ROUNDUP: Here are the 39 best-performing HS athletes from the week of April 14-20
SAINT CLOUD – Welcome to the St. Cloud Times’ list of standout athletes.
Now fully into the spring season, staff will weekly highlight athletes who performed well individually in varsity competitions held during the previous week. The list will include athletes from Albany, Becker, Foley, Holdingford, Kimball, ROCORI, Royalton, Sartell-St. Stephen, Sauk Rapids-Rice, St. Cloud Apollo, St. Cloud Cathedral, St. Cloud Tech, and St. John’s Prep competing in baseball, golf, lacrosse, softball, tennis and track and field.
The list will be released every Friday, ahead of the weekly athlete of the week poll starting with the week of April 14-20.
Baseball
Luke Bieniek
Holdingford junior infielder
Holdingford (7-2) picked up three wins last week starting on April 15, squeaking by Maple Lake (0-6) thanks to one run scored on an error in the first inning of a game where Holdingford was outhit. Then the Huskers swept a doubleheader against Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City (0-7) on April 18.
Junior Luke Bieniek had a hit in every game and went 2-3 in the first game of the DH, where he hit all his three RBI for the week. On the week the infielder was 4-7 and scored two runs with three walks and a strikeout. Bieniek has an OPS of .893 and leads his team in runs scored (seven) and doubles (two).
Josh Groskreutz
Becker senior outfielder and pitcher
Becker (9-0) stayed undefeated with two big wins over Annandale (1-8) and Zimmerman (0-8) by a combined score of 28-5. The Bulldogs picked up a conference point in their 20-1 five-inning game April 18 against the Thunder and lead Princeton (7-1) in the Mississippi 8 by one point.
On the week senior Josh Groskreutz went 4-10, scoring three runs and hitting three teammates in. He had two strikeouts at the plate. Groskreutz got the win on the mound against Annandale, pitching four innings with three unearned runs. He had five strikeouts and two walks.
Gerad Hanle
Becker freshman pitcher and infielder
Freshman Gerad Hanle struck out 11 of the 12 batters he faced against Zimmerman, recording perfect second, third and fourth innings after a walk in the first. He threw all five innings in the game.
At the plate against the Thunder, Hanle was 1-1 with a double, sac fly, two walks and a hit by pitch, racking up six RBI. He was hitless in one AB against Annandale.
Wesley Johnson
Sartell senior infielder and pitcher
The Central Lakes Conference is shaping up to be a tough one as Sartell (4-3) split its two games last week between a 5-4 win April 1 against ROCORI (4-3) and an extra inning loss April 18 to St. Cloud (6-1) after a near-no hitter for both teams.
Wesley Johnson started on the mound for the 1-0 game against St. Cloud, going six innings and an out before the Crush got their first hit with a bloop single to shallow right. He retired the next two batters in just five pitches. Johnson struck out seven batters in the game and allowed three baserunners, including two walks before the Crush hit two singles and a sacrifice fly on his replacement in the eighth.
Johnson hit 3-7 at the plate and played both middle infield positions. He hit an RBI and scored a run while avoiding striking out.
Reid McCalla
Becker senior first baseman and pitcher
Going 3-4 against Zimmerman, senior Reid McCalla hit his first home run of the season during a 10-run second inning. On the tenth pitch of the at bat he barreled a two-run moonshot to left, finishing the game with three RBI and four runs scored.
McCalla also pitched three innings in relief April 15 against Annandale. He gave up two earned runs on five hits and had three strikeouts and zero walks.
He was colder at the plate against the Cardinals, going hitless with two Ks. But McCalla drew a walk and scored in the win. He has an OPS of .796 so far this year
Drew Lieser
St. Cloud junior pitcher and first baseman
The St. Cloud Crush picked up two 1-0 wins on April 15 and April 18. The Crush beat Brainerd (3-4) at home, then Sartell in eight innings on the road. Going the eight-inning distance, pitcher Drew Lieser got the win in April 15’s 1-0 win over Sartell. The junior allowed one hit in that span, a single in the first inning. He struck out seven Sabres and walked one.
