Memorial Day weekend is not a sleepy time for high school softball. Quite to the contrary, the post-season action is heading toward a crescendo. The Tigers have no games set for Memorial Day itself. That would probably be sacrilege just like flying an American flag upside down.
I used to be around some veterans service organization people in Morris who could be very sensitive about how the flag symbol was handled. For example, one year I took a photo of a child wearing a little hat made of the American flag symbol. Someone saw me take the photo and advised me I'd better not run it. The guy said "you'll get in trouble." So I didn't run it. I explained to the very sweet parents what I had been told.
So, what if someone was found to be flying America's hallowed symbol of the flag, for whom many men have died, upside down? It's a question we should weigh.
MACA softball is still in contention as I write this. Anyone with the newspaper working on Sunday morning? Well, I am.
The athletes' parents should realize that the post-season details can be confusing for non-parents and casual fans. And my, this is especially true for double-elimination tournaments! Thank goodness I can consult with the "Minnesota Scores" website which is such a reliable home base for the basic current information.
I can be thankful too I have a friend like Randy Olson of Bonanza Valley who emails from time to time. He gave me the current heads-up on our Tigers this morning. Thanks again Randy.
Hello Brian, the Tigers are in the group of the last four standing in Section 3AA. They need to defeat vaunted Jackson County Central to get to the loser's bracket final.
To get to state, they'd need to win four straight games across Tuesday and Thursday next week. Tall task. I am unaware if there was any media there from Stevens County.
We're in 3AA
Let's review how the Tigers have done through the entire post-season thus far. First we had the 14-1 thumping over Montevideo on May 23. That same day we thumped 'Waska 15-0. Both these games were at home.
'Waska of course has the athletic director that gets paid substantially more than here. And that's why we lost Mr. Karas to 'Waska. I wonder if he can inject a little more competitiveness in the 'Waska softball program. Right now we rule.
Action shifted to Marshall on Saturday. A long drive for the MACA Tiger fans - unfortunate. In Marshall we were dealt a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to Luverne. But this is a double-elimination affair. With new life we played Windom Area and won impressively 6-0.
After the pause for Memorial Day we'll resume against Jackson County Central: 5 p.m. Tuesday again at Marshall.
"Minnesota Scores" tells us our won-lost is 21-3. In section: 11-2. We wrapped up the conference at 14-0. We might do better playing in a more competitive conference frankly. We'd be tested more.
Baseball: an 11-11 tie
The MACA baseball Tigers played two against Minnewaska on May 23. One ended in an unusual tie, 11-11. Not sure if this is recorded as an official game. "MN Scores" has this game as "PPD" for postponed. We lost the other game to the Lakers 5-3. The games were here at Chizek Field.
What's next? We'll host New London-Spicer for the start of sub-section play on Tuesday, 5 p.m.
Tigers 11, 'Waska 11
The MACA bats were robust as shown by the line score: 11 runs on 14 hits, but there was a blemish in the form of six errors. 'Waska scored their 11 runs on ten hits and committed two errors. We had a parade of pitchers: Jack Kehoe, Ozzy Jerome, Justin Giese, Kaleb Breuer and Alex Asmus.
Riley Asmus doubled as part of a two-for-three line. He walked, scored two runs and drove in two. Jerome drove in three runs with his two-for-five line, plus he scored a run. Breuer socked a home run! He drove in two runs and scored one.
Jonah Huebner had a hit in his only at-bat plus he was hit-by-pitch. He picked up an RBI. Alex Asmus had a hit and a run scored. Jackson Hallman went two-for-four with a walk received and two runs scored. John Kleindl drew two walks, scored two runs and had a hit.
Ashdon Hacker was busy with six at-bats in which he rapped two hits. He drove in a run. Andrew Marty's details: one-for-three, a run, an RBI, a walk, a HBP and a stolen base. Drew Huebner was one-for-one with a run scored.
High school graduation
Friday night was of course big for our MAHS graduates of 2024. I'm told one of the valedictorians who spoke might seem like a stranger to many. A friend reported to me in an email that this individual "hasn't been attending classes at MAHS for three years as he was going to college somewhere (NOT UMM, which bugs me) on that PSEO tax-supported high school skipping program. I bet some kids in the class didn't even know who he was."
I'll say this: the two speakers for my own MHS graduation in 1973 were rock-ribbed class members, siblings in spirit! But that's the way it was then. I'll name-drop: Edith Martin and John Martin. They were not related. Edith was the oldest child of the famous Willie Martin of Willie's Super Valu. I'm sure Willie thought graduation in '73 was "astronomical."
Touching base
Maybe Warrenn Anderson is one of those out of town for this holiday weekend. Good for him if he is. I did not see him at Caribou Coffee which he normally graces on Sunday morning. I sent him an email on several subjects prior to leaving the house for Caribou. I touch on some pretty current topics. So here's what I wrote:
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| She's you-know-who |
Remember the old days when if you had a simple cable TV subscription, you could watch Twins and Vikings and a whole lot of other stuff without complications? It was paid for with all those beer commercials like the classic Bob Uecker Miller Lite commercial. "I must be in the front row."
I have a theory on our softball complex. Maybe the new facilities that are built today have to follow lots of regulations, whereas existing facilities are grandfathered in? That makes the old facilities far superior. The old UMM field had a fence that was short enough that most adults could stand around the perimeter of the field and watch. Same with the Wells Park fields, and many fans did that. I notice now there's a net behind home plate at the new place. Maybe that's a regulation too. Such terrible fear about foul balls that the quality of the viewing experience is destroyed. Of course these days with people looking down at their phones so much, there is more of a danger with foul balls.
I still resent how the softball complex was announced to begin with. The promoters really exaggerated how great it would be, and there was that long line of "VIPs" that gathered for the "groundbreaking" photo. They had shovels. How many holes were actually dug out there? It is a boondoggle and maybe I'm the only person talking about it. If we had a better facility, maybe someday we could get the section tournament here. Man, all these trips to Marshall. Cuts down on fan interest and fan presence.
Morris newspaper has not yet come out with their special supplement for the graduating seniors. It should have come out last week. That was really essential. One theory: maybe the paper is late on paying some bills. They have to pay Quinco for being printed there. Litchfield and Hutchinson have lost their papers and apparently no new buyers have come forward.
The thing you have to understand is that overhead costs are killing newspapers.
I am surprised the state just keeps sitting back and allowing all these terrible headlines to appear about St. Cloud State. Don't you think the state needs to send a new "hired gun" administrator there?
If UMM loses its music and theater programs, what would become of that big hulking building called the HFA? Del S. has called that building an "albatross" on campus and I agree. I think when it was built it was considered avant garde. However, times have changed and that consideration doesn't matter now. Huge hallways and a too-small recital hall, while meanwhile the public school got the opulent "concert hall." So very, very strange.
I'll be at Caribou in about an hour.
- BW
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