S ports STA wrestling

battle as well and, again, went into overtime. Unfortunately, Borman was on the losing end of the 5-3 decision. “Jake is just the best kid,” said Anderson. “He is a leader in every shape and form and works harder than anyone in the room. We’re going to miss him.” Borman finished the season 38-13.

Jackson Cercioglu, a senior ranked #4, faced #5 Ben Schultz from Maple Grove in the first round. He lost the highly contested match 2-1 but worked his way back through the consolation bracket to earn fifth place. “He was in the most difficult bracket in the tournament,” said Anderson. “He had the #1 and #2 ranked wrestlers in the country. To place in that bracket was huge.” Cercioglu finished 34-13.

Senior Vincent Mueller lived up to his #1 ranking and showed his domination at the tournament by winning all four of his matches by pin to claim a state title. His only match to go beyond the first period was his finals match, which went nearly halfway into the second period. His falls came at 1:15, :45, 1:55 and 2:45. “He was a completely different wrestler at the end of the season than he was at the beginning and gained a ton of confidence,” said Anderson. “In the dual meet, he won 3-1 against the kid he pinned in the finals at State. I think that says it all.” Mueller, who placed fifth at state last year at 220-pounds, finished 443. He will wrestle in the Ivy League next fall for Columbia University, a Division I program in New York City.

Team trajectory

During the regular season, STA faced two of the best teams in the state, and the results reveal they have some work to do if they want to compete for a team state championship one day. They began the season staring into the teeth of a buzz saw. Their first dual meet was against Simley, which won its fifth consecutive Class 2A State championship this year. The Spartans beat the Comets 59-13. In mid-January they faced the Hastings Raiders, this year’s 3A state champion. The outcome was nearly identical to the Simley dual, a 56-13 loss. STA did notch a win against South St. Paul, winning 44-33. The Packers always have a solid team and this year qualified seven individuals for State in Class 2A.

Last year was a breakout season for STA. They qualified six wrestlers for State – a team record – and had two medal-winners: Mueller, fifth at 220-pounds, and Leo Blum, fourth at 285-pounds. Between 1997 and 2020, the team had just five State place winners in total. In the past three years, they have already matched that number. Mueller is just the second state champ in school history. The other is Josh Tarum, who won the 106-pound title in 2015.

Why the change? In a word: coaching. In 2020, STA hired Matt Everson and Graydon Anderson to be co-head coaches. Both wrestled collegiately at the University of Minnesota and later worked together to turn a struggling East Ridge High School wrestling program into one of the best in the state. East Ridge placed 6th at the State tournament in 2019, their final season there. When the duo learned of the head coach opening at STA, they made a pitch to school officials to hire them as co-head coaches.

“It used to be that coaches were teachers, but that’s not the case anymore,” said Anderson. “We have businesses and jobs, which means you can’t make everything all the time.”

Everson’s time at STA was short. He left a year later after receiving a job promotion that required him to move to Dallas, Tex. Anderson, who owns a construction business, quickly began searching for a co-head coach and scored a prize when Cole Konrad agreed to join the team, beginning with the 2021-22 season. Minnesota Gopher wrestling fans know his name well. He is one of the university’s alltime best. He earned two NCAA national championships as heavyweight (2006, 2007) and was undefeated his junior and senior season. He was a national runnerup his sophomore year, and during his collegiate career compiled a 155-13 record. Konrad also excelled on the international stage, winning a gold medal at the Pan American Championships in 2005 and a bronze medal at the World University Championships in 2006.

Despite their recent success, the STA coaching staff understands they have a lot of work ahead of them. First and foremost is getting kids into the sport early to help them develop their skills. With that in mind, they’ve developed a 10-year plan that incorporates youth wrestling. In 2020, Anderson and Everson helped form the St. Paul Wrestling Academy, an independent nonprofit that operates a youth program at STA for grades K-12, open to everyone. Konrad helped coach at the Academy before joining STA. This year, the coaches started a middle school program that attracted about 10 kids. As that program grows, it should help swell the numbers on high school team, which usually has just under 30 on the roster.

Due to the hard work and dedication required to succeed on the mat, Anderson said wrestling is the perfect sport to support the overall philosophy at STA.

