News & Features
2011-2012 Challenge Cup competition under way By Lisa Lissimore Associate Director The competition for the 20112012 Minnesota State High School League Challenge Cup is in full swing with Ada-Borup, The Blake School of Minneapolis and Eden Prairie leading the way. A review of the leader board shows Ada-Borup ahead in Class A with 70 points. The Cougars earned points for participation in the State Football Tournament and for finishing fourth in the Class A State Girls’ Volleyball Tournament. Trailing close behind the Cougars is Dawson-Boyd with 63 points, Bethlehem Academy with 62 points, Nevis with 60 points and Mahnomen, Prairie Seeds Academy of Brooklyn Park, and Warren-Alvarado-Oslo each with 50 points. Minneota, last year’s Class A Challenge Cup winner, is in eighth place with 42.3 points. In the Class AA Challenge, The Blake School is in first place with 206 points. The Bears won the Class AA Girls’ Soccer Tournament and the Class A Girls’ Tennis title. They also finished fourth in the tennis doubles competition and the
boys’ and girls’ state cross country meets. One runner, Clare Flanagan, won the Class A individual title and classmate Brandon Clark placed second in the boys’ Class A race. Rounding out the top five in this class: St. Cloud Cathedral (125 points); Rochester Lourdes (124.3 points); Annandale (101 points); Marshall (85 points); and Hutchinson (78 points). Battling for top billing in the Class AAA race are five-time Cup winner Eden Prairie plus Edina. With only a 25-point lead over the Hornets, Eden Prairie won three fall state championships in boys’ soccer, girls’ volleyball and football. The Eagles also had individual swim champions that earned 47 of the schools 259 Challenge Cup points. Edina, the team champion in girls’ tennis and girls’ swimming and diving, is in second place with 236 points, followed by Wayzata (147 points), Benilde-St. Margaret’s (135 points), Rochester Mayo (131 points), and Lakeville North (113.5 points). The League, along with its premier corporate partner Wells Fargo, created the Challenge Cup program in 2003 to recognize and
Lisa Lissimore reward League-member schools for excellence in athletics and fine arts activities. Under the program guidelines, schools earn points for their success in postseason tournament play and the school earning the most points at the end of the year in each classification — A, AA and AAA — receives the traveling Challenge Cup. This year marks the second time the award will be presented to schools from three different classes. Previously there were two classes and only two Cup winners. “The Challenge Cup is a yearround competition that generates a lot of excitement between League member schools,” explained Dave Stead, executive director of the League. “Many schools, big and small, will continue to earn Cup points based on their performance in the upcoming section and state tournaments. We’ll see the leader board change again in March when the winter tournaments are completed.”
“The Challenge Cup is an excellent way to measure the overall efforts of schools involved in League fine arts and athletic activities,” said Dave Kvamme, regional president for Wells Fargo’s Minnesota Great Lakes region. “The competition is always close and we expect it to go down to the wire again this year.” The Challenge Cup standings for all qualifying schools are posted on the League’s website after each seasonal state tournament series. Cup scores from the 2011 fall tournaments are currently posted on the website. The winter tournament standings will be added in April, and the 2012 Challenge Cup winners will be announced in late June after the spring tournaments are completed. The traveling Challenge Cup will then be presented to each winning school during a recognition ceremony generally held in the fall.
Previous Challenge Cup Winners The League and Wells Fargo will crown the ninth set of Challenge Cup champions after the final June 2012 state tournaments. Past Cup winners include: 2004: St. Cloud Cathedral - Class A; Lakeville - Class AA 2005: The Blake School - Class A; Lakeville - Class AA 2006: St. Cloud Cathedral - Class A; Eden Prairie - Class AA 2007: The Blake School - Class A; Wayzata - Class AA 2008: Perham - Class A; Eden Prairie - Class AA 2009: The Blake School - Class A; Eden Prairie - Class AA 2010: Breck - Class A; Eden Prairie - Class AA 2011: Minneota - Class A; Breck - Class AA; Eden Prairie Class AAA
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Winter 2012 Bulletin
11