The Minnewaska Area boys soccer team fell to St. John’s Prep in the Section 8A opener last Tuesday night at the College of St. Ben’s, 6-1.

The Lakers ended the season with a 2-12-1 overall record, which includes an 0-9-1 mark in the Granite Ridge Conference.

Minnewaska Area, coached by David Vinje, came into the game as the fifth seed while SJP was seeded fourth and will move on to face top-seeded St. Cloud Cathedral later in the week.

“It was a tough one; certainly not as bad as the 6-1 scoreline showed,” coach David Vinje said.  “We’re a young team that earned some experience this season.”

Seniors lost to graduation from this year’s team are Tenzin Dahl,  Jackson Holmes, Morgan Meyer and Riley Thorfinnson.

St. Cloud Cathedral won this year’s conference title with an 8-0 league mark, followed by Melrose Area (6-2-1), Little Falls-LPGE (4-5-1), Prinsburg CMCS (4-4-1), St. John’s Prep (3-5-2) and Minnewaska Area (0-9-1).

During the 2024 season, the Lakers scored 15 goals in 15 games while giving up 44 goals.  Minnewaska Area was shut out five times and scored one goal in seven  games.

SJ Prep 6, Waska 1

Oskar Haberl scored  three of his team’s six goals to lead St. John’s Prep to a 6-1 win over Minnewaska Area in the Section 8A first round last Tuesday night.

During an earlier meeting between the two teams, Haberl had all five goals during a 5-3 SJP win.  Also, during the second-to-last regular-season game, the Lakers almost pulled off an upset against SJP, losing 2-1 at home.

Also scoring for SJP were John Weidner, Chris Ji and Louis Kwack.

The Lakers had 12 shots on goals.  However, all but one was stopped by Johnnies goalie Breck Richter.

The game got off to a great start for the Lakers, according to coach Vinje, as Ryan Greseth received the ball in the first minute and passed to a sprinting Jackson Holmes, who calmly slotted the ball past the goalkeeper to give the Lakers an early 1-0 lead.

“We maintained the pressure, but we just couldn’t find the back of the net again,” coach Vinje said.  

Haberl scored his first goal in the 28th minute, but the Lakers still felt very good about themselves going into halftime with a 1-1 tie.

“We entered halftime with an even slate and we talked about continuing to find the passes that had been successful for us and continuing to battle for the second ball,” coach Vinje said.  “We started the half well but struggled with the ‘final ball’; the kick that would ultimately put the ball into the back of the net, hitting the post twice and landing the ball on the roof of the net twice as well.”

St. John’s Prep took over late scoring four goals in the 72nd through the 77th minutes, ending any chances at the victory.  

Marshall Kopp had seven saves on the night for the Lakers, who had 12 shots on goal.

“The game of soccer can be cruel at times, but the players worked hard and it just didn’t work out,” Vinje said.  “I want to thank seniors Tenzin Dahl, Jackson Holmes, Riley Thorfinnson and Morgan Meyer for all their effort, time and sacrifice with the Minnewaska boys soccer program.”

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