The Tournament Trail: Notes, anecdotes from local high school, college athletes in the postseason

Mar. 16—Delaney Fleming was on a national championship-winning Division I women's hockey team last year as a college freshman.

After entering the transfer portal last summer and finding a new college and hockey home, the Rochester native and former Lourdes girls hockey star is headed back to the Women's Frozen Four this season.

And Fleming's new team will meet her old team in Friday's national semifinals, just more than an hour from where she grew up.

Fleming and No. 3-seeded Cornell defeated No. 6 seed Minnesota Duluth 1-0 in a defensive battle on Saturday to earn a spot in next weekend's Frozen Four, which will take place at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis.

Cornell's semifinal opponent? No. 2-seeded Ohio State, the defending national champion and a team Fleming is very familiar with. She played in 27 games last season — including OSU's 1-0 win against Wisconsin in the national title game — finishing her freshman year with one goal and one assist, on a Buckeyes team loaded with talent.

Fleming, a strong student in addition to being a talented player, transferred to Cornell after last season. She has flourished there as a sophomore for the 25-4-5 Big Red, with seven goals and 15 points in 34 games. She had a team-high 3 shots on goal in the regional final win against UMD on Saturday and she leads Cornell in shots on goal this season, with 96. She also has a team-best 3 game-winning goals.

The Cornell-Ohio State matchup is set for a 4 p.m. opening faceoff. No. 1 Wisconsin and No. 4 Minnesota will meet in the other national semifinal, at 7:30 p.m. The semifinals can be streamed on ESPN+, while the national championship game is set for 3 p.m. Sunday, March 23, and will be broadcast on ESPNU.

— JASON FELDMAN (posted March 16, 2025)

The Gustavus Adolphus women's basketball team had its season end in the NCAA Division III Elite Eight on Saturday, the Gusties falling to Smith College (Mass.) 60-51 in Brunswick, Maine.

Gustavus finished its season 29-2. The Elite Eight was the furthest the Gusties had ever advanced in women's basketball.

The Gustavus team included southeastern Minnesota players Emily Bowron (Lourdes), Kendyl Queensland (Grand Meadow) and Bobbie Bruns (Blooming Prairie). Bowron and Queensland each had two points in the Elite Eight loss. Bowron and Queensland are sophomores while Bruns is a junior.

—The University of Wisconsin Stout advanced to the NCAA Division III women's basketball Final Four with an 81-77 win over Scranton College (Pa.), in Scranton.

The Blue Devils moved to 23-7 overall. They will next play New York University at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 20, in New York City.

The Stout roster includes southeastern Minnesota players Elissa Lodermeier (Goodhue), Rosella Wille (Cannon Falls) and Molly Bills (La Crescent). Wille was the only one of the three to receive playing time in the Elite Eight game. She scored five points and had six assists and six rebounds.

Wille is a junior, Lodermeier a senior and Bills a sophomore.

— PAT RUFF (posted March 16, 2025)

MANKATO — Minnesota State University, Mankato junior guard Natalie Bremer has been named to the 2024-25 D2CCA Women's Basketball All-Central Region second team after averaging 20 points, 5 rebounds and 2.7 steals per game for the Mavericks.

Bremer, a former Lake City star, helped her team to a 25-8 record. The Mavericks' season ended Saturday in the NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament, losing 94-91 in the semifinals to host team Pittsburg State (Kan.). Bremer scored 26 points in the loss. Minnesota State, Mankato beat Missouri Western 87-73 in Friday's quarterfinals. Bremer led the way with 18 points. Goodhue graduate and Minnesota State, Mankato freshman guard Natalie Gadient added 11 points, 3 rebounds and 5 steals off the bench.

Bremer led her team this season with 17 games of 20 or more points and twice notched 30 or more. The speedy 5-foot-11 junior is fifth all time in scoring for the Mavericks with 1,673 points.

Bremer was named to the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference first team for the second time.

The Mavericks were the NCAA Division II defending national champions.

— PAT RUFF (Posted March 16, 2025)

GRAND MEADOW — After 15 years as the hugely successful Grand Meadow girls basketball coach, Ryan Queensland is stepping down.

The 47-year-old Queensland finished his prodigious career directing the Superlarks in last week's Section 1, Class 1A final against No. 1 ranked Goodhue. The Wildcats handed Queensland one of his few losses, as he finished his career a robust 223-77 overall with three trips to the section final, including three in the last four years.

Queesland has coached all three of his daughters at Grand Meadow, Riley, Kendyl and this year senior Lauren. Riley went on to play at Gustavus Adolphus College before graduating last spring. Kendyl is a sophomore reserve for Sweet 16 Division III-bound Gustavus this year, and Lauren has committed to play at Gustavus next school year.

