“When I heard the crowd roar, it just sent shivers down my spine,” Minneota sophomore Randy Sorensen said of what he felt in the moments after he sealed the match with a pin of Easton Braun in 189. “It’s the first time in 10 years, so of course it’s going to be loud. They’re all excited, we’re all excited to go, it’s going to be a great time.”

The Vikings led 31-17 heading into Sorensen’s match, meaning he needed just a major decision to clinch the trip to state. He came out aggressive and never let Braun regain momentum, sealing the dual with a pin in 1:28.

“I did [know I could clinch the dual], and I had full trust in what I can do because of all my training and all my teammates there behind me … You just have to go out there and attack, your best defense is your offense,” Sorensen said. “I kind of struggled even going out for wrestling, but hearing them [the community], they always come out and support me.”

The Vikings were also the top seed in last year’s section tournament but were upset by third-seeded Canby in the championship round. This time around, however, the Vikings took care of business with a pair of dominant wins. Minneota routed Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg in the semifinals by a score of 46-17.

Photo by Jake McNeill: Minneota's Mason Javers celebrates as he walks to the bench after his 160-pound win over Brighton Frenchick in the Section 5A championship dual Saturday in Ortonville.

“It’s honestly amazing. Last year, we had a shot, but we lost one of our key guys and weren’t able to do it. But this year, just being able to be a part of it and helping the team means a lot, especially with my dad being the coach,” Minneota sophomore Owen Myrvik said.

The Canby Lancers also competed on Sunday, but fell 42-20 to Paynesville to halt their attempt to repeat as section champions.

Leading up to the clinching win, all of the momentum appeared to be on Minneota’s side. Owen Myrvik came from behind to get a pin in 145, Mason Javers got a first-period pin in 160, Adam DeVlaeminck earned a technical fall in 152 and Brock Fier and Blake Mead each earned major decisions to put the Vikings in command.

Myrvik came out aggressive in his match against Levi Kerzman, getting a takedown and a nearfall in the opening seconds, but a reversal and nearfall from Kerzman tied up the score at 7-all at the end of the first period.

Kerzman continued to pick up steam in the second period, taking a commanding 13-8 lead, but Myrvik was unfazed. Starting the third in the neutral position, Myrvik got a takedown before ceding an escape with 1:23 remaining, and he got another takedown to tie up the match before pinning Kerzman with 45 seconds left in the match to bring Minneota within a point.

“I was just trying to get that first takedown and then go to my cradle from there,” Myrvik said of his approach to the third period. “After my coaches told me to cut him, I went back up, restarted the match, and then got in on another shot. Was able to take him down, get my cradle from there and end up pinning him.”

Minneota trailed 17-0 through the first four matches of the day. In freshman Eli Faris’ 133-pound match against Braydon Kierstead, he trailed 17-5 before he was slammed head-first onto the ground and was knocked unconscious. After the match was paused, he was helped to his feet, walked off the mat and was awarded a win by medical forfeit.

The Vikings had already lost a key wrestler a few weeks ago when Landon Pohlen sustained a season-ending injury. The Vikings walked out to the championship dual to Pohlen’s walk-out music, donning shirts with Pohlen’s photo that read “LANDON STRONG” across the middle.

“You never want to see it happen, regardless of if you’re the recipient or whatever. You want the kids to decide the duals no matter what,” coach Myrvik said. “Obviously, we had it happen to us last year in the same type of situation and we had it just a couple of weeks ago. You never want to see that in any sport you’re in. We’re just hoping [Faris] is going to be alright. I think he’s going to be okay.”

Blake Mead earned the Vikings’ first decision of the day, responding to a third-period reversal from Devon Schmidt with a takedown to earn a 12-4 major decision to cut the team deficit to 17-10.

Photo by Jake McNeill: The Minneota bench reacts during Owen Myrvik's 154-pound match in the 5A team wrestling championships, Saturday in Ortonville.

The Vikings’ first lead of the day came in 152, when DeVlaeminck got a trio of first-period takedowns to set the tone for a 21-4 technical fall. Mason Javers continued to feed off that energy with a first-period pin of Brighton Frenchick in 160, giving Minneota a two-match cushion.

With the match in hand, Minneota continued to win, as Carson Javers earned a 10-1 major decision in 215 and Cael Fier closed the match with a pin in 285, turning to the crowd, flexing his muscles and yelling in elation as the crowd rose to its feet in celebration.

“We said we were the best team in the section from day one when we started practicing. We believed it all year long and they proved it today,” coach Myrvik said. “We have good leadership, and it goes back to the amount of time that they put in over the offseason … Our kids put in a lot of work, and they deserve to be where they’re at today.

“I’m super proud of our coaching staff for everything they do for our kids. We have a lot of coaches and they do a great job of giving our kids everything they have. So super proud of our community and everything we’ve got. We’ve come up short, but they’ve built off that. They know that that’s what makes you stronger. You have to be there first and know how to do it. Being a year older obviously helps, and a little more mature, so super proud of our kids.”

Derek Fier jumped out to an early lead in 107 with a takedown, but an escape, a takedown and a near-fall put him in a hole before he fell by 12-4 major decision. The Bulldogs also overcame an early deficit when Tyson Meagher fell Heydan Danielson in 114, and Nolan Robert and Jamison Meagher led wire-to-wire in their matches against Nolan VanKeulen and Quinton Anderson, respectively, to take a 17-0 lead.

Photo by Jake McNeill: Minneota's Randy Sorensen celebrates after he won his 189-pound match during the Section 5A championship dual against Paynesville, Saturday in Ortonville.

