Apple Valley wins sixth straight state title

A forgone conclusion in the eyes of many became reality at just the right time. Who else but Destin McCauley to wrap up Apple Valley's 19th state championship.

The senior's 18-3 technical fall in the Class 3A team championship match at 152 pounds gave the Eagles a lead over St. Michael Albertville big enough to put the match out of reach en route to a 61-6 victory. It is the team's sixth consecutive big-school championship.

McCauley, who will shoot for his fifth individual state championship beginning today at Xcel Energy Center, was proud to be the nail in the coffin.

"Last match with the team -- it was a big deal," McCauley said.

The eventual championship victory was the capper on a dominant day of wrestling for Minnesota's most dominant team.

The Eagles lost only three matches Thursday. One of those came at 112 pounds in the quarterfinals on a disqualification after coach Jim Jackson presented the wrong name to the scorer's table.

After that, Apple Valley won 38 of its remaining 40 bouts including all 14 in a 70-0 victory over Prior Lake in the semifinals for the Eagles' second shutout of the postseason.

Added senior 171 pounder Jake Waste: "It's the exclamation point and the period to our journey."

Knights coach Dan Lefebvre praised Apple Valley's abilities, but he chose to forfeit at the 112 and 171 weight classes, citing this weekend's individual tournament.

"I have to look out for some of those guys," he said. "Our goal is to win a state championship every year, [but] we knew we were the underdogs coming in; they have a lot of top kids in the nation. We're realistic."

Class 2A: Simley rolls Simley coach Will Short is a personable man, outgoing and gregarious and quick with a smile. Except, of course, when the Spartans are wrestling. It took 14 matches and more than two hours before Short cracked a grin Thursday, despite the face that the Spartans were comfortably in control from the outset of their 39-16 victory over Scott West in the final.

"I go through so much with these guys during the season," Short said. "Sometimes it's harder to be sitting in the chair watching them go through it."

How good is Simley? Scott West entered the final undefeated and began the meet with a decisive victory over Kasson-Mantorville, which had been ranked No. 41 in the nation. But Simley wasted little time in gaining an insurmountable advantage, rolling to an 18-0 lead by winning the first four matches.

"Simley did to us what we've been doing to other team all season," Scott West co-coach Darren Ripley said. "They are clearly on another level. They're ranked No. 6 for a reason.

Class 1A: Tie for the title Beauty, in this case, was definitely in the eye of the beholder.

Jackson County Central, the No. 1 seed in Class 1A, and Frazee, the No. 3 seed, battled to a 28-28 tie in the team final, earning the titles of co-champions of the meet.

For Frazee, it was a case of quality over quantity. The Hornets won only five of 14 individual matches, but four were by fall and the other was a major decision.

The flip side was that of the Jackson County Central wrestlers. Despite winning the majority of the matches, the Huskies weren't pleased having to share the title.

"We're not happy about it," coach Randy Baker said. "Their guys are over there jumping around, and our guys are crying."

Baker wasn't trying to take away from what Frazee accomplished. He was more disappointed in the fact the his team didn't wrestle up to its capabilities.