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Welcome back to the annual top 11 high school sports stories of the 2013-14 season. I decided to officially change it to a list of 11 last year when I just couldn’t figure out only 10. It makes my job a bit easier and gives the readers an extra memory to think back on. Last year’s top spot went to then-junior Thomi Lee. She won the state championship in the 500 yard freestyle, becoming the first swimmer to take first place at state in Chisago Lakes history. This year, there were no state champions among the winners here, but there were a few near-misses and some great moments in competition that really defined what the Chisago County area, and specifically North Branch and Chisago Lakes High Schools are all about. Each season had plenty of highlights, so without further ado, here is the top 11 list for this past school year.

11. Individuals that competed at the state tournament
The 2013-14 season had so many teams going to the state tournament from the area, that at times people forgot the individuals that qualified in their respective sports.
There was little Rhianna Rinke, the everlasting runner, dashing through the leaves of fall for North Branch. There was area grapplers all vying for the biggest title on the biggest stage. There were even Chisago Lakes kids carving up the slopes of Giants Ridge at the Alpine Ski State Tournament. Spring brought an extraordinary amount of track athletes to the state tournament, as well as a trio of golfers and a pair of tennis players. The seasons may change, but the fact that the area kept churning out state participants didn’t change, and they were rewarded with showers of recognition and awards. The individuals who qualified for the state tournament from each school:

North Branch
Rhianna Rinke (cross country and track and field);  Aaron Senne, Tristan Labelle, Seamus Hunter and Reid Johnson (wrestling); John Buboltz and Regan Nelson (boys golf) and Cassie Kunshier, Maddie Kunshier, Mikayla Johnson, Haley Huset, Jessica Stendahl, Arik Steele, Kyle Crandell, Matt Marrin, Eli Chouinard, Max Southbloom, Brandon Thauwald (track and field)

Chisago Lakes
Thomi Lee, Danielle Smythe, Kalli Jo Olson, Dani Berg, Courtney Schlegel (girls swimming and diving); James Falkowski, Jake Ewert, Riley Darling, Matt Braun, Jake Carlson, Jake Doble, Derek Frank, Austin Turman (boys swimming and diving); Anders Brown and Ellie Frischmon (alpine skiing); Teddy Pierce, Aaron Sistrunk, Kyle Schoenecker, Mark Sontag, Dylan Connell, Joe Virga (wrestling); EmmaLeah Trandahl, Andy Magnuson, Carson Velaski, Carl Osterberg, Quinton Lee (track and field; Thomas Gillach and Sheamus Sullivan (boys tennis)

10. Anders Brown finishes in eighth place in the state ski tournament
Anders Brown had felt nothing but heartbreak in his two trips to the state tournament. Last year, he took a fall on both runs and finished in 81st place. In 2012, as a seventh grader, Brown took a spill in his second run after a quality opening run and finished in 67th place. This year, however, the freshman made the best of his two runs and strung together a phenomenal state tournament at Giants Ridge in Biwabik, MN, to finish in eighth place in the event. After he crossed the finish line in what he knew was a fast time which put him in contention for a podium finish, he had to sweat out another group of skiers. When a few of the top guys went down, Brown catapulted up to eighth place and into a podium finish.

9. Wildcat foursome leads way in track and cross country
The Chisago Lakes boys cross country team earned their second straight berth to the state tournament, and a lot of it had to do with the legs of Andy Magnuson, Zac West and Carson Velaski. The seniors paced the Wildcats throughout the season. They had strong contributions, though, from Nick Bartz, Jake Schwelling, Quinton Lee and Simon Eddy, especially in the state tournament, where the ‘Cats finished 14th. The distance runners weren’t done, however. Magnuson, Osterberg, Lee and Velaski followed that amazing cross country season with a record-breaking performance in the 4x800 in track and field season. They smashed the school record, and earned a podium finish at the state tournament, coming in ninth place. “I'm so proud of these guys.  They set the goal to get to state in this event before the season even started,” Head Coach Ken Orwoll said at the time. “They have worked very hard all season and it’s great to see them reach their goals and have success.”

8. Boys swimming sends athletes in 10 of 10 events to state in McNally’s first year
Former Head Coach Mark Nordby was a beloved figure in the Chisago Lakes boys swimming circles. He connected with the kids and really pushed them to hit their next level and maximize their talent.
When he announced his resignation, no one figured they could find a successor that would live up to Nordby’s high expectations. However, young gun Brian McNally, a former Chisago Lakes swimmer, made sure there was no drop off when he took over the program. The guys really responded to McNally’s energy and kept their hard work up, eventually being rewarded at the end of the year. The ‘Cats sent athletes in 10 of the 12 events at the state tournament, an astonishing feat for a program that was working with a first-year coach. “They are such a fun team to coach. They know how to get up for big races and outperform expectations,” McNally said at the time.

7. Chisago Lakes soccer stays unbeaten for 13 games to start season
The Chisago Lakes boys soccer team knew they would have a chance to compete in the new Mississippi 8 Conference, but I don’t think they even could predict the success they had in 2013.
Chisago Lakes won their first 11 games of the season before tying Spring Lake Park. They won one more game after that before dropping their only regular season game of the year, a 2-1 decision against Monticello. The Wildcats moved all the way to the Section 7AA finals before being upset by Hermantown 3-1. They needed the season 15-2-1, including a perfect 10-0 mark at home.

6. Two Wildcat wrestlers earn top five finishes at state tourney
For the first time in over two decades, Chisago Lakes had two wrestlers place at the same state tournament. Both Joe Virga and Dylan Connell earned top five finishes. Virga finished in fourth, but he made it tough on himself, losing his first match at state after going undefeated in the regular season. In the wrestlebacks, Virga started off with a 10-0 win over Derek Johnson of Cannon Falls. He then beat Joe Weeding of Dawson Boyd-Lac Qui Parle-Montevideo United 6-0 and Luke Kelvington of Foley 6-1 to set up a third place match with senior Billy McClay of Princeton. Virga and McClay battled in the match. In fact, it was their fifth time that season wrestling. Virga had come out on top in the four previous meetings, but McClay topped him in the last controversial match. Virga still earned the fourth place finish and has a bright future in his senior year. Connell, who makes this list for the second year in a row, placed fifth at the state tourney, up one spot from his sixth place finish from last year. Connell won his first round match but then lost his second match in overtime to send him into the tough road of wrestlebacks. In the wrestlebacks, Connell pinned senior Jordan Bothun of Dawson Boyd-Lac Qui Parle-Montevideo United at 4:56. He then beat sophomore Jackson Sweeney of Watertown-Mayer/Mayer Lutheran 7-0 before losing to senior Tevin Zavadil of Monticello 6-5. In the fifth place match, Connell dominated senior Colten Specht of Quad County and won 8-3 to claim a fifth place finish.

That wraps up the first part of the Top 11 stories of the Year. For the top five, check out next week’s Chisago County Press. Hope you’re having a great summer and enjoy your Fourth of July!

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