Eden Prairie Wrestler Back to Defend Brother's Title at State

Eden Prairie High School will compete in the individual portion of the state tournament competition today at the Xcel Energy Center.

126 Pounds: Ben Brancale vs. Tanner Mills (St. Michael-Albertville)

Sophomore Brancale (36-1) finished third at 120 pounds last season and has the best record in the 126-pound weight class this year. He opens against a senior from a powerhouse St. Michael-Albertville program that tied Apple Valley for the state Class AAA team championship Thursday night after finishing runner-up to the Eagles the previous three years.

Ben Brancale will be trying to follow in the footsteps of his brother, Sam, who won the 126-pound state title a year ago—his second state title in three years—and is now a freshman wrestler at the University of Minnesota.Ben Brancale also qualified for state as a sophomore, going 1-2 at 112 pounds.

145 Pounds: Chase Monger vs. Anthony Gamache (Osseo)

Monger (32-7), a senior, draws Osseo senior Gamache (29-10) in the first round. Gamache was a state qualifier a year ago as a junior, going 0-1. There are four former top-four state finishers in the weight class, but three of the four are in the other half of the bracket. Monger would likely have to get past St. Michael-Albertville's Lincoln Mallinger, who was third at 138 pounds a year ago.

152 Pounds: Matt Gribben vs. Brandon Krone (Anoka)

Gribben, also a senior, went 2-2 at state a year ago in the same weight class—one of his two losses was to eventual state champ T.J. O'Hara of Tartan—but did not place.While there's no such thing as an “easy” weight class at state, this is one of the most wide open, with just two returning state medalists—Apple Valley's Mark Hall and Woodbury's Justin Herold-Plakut—in the field.

First-round Class AAA action starts at 11 a.m. Friday, followed by the quarterfinal round at 6 p.m. The tournament concludes Saturday.

For full tournament results, see the Minnesota State High School League website.

If you will be at the tournament, feel free to upload photos to our gallery and share your thoughts in the comments.

Follow us on Twitter | Like us on Facebook | Sign up for our daily newsletter