A review of the biggest prep stories in the south metro in 2014

Lakeville North wins first title

No player single-handedly carried a team to a state championship like J.P. Macura did at Lakeville North.

Macura, who now plays for Xavier, poured in 43 points as the Panthers stunned Hopkins 84-82 in the Class 4A boys' basketball final at Target Center.

It was the first boys' basketball state championship for Lakeville North. It also marked the first time Hopkins lost in the final under coach Ken Novak Jr. The Royals were 6-0 in championship games.

Macura was coming off a 31-point performance in a 55-52 victory over Cretin-Derham Hall in the semifinals. He buried a long three-pointer at the buzzer for that victory.

The sharp-shooting guard had 23 points in a 59-47 triumph over Buffalo in the quarterfinals. He averaged 31.8 points per game on the season.

Eastview makes it a clean sweep

A week after Lakeville North's celebration for boys, the Lightning knocked off Bloomington Kennedy 64-61 at Williams Arena. Eastview is currently ranked No. 1, too.

It was also Eastview's first girls' basketball state championship. It previously had been the runners-up twice, in 2000 and 2003.

Junior guard Madison Guebert's layup with 48 seconds remaining gave Eastview its first lead on the night. She scored a game-high 29 points.

Guebert was able to celebrate the championship with her mother, Melissa. She is the coach of the Lightning and became the first female coach to win the big school title.

Eagan gets its kicks in soccer

The Wildcats completed a 21-0-1 season by winning the Class 2A state championship at St. Cloud State University. They shut out Eden Prairie 1-0 in the finals.

"All of this is possible when you have players who understand what is required of them as individuals and as a team," Ozturk said following the Wildcats' state run. "We are really proud of giving Eagan its first girls' soccer championship."

The Wildcats were only scored upon in seven of their 22 contests. They outscored their opponents 61-9.

Cougars make it four first-timers

Lakeville South is the fourth school to join in on the list of school's achieving a first. The Cougars garnered their initial Class 3A softball state crown.

Lakeville South defeated Orono 2-1 in eight innings in the quarterfinals and shut out Anoka 11-0 in the semifinals. The Cougars were also making their initial state tournament appearance.

Eagle wrestlers keep on rolling

Apple Valley won its ninth consecutive Class 3A team championship, beating Prior Lake 56-9 at the Xcel Energy Center. It was the program's 22nd crown.

The victory capped a 33-0 season for the South Suburban Conference school. It defeated Maple Grove 64-4 in the opening round and Hastings 65-3 in the semifinals.

Apple Valley also crowned four individual champions. They were Maolu Woiwor (132 pounds), Seth Gross (138), Mark Hall (170) and Bobby Steveson (182). Hall won his fourth consecutive title while Woiwor and Gross each earned their third individual crowns.

McKenzie Neisen of New Prague concluded her prep golf career with one for the record books.

Neisen, now golfing at Oklahoma State, shot a record 9-under-par 135 to win the Class 3A girls' tournament for the second consecutive year at Bunker Hills in Coon Rapids. She finished one stroke ahead of Wayzata senior Sarah Burnham.

Neisen and Burnham shared the title in 2013, when they both shot 4-under-par 140s. Neisen also had two runner-up finishes in the state tourney during her career.

The Trojans also won two team championships with Neisen leading the way.

Simley tries to keep pace

Coach Will Short's squad won its sixth Class 2A championship in the past seven years, defeating Scott West 33-21 in the title tilt. It marked the 10th championship in school history.

Mack Short (152 pounds), with his uncle guiding him, was the school's lone individual champion. He became the program's 40th individual champion.

Gymnast defends state crown

Winning state championships has become habit for Bailey DuPay, currently a senior at Northfield. She has been dominant in gymnastics as well as girls' swimming.

DuPay successfully defended her title in the all-around competition at the Class 2A gymnastics state meet at University of Minnesota Sports Pavilion. She registered a winning mark of 39.075.

Burns impressive in state meet

Texas A&M's women's track program knew exactly the kind of athlete it was getting in Lakeville South senior Shaina Burns. Her performance in the Class 2A girls' track state meet was impressive.

Burns was a double-winner, but the events don't exactly go hand in hand. She won the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.44 seconds and the shot put with a toss of 44 feet, 10½ inches.

She also finished third in the 300 hurdles and was a member of the school's 4x400 relay team that finished third.

Another Cougar wins two events

Herrera, now swimming for Columbia University in New York, took first place in the 200- and 500-yard freestyle events. He posted a winning time of 1 minute, 40.85 seconds in the 200. He won the 500 with a time of 4:33.55.