Preseason Top 10 Minnesota State High School Soccer Poll

While it’s still sweltering in Minnesota, we all know it won’t be long until evenings cool and days get shorter. School will soon begin and fall will follow on its heels. And every August the Minnesota State High School Soccer Coaches Association hold their annual clinic to prepare coaches for rule and policy changes and to pick up a few tips from some of Minnesota’s best coaches. When the clinic is held you know high school soccer teams from across the state will start their practices the following week.

This year’s clinic was held on Friday, August 13, and some of the clinicians were:  Bob Gansler, Former US Men’s National Team Coach, Manny Lagos & Carl Craig, NSC Minnesota Stars, Cam Stoltz, Dakota County Technical College, Craig Lange of SkillfulCOACH, Jerrod Roh & Krystle Kallman, staff coaches for the University of Minnesota Women’s Soccer Team.

Also at the meeting, coaches from across the state are asked to rank the top ten soccer teams for both genders and class. The initial poll is based more on the previous year’s success of teams and how many players coaches know are returning to those teams. They are not as accurate as polls taken later in the season. Coaches are better able to observe other teams and look at individual team’s conference and non-conference records later in the season. The coaches’ poll is taken each week during the high school season and IMS occasionally posts those polls.

Here is this year’s Minnesota State High School Soccer Coaches Association preseason poll.

Boys AA Top 10

1)    Apple Valley
2)    Woodbury
3)    Wayzata
4)    Bloomington Jefferson
5)    Eden Prairie
6)    Minneapolis Southwest
7)    Stillwater Area
8)    Edina
9)    Eagan
10)     Prior Lake
Others receiving votes:  Robbinsdale Armstrong, Elk River, Blaine, Anoka.

Girls AA Top 10

1)    Wayzata
2)    Woodbury
3)    Eden Prairie
4)    Edina
5)    Coon Rapids
6)    Stillwater Area
7)    Eagan
8)    Eastview
9)    Centennial
10)     White Bear Lake
Others receiving votes:  Mounds View, East Ridge, Duluth East, Apple Valley, Rosemount, Osseo, Park (CG).

Boys A Top 10

1)    Mahtomedi
2)    Totino-Grace
3)    Hermantown
4)    Simley
5)    St. Paul Central
6)    St. Louis Park
7)    St. Paul Como Park
8)    Benilde-St. Margaret’s
9)    St. Cloud Cathedral
10)    Blake
Others receiving votes:  Breck, Rochester Lourdes, Mankato West, St. Thomas Academy, Austin, St. Paul Academy.

Girls A Top 10

1)    Orono
2)    Mahtomedi
3)    Benilde-St. Margaret’s
4)    Blake
5)    La Crescent
6)    Breck
7)    Rogers
8)    East Grand Forks
9)    St. Paul Academy
10)    Cloquet
Others receiving votes:  Minnehaha Academy, Simley, Monticello, Holy Angels, St. Louis Park, Rochester Lourdes.

Next Poll due out Labor Day; Monday, September 6th.