Sports
Foster, Blake/Breck Swimmers Come Close To State Title
The Bearstangs came within a fraction of a second from tying for the Class A state title on Saturday
Members of the wore t-shirts at Saturday’s Class A state finals that read “As close as it gets” on the back.
The Bearstangs lived up to that motto Saturday.
Breck/Blake finished second in the 400 freestyle relay to end Saturday’s state finals at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center by 43-hundredths of a second, and with a win in that relay the Bearstangs would have likely tied for the Class A team state championship.
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Breck/Blake finished third overall with 201 points. Fergus Falls won the state title with 205 points, and St. Thomas Academy finished second at 204 points.
It was one of the closest state meets Bearstangs coach Kris Rosenberg said he’s ever seen.
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“It was definitely exciting,” Rosenberg said. “We knew the teams were going to push us, and we gave it everything we had.”
Saturday’s state finals started out special for Breck/Blake when the Bearstangs’ 200 medley relay set a new Class A state record. Mitchell Foster, Bob Blease, Clark Sun and Tom Erdmann finished their run in 1:36.35.
Foster wasn’t done. The sophomore also broke the Class A state 100 backstroke record, earning All-America Automatic status with a 49.35 effort.
“My goal was 49.4 (seconds), and I went 49.3,” Foster said. “That was my favorite race of the day.”
Rosenberg said Foster has that special “it” factor that allowed him to be part of two state records on Saturday.
“It was just fabulous,” Rosenberg said. “We were looking for a 49 high, but he’s a special kid and he decided to go a little faster.”
TEAM RESULTS—1. Fergus Falls 205, 2. St. Thomas Academy 204, 3. Breck/Blake 201, 4. Monticello 168, 5. Richfield 162, Simley 150
BRECK/BLAKE FINALS RESULTS
200 medley relay: 1. Mitchell Foster, Bob Blease, Clark Sun, Tom Erdmann (1:36.45-CAR). 200 freestyle: 4. Austin Gromatzky (1:44.06). 200 IM: 2. M. Foster (1:52.80-AAC). 100 butterfly: 6. A. Gromatzky (54.93). 100 freestyle: 6. Will Erickson (49.16). 200 freestyle relay: 6. W. Erickson, C. Sun, T. Erdmann, A. Gromatzky (1:29.82). 100 backstroke: 1. M. Foster (49.35-AAA, CAR), 5. W. Erickson (55.20). 400 freestyle relay: 2. A. Gromatzky, W. Erickson, C. Sun, M. Foster (3:14.38).