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Here’s a look back at some of the big moment’s from area sports in the last year:

Albert Lea dance team qualifies for state.

The Albert Lea dance team qualified for state in January after placing third in the high kick category in the section tournament in Kasson.

This was the first time for the team to qualify for state in the history of the program.

Winning the Class AA tournament in February was Totino-Grace, followed by Austin in second and Benilde-St. Margarets in third.

Glenville-Emmons player reaches 1,000 points.

Glenville-Emmons basketball player Marshall Baseman reached 1,000 career points in February in a game against Lyle-Pacelli at home. The Wolverines won 96-85 in overtime, and Baseman walked away from the game with 34 points, bringing his total to 1,015 points.

He had multiple 30-plus point games during the season and also led the team in rebounds.

4 Lake Mills wrestlers place at state.

Six Lake Mills wrestlers earned the right to represent their team at the 2024 Iowa State Wrestling Tournament in Des Moines, and four ended the tournament on the podium.

Wyatt Hanna at 215 pounds placed fourth, Lucas Oldenkamp at 106 pounds placed seventh, Steve Brandenburg at 138 pounds placed seventh and Landon Price at 132 pounds placed eighth.

It was only the third time in program history (2017 and 2021) Lake Mills has brought home four or more medals.

Lake Mills player reaches 1,000 points; team wins conference title and competes at state.

Lake Mills basketball player Lance Helming celebrated reaching 1,000 career points in February in the team’s game against Bishop Garrigan.

The team won the Top of Iowa Conference West title and went on to compete at the state basketball tournament.

Albert Lea wrestling team places 4th in state; Olson siblings each take 2nd, others 3rd, 4th

The Albert Lea wrestling team competed at the beginning of March representing Section 1AAA in the state dual tournament at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.

After winning their quarterfinal dual, the Tigers dropped the semifinal and consolation duals to finish the tournament in fourth place.

Maggie and Michael Olson were the top finishers for the Tigers as individuals, both finishing as the runner-up in their respective weight classes.

Logan Davis placed third at 127 pounds, and Nick Korman placed fourth at 145 pounds.

Qualifying for the state tournament from other area schools were Ryan Schlaak, Annabelle Petsinger and George Roessler of NRHEG and Byron Getchell from USC/Maple River.

Northwood-Kensett girls win state shuttle hurdle, set state record.

The Northwood-Kensett shuttle hurdle team of Macy Thorson, Morgan Wallin, Emma Hengesteg and Lindsey Moore won the state championship in May at Drake Stadium in Des Moines.

They set a state record of 1:04.89. The previous record was 1:05.44.

A-C student wins state clay target tournament.

Alden-Conger’s Ross Huper won the Minnesota State High School Clay Target League Tournament in June with a perfect score.

The top 100 boys participated in the tournament, along with the top 25 girls from the state.

Albert Lea’s Tanner Green tied for 37th place, Henry Kuiters tied for 19th place and Anna Laskowske finished in 19th place. The Albert Lea team, made up of Green, Laskowske, Kaylyn Eide, Henry Kuiters and Kate Kuiters, took home 25th place.

United South Central’s Braxton O’Rourke tied for 37th place.

Albert Lea golfers finish in top 25 at state.

Two Albert Lea boys’ golfers competed in the Class AA state golf tournament in June and came out in the top one-third of finishers.

Noah Teeter scored a total of 116 to tie for 20th place, while Archie Nelson scored 117 to tie for 24th place.

The winner was Jack Justesen of Hawley, who scored 105.

Albert Lea football wins big at homecoming. Ends season with two wins.

The Albert Lea football team won 27-19 against Tri-City United in their homecoming game in September and was met with much excitement by fans in the crowd. The team went on to finish the season with an overall record of 2-7, its best finish in recent years.

Albert Lea swimmer qualifies for state.

Albert Lea senior Hailey Deming punched her ticket to the Class A state swimming and diving meet in November in the 50-yard freestyle.

Lake Mills boys cross country team wins back-to-back state championship.

Despite the odds, the Bulldogs boys cross country team won its second state championship in a row in November.

Hayden Thompson led the team, running a time of 16:12.0 and finishing in fifth place overall. Knute Rogne also finished in the top 10, finishing in exactly 10th place with a time of 16:31.2. Also scoring for Lake Mills were Kade Van Roekel, Stephen Brandenburg and Lane Rygh.

Coach Beth Van Roekel said this was only the fourth state title in school history, with one being won previously each in wrestling and golf and now two in cross country. This is also the first time they have had three individuals medal at state with Thompson, Rogne and Kade Van Roekel.

Beth Van Roekel in October was named the Top of Iowa Conference West Boys Cross Country Coach of the Year. In 2023, Van Roekel was named the Class 1A Boys State Coach of the Year by the Iowa Association of Track Coaches.

Albert Lea athlete reaches milestones in volleyball and wrestling.

Albert Lea’s Nevaeh Wacholz recorded her 1,000th set assist in October in the Tigers 3-0 loss to Northfield at the high school gym.
Wacholz went on in November to celebrate her 1,000th career varsity point in the Albert Lea High School girls’ basketball game against Dover-Eyota.