MACA girls finish season 17-10

I enjoyed attending the Thursday night basketball action at Minnewaska Area High School. Always nice to have a convenient driving distance. Prep sports is elevated this time of year because the playoffs are on. It's thrilling for the teams that win and advance, disappointing for the losers and their fans who have to accept the end of the season.
I had been indicating to Tom Carrington that it would be fun to personally watch a game. I write about these student-athletes very often but this is done from a distance. The Thursday night girls playoff game versus Eden Valley-Watkins was my first to watch in person since I became a family of one. Years ago of course I attended such events regularly. These events are so well-organized and presented today - it's a joy to see it all.
Tom is the grandfather of Meredith Carrington who unfortunately had been sidelined by injury. She got hurt in the previous game, the win over Litchfield. Her ACL injury is the same as what her sister Maddie experienced last fall. Maddie got hurt in the Homecoming powder puff game.
On an encouraging note, grandpa Tom tells me Maddie's recovery timetable has been moved up. The original estimate was for her to be out 7-9 months, as I recall. That would have wiped out the rest of the school year. But Tom told me this morning that Maddie aims to compete in track. That would be wonderful, assuming there's no risk involved. Maddie and Meredith both run cross country. Is there a connection? I have wondered.
Tom is also related to MACA Tiger MacKenna Kehoe. He's the great uncle? I believe that's the correct term. I was delighted to see Janet Kehoe Thursday and I told her I was looking forward to seeing MacKenna make a three-pointer. MacKenna has shown capability with this. However, Eden Valley-Watkins put on a pretty stubborn defense. I watched MacKenna attempt some 3's that looked to be pretty well contested. Alas, MacKenna couldn't get her long-rangers to fall.
I began to wonder, as an armchair quarterback, if maybe the Tigers could've gone out of their way to set up a nice "screen" for MacKenna or any other good shooters. Maybe "roll the dice" with 3's? Coach Dale Henrich is the one who makes these strategic decisions.
There wasn't much for Henrich and his charges to smile about at game's end. Fans at the 'Waska gym saw the Eagles of EV-W turn back the Tigers in the 52-39 final. So the Tigers' season is done. Lots of success through the course of the season as we went 17-10.
There was hope at halftime as the orange and black led the Eagles 17-16. But the second half belonged to the Eagles who outscored us 36-24.
Senior Malory Anderson played her final game and produced ten points. LaRae Kram was second-high with nine. Then we see Kendra Wevley (6), Emma  Bowman (5), MacKenna Kehoe (4), Sydney Dietz (3) and Kylie Swanson (2). Bowman had our only three-pointer. Anderson led our rebounding with nine. Three Tigers each supplied two assists: Dietz, Anderson and Wevley. Anderson led in steals with three and in blocked shots with two.
The game was in Section 3AA-North, the champion of which will be determined Tuesday. Eden Valley-Watkins will play New London-Spicer for the sub-section title at Willmar High School, game-time 8 p.m.

New London-Spicer 63, Benson 27
It's no surprise seeing New London-Spicer as a prime power in girls basketball. The Wildcats are performing up to their long-established standards. This is to the tune of a 26-1 record! That's what the Wildcats owned coming out of Thursday.
NL-Spicer played Benson in the game preceding the Tigers. And it was no contest. How does coach Mike Dreier do it? Those Wildcats buried Benson 34-7 in the first half and won 63-27.
Benson did better this year than in some other recent campaigns - they close out the season at 16-12. But they couldn't keep pace with the vaunted Wildcats who had balanced scoring led by Emma Hanson with her 15 points. Two other 'Cats scored in double figures: Ava Kraemer (12) and MacKenzie Rich (11). Also scoring were Ellie Hanson (6), Erin Kinsley (5), Audrey Schneider (4), Grace DeSchepper (4), Payton Mages (4) and Izzy Schmiesing (2).
NL-Spicer had two sharpshooters from long range: Hanson with five three-pointers and Rich with three. Here's the rebounding list: DeSchepper (10), Kinsley (8), Hanson (7), Kraemer (7) and Jaden Coahran (7). Mages and Kraemer led in assists with six and four respectively. Mages had three steals and DeSchepper had two blocked shots.
Benson went from scoring seven points in the first half to 20 in the second. Their top scorer was Claire Ricard with 16 points. She was complemented by Kaitlyn Berreau (5), Kimmy Pagel (3), Beth Cain (2) and Abby Lundebrek (1). Berreau and Pagel each made a three-pointer.
Lundebrek had six rebounds and Berreau five. Abby Mitteness supplied three assists. Ricard and Hannah Andrews each had two steals. Ricard and Mitteness led in blocked shots with six and three respectively.
Need we say New London-Spicer is the top seed? Might we be seeing them in state again?
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Lac qui Parle simmers with threat issue