At the dish, Lieser was 1-4 with a walk and two strikeouts.
Kadyn Mork
St. Cloud senior pitcher and left fielder
Kadyn Mork’s sacrifice fly in the eighth inning against Sartell would win the game for the Crush. The previous game against Brainerd Mork picked up the win as a pitcher, going five scoreless innings with three hits. He walked three and struck out four in the start. Hitting Mork was 1-3 on the week with an RBI and a K.
Boys lacrosse
Robert Leaders
Becker junior midfielder
In Becker’s(0-3) first game of the year, a 21-6 loss to cross-river rival Monticello (1-3) on April 18, junior Robert Leaders was responsible for three of the Bulldogs’ goals. He also picked up eight ground balls, most on the team.
Jonas Malmanger
St. Cloud Crush senior goaltender
St. Cloud (4-1) had not broken 10 goals in a game two weeks into the season, but keeper Jonas Malmanger kept his team in games, not allowing an opponent to score more than Brainerd (2-3) on April 16 – a 10-6 loss. The Crush came back with a 9-6 win over ROCORI (1-3) on April 18.
Malmanger had eight saves on 18 shots against the Warriors and 10 saves on 16 shots against the Spartans. His save percentage of .529 for the week is down from a season average of .694.
Connor Wavrin
St. Cloud Crush senior attacker
In the Crush’s win over ROCORI in Cold Spring, Wavrin had eight points, scoring four goals and assisting four teammates – his best game in both stats this season. Wavrin also had a goal against Brainerd.
Girls lacrosse
Jenna Amundson
St. Cloud Crush senior midfielder
In St. Cloud’s (3-1) first game of the year, senior Jenna Amundson set the pace. She scored five goals April 14 in a 8-6 win over Brainerd (4-2), then had three April 18 against ROCORI (1-3), when the Crush won 15-3.
Claire Staudinger
St. Cloud Crush junior attacker
On the week junior Claire Staudinger had nine goals and two assists in two wins.
Softball
Ella Bensen
Holdingford freshman utility
After a rough start to the season, Holdingford (4-5) won three games in a row last week. The Huskers beat Maple Lake (1-3) on April 15 by a score of 12.1 and took both games of an April 18 doubleheader versus Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City (3-7), the first 5-4 and the second 12-5.
Ella Bensen hit her first runs in for the varsity Huskers last week, going 5-8 with four RBI and three runs scored in the three wins. She also drew a walk and only struck out once. Bensen has a .819 OPS so far this year.
Jessica Boos
ROCORI sophomore pitcher and infielder
ROCORI (6-1) picked up two conference wins last week, walking off in the seventh inning against Sartell (5-2) on April 15 and splitting a doubleheader against St. Cloud (6-2) on April 18. The Spartans and Crush sit atop the CLC with six conference wins apiece. ROCORI beat the Sabres 6-5 despite being out hit 9-6 and the Spartans defeated St. CLoud10-0. They lost the late game against St. Cloud 10-9.
Sophomore Jessica Boos started both wins in the circle for ROCORI, striking out 11 Sabres in seven innings and 10 Crush in six innings. Opponents have only averaged .692 walks or hits per inning and Boos has an era of .808.
At the plate Boos has an OPS of 1.214 and last week she went 5-11 with three RBIs, five runs scored and zero strikeouts.
Riley Fischer
Kimball sophomore pitcher
Kimball (6-0) scored three conference points last week, holding the top spot in the Central Minnesota Conference. The Cubs 10-runned Royalton (4-5) on April 15 and Paynesville (3-7) on April 18, later beating the Bulldogs 11-9 in the second game of a doubleheader.
