Blaine at Elk River
4:15 p.m., Wednesday, April 23

The Northwest Suburban Conference looks like it is going to be a dogfight all year, and Blaine and Elk River should be in the mix to the bitter end. The Elks are rolling along with a 3-0 record, including wins against Centennial and Champlin Park. They slid in a nice 7-1 win against Bloomington Jefferson late last week to show they can handle the premier nonconference teams, too. Elk River has plenty of high-end talent to roll out in senior pitcher Anna Pipenhagen, senior Michaela Bruns and sophomore Jayme Langbehn, all of whom received All-State awards last year. 

Blaine is 2-1 this season, its only hiccup to East Ridge, which had a preseason No. 8 ranking in Class 3A. If the Bengals are going to make a run, they are going to have to do it with youth. Erin Krieger is the only senior on Blaine's roster.