Hill-Murray at Blake
11 a.m., Saturday, Sept. 23

Blake lost its No. 1 ranking in Class 1A this week after suffering a 3-2 loss to No. 4-1A St. Paul Academy on Sept. 13 and a 1-0 loss to Minneapolis Southwest three days later. The defeats ended a run in which the Bears outscored opponents 24-0, but the team could right the ship with a win over No. 3-1A Hill-Murray.

The Bears defense will need to play big on Saturday. Blake held a 1-0 lead over St. Paul Academy at halftime, but surrendered three goals in the second half to fall. The Bears (7-2-1, 2-0-1) got off to a slow start against Southwest, which got a first-half goal from Leyla Taghizadeh and hung on to win.

Hill-Murray (5-0-3, 2-0) has beaten the teams it was expected to and has played well against ranked opponents. Its three draws came against No. 8-2A Centennial, No. 8-1A Benilde-St. Margaret’s and Woodbury.

The Pioneers will search for a signature win against Blake behind an attack led by Katherine Schindler (6 goals), Claire Cater (3 goals) and Caralyn Conners (3 goals).