By Bruce Karnick

Todd Field may still be damaged, COVID safety procedures may be coming more normal but finally, the boys and girls soccer teams are practicing and able to get on Todd Field. I stopped by to catch the last part of the boys’ practice and the first part of the girls’ practice. It was extremely obvious that both teams were excited to be out honing their craft on a beautiful day.

During the boys’ practice, Assistant Coach Shane Lanning was on the field fine tuning the plays on the defensive side of the field while Head Coach Jamie Swanson was observing the offensive side. In chatting with Coach Swanson, he was proud of the boys’ resolve and flexibility surrounding the strange start to the season. The boys’ appeared to be in great shape entering the start of the practice season.

The girls were just arriving to Todd Field for the start of their practice. During warm-ups, I chatted a little with Head Coach Scott Meier. He, like Coach Swanson, was proud of his players resilience regarding their off- season and practices so far. The practice kicked off with Coach Meier running the girls through some passing drills and they looked sharp.

The boys will travel to North St Paul to take on the Polars on August 27th, 5 pm start. August 29th they have match at Mahtomedi. September 1st, they travel to Henry Sibley for a 7:00 match. September 3rd, they host St. Thomas at Todd Field at 7:00.

The girls’ dates and travel schedule lines up with the boys for the first 3 matches with only times being different. Thursday August 27th at North, 7 pm. Saturday August 29th at Mahtomedi, 10 am, and Tuesday September 1st at Henry Sibley 3:30 pm. Them the girls host Hill Murray on Tuesday September 8th at 5 pm at Todd Field.

The Boys Soccer team gathers around Head Coach Jamie Swanson for a post practice recap while maintaining their physical distancing the best they can. Photo by Bruce Karnick

The Girls Soccer team runs through passing drills with Head Coach Scott Meier Photo by Bruce Karnick