Hockey, lacrosse. Lacrosse, hockey.

Don’t make Christian Horn choose between the two.

He can’t. He won’t.

Not yet. No way.

“It’s something I really enjoy, it’s something I love to play, it’s something I don’t want to stop playing,” the Benilde-St. Margaret’s sophomore known mostly for his otherworldly hockey abilities said about lacrosse after registering a hat trick on Thursday, April 22, in the Red Knights’ 12-5 triumph over host Totino-Grace.

Horn enjoys lacrosse so much, in fact, he has set up the sort of itinerary for Saturday, April 22, that isn’t so much a schedule of events as it is an endurance challenge.

Horn won’t be alternately swimming, biking and running or climbing mountains and jogging through valleys, but he will start his day at 9:45 a.m. with a hockey game in Plymouth. From there, he plans to head over to Edina for the Red Knights’ noon lacrosse matchup with the Hornets.

After that, it’s back to Plymouth for another hockey game, this one starting at 4:45 p.m., in the Reebok High Performance Advanced 16 and 17 Final 54.

“Then I play hockey again on Sunday, so it’s a pretty packed weekend,” said Horn, who is on pace to play nine games (six hockey, three lacrosse) in nine days. “I’ll be alright. You don’t have to worry about me.”

Those reassurances were targeted for a within-earshot Red Knights coach Colin Mulcahy, who understands lacrosse is the porterhouse to hockey’s filet mignon in Horn’s pecking order.

 “He’s a special player,” Mulcahy said. “Obviously, hockey is No. 1 in his book. But we utilize him a great deal because he is an athlete. He is an absolutely great athlete.”

Against Totino-Grace, Horn took full advantage of his quickness to routinely outmaneuver the Eagles’ talented defensive corps. Horn scored all three of his goals in the third quarter as the unbeaten Red Knights (2-0) outscored the Eagles 7-0 to break open a close game.

Playing on a front line with standout senior attackmen Bailey Dodds and Ryan Butts, both Division I recruits, it’s easy to understand why Horn would go to such great lengths to ensure he doesn’t miss a game.

“Playing with Butts and Dodds, you can’t have it better than that, playing with those two,” Horn said. “They make it easy for you that’s for sure. It’s just fun to watch them sometimes, even when you are out there.”

Horn now has six goals in two games, as he also scored three times in the Red Knights’ 26-1 season-opening win over Robbinsdale Cooper on Tuesday, April 20.

“He was finishing the ball really well,” Butts said about Horn’s performance against Totino-Grace. “He capitalizes on our fast breaks, which is really good.”

Ranked No. 2 on the Minnesota Hockey Hub’s list of the state’s top sophomores, Horn scored 52 points for the Red Knights boys hockey team last season. Several Division I college programs have been watching Horn closely for the past two seasons, during which he has racked up 91 points.

While Horn’s future most likely involves playing high-level hockey, he’s enjoying every second of his dizzying dual-sport schedule.

“It’s fun, but it gets tiring,” Horn said, "there’s a lot to do."

1. Bailey Dodds, B-SM
Red Knights senior attackman and Division I recruit (Sacred Heart) not only scored three goals but he flashed some serious playmaking ability as he added two assists.

2. Christian Horn, B-SM
Sophomore attackman is better known for his prowess as a hockey player but he showed that he can register a hat trick in any season, finishing with three goals.

3. Ryan Zeilinger, Totino-Grace
Yes, the senior Eagles' senior goaltender allowed 11 goals, but he made at least that many spectacular saves to keep the score from getting embarassingly out of control.

Strength vs. strength
With attackmen Bailey Dodds, Ryan Butts and Christian Horn, Benilde-St. Margaret’s features one of the state’s most fearsome front lines. Totino-Grace, meanwhile, boasts two of the state’s top defensemen in Kyle Mork and Joe Hockert. “I enjoy it,” Benilde-St. Margaret’s coach Colin Mulcahy said about having such a talented group of goal scorers at his disposal. “It makes for some pretty easy decisions.” The matchup of the Red Knights’ dynamic offense against Totino-Grace’s stifling defense was a stalemate for much of the first half, then Benilde-St. Margaret’s erupted for seven unanswered goals in the third quarter. “(Mork and Hockert) at up our guys a few times tonight,” Mulcahy said.

Transition game
In general, Totino-Grace coach Justin Hoban liked what he saw from his group of defensemen and goaltender Ryan Zeilinger in his team’s 12-5 loss to Benilde-St. Margaret’s. “Of the seven (third-quarter) goals they had, one of them was six on six. It was transitions that killed us. Our midfielders were tired. We couldn’t keep up with them.” As it turns out, the Red Knights have been working extensively on their transition game, playing to the strength of its standout group of speedy, shifty attackmen. “That’s something we are focusing on, our transitions and our unsettled game,” Mulcahy said. “Especially against a team like Totino, which has the ability to possess the ball for long periods of time and can really slow the game down.”