The boys state lacrosse tournament opens with the quarterfinal round on Tuesday at Eden Prairie High School.
Edina is the top seed, but three east metro teams help fill out the bracket. The semifinals are slated for Thursday at Chaska High School, with the final to be played at 6 p.m. Saturday back in Eden Prairie.
Here’s a look at the East Metro teams contending for a championship.
Stillwater
The undefeated Ponies (16-0) are the No. 2 seed and will meet Moorhead at 1 p.m. Tuesday.
Fresh off a fourth-place finish at state a year ago, Stillwater edged White Bear Lake in overtime of the Section 4 final to secure a return trip. Casey Mork had 10 saves in that bout and has been particularly good this season when the level of competition rises.
Grant Giese leads the Ponies with 61 goals this season — the third-highest tally in the state — while both Kieran Jones and Luke Geisbauer have eclipsed the 30-assist threshold.
Lakeville North
Appearing in each of the past two finals — and winning the 2023 title bout — the Panthers are back again, though this time in a slightly different role.
The Panthers (12-4) are far from the tournament favorite. They’re the No. 5 seed and will meet fourth-seeded Minnetonka in a 3 p.m. quarterfinal Tuesday. Yet there still may not be a more dangerous team in the field, because the Panthers find ways to win this time of year.
After falling 10-3 to Farmington during the regular season, Lakeville North edged the Tigers, 9-8, in overtime of the Section 1 final last week to hand Farmington its first loss of the season.
The Panthers have two of the most decorated offensive players in state history in Blake Piscitiello, who holds the state record for most career goals scored at well north of 200, and Carson Piscitiello, the state’s all-time assist leader with more than 150. And goalie Tate Bouman is as sturdy as they come in net.
East Ridge
The sixth-seeded Raptors are making their first state tournament trip in program history. Their reward is a date with defending state champion Benilde-St. Margaret’s at 11 a.m.
East Ridge (12-4) enters state on an eight-game winning streak, with impressive wins over Cretin-Derham Hall (twice), Lakeville North and St. Thomas Academy on its ledger in that span. Goalie Ryan Shanley has been sensational during the winning streak.
The Raptors also have faceoff specialist Willem Middlecamp and Austin Griffith, who has scored 29 of his 44 goals this season during the recent run of success.
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