Forest Lake at Blaine
2:00 p.m., Saturday, April 15

Forest Lake will finish its four-game opening week on Saturday against a Blaine team that beat the Rangers three out of four times and ended their 2016 season.

It seems like Forest Lake will have the experience advantage, as 10 of the 14 players on the listed roster are seniors. Pitcher Mitch Longsdorf is the lone sophomore of the group. 

The Bengals, on the other hand, are returning only four of their starters from last year. The trio of Reid Conlee (St. Cloud State), Sam Riola (Bethel) and Alex Winslow (Dakota County Tech) have already committed to play college ball and will likely shoulder many of the leadership roles as the season gets underway. 

Blaine (1-0) will be looking for a better start to this season after beginning 2016 4-9. However, a 10-2 run over the last 12 games, including a 6-5 win in the Class 4A, Section 7 final against Forest Lake to clinch a berth in the state tournament, will give the Bengals plenty of confidence as the 2017 season gets underway.