Blake vs. Orono
7 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 5

Blake, the newly crowned No. 1-ranked team in Class 1A, will be tested by No. 6-1A Orono, which, until two weeks ago, held the state's top ranking.

The Bears (10-0-2, 4-0-1) have already won the Independent Metro Athletic Conference title. Blake defeated Providence Academy 5-0 on Sept. 19 in its final conference game, and the Bears close out the season with four games in the span of eight days.

The Spartans (10-1-2, 5-0-1) will try to climb the rankings by dethroning the best team in Class 1A. Before they face Blake, they play Mound Westonka for the Wright County Conference championship. If the Spartans tie or win, the conference title is theirs.

Orono's Christian Babo and Blake's Haluk Ercan-Fang are the players to watch in this matchup.

Babo has 12 assists this year, which is tied for the second-most in the state. Ercan-Fang is not a state leader in any statistical categories, but he does lead the Bears in both goals (8) and assists (6).