ROCHESTER — When Natalie Bremer considers what she and her Minnesota State University, Mankato women’s basketball team accomplished last year, winning the Division II national championship, gratitude is what comes first to mind.
Bremer expanded on that theme Sunday night at the annual Rochester Sports Banquet at a sold-out Rochester International Event Center as she was awarded the post high school Female Athlete of the Year.
The award — one of a host of them that were handed out Sunday to southeastern Minnesota athletes and teams— came with Bremer’s postseason particularly in mind. The Mavericks not only won that national title, but the 5-foot-11 guard from Lake City was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Performer after scoring 29 points in the semifinals and 27 in the championship.
It was a magical time for Bremer, now a junior at Minnesota Sate, Mankato and enjoying her best season yet, averaging 20 points, 5.4 rebounds and nearly 3 steals per game.
“That national tournament was just a special moment for us,” Bremer said. “Just to have that with my team and have that whole week with them. It was us staying in the moment and being present with each other and not getting ahead of ourselves.”
Bremer saved her best for last one season ago after averaging 15 points, 3 steals and 4.4 rebounds during the regular year. That it worked out that way didn’t surprise her.
Bremer actually felt more pressure during the regular season than in the playoffs. By the time the post-season hit, her confidence was at a new high. It had to do with the mission she believed her team was on, that it was destined for something great.
“The confidence was flowing more than normal,” she said. “I felt like the regular-season games were more nervewracking than the playoffs. At the end, we just had so much confidence in our team, that we were here for a reason and that we were going to do it and no one was going to be able to stop us.”
She was right. That included the Mavericks beating Texas Woman’s University 83-73 in the championship, rolling with Bremer’s outstanding play and the team’s vaunted defense once again forcing a flurry of turnovers.
Now, Bremer reflects on that national title with the same kind of gratitude she continues to feel as a member of this current team. Mankato is 20-2 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and 32-5 overall this season. And once again, Bremer is having the time of her life.
“I feel so much gratitude toward everyone in my life, the people that trust me, the people that had me dribbling a basketball almost before I could walk,” Bremer said. “I’m just grateful for everyone who continues to support me. This community around here (at the banquet), it just shows that even after high school that the support is still there.”
Randle speaks about perseverance
The keynote speaker at Sunday’s Rochester Sports Banquet was former Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman and NFL Hall of Fame inductee John Randle.
Prior to his speaking, a 10-minute video was shown of Randle during his playing days. A sack artist who was known for his high energy and non-stop “trash talking” to the opposition, Randle says he now gets reminders from his wife.
His tone suggested that they are reminders of relief that his yapping days are done.
“She tells me, ‘You’re not that (trash talking) person anymore,” Randle offered with a smile.
The former Vikings great’s overriding message Sunday was directed at the high school and college athletes in the crowd. He told them to follow their dreams, to pick themselves up when they fall and to persevere.
He said it’s important to not just do that for themselves, but for their audience.
“For you young athletes out there, don’t just think about yourselves, but think about the young people who are watching you,” he said. “You may not know it, but somebody is watching you. Someone is looking up to you, so you owe it to them. You have to push yourself and you have to follow your destiny.”
Here is a breakdown of all of the athletes and teams that won first-place awards at the Rochester Sports Banquet, an event whose inception was in 2007.
Maya Giron / Post Bulletin
• Female Athlete of the Year — Elisabeth Gadient: Already having a standout freshman season at Minnesota State University, Mankato, Gadient led her Goodhue basketball team to a state championship last year.
The Post Bulletin’s Player of the Year for 2023-24, Gadient averaged 24 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 5 steals per game. A two-time All-State selection and a top-six Ms. Basketball Award finalist last year (also a three-year varsity volleyball starter), the 5-foot-11 guard was at her best in the state title game. In Goodhue’s 70-65 victory against Mountain Iron-Buhl, Gadient dazzled with 31 points, 9 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 steals.
She did all of that despite sleep deprivation, the sleek guard unable to settle herself until 2 a.m. the night before the noon tipoff, Gadient so eager to bring Goodhue home another state championship.
Gadient brought it home, all right, having never looked better.
