Blaine at Stillwater
11 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 3

Both Blaine and Stillwater played postseason spoilers last year, but it was the Bengals who carried the momentum through to a section title victory.

Blaine, a six seed, knocked off the top three seeds in the Class 2A, Section 7 playoffs in succession, including No. 1-seeded St. Francis on penalty kicks to reach the state tournament. It was an amazing turnaround after posting a 5-6-5 regular-season record that included just two victories before Oct 1.

The Bengals' run ended with a 2-0 loss to Lakeville North in the state quarterfinals, but the team began this season on the rise after a 2-0 victory over South St. Paul. Ava Zoschke scored both goals for Blaine.

Stillwater also started last year’s Class 2A, Section 4 playoffs as a six seed before defeating third-seeded North St. Paul and second-seeded East Ridge to reach the title game, where The Ponies fell to top-seeded Mounds View.

Stillwater appears prepared to play Blaine after beginning the season with two blowout victories, including a 4-0 win over the Bengals' Northwest Suburban Conference rival Anoka.

The Ponies Kallie Clements had two goals in a 5-0 win over St. Cloud Tech in the opener.