Hopkins Legion Set To Play In Gopher Classic

The Hopkins American Legion baseball team will compete in the 2011 Jim Hanus Gopher Classic tournament beginning Friday.

Hopkins will compete as one of six teams in host Eagan’s pool and will play all of its games Friday through Sunday at Eagan High School. Their fellow pool play teams will be Eagan, Rochester, Fergus Falls, Grand Forks, ND, and Kenosha, WI, will all meet head to head. Hopkins’ first game is at 8:30 a.m. on Friday against Fergus Falls.

The Gopher Classic is the largest American Legion baseball tournament in the United States, according to the tournament’s official website. This season, the tournament expanded to 66 teams playing at 11 different sites. 

Last year, the tournament had 48 teams competing at eight different locations.

The tournament begins with pool play Friday through Sunday, which consists of each team playing five games. All 11 pool winners and five second place finishers advance to Monday’s field of 16. The field of 16 and quarterfinal games are played at four locations—Red Haddox Field in Bloomington, Veterans Field in Minnetonka, Round Lake Stadium in Eden Prairie and Braemar Park in Edina.

The tournament semifinals are held at 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. on Tuesday at Veterans Field, and the championship is held Tuesday at 2 p.m. at Veterans Field.

Napoleon, OH, won the last two Gopher Classic tournaments. Rosetown, based in Roseville, took runner-up in 2010 and was the top finishing Minnesota team.

The last time a Minnesota team won the tournament was when Richfield took home the title in 2008.

Site 1: Apple Valley’s Legion Field 

Site 2: Benilde-St. Margaret’s High School Field

Site 3: Bethel University (Arden Hills) Hargis Park Field

Site 4: Bloomington’s Red Haddox Field

Site 5: Chanhassen High School Field

Site 6: Eagan High School Field

Site 7: Eden Prairie’s Round Lake Stadium

Site 8: Edina’s Braemar Park

Site 9: Minnetonka’s Veterans Field

Site 10: Maple Grove High School Field

Site 11: North St. Paul’s McKnight Legion Field

Championship round: Minnetonka’s Veterans Field