Minneota knew that the lower weights would be an uphill battle since they were missing a pair of starters due to illness and injury, coach Myrvik said, but he felt that the kids in the lower weights wrestled well with the aim of saving points.

“Things can go one way and start to snowball, but it was good that Blake kind of put a stop to it and we just kept going from there and put it in the other kids’ hands,” coach Myrvik said.

Minneota will compete at the team state tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 25 at Grand Casino Arena in St. Paul at 4 p.m. With a win in either of their first two matches, the Vikings would also compete again the next day.

“I think they [my teammates] love the sport. There are a lot of wrestlers who do the sport, but they don’t love it. Sometimes that includes myself, but this whole group just loves wrestling,” Sorensen said of what allowed the Vikings to break through to state this year. “They always want to go out there and compete and wrestle their hardest. I just think if you love the sport, you’re going to succeed.”

“Just being under the bright lights with everybody, that’s going to be a great time, just being in the moment and having fun with all the guys,” Carson Javers, who first joined the team in eighth grade, walked away for a few years and returned this season, said. “It’s a great group, fun group of people, and we’re going to make it happen.”

Ahead of the team tournament, the Vikings will also compete in the Section 5A individual tournament on Saturday at Canby High School.

“We’ve had a lot of adversity to deal with the last couple of weeks here, so maybe they can relax and just go have fun [in individual sections],” coach Myrvik said. “We’ve preached having fun and working hard all year long … They’ve done a great job of it. I think with all the adversity the last couple weeks, I think we were a little closer to our best today, a little bit, but hopefully we can just get back to having fun and enjoy the opportunity.”

Minneota 47, Paynesville 17

107: Adrian Anaya (PAYN) def. Derek Fier (MIN) MD 12-4. 114: Tyson Meagher (PAYN) def. Heydan Danielson (MIN) Fall 4:50. 121: Nolan Roberg (PAYN) def. Nolan VanKeulen (MIN) MD 10-0. 127: Jamison Meagher (PAYN) def. Quinton Anderson (MIN) Dec. 5-0. 133: Eli Faris (MIN) def. Braydon Kierstead (PAYN) MFF. 139: Blake Mead (MIN) def. Devon Schmidt (PAYN) MD 12-4. 145: Owen Myrvik (MIN) def. Levi Kerzman (PAYN) Fall 5:14. 152: Adam DeVlaeminck (MIN) def. Alex Weber (PAYN) TF 21-5 4:41. 160: Mason Javers (MIN) def. Brighton Frenchick (PAYN) Fall 1:34. 172: Brock Fier (MIN) def. Daniel Flint (PAYN) MD 12-4. 189: Randy Sorensen (MIN) def. Easton Braun (PAYN) Fall 1:28. 215: Carson Javers (MIN) def. Colin Wendlandt (PAYN) MD 10-1. 285: Cael Fier (MIN) def. Brice Messer (PAYN) Fall 2:46.

Minneota 46, KMS 17

107: Heydan Danielson (MIN) def. Brody Nielsen (KMS) Fall 1:33. 114: Brayden Nielsen (KMS) def. Derek Fier (MIN) Dec. 8-7. 121: Oswaldo Moreno (KMS) def. Nolan VanKeulen (MIN) Dec. 9-5. 133: Eli Faris (MIN) def. Tucker Wilts (KMS) TF 15-0. 139: Blake Mead (MIN) def. Kalan VanHeuveln (KMS) Fall 0:57. 145: Trey Gunderson (KMS) def. Brycen Myhre (MIN) Fall 1:46. 152: Adam DeVlaeminck (MIN) def. Cole Froehlich (KMS) Dec. 7-3. 160: Taytan Nielsen (KMS) def. Colton Bitker (MIN) TF 17-2 3:25. 172: Mason Javers (MIN) def. Jake Holtkamp (KMS) MD 13-3. 189: Brock Fier (MIN) def. Joshua Jones (KMS) Fall 1:58. 215: Randy Sorensen (MIN) def. Wyatt Rudningen (KMS) Fall 1:45. 285: Cael Fier (MIN) def. Jay Harkema (KMS) Fall 2:39.

Paynesville 42, Canby 20

107: Logan Stoks (CAN) def. Adrian Anaya (PAYN) Dec. 6-4. 114: Tyson Meagher (PAYN) def. Cash Antony (CAN) Dec. 4-0. 121: Nolan Roberg (PAYN) def. Maddox Kockelman (CAN) MD 16-7. 127: Jamison Meagher (PAYN) def. Liam Citrowske (CAN) Fall 1:38. 133: Devon Schmidt (PAYN) def. Ben Drietz (CAN) TF 15-0 5:21. 139: Braydon Kierstead (PAYN) def. Jaxson Ramberg (CAN) Fall 0:48. 145: Daven VanEngen (CAN) def. Abraham Nething (PAYN) MD 15-4. 152: Alex Weber (PAYN) def. Taten Hoffman (CAN) Fall. 160: Lane Citrowske (CAN) def. Brighton Frenchick (PAYN) MD 15-6. 172: Daniel Flint (PAYN) def. Brennan Giese (CAN) Fall 3:58. 189: Quintin McLain (CAN) def. Lathan Rien (PAYN) Fall 2:50. 215: Wesley Verhelst (CAN) def. Sam Brick (PAYN) Dec. 5-4. 285: Brice Messer (PAYN) def. Jordan DePestel (CAN) Fall 5:16.