Orioles Into Section 5 Quarterfinals

 Emilia Johnson scored four goals and two other players recorded hat tricks as the host St. Louis Park Orioles beat the Osseo/Park Center Crocs Tuesday afternoon in the first round game of the Section 5 Girls Lacrosse Tournament.  

It was Johnson who began the scoring off a pass from Meg Ridgway.  Lilly Fandel Thompson would factor into the Orioles net two goals.  She would tally after she got the pass from Madeline Anklam and helped set up Margaux Pollock first goal to put St. Louis Park ahead by three.  They would go up by four on Johnson's second goal.  The Crocs would erase the zero from their end of the scoreboard when Presley Kraemer fed Lauren Rainerson on the left side of Oriole goalkeeper Carina Otos and she put Osseo/Park Center on the board.  Riley Ridgway would counter for St. Loui Park :20 later.  O/PC came back with a goal from Kramer.  Meg Ridgway and Emilia Johnson would round out the first half scoring for St. Louis Park and Rainerson would score her second goal with :32 left in the first half.  The Orioles led 7-3 at halftime.  

Meg Ridgway would pick up her second assist of the game as she passed to Kate Grimm and found the net :21 into the second half.  Over a minute later, Pollock picked up her second goal.  The Crocs would score their first goal of the half on a free shot from Maddie Ahlquist.  The Orioles countered on Alish Fitzpatrick's center slot goal.  Meg Ridgway scored from the right side for St. Louis Park and O/PC would get three unanswered goals, coming from Hayley Eikos, Ahlquist and Rainerson.  St. Louis Park would put the game away with Emilia Johnson picking up her hat trick on a free shot followed by a free shot from O/PC's Ahlquist.  Then the Orioles would surge further ahead with a three goal burst in a span of  :35.  Grimm's outstanding passing would set up the first two goals that came from Pollock and Meg Ridgway that would give her the hat trick.  Fitzpatrick account for the third goal when her shot barely crossed the goal line.  The Crocs would get a hat trick from Rainerson on a pass from Ahlquist but St. Louis Park would score another three unanswered goals.  Pollock, Gretchen Fandel Thompson and Riley Ridgway would put the Orioles in Friday's quarterfinals.  O/PC wasn't finished yet as Kraemer scored on a free shot with :18 left.  

The Orioles improved their record to 8-5 and will face the Armstrong Falcons in the Section 5 quarterfinals on Friday June 3 in Plymouth at 7 PM.  The Crocs concluded their regular season with a 1-13 record.