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Page 14 • Thursday, Feb. 28, 2019
Brooklyn Park / Brooklyn Center
post.mnsun.com
Brooklyn Center/Concordia Academy wrestling
Fraire-Morales advances to AA state meet with section title
By ANTHONY IOZZO
[e-mail]
Senior Juan Fraire-Morales is headed
back to state after winning the 120-pound
bracket on Feb. 23 at the 5AA individual
wrestling section meet at Orono High
School.
Fraire-Morales (31-7) went 3-0 to
claim the section title and had three pins.
He won his fi rst-place match in 1
minute, 27 seconds over Totino-Grace’s
Michael Loger, and he pinned Benilde-
St. Margaret’s Graham Imholte in 45
seconds and Columbia Heights’ Matt
Benson in 1:24 earlier in the meet.
Junior Simeon Dossen (19-9) was the
next closest to earning a state berth. Dos-
sen (132 pounds) took third with an 8-7
decision over Robbinsdale Cooper’s Sam
Thurston, but he did not get a chance at
a wrestleback.
Dossen pinned Minneapolis Edison’s
Janet Sanchez in 1:53 in the quarter-
fi nals, and he won 13-12 over Benilde-
St. Margaret’s Luke Fredin in the con-
solation semifi nals. Dossen lost 8-2 to
Totino-Grace’s Bryce Erkenbrack in the
semifi nals.
Junior Clint Garrity (14-13) was
fourth at 145 pounds, dropping a 9-3
decision to Richfi eld’s Tritian Zornes in
his third-place match. Garrity defeated
Minneapolis Edison’s Javonni Grimes
6-4 in the consolation semifi nals and
also won an 18-6 major decision over
Columbia Heights’ Jonathan Heveron
in the quarterfi nals.
Garrity was edged 7-5 to Minneapolis
Patrick Henry’s Jan Soto-Hernandez in
the semifi nals.
Sophomores Cole Garcia (138 pounds)
See BCCA , Page 17
Champlin Park boys swimming
(SUN POST STAFF PHOTOS BY ANTHONY IOZZO)
(SUN POST STAFF PHOTO BY ANTHONY IOZZO)
Champlin Park sophomore Tashina Beyioku-Alase performs on the vault Feb. 23 in the AA state gym-
nastics meet at the University of Minnesota’s Maturi Pavilion. Beyioku-Alase fi nished 15th overall on the
vault with a score of 9.5125. Champlin Park sophomore Donovan Durand swims in the 500-yard freestyle Feb. 21 in the 5AA sec-
tion prelims at the Minnetonka Aquatics Center. Durand ended up qualifying for state on Feb. 23 with
a second-place fi nish in 4 minutes, 57.7 seconds.
State Durand, Phillips advance to state
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13 By ANTHONY IOZZO
[e-mail]
brief moment of confusion. Neu was about
to run her second vault before the entire sta-
dium seemed to scream, ‘No.’ Neu laughed
and walked back to the side, and everyone
cheered her on again.
It was tough for Neu to top that moment,
but she did have two more events after the
vault. One of those events was the balance
beam, which was her fi nal event of the eve-
ning.
Neu said that the beam is her one struggle,
and she was nervous after falling during her
series at sections. It didn’t help that she was
last to go in the rotation.
“I was like, ‘Hopefully I am not last,’” Neu
said. “That is the only thing that I wish for
and then someone tells me I am last and I
am like, ‘Are you serious?’”
But the nerves seemed to melt away once
she was on the beam because she leapt,
twisted and fl ipped with confi dence. Once
she planted her fi nale, she knew she had
done something special once again.
Neu scored a 9.675, and it was enough
for her fi rst state title on the beam. She took
sixth last season.
“I was just trying to think to take it skill by
skill,” Neu said. “I never in a million years
thought I would get fi rst. My goal going in
was to just stick my beam routine, so when I
stuck it I was super happy and super proud
of myself.”
Neu started the meet with the fl oor exer-
cise, which she won a state title on last sea-
son, and she wowed yet again. She scored a
9.7125 to take fi rst.
She later took fi rst on the uneven bars
with a 9.7125.
Champlin Park sophomore Emma Saksa performs
on the uneven bars on Feb. 23 in the AA state
gymnastics meet at the University of Minnesota’s
Maturi Pavilion. Saksa fi nished 25th overall on the
bars with a score of 9.1375.
“I haven’t added my blind front giants
until the last couple of meets, so I was kind
of nervous about that but I am super happy
that I made it and super happy that my work
paid off,” Neu said.
So what could possibly be next for Neu
after her state record performance? She said
she will have more training and will learn
new skills, so there should be plenty of more
golds on the horizon.
Beyioku-Alase, Saksa also compete
Sophomores Tashina Beyioku-Alase and
Emma Saksa also competed at state with
Neu and fi nished well.
Beyioku-Alase participated in the vault
and took 15th overall with a score of 9.5125,
and Saksa fi nished 25th on the uneven bars
with a 9.1375.
Champlin Park sophomores Dono-
van Durand and Garrett Phillips will be
representing the Rebels at state as both
advanced from Feb. 22-23 in the 5AA
section meet at the Minnetonka Aquatic
Center.
Phillips was the fi rst to punch his tick-
et to state in the diving competition on
Feb. 22. He fi nished third overall with
a 354.6.
Wayzata advanced to state in the
other three diving spots. Eighth-grader
Henry Ross won with a 398.3, and ju-
nior Ethan Wheeler was runner-up with
a 385.5. Freshman Nick Haseman was
fourth with a 339.35.
Durand joined Phillips on Feb. 23 in
the 500-yard freestyle swimming fi nals.
Durand fi nished runner-up in 4 min-
utes, 57.7 seconds. Wayzata freshman
Matthew Gendreau won the event in
4:57.04.
The Rebels took third as a team with
a 256. Wayzata won with a 665, and
Spring Lake Park took second with a
333.
Durand added his second medal in the
200 freestyle. He took third in 1:47.85
Junior Dalton Stohlmann also medaled
in the 200 free with a sixth-place fi nish
in 1:53.35. Wayzata junior Ian Tarasze-
wski won in 1:47.4, and Wayzata’s Gen-
dreau fi nished second in 1:47.71.
Junior Mark Kroening, senior Haven
Eliason, Stohlmann and Durand added
a third-place in the 400 free relay in
3:20.23. Wayzata won the event with a
State berths
Diving: Garrett Phillips (third), 354.6
500 free: Donovan Durand (second),
4:57.7
Coming up
Donovan Durand and Garrett
Phillips represent Champlin Park
Thursday-Saturday, Feb. 28-March
2 in the AA state swimming and
diving meet at the University of
Minnesota’s Jean K. Freeman
Aquatic Center. The diving prelims
are at 6 p.m. Thursday, and the
swimming prelims are at 6 p.m.
Friday. The fi nals are at 6 p.m.
Saturday.
section record time of 3:10.69, and Rob-
binsdale Cooper took second in 3:17.49.
Mark Kroening was fourth in the 100
freestyle in 49.51 to make the podium,
and Eliason joined him with an eighth-
place fi nish in 50.98. Robbinsdale Coo-
per senior Jacob Boswell won in 48.08,
and Wayzata senior Tim Belov was sec-
ond in 48.48.
Eliason added a medal in the 50
free, taking fi fth in 22.35. Irondale ju-
nior Daniel Larson won in 21.59, and
See Swim , Page 19