Minneapolis Southwest junior attacker Callen Knutson gave the Lakers life in their pursuit of the Minneapolis City Conference championship.

Knutson scored two goals, including the game-winner, helping Minneapolis Southwest earn a crucial 2-1 victory over league rival Minneapolis Washburn Tuesday at Southwest High School.

The Lakers’ victory kept the Millers (9-2-1), No. 1 in the Minnesota High School Soccer Coaching Association’s Class 1A rankings, from taking a one-game advantage in the win column of the conference standings.

Minneapolis Southwest (5-3-3) has two league games remaining, including a matchup Sept. 27 with Minneapolis South, the third team battling for the conference championship.

The Lakers must defeat the Tigers and Minneapolis Roosevelt to secure their eighth conference title in the last 11 years.

Minneapolis Southwest head coach Jamie Plaisance said the Lakers are looking at a tall task to take the title.

“Our conference is better than it’s ever been,” Plaisance said. “That’s the biggest thing is that our competition in our conference is probably better than it’s ever been, but the positive side is that we have our destiny in our hands.”

Minneapolis Southwest started the season as the No. 1 team in Class 2A but fell from the rankings after struggling to string together victories early in the season. The Lakers are missing several important components from last year’s team that lost to Andover 2-1 in the state Class 2A quarterfinals.

Knutson, the Lakers’ captain, said a lack of motivation is also hurting the team.

“We’re not motivated as a team,” Knuston said. “Our practices haven’t been as good as we wanted them to be, and we haven’t played as hard in our games. Mentally, we just don’t come prepared for games.”

Plaisance takes responsibility for Minneapolis Southwest’s struggles.

“I think a big part of it is me,” Plaisance said. “I’ve been experimenting with different formations and guys in different positions, and it’s hard for players to really find a rhythm when the coach is moving them around a lot.”

The Lakers must work as a team to capture the conference crown, Minneapolis Southwest junior forward Dawes Sutton said.

“We just got to put our effort out there every single day,” Sutton said. “It’s just about one hundred percent effort every single game. We just got to win these next two and we’re on to the conference title.”

Junior attacker Callen Knutson scored two goals, including the game-winner with 16 minutes, 15 seconds remaining in the game, to lead Minneapolis Southwest to a 2-1 victory over rival Minneapolis Washburn Tuesday in a Minneapolis City Conference matchup at Southwest High School.

Knutson gave the Lakers (5-3-3) a 1-0 lead midway through the first half. Washburn (9-2-1), No. 1 in the Minnesota High School Soccer Coaching Association's Class 1A rankings, tied the game when Millers’ senior midfielder Abdi Kadi scored with 24:27 remaining before halftime.

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