Pitcher Riley Fischer pitched in all three games for Kimball, completing the shortened games against Royalton and Paynesville with jaw-dropping strikeout totals. The Bulldogs had six hits on Fischer seeing her in relief in the second game. The number was double the total from Fischer's previous two games. The sophomore picked up three wins in 15 innings, giving up five unearned runs on nine hits. She shut out Royalton 10-0, K-ing all but two of the 16 batters she faced. In the early game against Paynesville, Fischer grinded out 15 strikeouts.
At the plate Fischer collected two hits in each game, going 6-11 with three RBI and zero strikeouts. She drew two walks and scored three runs.
Keely Guggisberg
Sartell sophomore first baseman
Sartell bounced back from its walk-off loss to ROCORI with a sweep of Willmar (0-9) on April 18, beating the Cardinals 12-0 and 16-1 in the doubleheader.
Sophomore Keely Guggisberg was 4-8 with a walk on the week, hitting five RBI and scoring on four trips. She only struck out once in the 2-1 week.
Megan Guggisberg
Sartell senior third baseman
In nine at-bats, senior Megan Guggisberg came up with six hits, scoring one of her teammates and setting herself to score six times across three games. Guggisberg also drew a walk and only struck out once.
Marni Koosmann
Sartell sophomore pitcher
Koosmann was 2-1 on the week in the circle, but she struck out 11 Spartans in the loss to ROCORI and she allowed only two earned runs. Those were the only earned runs the sophomore gave up in the week and she picked up 10 more Ks in five innings split between the two Willmar games. In all, Koosmann threw 11 and 2/3 innings, giving up seven runs and four walks.
At the plate, Koosmann was 4-7 with a walk and scored on all of her trips to the basepath. She also had three RBI and drew a walk.
Claire Maus
Kimball freshman third baseman and pitcher
Going 4-10 with zero strikeouts and four RBIs, freshman Claire Maus hit several singles and a home run to left field to walk off in the sixth inning of the early game against Paynesville 11-1. She also drew a walk in three games last week and pitched three innings to start in the late game against the Bulldogs.
In pitching against Paynesville, Maus gave up five hits and four runs, though just one was earned in her three innings.
Lauren Soltis
Holdingford junior third baseman
Going .500 in 12 at-bats, Lauren Soltis continued to stay hot at the top of Holdingford’s lineup. She had three RBI and five runs scored with zero strikeouts and a walk. Soltis had just two hits prior to the week and now leads the team in singles with seven. She’s only struck out once this year.
Tayla Vought
Cathedral sophomore third baseman
Cathedral (6-0) leads the Granite Ridge Conference, picking up two points last week against Foley (1-4) on April 15 and Little Falls (1-3) on April 18. The Crusaders scored 13 runs in both games, holding the Falcons scoreless and the Flyers to three runs.
Sophomore Tayla Vought went 5-8 for Cathedral with four RBI against Foley and three against Little Falls. She also scored five runs and didn’t have any strikeouts. She hit a solo homer and a double versus the Falcons and had the walk-off RBI against the Fliers.
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Last week's athlete of the week poll: POLL: Spring sports players up for April 7-13 athlete of the week
Boys tennis
Brock Herdina
Becker eighth grader
The Becker (9-4) tennis squad lost its first two matches last week, first 4-3 to Chanhassen (8-1) on April 15 and 6-1 to Elk River (10-5) on April 20. The Bulldogs did defeat Buffalo (5-6) 6-1 and swept Harding (3-7) between their two losses.
Eighth grader Brock Herdina was the only Bulldog to go undefeated, winning all four of his individual matches from the four slot. Herdina lost just two sets in the week, going 56-33 in games.
Charles Simon
St. Cloud Crush sophomore
In a week with two doubleheaders and a standalone match, St. Cloud (6-6) went 3-2, winning one-point matches against Princeton (5-6) and Rosemount (2-5) and losing one to Minnewaska (14-0). The Crush also beat Litchfield (5-7) 6-1 and lost to Robbinsdale Armstrong (7-4) by the same score.
