Spencer Fritze made history by becoming the first state champion for the Park Rapids boys swimming and diving team.
Fritze capped off his senior season by winning the Class A title in diving at the state meet at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center on Saturday (March 2). Fritze was in second place with 272.85 points after the semifinal round on Thursday (Feb. 28) before receiving 122.25 points on his final three dives to finish with 395.10 points. That helped Fritze repeat as an all-state diver and earned the Panthers 20 points in the team standings.
Benson capped off his junior season by placing third in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 51.52 to repeat as an all-state swimmer and break his school record of 52.26 set during the state preliminaries on Friday (March 1). Benson added 16 points to the team score.
The 200-yard medley relay team of Benson, Spencer Fritze, Zach Fritze and Seth Breitweser finished ninth with a time of 1:40.49. Benson clocked a 24.52 in the backstroke, Spencer Fritze followed with a 27.42 in the breaststroke, Zach Fritze had a 24.71 split in the butterfly and Breitweser finished with a 23.84 in the freestyle. That relay team scored 18 points.
Benson scored 13 points by placing sixth in the 200 individual medley with a 1:58.25 to earn all-state honors.
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Spencer Fritze rounded out the Panthers' team total by placing 10th in the 50-yard freestyle with a 22.34 for 7 points.
Park Rapids placed 11th as a team with 74 points. Breck/Blake won the state Class A title with 423 points while Northfield finished a distant second with 188 points.
