When Holy Angels needs a stop, senior defender Conor O’Rourke most often provides it.
When Brooklyn Center needs a goal, senior forward Simeon Dossen most often scores it.
On Wednesday, two of the state’s most skilled players meet as Holy Angels, ranked No. 2 in the Class 1A state coaches’ poll from Sept. 1, squares off against Brooklyn Center in a Tri-Metro Conference contest of unbeaten teams that is also our Top Game of the Week.
Holy Angels, keyed by 2018 all-state selection O’Rourke, has allowed just three goals this season. The Stars (6-0-0, 1-0-0), who finished fourth in last year’s Class 1A state tournament after a 15-0-1 regular season, slipped past Breck 2-1 on Saturday.
Brooklyn Center (4-0-1, 0-0-1), meanwhile, is coming off a dramatic 4-4 tie with St. Croix Lutheran last Thursday during which Dossen scored late in regulation to force overtime, then he struck again in the final 30 seconds to allow the Centaurs to salvage the tie.
Dossen also scored six times in an 11-2 blowout of Hmong Academy on Aug. 27 and, after Thursday’s clutch performance, ranks among the state leaders with 15 goals this season. The Centaurs, who went 4-9-1 last season and have never appeared in the state tournament, are averaging just less than six goals per game.