Media Director
Upper Midwest High School Elite LeagueSoutheast continues to find success
Team Southeast, playing most of the weekend with a revamped roster, got a four-goal game from Eastview’s Scott Nelson as it went unbeaten in three games on Oct. 1-2 to maintain its lead in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League standings during Week 4 action in Grand Rapids.
Week 4 games also were played in Stevens Point, Wis., where Shattuck-St. Mary’s won two of three games.
Nelson, a senior center, scored one a goal in the first period, one in the second and two in the third on Sunday as Team Southeast (9-1-2) finished the weekend with a 5-5 tie against Team Southwest.
Southeast's Justin Kloos, a senior from Lakeville South, scored a goal and added two assists in Team Southeast’s 6-3 victory over Great Plains. Will Merchant of Eagan scored twice and Jake Guentzel of Hill-Murray, Eli May of Eagan and Nelson also scored. Goaltender Brian Nies of Grand Forks Red River made 25 saves to earn the victory.
With 11 regulars out of the lineup – mostly because of football Homecoming festivities – Team Southeast forged a 2-2 tie with Team North on Sunday behind goals from Kloos and Connor Hurley of Holy Angels. Hurley was one of five players called up from the Minnesota Elite Prep Development League for Team Southeast’s Saturday night and Sunday games.
Team Southwest (5-5-2) also went unbeaten over the weekend, beating Great Plains 6-3 and Team North 5-3 before forging the 5-5 tie with Team Southeast.
Minnetonka junior Max Coatta scored twice in the win over Team North. Minnetonka’s Vinni Lettieri and Joe Schuldt, Edina’s Lou Nanne and Hopkins’ Tanner Holmquist each added goals. Lettieri and Nanne are cousins who have committed to play at the Minnesota.
Breck’s Conor Andrle had a goal and three assists to lead Team Southwest past Great Plains, and Holmquist and Minnetonka’s Sam Rothstein each had two goals in the tie with Team Southeast.
Minnesota-Duluth recruit Adam Johnson of Hibbing/Chisholm, Travis Underwood of Grand Rapids and Jared Thomas of Hermantown scored for Team North (6-4-2) in its weekend-opening loss to Team Southwest.
Brainerd’s Mitch McLain and Bemidji’s Matt Serratore scored goals in Team North’s 2-2 tie with Team Southeast. Trevor Olson of Duluth East scored his team-leading eighth and ninth goals to lead Team North past Great Plains 4-2 on Sunday.
Great Plains (0-11-1) got a 37-save performance in its loss to Team North. Tommy Hajicek of East Grand Forks and Austin Swingle of St. Cloud Cathedral each had two goals for Great Plains over the weekend.
In Stevens Point, Team Northeast (6-3-3) pulled into a second place tie with Team Northwest (6-4-2) with 15 points, six behind Team Southeast.
Team Northeast rebounded from an 8-3 loss to Shattuck-St. Mary’s on Saturday by beating Team Wisconsin 5-1. C.J. Franklin of Forest Lake, Zach LaValle of Hill-Murray an Jay Dickman of St. Paul Johnson each scored a goal in both Team Northeast games.
Team Northwest skated to a 6-6 tie with Team Wisconsin on Saturday and suffered a 5-3 loss to Shattuck-St. Mary’s on Sunday. Grant Opperman of Breck and Grant Besse of Breck each had a three-point weekend to lead Team Northwest.
Chris Nell of Green Bay Notre Dame Academy made 37 saves and five players scored as Team Wisconsin (4-6-2) opened the weekend with a 5-3 triumph over Shattuck-St. Mary’s on Saturday. Jason Ford of Waunakee scored with 45 second remaining as Team Wisconsin forged its 6-6 tie with Team Northwest on Saturday night. Zac Keryluk of Verona scored the one Team Wisconsin goal in its weekend-ending 5-1 loss to Team Northeast on Sunday.
Sam Fejes scored three goals and teammates Max Becker, Zach Aman, Jacob Montgomery and Sebastian Lemm each had two over the weekend to lead for Shattuck-St. Mary’s (4-1-1).
Week 4 began in dramatic fashion on Tuesday, Sept. 27, as Team Northwest’s Christian Horn and Jake O’Borsky, both from Benilde-St. Margaret’s, scored 25 seconds apart as Team Northwest forged a 5-5 tie with Team Northeast.
Notes
– Kloos, who has committed to play at the University of Minnesota, scored seven points over the weekend to bump his league-leading points total to 29 (12 goals, 17 assists).
– Guentzel’s 25 points (8 goals, 17 assists) puts him alone in second place in the league scoring race, four points behind Team Southeast teammate Kloos. T.J. Roo of Totino-Grace has 22 points and is followed by his Team Northwest teammates Besse and Opperman with 21 and 20 points, respectively.
– Blake Cates of Stillwater made 44 saves in Team North's 2-2 tie with Team Southeast.
