Boys turn back Pelican Rapids, Benson

Four games in six days! Wow, the pace is demanding. I would say not just for the players, but with fans and people like me who write about it. I'm happy to do some journalism on behalf of MACA athletics. It's hard to appreciate the outcome of any given game when the next one might come two days later, or the next day. Play on Presidents Day, a holiday? I can't believe it. But play they did on Presidents Day. We won.
 

Tigers 66, Pelican Rapids 39
MACA turned on the jets to lead 45-20 by halftime. Fans at Pelican Rapids were quieted except our own of course. We cruised through the second half, outscoring Pelican Rapids 21-19, so we got our 15th win of the season against 11 losses.
It was another day at the office for Eric Staebler as he went to work scoring 23 points. Jacob Zosel broke into double figures with his 15. Ryan Dietz and Robert Rohloff each put in five points. Philip Anderson added four points to the mix. Three each came from Denner Dougherty and Lukus Manska. Taylor Carrington, Tate Nelson and Camden Arndt each scored two, and Ryan Bowman and Tim Travis each contributed a point.
Staebler made nine of his 13 field goal attempts. Zosel's shooting eye was sharp long-range as he sank four 3-pointers in six attempts. Staebler was three of five in 3-pointers. Rohloff and Lukus Manska each made one '3'. We were 24 of 56 in total field goals, and in freethrows the numbers were nine of 14.
Dietz topped the rebound list with seven. Zosel and Arndt each had five assists, and Bowman led in steals with three. Anderson had two steals. Bowman and Anderson each blocked a shot.

 

Tigers 77, Benson 61

This game marked the end of the regular season for coach Mark Torgerson's Tigers. Can MACA perform better in the post-season this year, than last? Remember, we were second-seeded last year and lost to the No. 7 seed in the first round. I was somewhat distressed by that, but hardly anyone else was, it seemed.
After all the time we invest following this team all winter, it would be nice to climb a little ways in the post-season, IMHO. The volleyball team satisfied our desires for that this past fall.
Eric Staebler had a monster game against the Braves of Benson. His double-double night included 33 points and 13 rebounds.
Our frequent wins have given us the No. 3 seeding position this year. We'll host No. 6 ACGC, a familiar opponent, on Saturday.
We led the Braves 37-33 at halftime. At the end we were on top 77-61. Staebler was followed on the scoring list by Camden Arndt (19), Tate Nelson (7), Jacob Zosel (6), Connor Koebernick (6), Robert Rohloff (4) and Tim Travis (2). Staebler was dead-on from three-point range, making four such shots. Nelson and Koebernick each made two long-rangers, and Arndt made one in this strong department for the Tigers.
Staebler's 13 rebounds were followed by Arndt's five. Zosel led in assists with nine while Rohloff had three. Nelson had three steals followed by Zosel and Staebler each with two.
Benson faded despite their Adam Lindahl scoring 28 points. Josh Manzke put in 14. The list continues with Layton Connelly (9), Zack Sonnabend (6), Dylan McNeill (2) and Max Peterson (2). Connelly made three 3-pointers while Manzke sank two. Sonnabend led in rebounds with nine. Connelly dished out four assists, and Lindahl set the pace in steals with five.
Prior to the wins on Monday and Tuesday, Morris Area Chokio Alberta didn't fare so well, dropping contests to Minnewaska and Breckenridge on Thursday and Saturday, respectively. My post reviewing those two games is on my companion website, "Morris of Course." Click on the link to read, and thanks for visiting. - B.W.
http://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2016/02/austin-versteegs-3-wins-for-minnewaska.html
 

Girls: Tigers 62, Melrose 20

MACA pummeled its Tuesday foe in hoops action: Melrose. My, it was no contest as our orange and black prevailed 62-20. A blow-out! It was over at halftime as we were up 33-8. Coach Dale Henrich could relax.
Three Tigers each made two 3-point shots: Riley Decker, Becca Holland and Correy Hickman. It was Hickman pacing the Tigers in scoring with 18 points. But Ashley Solvie was right on her heels, putting in 16 points. Becca Holland made double figures too with her ten points. These three Tigers each scored six: Riley Decker, Nicole Solvie and Moira McNally.
The game was played on the road, so MACA got on the Interstate en route to Dutchmen country. Maci Blommel with her modest point total of seven led Melrose's scoring. Brooklyn Loxterkamp made Melrose's only three-pointer. Blommel collected eight rebounds.
 

Whither Morris' economy?

Maybe it's time we started having a frank discussion about the Morris economy. We all sense something is amiss, I think, but we keep such thoughts under a shroud. A community is all about people. We need businesses that attract a decent amount of people traffic. Coborn's was one such business, open 24 hours. If I realized I was out of dog food at 5 a.m., I could hop over there.
Coborn's closed. This void has never been filled. Thrifty White Drug made the drastic downsizing move that we are now grappling with. It's a tiny fraction of its former self in the Morris community, and it has left a gaping void on main street. We lost a major auto dealership in Morris Auto Plaza, now comfortably in Alexandria which is a haven for so many of us.
Morris could use another restaurant. We could use a basic "main street diner" of a restaurant with a hot beef sandwich special every afternoon with an ice cream scoop of mashed potatoes with gravy. I'm not interested in all these new ethnic restaurants. I want basic American food. (Sorry if sound like Donald Trump.)
Last time I checked, Paynesville had two basic main street diners: "Tuck's" and "The Wishing Well." "The Wishing Well" had a super Sunday buffet.
I heard someone say: "Why would anyone want to stay in Morris?" We are quite challenged in comparison to Alex with its lakes and big box stores. Yet we have a highly aggressive police department that harasses people, in my view, with trivial citations for such things as seat belt, plus we have a City of Morris that appears to harass people with vehicle-towing after modest snowfalls, and assessments mailed to grandmas for failure to shovel sidewalks adequately - rather remindful of "traffic cams" in their onerous nature. And the City did a terrible job of snow removal downtown on Monday (2/15), rendering the situation very problematic for people who simply wanted to park their cars (like by the senior center).
This community has some very real issues. Too many people just seem to  shrug. Del Sarlette has long said that Morris should have an "apathy festival." Problem is, as Del points out, "nobody shows up for the organizing meeting." Rimshot!
Oh, and Cullen's left Morris too!
OK, let's all of us support the ShopKo pharmacy. ShopKo was quite the step up for Morris, as it remedied the horrible pothole situation at the old Pamida. Bravo!

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com