Eden Prairie coach Ryan Ward has led the Eagles to five straight state tournament appearances, and they open the season with Wayzata on Thursday. Photo by Mark Hvidsten
When it comes to boys' lacrosse in the Lake Conference, there are two traditional power schools that consistently rise to the top, and those teams will do battle on Thursday to open Eden Prairie's season.
The Eagles are coming off a third-place finish at last year's state tournament, and return a bevy of talent on both ends of the field.
Senior midfielder J.D. Spielman (48-20-68) brings serious speed wherever it's needed for Eden Prairie, and partners with junior attacker Nicky Leiverman (26-21-47) to give the Eagles a dynamic offensive front.
On the other hand, Wayzata graduated a significant amount of scoring and experience.
But don't underestimate this year's crop of Trojans, who stayed with defending state champion White Bear Lake in their first game of the season, losing to the Bears 9-8 on a goal scored in the final 2:30 of regulation.
With Eden Prairie looking to improve on last year's gaudy third-place finish, and Wayzata proving to be a young and hungry team against White Bear Lake, this is our pick for the Top Game of the Week.
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Tag(s): Spotlight Games Star Tribune IMAC Blake Independent St. Paul/Two Rivers Lake Eden Prairie Hopkins/St. Louis Park Minnetonka Wayzata Metro East Mahtomedi Metro West Chanhassen Chaska St. Louis Park Greater West Metro Northwest Suburban Maple Grove South Suburban Eastview/Apple Valley Lakeville South Prior Lake Rosemount Suburban East White Bear Lake Holy Angels Minneapolis Delano/Rockford Orono