2011 provided another plentiful year of highlights for Farmington High School athletics. In chronological order here are 10 that rank at the top of the list.
(photos by Jim Lindquist)
Girls Hockey: The Tigers repeated as Missota Conference champions, finishing the league season with a perfect 12-0 record. Farmington also won the Louie Schmitz Holiday Classic and advanced to the Section 1AA championship game.
Senior forwards Krystal Baumann and Hannah Alexander and junior goaltender Jessica Erchul paced the Tigers to their first 20-win season since 2007.
Girls Basketball: For the first time in school history Farmington won a girls' conference title, sharing the crown with Chanhassen and Shakopee with an 11-3 record. During the season, the Tigers reeled off 11 straight wins and they advanced to the Section 1 finals for the second time in three years.
Junior forward Taylor Meyer, who led the team in scoring (14+ points per game) and rebounding (8), passed the 1000-carer point mark.
Wrestling: Senior Carl Elmer closed out his distinguished high school career with a 36-9 season and won four of six matches at the Class AAA state meet to finish fifth in the 140 lbs. wight class. Elmer finished his career with a record of 116 wins and 39 losses.
Gymnastics: The Tigers qualified three individuals for the state meet for the first time in school history. At state, Kiana Lord ranked sixth on the balance beam and 19th in the all-round competition while teammates Nadia Lorenz and Terra Klima placed 10th and 26th respectively in vaulting and the uneven bars.
Boys Swimming: 2011 was a championship season as for the first time in program history the Tigers won Missota Conference and Section 1AA True Team honors.
Farmington also excelled at the Class AA state meet where Tyler Magalis became the second Tiger to win the one-meter diving championship and Brian Huls turned in three top-ten performances in swimming events.
Head Coach Ryan Hamen and diving coach Greg Rappe each received Section 1AA Coach of the Year honors.
Girls Track: The Tigers broke eight school records on the way to the most successful season in school history. Farmington showed its strength at the Class AA State Championships where it amassed 34 team points and finished an all-time best fourth in the final team standings.
Individually, Nadia Lorenz finished second in the 100-meter hurdles and long jump; Alyssa Parco ranked third in the 300-meter hurdles and the foursome of Parco, Erin Hickey, Maria Kiminksi and Izzie Ferm placed fourth in the 4x400 meter relay.
Athletic Awards: Carl Elmer, now a member of the St. Olaf College wrestling team and Devyn Alberts, a freshman who played on the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay women's soccer team this fall, were named the 2011 male and female Athletes of the Year.
Elmer who wrestled and also ran track and cross country finished fifth in his weight class at the 2011 state wrestling meet and Alberts, a soccer player and track runner, garnered all-state soccer honors.
Boys Lacrosse: It took more than a season to achieve, but on April 29, 2011, the Tigers recorded their first-ever varsity win with a 12-4 triumph over Owatonna. In the historic win, Mitch Collier scored five goals and assisted on another while teammate Trevor Howard scored once and added three assists.
Girls Swimming: After a record-breaking 2010 season, the Tigers roared to even more success in 2011. During the season they set new records in eight of 12 events and at the Class AA state meet turned in their best performance ever, scoring 72 points and placing 13th in the team standings.
Four Farmington swimmers earned all-state status: Kaitlyn O'Reilly (3 events); Zoe Avestruz (2), Abby Haugen and Kirsten Kracke. The 200 medley relay team of O'Reilly, Avestruz, Haugen and Kracke became the first Tiger relay team ever to earn all-state honors.
Boys Soccer: The 2011 season was a season of firsts for the Tigers. They finished above the .500 mark (8-7-2) and at 4-2 ranked in the upper division of the Missota Conference, both program milestones. During the regular season Farmington also put together a four-game win streak, its longest ever.
Individually, coach Julian Buss was voted Section 1AA Coach of the Year by his peers and senior tri-captain Sam Leske received second-team all-state recognition.