“It’s a great school and in academics is second to none in the state,” he said. “Char- acter and the Cadet way is a big deal at the school. Developing a kid from a boy to a man is really what we’re talking about – teaching them to be leaders, to be responsible, and to be accountable for their actions.

“We are losing seven seniors this year, which is tough, but we have a lot of young kids who will step up,” he added. “We’re trying to build from within [the STA system]. Our goal is to maintain what we have and always get better. It’s not going to happen overnight. We’re just starting out, but we have a plan to get there.”

Fitzgerald Theatre

10 E. Exchange St. St. Paul

651-370-2953 first-avenue.com

Metropolitan Ballet presents “Sleeping Beauty,” 2 p.m., Sunday, April 2. Tickets start at $37.

Minnesota

History Center

345 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651-259-3000 mnhs.org

Sherlock Holmes: The Exhibition is featured through April 2. Visitors can learn about areas of forensic science and engage in interactive crime-solving exercises. Original manuscripts, period artifacts, and investigative tools influenced and used by Sherlock Holmes are on view.

Our Home: Native Minnesota includes historic and contemporary photographs, maps and artifacts. Visitors learn how Minnesota’s native communities have retained cultural practices, teachings and values.

Other exhibits include Minnesota’s Greatest Generation, Then Now Wow, Grainland, Weather Permitting and the online exhibit Votes for Women. The Center is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Thurs.-Sun. Tickets are $12 for adults, $10 for seniors and college students, and $8 for children ages five to 17.

History Theatre

30 E. 10th St. St. Paul 651-292-4323

Historytheatre.com

“Diesel Heart” is presented on select days through April 2. Inspired by Melvin Carter Jr.’s book “Die- sel Heart,” the play follows Carter Jr. through the 1950s and ’60s as he grew up in St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood. Tickets start at $20 for adults.

“The Defeat of Jesse James” is presented April 29-May 28. Set in 1876, this mix of honky-tonk cabaret and wild west show reenacts the infamous outlaw’s rise and fall, with a grand finale set in Northfield, Minn. Tickets start at $48 for adults.

Landmark Center

75 5th St. W. St. Paul 651-292-3225 landmarkcenter.org

Skylark Opera performance, 1-3 p.m., Sunday, April 2. Free.

Ballet Tuesday , noon1 p.m., April 11. Dancers from Ballet Co.Laboratory will perform excerpts from the company repertoire. Free.

Urban Expedition Scotland is held 1-3 p.m., Sunday, April 16. Learn about Scotland’s culture through music, dance and crafts. Free.

Bandwidth Community Band Festival, noon-6 p.m., Sunday, April 23. Performances include Capital City Wind Ensemble, 12:10 p.m.; Fridley City Band, 1:05 p.m.; Brio Brass, 2 p.m.; Roseville Community Band, 2:55 p.m.; St. Louis Park Community Band, 3:50 p.m.; and Lex Ham Community Band, 4:45 p.m. Free.

Tea at the Castle , 1-4 p.m., Sunday, April 30. This event is geared toward children. Guests can choose from two teas or juice. Snacks are provided. Seating is limited. $5.

MN Children’s Museum

10 7th St. W. St. Paul 651-225-6000 mcm.org

Framed: Step into Art is featured through May 7. Step into the 3D world of four well-known paintings, view famous prints and parodies of the Mona Lisa, and replace Mona Lisa’s face with your own.

S ample St. Paul

Other exhibits and activities include The Scramble, The Studio, Creativity Jam, Sprouts, Our World, Forces at Play, Shipwreck Adventures and Imaginopolis.

The museum is open 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Tues.-Fri., 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Saturdays, and 9 a.m.-5 p.m., Sundays. Tickets are $14.95. Admission is free the first Sunday of each month; reservations are required and tickets are limited. The next free date is April 2.

MN Museum of American Art

350 Robert St. N. St. Paul 651-797-2571 mmaa.org

“Colonial Traumas,” is an installation in the skyway over Wabasha Street at 4th Street in downtown St. Paul. Created by Luis Fitch, the mural features colorful, vinyl cut-out skulls that represent the complexity of identity, place and belonging for people of mixed-race descent.

