North Branch takes knocks from STMA

By Barbara Brown
The North Branch wrestling team struggled last Friday night when St. Michael-Albertville came to the Vikes territory and took home a 53-9 victory.
The Vikings were prepared for a tough match because of St. Michaelís long history of quality wrestling, but some of the wrestlers may have been distracted by that reputation, thereby failing to follow through as aggressively as they can on take downs and reversal attempts.
ìSt. Michael-Albertville is a program with a rich tradition in wrestling,î said head coach Tony Aho. ìWe knew it would be tough to come up with a few wins, so all we asked was that the guys go out there and wrestle hard.î
However, Aho said St. Michael did have to work for every match they did win.
Cody Gallmeier, 135, came to the mat after five Viking loses to take a huge win by decision.
Following Gallmeierís example, Josh Villella pulled out an overtime win at 145 and Jeremy Bergerson, the Vikings up and coming heavyweight contender won by decision.
Jeff Holmgren started the nightís competition in the 103 slot and had a close match against his state-ranked opponent.
Also wrestling state-ranked contenders were John Buchanan and Joe Lofboon.
Lofboom, who is recovering from an injury, was aggressive and shows improvement and strength each time he walks on the mat.
Next up for the Vikes is a tri-meet they will host against Virginia and Princeton starting at 5 p.m. on Friday.

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