Maya Giron / Post Bulletin
• Male Athlete of the Year — Shaun Wysocki: Century has likely never had an all-around athlete of Wysocki’s caliber.
In the winter of 2023-24, Wysocki delivered so well on the basketball court (19 points, 10 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2 steals, 1 block per game, 67% field-goal shooting), that he was named the Big Nine Conference Player of the Year. A 6-foot-6 soaring athlete, Wysocki — who is already a freshman starter for Division II power Minnesota State University, Moorhead — used that running and jumping explosiveness to be a lethal defender of the hoop, a stellar rebounder and also a highlight-reel dunker. All of that went a long way toward pushing the Panthers to a 20-8 mark, a record number of wins for the program.
Once that season was done, Wysocki turned his attention to being the most explosive track and field athlete that Century has ever had. Wysocki set school records in the triple jump (46-feet-10 3/4) and the long jump (23-10). He accomplished both of those in the state meet, finishing second in each.
Wysocki was also on 4×400 and 4×200 Century relay teams that finished fifth and seventh, respectively, at state.
• Post high school Male Athlete of the Year — Jack Studer: A 2019 Dover-Eyota graduate, Studer turned in an All-Region senior season after finishing with 1,081 yards receiving on 65 catches, with nine touchdowns and a season average of 90 yards per game at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.
Studer also was named among 18 finalists for the Gagliardi Trophy, awarded annually to the country’s most outstanding Division III football player. Studer finished his UW-La Crosse career as its all-time leader in touchdown receptions (35) and receiving yards (3,127).
UW-La Crosse lost in the second round of the playoffs to St. John’s University (Collegeville).
Joe Ahlquist / Post Bulletin
• Coach of the Year — Kyle Riggott: The Century and Minnesota State University, Mankato graduate has made the John Marshall football program a contender again.
It had been awhile. The last winning record for JM football was in 2015, when the Rockets finished 9-3 and reached the state tournament. This past season, JM climbed to 7-3 and was one win away from reaching state.
Riggott’s passion showed through with his year-round devotion to the program and his ability to get his players believing in themselves.
Riggott has been JM’s head coach the past three years. The Rockets have made a steady climb, going from 0-9, to 4-6, to this past season’s 7-3.
• Adapted Athlete/Team of the Year — Braxton Small: Small was an athlete for two seasons, a big-time player for the Rochester Raiders in soccer and softball.
Small led his soccer team in goals scored and guided the Raiders to a second-place state finish.
Small was named All-State in soccer and softball.
Pat Ruff / Post Bulletin
• Female Team of the Year — Mayo girls tennis: The Spartans girls tennis team, directed by longtime coach Jeff Demaray, has been on a complete roll. After winning the state title in 2023, the Spartans repeated that feat this past fall when they finished unbeaten. For the second straight year, Mayo beat Edina in the Class 2A state championship dual, winning 5-2.
Led by two-time state individual champion Claire Loftus, Mayo had easily the best collection of tennis players in the state this past year. That included senior Loftus, her sister Aoife Loftus and Malea Diehn all ranked in the top 10 in the state, with Ana Medina just behind them.
The Spartans will return the bulk of that team next year when they will go for their third straight state title. Mayo is on a 51 dual-match winning streak.
Lily Dozier / Post Bulletin
• Male Team of the Year — St. Charles boys track and field: Eric Klein has taken a St. Charles program that was a mere blip on the state and local levels, and turned it into a giant.
That giant finished as the Class 1A state True Team champion last year, the second time (also in 2019) in his 11 years as head coach that the Saints have done it.
St. Charles boys track and field had 70 athletes out for the sport last year, a whopping number. The St. Charles boys team also finished as the Three Rives Conference champion for the second straight year.
Maya Giron / Post Bulletin
• Lifetime Achievement — Brad Johnson: A fixture at local high school sporting events — and extracurricular events of all types — there is a good reason for that. Johnson is in his 15th year as Region 1A Executive Secretary.
A MSHSL Hall of Fame inductee one year ago in the Administrative category, Johnson earned that glowing title. Johnson has spent the last 52 years as a highly regarded principal, coach, activities director and now region secretary.
Though the secretary job is regarded as a part-time position, Johnson is at it up to 50 hours per week during the various postseasons.