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BACK TO STATE — NRHEG senior Seth Petranek, right, earns a victory Saturday at Blue Earth and a second straight trip to the state tournament. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
By JIM LUTGENS
Editor/Publisher
NRHEG coach Paul Cyr had high hopes for two and mixed hopes for several others entering the Section 2A Individual Wrestling Tournament.
The two came through.
Seniors Dustin Esplan and Seth Petranek advanced to the state tournament while four others just missed in last weekend’s section tournament that concluded Saturday night at Blue Earth.
Esplan was most impressive in taking the 120-pound championship, winning by fall and, in the finals, by technical fall. He’ll take a record of 36-4 to state, where he finished third last year at 119.
Petranek was the runner-up at 182, falling 10-6 to USC’s Brady Thisius in the finals. Petranek, like Esplan a two-time state entrant, is 33-7. He was 2-2 at state last year and did not place at 189.
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Panthers prepare for playoffs after nonconference loss at Waseca
SENIOR STRONG — The seven seniors on the 2011-12 NRHEG boys' basketball team are, from left, Pete Blowers, Matt Carlson, Tyler Sorenson, Carter Tollefson, Spencer Hanna, Sam Lundberg and Lucas Meyer. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
By JIM LUTGENS
Editor/Publisher
The NRHEG boys’ basketball team finished the regular season with a tough game against a tough opponent.
Hopefully, it toughened the Panthers for tournament play.
NRHEG dropped its regular-season finale 67-42 last Tuesday at Waseca. The Panthers, who lost a plethora of close contests this season, fell to 9-17. The Bluejays improved to 11-12 under first-year head coach Todd Dufault.
“Waseca's defense was the story of the game,” said NRHEG coach Pat Churchill. “They took us out of everything we wanted to do offensively. Their pressure man-to-man defense gave us nothing inside of 15 feet. We settled for outside shots and we were not hitting anything. You have to give Waseca credit for how hard and physical they played. It took us out of rhythm offensively and we were flustered all night.”
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No. 2 ranked NRHEG girls end regular season without a loss
IT’S UNDER CONTROL — NRHEG senior Anna Schlaak (33) dribbles in the lane during the Panthers’ victory over Medford last Tuesday. In the background is NRHEG’s Katie Cole (14). The Panthers completed a 26-0 regular season with a win Friday at Randolph. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
PASS IT ON — The Panthers’ Hannah Lundberg (21) looks to pass the ball during last week’s game against Medford. (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
By JIM LUTGENS
Editor/Publisher
The only thing in question for the NRHEG girls’ basketball team last week was the scores.
Everyone knew the unbeaten Gopher Conference champions would win to complete the regular season 26-0, best in school history. Even with starting guard Jade Schultz sidelined, the Panthers blew past Medford 67-35 last Tuesday and blasted Randolph 73-28 Friday.
The Panthers, ranked No. 2 and the only unbeaten team in Class AA, are the No. 1 seed in the sub-section and will host No. 8 Triton Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 7 p.m. If they win, they’ll host a game Friday, March 2 at 7 p.m. From there the tournament moves to Minnesota State-Mankato and Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter.
But coach John Schultz isn’t thinking about that just yet. He’s more than happy with the one-game-at-a-time approach that’s gotten the Panthers this far. Though they won their fourth consecutive Gopher Conference title, they’re aiming for their first state tournament berth since 2004.