State boys tennis: St. Paul Academy finishes off fourth straight title

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When Andrew Argeros was hired as the new head coach of the St. Paul Academy boys’ tennis team, he only knew “They had a very good program. What I didn’t realize is how deep they were.”

Argeros soon found out when 94 players showed up for the first tryouts.

The list was eventually whittled down to the 15 who took part in a historic performance at the MSHSL Class A tournament at Reed-Sweatt Tennis Center in Minneapolis. The Spartans swept all three foes by 7-0 scores to become the first school in league history to win four consecutive state tennis crowns. The tournament’s top seed looked the part Thursday with a win over No. 5 Breck in the semifinals in the morning and in the afternoon over No. 2 Rock Ridge.

“We peaked at the right time,” Argeros said.

Winston Arvidson, a freshman, stepped into the No.1 singles slot and led the way, losing just two games in three matches. Arvidson overwhelmed the Wolverines’ Payton Marks 6-0, 6-0 in just 40 minutes in the final. David Schumacher, a senior playing in the No. 2 slot, was equally impressive, rolling to a 6-0, 6-1 win in his championship outing.

What may have pleased Argeros even more was the play of junior Allen Wang and freshman Lucas Laguna.

“Allan has come a long way since the start of the season,” Argeros said.

Against Breck, he teamed with soph Isaak Senaratna for a win at No. 1 doubles. Wang moved to No. 3 singles for the Rock Ridge match and earned a 6-1, 6-4 win.

Laguna worked his way into the rotation, a move that paid off with a win at No. 4 singles against the Mustangs. He switched to doubles against Rock Ridge and paired up with fellow freshman Luca Kempcke for a decision at No. 3 doubles.

The court results speak for themselves, but Argeros took pains to note another aspect of his team that he particularly liked.

“I’m proud of how passionate they are and how they interact so well with each other,” he said.

Indeed, the whole team gathered to watch Aidan Williams win his No. 4 singles match 7-5, 6-2 to wrap up the school’s seventh state title.

The Spartans’ court work isn’t finished. Arvidson is the top seed in the Class A singles competition that starts Friday morning. Seniors Jacob Colton and Ben Macedo are the top seed in the doubles bracket.

Breck defeated Rochester Lourdes 4-3 for third place.

Class 2A

Wayzata won its third straight state title with a 6-1 win over Edina. Mounds View claimed third place by edging Rochester Mayo 4-3.

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Trump moves to block US entry for foreigners planning to study at Harvard University

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By COLLIN BINKLEY, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is moving to block nearly all foreign students from entering the country to attend Harvard University, his latest attempt to choke the Ivy League school from an international pipeline that accounts for a quarter of the student body.

In an executive order signed Wednesday, Trump declared that it would jeopardize national security to allow Harvard to continue hosting foreign students on its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

“I have determined that the entry of the class of foreign nationals described above is detrimental to the interests of the United States because, in my judgment, Harvard’s conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers,” Trump wrote in the order.

It’s a further escalation in the White House’s fight with the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university. A federal court in Boston blocked the Department of Homeland Security from barring international students at Harvard last week. Trump’s order invokes a different legal authority.

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It stems from Harvard’s refusal to submit to a series of demands made by the federal government. It has escalated recently after the Department of Homeland Security said Harvard refused to provide records related to misconduct by foreign students.

Harvard says it has complied with the request, but the government said the school’s response was insufficient.

The dispute has been building for months after the Trump administration demanded a series of policy and governance changes at Harvard, calling it a hotbed of liberalism and accusing it of tolerating anti-Jewish harassment. Harvard defied the demands, saying they encroached on the university’s autonomy and represented a threat to the freedom of all U.S. universities. Harvard President Alan Garber also disputed the government’s allegations, saying in a letter last month that the school is nonpartisan and has taken steps to root out antisemitism on campus.

Trump officials have repeatedly raised the stakes and sought new fronts to pressure Harvard, cutting more than $2.6 billion in research grants and moving to end all federal contracts with the university. The latest threat has targeted Harvard’s roughly 7,000 international students, who account for half the enrollment at some Harvard graduate schools.

The order applies to all students attempting to enter the United States to attend Harvard after the date of the executive order. It provides a loophole to allow students whose entry would “benefit the national interest,” as determined by federal officials.

Trump’s order alleges that Harvard provided data on misconduct by only three students in response to the Homeland Security request, and it lacked the detail to gauge if federal action was needed. Trump concluded that Harvard is either “not fully reporting its disciplinary records for foreign students or is not seriously policing its foreign students.”

“These actions and failures directly undermine the Federal Government’s ability to ensure that foreign nationals admitted on student or exchange visitor visas remain in compliance with Federal law,” the order said.

For foreign students already at Harvard, Secretary of State Marco Rubio will determine if visas should be revoked, Trump wrote.

The order is scheduled to last six months. Within 90 days, the administration will determine if it should be renewed, the order said.

A State Department cable sent last week to U.S. embassies and consulates said federal officials will begin reviewing the social media accounts of visa applicants who plan to attend, work at or visit Harvard University for any signs of antisemitism.

In a court filing last week, Harvard officials said the Trump administration’s efforts to stop Harvard from enrolling international students have created an environment of “profound fear, concern, and confusion.” Countless international students have asked about transferring from the university, Harvard immigration services director Maureen Martin said in the filing.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

State softball: Champlin Park’s Ava Parent walks-off White Bear Lake

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NORTH MANKATO — Champlin Park senior outfielder Ava Parent saw her spot in the order heading into the bottom of the seventh inning and immediately began hoping for a chance.