Having more of an opportunity to watch his daughters play in college factored heavily into Queensland's decision to step down.

"Coaching anymore is a big commitment time-wise," Queensland said. "I truly enjoyed it and met some wonderful players and parents and some fantastic coaches along the way. But with my daughters committed to play in college, it's hard to be in two places at once and I want to watch them play. I know I'm going to miss it, but this is the right time for me to step down."

Queensland noted that no decision has yet been made about who will replace him at Grand Meadow.

— PAT RUFF (Posted March 11, 2025)

Natalie Boorjian, a 2023 Mayo graduate, qualified for the NCAA Division III swimming and diving national championship competition set to take place March 19-22 in Greensboro, N.C.

Boorjian , who swims for No. 3-ranked Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., will compete at the national championships next week after her performance at the University Athletic Association conference meet Feb. 12-15. Boorjian, a sophomore, earned season and personal best times as Emory won its 26th consecutive conference title.

Boorjian won the 400-yard freestyle relay consolation final at the conference meet, along with teammates junior Jane Sanderson, junior Isabel Huang and sophomore Meredith Teague, clocking in at 3:27.00

At the Emory February Invitational Feb. 21-22, Boorjian placed third in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:52.06, finishing under the NCAA "B" cut mark. Her time of 4:59.26 in the 500-yard freestyle also added another NCAA "B" Cut for Emory. The "B" cut is a "provisional" standard that allows swimmers a chance to be invited to the NCAA championships.

Schedule and how to watch

— MADELINE WARREN (Posted March 11, 2025)

Kasson-Mantorville graduates Patrick Kennedy (Iowa) and Bennett Berge (South Dakota State University) each punched their ticket to the NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships over this past weekend.

Berge, a redshirt sophomore, finished third at 184 pounds — besting his fourth place finish from last year — at the Big 12 Championships. The five-time MSHSL state champion will now head to his second consecutive NCAA's. He earned All-American honors with a fourth-place finish last year. He enters this year's tourney with a 26-5 record and ranked seventh by The Open Mat. He was given the No. 5 seed at the NCAA's this year.

Berge's college teammate, Zach Glazier — an Albert Lea grad and the brother of K-M grad Cole Glazier — will be heading to his second straight NCAA's after finishing third at 197. As a team, the Jackrabbits finished third. Zach Glazier will be the No. 14 seed at the NCAA's.

Kennedy qualified for his third straight NCAA's after placing fifth at the Big 10 Championships. The senior is 13-5 on the year and is ranked seventh at 174 by The Open Mat. The four-time MSHSL state champion is looking to finish on the podium at the NCAA's for the first time in his career. Kennedy was given an 11 seed and will face No. 22 seeded University of Pennsylvania's No. 22 seed Nick Incontrera.

The NCAA Division I Wrestling Championships are set for March 20-22 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

How to watch

— ALEX VANDENHOUTEN (Posted March 10, 2025, updated March 12)

Former Byron standout and two-time MSHSL state champ Maxwell Petersen did not wrestle at the Big 12 Championships due to a torn pectoral muscle and a torn labrum, according to a family member.

Petersen — a redshirt sophomore at North Dakota State University — was starting to really come into his own after bumping up a weight class from 149 to 157. He was 19-8 with an 8-3 record in duals and still leads the Bison in points scored with 255. He was hoping to improve on his eighth-place finish at the Big 12 Championships last year and reach his first NCAA's.

— ALEX VANDENHOUTEN (Posted March 10, 2025)

Two former Dodge County Wildcats girls hockey players are now key members of the Augsburg University women's hockey team that is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Division III national tournament.

The 23-3-1 Auggies were ranked No. 2 in last week's Division III national poll, but earned the top seed in the NCAA tournament after winning the MIAC playoff championship by beating rival Gustavus 3-2 in overtime.

Senior defender Elizabeth Fagerlind and freshman defender Abbigail Simons are both Kasson-Mantorville graduates who starred for Dodge County in their high school playing days. Simons was the captain for the Wildcats last year in their first ever trip to the state tournament.

Fagerlind has a goal and three assists while playing in all 27 games this season. She's also sixth on the team with 24 blocked shots.

Simons has a goal and two assists in six games played.

Augsburg advanced to the MIAC title game by winning what is believed to be the longest game in women's Division III history — a 3-2 four-overtime win at Saint Mary's in the conference semifinals.

Augsburg has a first-round bye in the NCAA tournament and will host a national quarterfinal game on Saturday, March 22, against the winner of a first-round game between Gustavus and St. Norbert, which is scheduled for this Saturday, March 15.

The Division III Women's Frozen Four is scheduled for March 28 and 30 at River Falls, Wis.

The complete tournament bracket can be found at this link .

