Albert Lea defeats Rochester Mayo; looks to postseason

The Tigers ended their regular season on a high note.

Albert Lea’s wrestling team defeated Rochester Mayo 55-12 Friday at Albert Lea High School. The win brought the Tigers’ final regular season record to 29-1 overall.

Friday was senior and parents night for the Tigers, with Chris Nelson, Mason Hammer and Parker Mullenbach wrestling their last regular season matches for the varsity team. The three seniors all picked up wins — Nelson a 3-1 decision, Hammer a fall in 2:57 and Mullenbach a 14-4 major decision. Senior Eli Dahl wrestled with junior varsity for the Tigers.

Albert Lea secured its position as Big Nine Conference champion with a 41-22 win over Owatonna last Saturday at Albert Lea High School.

Next, the Tigers will compete in the team and individual Section 1AA tournaments. Team tournaments will be Thursday and Saturday, with Thursday’s meet taking place at Albert Lea High School. Individual tournaments will take place Feb. 19 and 20. Starting times and opponents for tournaments hadn’t been announced as of press time.

The state tournament will be Feb. 25-27 at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul.