Posted: 3/5/03

Fast start nets Engel sixth place

Berk Brown
Sports Editor

To say Brandon Engel came out of nowhere to earn a medal at the 2003 Minnesota State High School League Wrestling Championships would not be accurate.

To say he came a long ways to get it would be appropriate. After an up-and-down junior year, Engel put it all together in his final season and parlayed his best wrestling of the year into a sixth-place finish in the 275-pound division on Saturday at the Excel Energy Center in St. Paul.

Engel pinned his first two opponents of the tournament before falling in his final three matches to finish in sixth place. A heck of an accomplishment for a guy who didnít get much consistent mat time before this year because of injuries.

ìBrandon has toughened up a lot. And I think being a senior helped him to realize this was his last chance,î Forest Lake wrestling coach Rich Elliot said. ìHeís been wrestling with a lot of pain, but he hasnít let that distract him. Heís been a lot more focused this year.î

Engel finished his senior season with a record of 26-9 and was the only Ranger to walk away from the tournament with a medal.

He pinned Joel Bonstrom of Edina in 1:04 in the first round of the tournament and then pinned Owatonnaís Matt Stitz in 5:44 in a quarterfinal match.

In the semifinals, Engel lost 9-2 to Matt Mello of Osseo. The Forest Lake senior then suffered a pair of losses in the consolation rounds to finish sixth.

ìBrandon really put it together at the right time,î Elliot said. ìHe was wrestling his best when it mattered the most.î

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