“It’s Okay to Laugh” is an installation in the skyway windows above Robert Street, near the museum. Created by Jose Dominguez, it features colorful vinyl creatures that “play” hide and seek with passerby.

Im/perfect Slumbers is on display through August 20, in the M’s window galleries and skyway entrance. Guest curated by M artistin-residence Katya Oicherman in collaboration with Curator of Exhibitions Laura Joseph, this multidisciplinary series of installations captures the historical and contemporary state of sleeping and being in bed.

Ordway Center

345 Washington St. St. Paul 651-224-4222 ordway.org

St. Paul Chamber

Orchestra concerts:

Beethoven’s Eighth Symphony with Richard Egarr, 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., March 31; 8 p.m., April 1; 2 p.m., April 2 (tickets start at $12); Sang Yoon Kim plays Crusell’s Second Clarinet Concerto, 11 a.m. and 8 p.m., April 14, and 9 p.m., April 15 (tickets start at $12); Steven Copes plays Brahms’ Violin Concerto, 8 p.m., April 28-29 (tickets start at $12).

St. Paul Public Schools

Honors Concert & Art Exhibition, 6 p.m., Wednesday, April 12. $5.

The Okee Dokee Brothers, 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., Sat- urday April 22. Tickets start at $32.89.

Palace Theatre

17 7th Place W. St. Paul 612-338-8388 first-avenue.com

Snarky Puppy, 8 p.m., Wednesday, March 29. Tickets start at $35.

Dawes, 8 p.m., Saturday, April 15. Tickets start at $35.

Park Square

Theatre

20 W. 7th Place St. Paul 651-291-7005 parksquaretheatre.org

“The Revolutionists” is presented March 29-April 16. Four women, including an assassin, a spy, a playwright and Marie Antoinette, find themselves caught up in the French Revolution in this rebellious comedic romp that considers how to go about changing the world. Ticket prices vary by performance.

RiverCentre

175 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651- 265-4800 rivercentre.org

Minnesota Roller Derby, 7 p.m., Saturday, April 29.

Tickets start at $12.50.

Schubert Club

302 Landmark Center 75 W. 5th St. St. Paul 651-292-3268 schubert.org

Beatrice Rana, piano. 3 p.m., Sunday, April 16, at the Ordway Music Theater. Tickets start at $36. Courtroom Concerts are held at noon on Thursdays at the Landmark Center. All are free. Upcoming concerts include Tres Trio, April 6; Speaking in Tongues, April 13; Dave Brubaker, violin, and Miryana Moteva, piano, April 20; and Stephanie Arado, violin, Ruth Marshall, cello, and Garret Ross, piano, April 27.

KidsJam: Traditional Jazz & the Spirit of New Orleans with Riley Helgeson of McNasty Brass Band & Friends, 10:30 a.m., April 18-19. Listen to the music of New Orleans, create an instrument and play with the band. $5 per child (suggested ages 5-12). Free for accompanying adults.

Virtual Concert: Bach Collegium Japan director Masaaki Suzuki (harpsichord) and Roderick Williams OBE (baritone), 7:30 p.m., April 20. Tickets are $10.

Science Museum of Minnesota

120 W. Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul 651-221-9444 smm.org

Exquisite Creatures is on display through September

4. Explore the planet’s biodiversity by viewing preserved animal specimens arranged in intricate patterns.

Omnitheater films - “Sea Lions: Life by a Whisker,” through April 9. Connect with some of nature’s most unusual, curious and playful animals in this quest to save one of the world’s endangered species.

Omnifest is held through April 9 and features four Omnitheater films: “National Parks Adventure,” “Born to be Wild,” “Superpower Dogs” and “Amazon Adventure.”

Stellar Tours Live Digital Telescope Show, daily at 2 p.m. Choose your own space adventure and experience the Omnitheater’s new Digistar 7 projection system. Omnitheater tickets are $9.95. Free for children ages 3 and under.

Sensory Friendly Sunday is the first Sunday of the month. Visitors can experience a lights-up, sounddown Omnitheater show at 10 a.m., created in consultation with the Autism Soci- ety of Minnesota. Museum tickets range from $9.95$34.90, with discounts available for those with limited incomes.