— JASON FELDMAN (Posted March 10, 2025)

Maggie Hanzel and Delaney Fleming played together on two Rochester Lourdes girls hockey teams that qualified for state tournaments. The former Eagles stars will be playing on a bigger stage this week as their college teams prepare to play in the NCAA Division I tournament.

Only 11 teams qualify for the Division I women's tournament, and Hanzel's Boston University Terriers and Fleming's Cornell Big Red are among that group.

Cornell (24-4-5) is the No. 3 overall seed and will receive a first-round bye. It will play in a national quarterfinal game at home at 3 p.m. Saturday, March 15, against either Minnesota Duluth (21-14-2) or Sacred Heart (21-14-3). Those teams meet in a first-round game at Cornell's home rink in Ithaca, N.Y., at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Fleming, a sophomore forward, has seven goals (three game-winning goals) and eight assists this season in 33 games. She transferred to Cornell after winning a national championship at Ohio State last season.

Boston U. (24-11-2) earned an automatic bid to the national tournament by winning the Hockey East Tournament championship. The Terriers will travel to Madison, Wis., this week for an NCAA regional. B.U. will face Clarkson (24-12-2) at 7 p.m. Thursday in a first-round game. The winner of that will meet top-ranked and top-seeded Wisconsin (35-1-2) at 2 p.m. Saturday with a spot in the Frozen Four on the line.

Hanzel is a senior alternate captain and a defender for the Terriers. She has two goals and 11 assists in 35 games this season, and is second on the team with 35 blocked shots.

The Division I Women's Frozen Four is set for March 21 and 23 at Ridder Arena in Minneapolis. All games in the NCAA Division I women's national tournament will be streamed on ESPN+. The championship game, at 3 p.m. on March 23, will be broadcast on ESPNU.

The complete tournament bracket can be found at this link .

— JASON FELDMAN (Posted March 10, 2025)

Local fencer Mateo Wilkins, a John Marshall grad and a freshman at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., competed in the NCAA fencing Midwest Regional last weekend.

Wilkins earned a spot in the regional after going 5-5 in men's foil and placing ninth in the Central Collegiate Fencing Conference championships in Detroit on Feb. 22. Wilkins helped the Lawrence men's foil team finish as the conference runners-up.

Wilkins finished 14th in men's foil — the top finisher by a Lawrence fencer in men's foil — at last weekend's regional at Denison University in Granville, Ohio.

— STAFF REPORTS (Posted March 10, 2025)

A number of former southeast Minnesota standouts are gearing up for the NCAA Division III women's basketball Sweet 16.

Gustavus Adolphus College and University of Wisconsin-Stout each have three players who harnessed their skills in the southeast portion of the state.

For the Gusties, Emily Bowron, Kendyl Queensland and Bobbie Bruns are heading to the third round after No. 5 ranked Gustavus defeated No. 12 Wartburg College (Iowa) at Gustavus' Gus Young Court.

Gustavus fought back from a 45-41 deficit with 6:19 left in regulation, ending the game on a 15-5 run to get the win.

The Gusties moved to 28-1 overall, while Wartburg finished 26-3. Gustavus travels to Brunswick, Maine for its Sweet 16 game against McMurray College (Texas) at 4 p.m. Friday. The winner plays in the Elite 8 the following day at the same site.

Bowron and Queensland are both sophomore guards for the Gusties. Bowron, from Lourdes, averages 1.7 points in 9.2 minutes per game. Queensland (Grand Meadow) averages 2.1 points in 9.2 minutes.

Bruns, a junior guard from Blooming Prairie, is averaging 1.8 points in 6.8 minutes per game.

Stout, meanwhile, has Elissa Lodermeier, Rosella Wille and Molly Bills representing our area.

The Blue Devils (21-7) received 31 points and 12 rebounds from Apple Valley's Anna Mutch to snap No. 6 ranked Whitman College's (Washington) 19-game win streak with a 75-69 win in the second round in Menomonie, Wis on Saturday, March 8.

Stout will now travel to Scranton, Pa., to face UW-Whitewater in the Sweet 16 at 4:30 p.m. Friday.

The WIAC has three teams in the Sweet 16 — Stout, Whitewater and UW-Oshkosh.

Lodermeier — a senior from Goodhue — and Wille — a junior from Cannon Falls that went to Farmington — each registered minutes in the victory. The 5-foot-9 Lodermeier averages 1.9 ppg on 15.2 minutes, while the 5-foot-9 Wille averages 2.9 ppg on 12.8 minutes.

Bills — a sophomore from La Crescent-Hokah — averages 1.4 ppg on 4.2 minutes. She has played in nine games.

— PAT RUFF AND ALEX VANDENHOUTEN (Posted March 10, 2025)

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The Tournament Trail: Notes, anecdotes from local high school, college athletes in the postseason

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