It came with the bases loaded, two outs and the chance to be a hero.

Champlin Park (23-2) and White Bear Lake were tied 2-2 in the Class 4A semifinal at Caswell Park when Parent stepped up to the dish. She battled Bears ace Lilly Martin — terrific all game — tooth and nail, fouling off one pitch after another.

“I kept fouling pitches off and it was a high-intensity situation,” Parent said. “I just had to stay disciplined, and that’s exactly what I did.”

Finally, the Wisconsin commit found a pitch she could drive, striking a single to the outfield to send Champlin Park to the title game in the program’s first state tournament appearance. The second-seeded Rebels will meet fellow title game debutant Bloomington Jefferson at 9 a.m. Friday at the U.

“It means so much,” Parent said. “Champlin park softball has never been to the state tournament, let alone the state championship. So, it’s super incredible and we’re all excited to get going.”

White Bear Lake pitcher Lilly Martin throws a pitch during the Bears’ 3-2 loss to Champlin Park in the Class 4A state semifinals in North Mankato on June 4, 2025. (Jace Frederick / Pioneer Press)

White Bear Lake (19-7) didn’t make it easy. Thursday morning’s quarterfinal upset of third-seeded Farmington marked the sixth-seeded Bears’ 12th straight victory, a run that also included a sectional upset of Stillwater.

The Bears were playing their best softball at the right time.

And they came out of the gates fast in the semis with runs in the second and third innings to take a 2-0 advantage. The second run was scored by Maddy Belisle, who reached via one of her three hits in the game and essentially manufactured the score on the base paths from there.

But the offense dried up from there. White Bear Lake tallied single hits in numerous innings against Champlin Park ace Marissa Rothenberger, but couldn’t string anything else together.

“We started hot and kept swinging the bat,” White Bear Lake coach Jill Leverty said. “We couldn’t get the last couple to fall, but other than that, I thought we did pretty good.”

It looked like that might be enough offense to hold, too. Particularly given how Martin was rolling. The Rebels had just one hit through the first four innings.

“We were all stressing out a bit,” Parent admitted.

But it was the No. 9 hitter, Layla Nguyen, who broke the seal for the Rebels in the fifth with a two-out, two-run single that knotted the contest.

“They might not have played their best, but each of them picked each other up when they needed it,” Champlin Park coach Bryan Woodley said.

Rothenberger — who threw a complete game, allowing just one earned run — opened the bottom of the seventh with a leadoff double. A walk and a single eventually set the table for Parent, who, to the surprise of no one, delivered.

“She’s always clutch,” Woodley said. “I think she’s the best centerfielder in the state. She’s just a great all-around player.”

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Federal agent from Eagan jailed and charged with producing child sexual abuse material

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A special agent with Homeland Security Investigations is jailed and accused in federal court of coercing and enticing a 17-year-old girl into sex acts, which he photographed and filmed.

Timothy Ryan Gregg, 51, of Eagan, was charged Monday in U.S. District Court with producing child sexual abuse material after federal authorities say images and videos of the two engaged in sexual activity were found on her cellphone on May 29.

Timothy Ryan Gregg (Courtesy of the Sherburne County Sheriff’s Office)

Gregg made an initial court appearance Wednesday before Magistrate Judge Dulce Foster and was ordered to remain in federal custody at the Sherburne County Jail pending further court hearings.

Gregg’s attorney, Ryan Pacyga, told the Pioneer Press on Wednesday that Gregg “had no idea he was dealing with a minor” and “we have proof that he 100 percent had been told, repeatedly, that the alleged victim is an adult. He was repeatedly lied to about her age, which is a game changer under the law and was devastating for him to find out that she is not yet 18.”

According to court documents, which were unsealed Wednesday:

The girl’s father told police that he found on her cellphone, which she had left behind in a car, multiple sexually explicit images and videos, including some of her and a man engaged in sex acts. The man was identified by law enforcement as Gregg, who also serves as a task force officer with the FBI.

The cellphone showed that Gregg, who was listed in the girl’s contacts as “Labubu,” and the teen had sent text messages to each other and naked photos. Gregg also sent her photos and videos of the two engaged in sex in a hotel room.

The girl told law enforcement that she had met Gregg through the dating/meet-up app Tinder. She said he picked her up multiple times, mostly on Sundays, and that they went to a hotel, where he took photos and videos of them engaged in sex.

A check of hotel records by law enforcement showed that Gregg rented a room four times in March and twice in both April and in May, all on Sundays. Hotel employees said that Gregg would rent the rooms by himself and then bring a guest inside the hotel through the parking ramp.

Gregg used his “official ICE/HS email address to make the hotel reservations,” the complaint states.

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“The U.S. Attorney’s Office will always hold defendants in positions of public trust to account, particularly when they commit crimes against vulnerable children,” acting U.S. Attorney Joseph Thompson said Wednesday in a written statement. “I am proud of the swift and decisive action of the FBI and the Rochester Police Department, who responded immediately and worked together to take Gregg safely into custody.”

Alvin Winston Sr., special agent in charge of FBI Minneapolis, said the case against Gregg “represent a gross violation of both the law and the responsibilities entrusted to those who wear a badge.”

Meanwhile, Pacyga, Gregg’s attorney, said he has had a “long, distinguished career in law enforcement and has dedicated his life to public service. He is more than what he is accused of here, and we will see him through this.”