Benson wrestlers fall to Paynesville in quarterfinals

The Benson wrestling team was eliminated in the second round of the Section 5A Team Tournament last Tuesday night at BBE.
The Braves, seeded sixth in the 11-team tourney, topped Minnewaska Area in the first round last Tuesday night at Belgrade, 54-30, but then lost to third-seeded Paynesville later the same night in the quarterfinals, 57-21.
Moving on to the Final Four later in the week were the top four seeds, KMS, BBE, Paynesville, and LPGE-Browerville.
Benson, which ended the team portion of its season with an 8-9 overall record, now moves on to the Section 5A Individual Tournament, set for Feb. 24-25 at NLS High School.  The MN State Wrestling Tournament is set for March 2-4 at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.
Top records for the Braves going into the section individual tourney are Adam Zosel (25-11), Aaron Zosel (24-12), Hunter Mondor (23-6), Ross Grussing (23-14), and Jared Knutson (14-10).
“Adam (Zosel) leads our team with 25 wins and for an eighth-grader, that’s incredible,” co-coach Scott Thompson said.  “Aaron and Ross have 24 each and Hunter has the best winning percentage with his 23-6 record.  In addition, Jared has won his last nine matches in a row and is firing on all cylinders right now.  We are very excited to have nine wrestlers with at least 10 wins this season, which makes for a very balanced team.”
 
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Pictured: Adam Zosel (top), who leads the Braves with 25 victories, is one of several Benson wrestlers who should have a shot at placing among the top two at the Section 5A Individual Tourney.