Rushford-Peterson Comes Up Short in Class A, Esko Wins 2A Title

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Brian Goodwin scored 14 of his 24 points in the second half to lead Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa past Rushford Peterson 52-40 in the Minnesota 1A state championship game on Saturday.

After blowing an early double-digit lead, the top-ranked Jaguars (31-1) won their second state title in three years thanks to Goodwin's poise in the final 10 minutes. Down 34-30 with 10:33 to play, Goodwin fueled a 13-5 game-deciding run that included seven-consecutive free throws.

Alex Vix led the third-ranked Trojans (31-2) with 12 points and Cole Kingsley added 11. The Trojans, last year's third-place finisher, played for their third overall state title and second as Rushford-Peterson.

Kingsley and Vix led a Rushford-Peterson rally with eight points apiece in the first half to put the Trojans up 25-21 at halftime.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Marc Peterson scored 16 points and Kory Deadrick added 14 to lead Esko past Annandale 60-41 Saturday for the Eskomos' first state 2A championship.

Deadrick, the school's all-time leading scorer, was well below his 25.9-points-per-game average coming into the tournament, but Esko got key baskets from his teammates in the rematch of last year's third-place game, a 1-point win by Annandale (25-7). Casey Staniger had 13 points for the Eskomos (29-3).

Matt Miller led Annandale with 10 points, but no other Cardinal scored in double figures. The Cardinals led early and stayed within striking distance for much of the game until a 16-4 run by Esko put the game out of reach. A 3-pointer by Tanner Olean cut Esko's lead to 38-32 before the Eksomos' game-turning run.