Minnetonka, Hopkins Face Steep Climb in Section Tourney

Minnetonka and Hopkins have a tough road ahead if they’re going to make it to the state football tournament.

Both begin post-season play when the section 6AAAAAA tournament kicks off Friday.

Minnetonka, which is seeded fifth in the tournament, is best positioned to advance. The Skippers start the playoffs against No. 4 seed Edina at 7 p.m. Friday.

The teams fought a tough battle earlier this season when the Hornets edged out Minnetonka 27-20 on Sept. 27. They wrapped up the season with similar records—5-3 for Minnetonka and 4-4 for Edina.

From there, the difficulty ramps up exponentially. The winner will likely take on undefeated Eden Prairie—who’s ranked first in the metro, as well as in the section tournament.

Meanwhile, Hopkins will face a daunting test from the very first round. The 2-6 Royals start the tournament at 7 p.m. Friday against No. 2 seed Wayzata—a 5-2 team that is also ranked seventh in the metro. Hopkins will have to make a better showing than it did against the Trojans during the regular season, when the Royals suffered a 40-14 rout Sept. 27.