Athlete of the Week - Bennett Berge, Kasson-Mantorville Wrestling

KASSON, Minn. (KTTC) – Its been a storybook career for Bennett Berge.

“Its really hard to reflect on five years, but there’s a lot of times I just found a way to get it done,” Berge said.

This weekend at the Xcel Energy Center was no exception as he captured his fifth state title.

Joining a historic club as just the eighth Minnesotan to do it, showing him just how far he’s come since his first.

“You look back on it now and you’re like dang how did I do that as an eighth grader and I did and I’m a loss of words on how I did it, but happened.”

While he made history there is one thing from this weekend, a team title, that didn’t go his way.

“It’s going to be there forever,” Berge said.

“We had some kids really step up for us and we made a good run in the state tournament, we didn’t achieve what we wanted and that sucks sometimes, but that’s life, that’s sports.”

Despite the individual titles and accolades. Berge has always had everyone else number one.

“I wrestle for the people around me too, its not just myself and I think you see that on how I compose myself on the mat and afterwards,” Berge said.

Whether its his school or community.

This program is amazing, these coaches, the leaders that are in here guiding us wrestling wise, but as people. I mean those kids we had up at state tournament all 20 or 21 of them kids are amazing and I hope I made the community proud as a person and as a wrestler.”

Really its who he is as a person that he hopes lasts the longest at Kasson-Mantorville.

“I’m in here playing dodgeball, messing around with other kids just as much as they’re messing around with me. Nobody was like Oh its Bennett Berge like watch out.I think I’m just another kid in this program,” Berge said.

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