This exhibition might have to end

MACA sports has been dealt a most unfortunate injury. Any injury is sad but this one especially so, arguably, because it was in an exhibition event. It was a one-time event. One can argue it was a frivolous event. It is an event with a long and somewhat contentious background.
Yours truly was with the Morris newspaper when the Homecoming powder puff football game was at Green River Park. According to my recollections, it was not an official school event. Not only that, it was looked down upon by some. Why?
Some might say the sport of football is too rough for girls. Rather than posture that way, let me say instead that football is too rough for everyone. Maybe we should put it aside. The trend is definitely in that direction. However, this change is surprisingly slow. People still turn out for the Friday night lights.
Back in those past times, with yours truly making his rounds for the Morris Sun Tribune, it was my understanding that our volleyball coach was contrary in her attitude about the Homecoming powder puff football game. So much so, she reportedly had a policy of suspending any players who took part! Was she to be viewed as a humorless soul, a grouch?
No! Her stance now looks most wise, based on the fact that Maddie Carrington is out of action for a time due to an ACL injury in the 2019 event.
I believe the event is today school-sanctioned. Someone reminded me it's flag football today, whereas in the controversial Green River Park days it was full-go tackle. "Whoa Nellie," as the late Keith Jackson would say.
I'd argue flag football is still pretty wild. Last time I went it was at our big-time football field, Big Cat. I took photos for a Flickr photo album.
A family member of Maddie informed me very early Wednesday morning at a local diner - sun not up yet - of the heartbreaking news. Maddie is a top-flight runner and she's active athletically throughout the year. Her sister is Meredith, also a fine runner. I wrote about their father Matthew and his sister Anna when they were MAHS student-athletes. We remember Grandma Laura.
How shall we assess the powder puff football event? It's not just the football/danger element, it's the fact that it's a one-time event where the kids are not conditioned over time mentally and physically. Maddie is in the best condition imaginable, but football is a sport with its own skill sets and reflexes. Let me make a comparison: I remember a baseball injury once when the player, Bert Campaneris of the A's, was involved in a stunt where he played all nine positions in a game. He got seriously hurt making a play at the plate as catcher. Sportswriters observed after that, that such a stunt was questionable on the one-time grounds. Campaneris was not finely tuned with his skills.
Look how the very experienced catcher Ray Fosse got hurt in the All-Star Game when Pete  Rose barrelled into him.
Maddie is now sidelined a while, projected 7-9 months. Here's a paradox or contradiction: At the same time our volleyball coach frowned on powder puff in the Green River Park days, at least one school board member was enthusiastic about it and attended. School activities are often the fodder for disagreements, aren't they. I regret that public opinion at the time tended to frame the volleyball coach as rather a stick in the mud. I compliment her on her wisdom.
Maddie will be having surgery on October 18 in the Twin Cities, I'm told.
Many well-intentioned people continue to follow the sport of football enthusiastically. I personally wish the sport would die a quicker death. Ah, but my sentiment carries the weight of a grain of sand on a beach. Or, as Alex Karras as "Mongo" said in "Blazing Saddles": "Mongo just pawn in game of life."

Cross country at Sauk Centre
Life does go on, so MACA cross country visited Sauk Centre for a meet on Tuesday. It's not the same writing these results without Maddie's name. But alas, she's on the mend while sister Meredith carries the banner.
Meredith placed fourth with her time of 21:38.5.  The girls champion was Caroline Kuehne of LPGE, time of 19:53.9. We were the runner-up team behind Minnewaska Area. Hailey Werk placed sixth with her time of 21:41.4. Kaylie Raths was 17th, clocked at 22:26.4. Then we have Anna Backman in 19th (22:33.0) and Isabel Fynboh in 27th (23:12.4). On to the boys side where we congratulate the champion, MACA Tiger Noah Stewart. Stewart covered the course in 16:18.4. He was joined in the MACA effort by Bradley Rohloff (18:57.8), Thomas Tiernan (19:02.7), Jared Boots (19:28.6) and Reid Tolifson (19:48.7).
Melrose was boys team champion. We were No. 3 among the eleven teams.
 
