Prep athletes of the week: Shakopee wrestler Ben Lunn dominates in Clash duals

BEN LUNN Shakopee • wrestling

The meet had been a good one for the senior 132-pounder, save for a lone hiccup that cost the Sabers a valuable team point in the championship match at the Clash duals in Rochester.

And Lunn's mistake was inflating the butterflies in his stomach into fruit bats.

Lunn had been dominant in his weight class, with four pins and two decisions, enough so to be named to the all-tournament team at 132 pounds. But in the finals against St. Michael-Albertville, a problem arose with his headgear. He unstrapped it to fix it, but that's a violation and Shakopee was docked a team point.

So when teammate Carson Manville took the mat at 170 pounds for the last match of the finals, Shakopee held a slim two-point lead over the Knights.

"I was so nervous, I almost threw up in the last match," Lunn said. "But I knew we had to stay positive on the bench. Carson coming back to win was everything we stand for as a team."

Manville's 6-4 victory secured a 30-25 Shakopee victory and provided an antacid for Lunn's stomach. It also cemented the defending champion Sabers' claim to No. 1 in Class 3A.

"A big motivation for us is to maintain what we had last year," Lunn said. "It's an accumulation of our hard work and brotherhood on and off the mat. It's a test of our character."

NADIA ABID

Maple Grove • gymnastics

The senior won the all-around competition at the MGGOA Invitational at Park Center. She posted a score of 37.65 by winning the balance beam (9.625), taking second in the floor exercise (9.625) and placing fourth in the vault (9.5).

MALLORY BRAKE

Hastings • basketball

The 6-foot senior, a Creighton recruit, became Hastings' career leader in points and rebounds in a 53-31 victory over Park of Cottage Grove. She scored 27 points in the game and now has 2,252 for her career, and she is nearing 1,500 rebounds.

ADELAIDE BURTON

Blake • hockey

The senior forward led the Gold Bracket of the Herb Brooks Cup tournament in scoring with six goals and an assist. She scored twice in a 5-3 loss to Rogers, once in a 5-1 loss to Holy Family and had a hat trick in a 7-2 victory over St. Paul United.

ADRIK KRAFTSON

Stillwater • Nordic skiing

The sophomore showed why he is considered one of the state's top Classic-style racers by winning the discipline at the Mesabi East Invitational. Kraftson won comfortably, covering the Giants Ridge course in 15 minutes, 5.2 seconds.

JORDAN PARENT

Forest Lake • Nordic skiing

The freshman led the third-ranked Rangers to the team championship of the prestigious Mesabi East Invitational at Giants Ridge in Biwabik. Parent won the freestyle leg of the meet in 16:59.7, the only racer to finish under 17 minutes.

SIMEON SHARP

St. Paul Harding • basketball

The 6-1 point guard led the Knights to back-to-back victories after an 0-7 start. He capped off the short run with 58 points in a 109-106 victory over St. Paul Washington, setting a St. Paul Conference single-game record.

JIM PAULSEN