Sports Roundup: Ponies Split Soccer Playoff Openers

The Stillwater soccer teams split their opening games of Section 4AA Tournament play, with the Ponies boys advancing to the semifinals as the girls saw their season come to an end.

Boys Soccer

A 6-0 thumping of seventh-seeded White Bear Lake on Thursday night propelled the No. 2 seed Stillwater boys soccer team into the semifinals of the sectional playoffs.

Patrick Roth scored three goals in the Ponies rout, with goalkeeper Ben Wilhelm making three saves for the shutout.

Stillwater will host No. 3 seed St. Paul Central on Saturday at 7 p.m. in the semifinal round.

Girls Soccer

The fifth-seeded Stillwater girls soccer team was eliminated from the postseason in a 4-0 loss at No. 4 seed White Bear Lake on Thursday, concluding the Ponies 2011 campaign with a 9-6-2 record.

Stillwater had just defeated the Bears, 2-1, at home in the regular-season finale last Thursday, but could not muster up a road goal against a determined foe. Individual statistics were not available.

Volleyball

A five-game victory (14-25, 27-25, 22-25, 25-22, 15-9) at East Ridge on Thursday concluded the Suburban East Conference schedule triumphantly for the Stillwater volleyball team.

The Ponies took third in the Suburban East with a 7-2 conference mark, placing behind the only two teams to beat them in circuit play — SEC champion Cretin-Derham Hall and runner-up Mounds View.

Stillwater carries a 12-11 overall record into its regular season-concluding appearance in the Chaska Tournament on Saturday.

Results from a scheduled meet involving the Stillwater girls swimming and diving team were not reported.