Top singles player Charles Simon went 4-1 in the week, leading his team in wins. The sophomore’s only loss was on the last day of the week to senior Jacob Merriam, of Robbinsdale Armstrong, who beat him 6-2 in back-to-back sets. Simon lost just one other set in his 4-0 streak, going 55-35 in games.
Boys track
Henry Buehrer
SJP track senior
St. John’s Prep competed April 18 at Maple Lakes’s triangular meet. Senior Henry Buehrer won the long jump, leaping a distance of 19 feet three and a half inches and he narrowly took second in the 400-meter dash, finishing behind a teammate by a hundredth of a second at 51.93, Buehrer’s PR.
Connor Hanson
Cathedral track senior
Mid-distance senior Connor Hanson was the fastest 3,200-meter runner April 15 in Milaca, placing first with a time of 11:14.02. He also competed in the 1,600 and was over ten seconds behind the leader in fifth place.
Preston Holewa
Foley track sophomore
Foley competed against Cathedral in Milaca. Sophomore Preston Holewa won the 800-meter race with a time of 2:15.05 and was second in the 1,600-meter run with a time of 4:49.94.
Zach Meyer
SJP track senior
Senior Zach Meyer was the Johnnie beating Buehrer in the 400-meter dash at Maple Lake, clocking a season-best 51.92.
Evan Morris
Foley track junior
Senior Evan Morris won both events he entered last week in Milaca – the 100-meter dash with a time of 11.33 and the 200-meter dash with a time of 23.53.
Ben Schefers
Foley field senior
For Foley, sophomore Ben Schefers won the triple jump by 10 inches at Milaca. He jumped 38 feet six and a half inches in the event and competed in the long jump, placing sixth.
Eaen Sticha
Foley field senior
Eaen Sitcha won the pole vault April 15 in Milaca. He cleared 12 feet, a PR.
Girls track
Addie Beier
Foley track sophomore
Addie Beier won the 100-meter dash April 15 in Milaca with a PR of 13 flat.
Ella Duevel
Foley field senior
Senior thrower Ella Duevel was first in the shot put and second in the discus at Milaca. She heaved the shot 34 feet four and a half inches and spun the discus 113 feet 11 inches.
Margaret Duffy
SJP track freshman
In the Maple Lake meet, Margaret Duffy won the 400-meter dash with a 1:03.68.
Emily Novak
Foley track and field senior
Emily Novak competed in four individual events at Milaca’s quad meet, winning two. She placed first in the long jump by half an inch, clearing 15 feet seven and a half inches. In the triple jump, Novak won with a distance of 32 feet five and a half inches. Her pole vault height of eight and a half feet was third in the meet and she ran 10th in the 100-meter dash.
Claudia Ruzanic
SJP eighth grader
Claudia Ruzanic won the triple jump at Maple Lake with a distance of 29 feet two and a half inches and placed fourth in the 400-meter dash with a time of 1:06.4
Olivia Sauer
Foley track sophomore
Sophomore Olivia Sauer won the only race she ran in in Milaca. Sauer took the 200 by more than a second with a time of 26.45, a personal record.
Clara Schad
Cathedral senior
Experienced runner Clara Schad won both of her events April 15 for the Crusaders. She was comfortably ahead of her opponents in both the 1,600 and 3,200, clocking a 5:18.96 and 11:50.26.
Kylie Storkamp
Foley track freshman
Kylie Storkamp ran just one race for Foley in Milaca. She won the 800-meter run with a 2:29.82, her PR clearing second place by less than three ticks.
Julia Vega
Cathedral track sophomore
Julia Vega won the 400-meter dash in Milaca, the sophomore running a 1:03.33. She also placed third in the 200 with a 27.91.
Contact reporter Reid Glenn at rglenn@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Here are the 39 best-performing athletes from the week of April 14-20