Volleyball: Melrose 3, Tigers 1
The Tuesday story in volleyball had the Tigers bowing to Melrose 1-3. Game scores were 16-25, 19-25, 25-14 and 21-25. We entered this match having won four straight. It was a WCC affair at Melrose. Our record at night's end: 7-8.
Lexi Pew executed three ace blocks. Kenzie Hockel and Sophia Carlsen each had one ace block. The digs list was topped by Courtney Lehman whose total was 22. Macee Libbesmeier came through with 19 digs, and the list continues with Pew (14), Jaden Ross (12), LaRae Kram (9) and Emma Berlinger (5). Hockel and Pew each had one serving ace. Kram was go-to for setting with 16 assists.
These Tigers recorded kills: Berlinger, Emma Bowman, Hockel, Kram, Pew and Carlsen.
 
Conference tennis meet
The Alexandria courts were the site for West Central Conference tennis action Saturday. Minnewaska had a shining performance to take No. 1.
Our No. 3 doubles team of Ireland Winter and Breanna Schmidgall placed runner-up with a 2-1 showing. Our No. 1 tandem of Greta Hentges and Ryanne Long was third with their 2-1 showing. Our No. 2 doubles team of Hannah Watzke and Lakia Manska went 2-1 for fifth.
Turning to singles, here we see Katelyn Wehking going 2-1 for third place. Kassidy Girard at No. 3 singles went 1-2 for fourth. Katie Messner at No. 4 went 1-2 for sixth. Abbigail Athey played first singles and had an 0-2 day.
 
Patience not a virtue?
Freelance columnist Randy Blaser hits the nail on the head with his Sept. 25 offering. He does this right in the headline, no follow-up really necessary. Here's Randy's heading: "Participation in high school football is declining - I'm surprised it's not happening faster."
Researchers now theorize, Blaser writes, "that it is repeated blows to the head, not necessarily suffering a concussion or repeated concussions, that can lead to CTE in a former football player."
Imagine wanting your son to be in a school activity that involves "repeated blows to the head." So Blaser appropriately wonders: Why isn't the flight from high school football happening faster? Excellent question.
I have suggested in the past that we need more leadership like from school board members who could vigorously speak out and discourage support of the sport. You would think at least some of our Morris Area school board members would have "the right stuff" as it were. A former superintendent in a discussion with me about this did not offer a defense of football, but asserted "we follow all protocols." That's CYA. It's not courage.
 
Addendum: I finally found out a little backstory on the potentially costly unsportsmanlike penalty called on the MACA football bench in a recent game. I at least found out the name of the transgressor. A reliable parent told me the flag was on Jake Torgerson. I happened to be listening to the radio at the time the incident happened. It's hard for me to listen to a whole game because the voices emanating from the speaker can seem rather like a speaker at a fast food drive-through. Is it just me or does Mark Torgerson sound like he's a monotone? I gathered that the penalty could have cost us the game. We did end up winning. If the Chicago Cubs had won on the night of the infamous Steve Bartman incident, his name would not be remembered.
 
Addendum #2: Checking the newspaper website lately, it seems the new owners are being neglectful, unless there's an excuse of dealing with the transition from the Forum. A lot of sports on the site during the Forum days appeared to be piggy-backed from the Willmar paper (also Forum-owned) but at least it was there. The new owners may be seeing the end of their honeymoon. There was joy at the initial announcement. IMHO as I page through the new product, I can't really sense an improvement in content. If I'm at the grocery store I'm not sure I'd want to spend $1.50 for it. Anfinsons will need to sense there are good business results in the offing here. Apparently the Forum did not. Some of us diss the Forum as being distant and uncaring. Maybe we'll have to re-think some of that. The Anfinsons may have to do more than maintain the status quo, profit and circulation-wise - they'll need to push things upward. The headwinds here might have to do with the state of the Morris community itself. Are things really looking up here? Well, I think the answer may well be no. I can write about Tiger athletics without concern of making a profit at all. Maybe that says something about our new media landscape.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com