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2019 Fall Season Summaries

By Sports At Blake, 12/04/19, 2:30PM CST

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Cross Country

Blake Girls' team finished the season with a Section 4A title that earned them a spot at the State Meet held at St Olaf College. This is the second year in a row for the girls to appear at the State Meet. The Bears' placed 15th at State.

Blake Boys' team placed ninth in Section 4A. They found individual success with Shef West advancing to the the State Meet. Shef placed 52nd at State.

Head Coaches: Maggie Bowman and John Shelp (1st Season)

Assistant Coach: Geoff Fuller

IMAC Standings: Girls 2nd &  Boys 5th

IMAC All Conference: Jackie Weyerhaeuser (11th), Molly Liston (10th), Shef West (10th)

IMAC All Conference Honorable Mention: Alexandra Koullick (12th), Sophia Vezmar (10th), Caroline Pollack (9th)

All State: Molly Liston (10th)

Football

The SMB Wolfpack finished up  regular season play with an undefeated record of 8-0.  The Wolfpack then made things exciting with a last-minute come-from-behind win against Benilde-st. Margaret's in the section final game to send them to the State Tournament for the second year in a row.  The defending 4A champions made it to the final game of the tournament and walked away with a second place finish after necessitating the first overtime Prep Bowl game since 2005.

Head Coach: Chris Goodwin

Head Assistant Coaches: Hugh Davis, Dante Britton

District Individual Awards:

Offensive Player of the Year: Jalen Suggs

Defensive Player of the Year: Kaden Johnson

Co-Defensive Lineman of the Year: Kevvan Anderson

All-District:

Jalen Suggs, Kaden Johnson, Terry Lockett, Tommy Stopelstad, Trevon Howard, Kevvan Anderson

All-District Honorable Mention:

Harry Chugg, Sanjay Redd, Aaron Arnold, Cole McKinney

District and Section Coach of the Year, and 4AAAA Coach of the Year Nominee: Chris Goodman

Boys Soccer

It was another impressive run for the defending state champs.  The boys only suffered a few losses in regular season, many of which they were able to avenge in post-season play.  The Bears took second place in the State Tournament,  taking their opponent to the final seconds of double OT in the championship game.  

Head Coach: Tamba Johnson 

Assistant Coach: Aaron Payne and Dave Shapiro

IMAC All Conference: Howard Henderson (12),  Keegan James (11), Will Mortenson (12), Benji Pomonis (12)

IMAC All Conference Honorable Mention: Jackson Lagos (10), Jake Shapiro (10)

All Tournament Team: Howard Henderson (12), Will Mortenson (12), Jake Shapiro (10)

Girls Soccer

The girls soccer team took 3rd place in the State Tournament, knocking off two higher seeded teams in section play and one higher seeded team in the state tournament.  They played a tough regular season schedule, including a few AA schools and many of the top ranked A schools, which prepared them for an impressive run in the post season.

Head Coach: Kelsey Hans (1st Season)

Assistant Coach: Paul Armstrong

IMAC All Conference: Ali Fine (12),  Cate Moe (12), Amelia Reyes (11)

IMAC All Conference Honorable Mention: Carly Showmate (10), Elli Sovell (9)

All State: Ali Fine (12), Amelia Reyes (11)

All Tournament Team: Ali Fine (12), Amelia Reyes (11)

Girls Swim and Dive

The Blake Bears girls swim and Dive program had some great finishes during the 2019-2020 season.   The Bears finished the season 2-4 in dual meets, losing to some of the state’s best Class A teams; Visitation, Breck, and BSM. It was the team’s goal to strive to compete with the highest caliber of teams for points in dual and end of season meets. This year was highlighted by over half the team going sub :30 seconds in the 50 free, including 15 lifetime bests and 6 season bests at sections.

Head Coach: Luke Johnson

Assistant Coaches: Christy Wagner, sophie Wallock, Dave Bryan

Dive Coach: Brandon Pearson

Bright Future: Rachel Bartels

Most Improved: Sophia Sznewajs

Blake Bear Award: Sara Richardson

Coaches' Award- Angelina Hartley

Blake Rookie of the Year- Maya Sullivan

PA Rookie of the Year- Taylor Smith

Girls Tennis

The Blake Girls Tennis Team successful completed a 5 peat by wining the 2019 State Team Championship.   It capped off a wonderful year.  The team showed great improvement throughout the season.  In the sixth year in the Independent Metro Athletic Conference, the Bears claimed their 5th IMAC Girls Tennis Championship.   A big win over the Edina Hornets during the regular season propelled the Bears to Section victories over Southwest Christian and Breck.  At State, the Bears would defeat Thief River Falls, Litchfield and Rochester Lourdes.  

Head Coach:  Mike Ach (4th Season)

Assistant Coaches:  Ted Warner, Victoria Bravo

Season Record:  22-2

IMAC Final Standing:  5-0, Conference Champions

IMAC All Conference Players:  Arlina Shen, Sonia Baig, Bella Suk, Emily Melin, Caroline Cameron, Allyson Jay,  Anna Secor

IMAC  All Conference Honorable Mentions:  Natalie Anderson

MSHSL Individual Singles Champion:  Arlina Shen

MSHSL Individual Doubles Champions:  Allyson Jay and Bella Suk

Volleyball

The Bears' ended their season on a high note as they won their first section match since 2015. Seeded #13 in section 5AA the Bears upset Colombia Heights with a 3-1 victory on the road. With no seniors on the team the Bears look to build off this success heading into 2020.

Head Coach: Leesa Malone (1st)

Assistant Coaches: Elizabeth Miller, Abby Farniok, Carissa Fahey

Record: 5-18

IMAC All Conference: Maya Hardy (11th)

IMAC All Conference Honorable Mention: Nikki Stabno (11th), Rilee Winters (10th)