Malik Abdi

Stewartville • football

A senior running back, Abdi is a big reason the two-time defending state champion Tigers have extended their winning streak to 30 games.

Last week, Abdi rushed for 246 yards and two touchdowns in 38 carries and scored on a 3-yard touchdown run with 50 seconds remaining to lift the Tigers to a 20-14 victory over Totino-Grace. In the Tigers’ season-opening 25-6 victory over Benilde-St. Margaret’s, he rushed for 163 yards and a touchdown.

“Malik has had an outstanding start to the 2025 season,” Tigers coach Garrett Mueller said. “His experience and skill set have been on full display the first two weeks of the season. We are very proud of his and his teammates’ performance up to this point, getting two big victories to start the year against some quality opponents. Malik will continue to be a big part of our team’s success this season.”

Against Totino-Grace, Abdi’s first touchdown gave the Tigers a 14-0 lead midway through the third quarter. His 409 rushing yards this season rank second in the state.

The Tigers, whose winning streak is the second-longest current streak in the state (Minneota has won 34 consecutive games), play at Kasson-Mantorville on Friday.

Sophie Blixt

Rochester Century • swimming

Blixt is off to a solid start in her senior season. In a dual meet against Austin on Sept. 4, she set a Century pool record in the 100 backstroke (59.76 seconds) and she also won the 200 freestyle (2 minutes, 1.73 seconds). On Saturday, she swam a leg on two winning relays to help the Panthers edge Lakeville North for first place at the Lakeville Relays.

Rayna Christianson

Lakeville North • volleyball

The 6-2 setter/right side led the Panthers, who moved up to No. 1 in this week’s Class 4A poll, to eight victories in their first nine matches. Christianson, an all-state selection last season who has committed to play for Creighton in college, leads the Panthers with 78 kills and also has 140 set assists and 45 digs.

Kendall Grate

Rosemount • soccer

Grate, a junior, scored seven goals to lead the Irish, ranked No. 2 in Class 3A, to a pair of victories. She scored all five goals in a 5-1 victory over Minneapolis Washburn and scored both goals in a 2-0 victory over Lakeville South. In Rosemount’s first six games this season, she scored 13 goals and had two assists. She scored 24 goals last season.

Mary Jo Kraus

Trinity • soccer

The freshman goalkeeper, in her second season on the Trinity varsity, had 30 saves in two matches last week to help the TriHawks earn a pair of 1-1 ties against Legacy Christian and Minnehaha Academy. She also has one shutout this season.

Oliver Kuhn

Breck • football

The senior two-way standout has helped the Mustangs start the season with back-to-back shutout victories. Kuhn, who earned all-district honors last season after leading the Mustangs in tackles from his safety position, is playing tight end and linebacker this season and also placekicking and punting. In the Mustangs’ 42-0 season-opening victory over St. Paul Harding/Humboldt he caught a 40-yard TD pass and returned a fumble for a TD. He also kicked a field goal and made three PATs. Kuhn, who is tied for third on the Mustangs with 11 tackles, has committed to play for Bowdoin College in Maine.

Cade Nissen

Buffalo • soccer

The junior forward scored a team-high seven goals as the Bison went undefeated (5-0-2) in the season’s first two weeks. He scored a goal in the Bison’s 3-1 victory over Chaska on Saturday. Buffalo is ranked third in Class 3A.

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