Prep Athletes of the Week: Park Center's CJ O'Hara contributes to boys basketball perfection

Park Center • basketball

In his first season in the Park Center starting lineup, O'Hara has contributed offense and defense for the Pirates.

"CJ has become a crucial part to the team's success," Pirates assistant coach Trent Witz said.

Witz said O'Hara, a 6-4 wing who leads the Pirates in scoring at 18.9 points per game, "has turned up his intensity on defense while shooting 70.4 percent."

O'Hara opened the week with 41 points in the Pirates' 97-70 victory Monday at Blaine. He added 21 points in a 88-69 victory at Spring Lake Park on Wednesday and 21 points in a 92-44 home victory over St. Louis Park on Friday.

O'Hara, who has also played for Totino-Grace and Hopkins in his high school career, surpassed 1,500 points for his career Friday.

He also averaged 8.3 rebounds and three steals for the Pirates, the top-ranked team in Class 4A. The Pirates are 17-0 and have won 30 consecutive games dating to last season.

Minneapolis Washburn • Nordic skiing

The sophomore continued her solid season by winning the Minneapolis Conference championship pursuit race at Theodore Wirth Park with a combined time of 31 minutes, 20.4 seconds.

Angerman, who finished 42nd at the state meet last year, has won two other races this season and was 12th among 140 skiers in the classic race at the Mesabi East Invite.

New Prague • wrestling

The senior went 8-0 last week to finish the regular season with a 44-0 record. Buesgens, ranked No. 1 in Class 2A at 145 pounds, will be wrestling for his third state title. He won the Class 3A 126-pound title two years ago and the Class 2A 138-pound championship last year.

Holy Family • basketball

A 6-foot junior forward who has committed to Butler, Land scored 98 points in three games last week, including a career-high 40 points against Delano. Land, who is averaging 24.7 points per game, also surpassed 1,000 points for her career.

Holy Angels • hockey

The sophomore wing had 15 points (eight goals, seven assists) in three victories last week. He capped the week with four goals and two assists in an 11-0 victory over Bloomington Kennedy on Saturday. He leads the Stars (14-5-1) with 27 goals and 33 assists in 20 games.

Blaine • Nordic skiing

The senior paced the Bengals to the Northwest Suburban title last week at Hyland Park Reserve. Lewis, who finished fifth at the state meet last year, was the top individual skier at the meet with a time of 13:23.9.

Orono • hockey

The sophomore forward played a major role in two Spartans victories last week. On Thursday, she scored in overtime to lift the Spartans, ranked No. 5 in Class 1A, to a 2-1 victory over Holy Family, ranked No. 8 in Class 2A. On Saturday, she had four goals and an assist in an 11-2 victory over Bloomington Jefferson.

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