We most certainly cut slack for kids, as they can do and say the craziest things. There's hardly any restraint on the kind of media that kids consume. Very troubling thoughts can be planted in their heads. In their immaturity, they may not be conscious of certain lines you do not cross, either with words or action.
Adults need to remember better about when they were kids.
A conundrum arises: We cut kids slack, yes, but there is no margin for risk with a public school where kids have compulsory attendance. We have the obvious mandate of trying to ensure safety for all, all the time. I have suggested we rely less on the model of public school, that kids can develop themselves in a variety of ways with tools that do not have to be dispensed by a school with its rules and bureaucracy.
My ideas on this are not likely to take hold. So parents will continue to be beholden to the traditional model. I'll concede that improvements have been made to reduce the kind of monopolistic grip the institutions once had. But it's still pretty rigid. And safety is paramount. And kids can be immature, foolish and impressionable. They can get bitter about school. They can get bullied, or disciplined in a draconian way by adults around them.
Or they can be bored and tired almost to tears, if it's anything like what I remember. Conjugate verbs in French class? I found French to be a futile area of study and my inattentiveness at times caused reprimands and even laughter from my classmates. Years later we found there is only one meaningful approach to language instruction - "immersion" - and the method I was subjected to was found to be almost completely pointless.
I wasn't the kind of kid to break down and do something foolish like issue a threat. We are supposed to understand that kids can do drastic things without fully knowing the consequences. But the consequences are in fact drastic for the year 2020. We have learned this in Morris with the recent incident that brought law enforcement dogs here, even. A kid commits an emotional and impulsive act and then all heck breaks loose, presumably with a considerable expense of money in the end.
And then we hear there will likely be hell to pay for the parents, who I just have to sympathize with. Don't you? Is it too risky to even have kids in 2020?
There were times when I wanted to "vent" in high school. I kept such thoughts contained. I was attacked by a teacher in class once - Steve Poppe can tell you about it - and afterward I fantasized about what I might have done in response. But it didn't go beyond fantasy. I fantasize to this day about what I could have done.
Today I share these thoughts because of stuff that is going on with the Lac qui Parle Valley school. I got a tip from a friend:

This puzzling post appeared on the KLQP Radio Facebook page last night:

  

"The Lac qui Parle Valley school administration and the Lac qui Parle County Sheriff's office are working to resolve an issue which has come up. As a result of this, there will be no school at the high school or elementary schools in the district on Thursday, February 27th, or Friday, February 28th. No other details are available and residents are asked not to call school officials for details at this time. More information will be released in the near future. Students should note that Friday will be a virtual day."

I texted a teacher there that I know, asking what the deal was, and she said that they hadn’t been told what was happening. There was a chalkboard threat to “shoot up the school” made by a kid a couple weeks ago, dating the incident to happen on the 28th. But, they caught that kid almost immediately and “removed him from school.” Unless the authorities were concerned that the kid was serious and not working alone . . .

 
Refuge in "virtual days"
I'm amused at some of the wording: "an issue which has come up." No intent to elucidate there. We read "Friday will be a virtual day." I'm inclined to prefer that every day be a virtual day. I think teachers are scared that if the weather or threat incidents cause too many "virtual days," families will begin to think all the studies could be handled this way, all the time.
I have to wonder: When schools are shut down because of threats, do we begin to see a sort of PTSD effect on all the kids? Do these incidents plant a kernel of fear in the kids' minds, or cynicism, about how the world is full of danger? Yes danger exists, but in our schools? Where we're required by law to send kids every day?
We must push the trend toward home-schooling. It started as a concept associated with religious zealots but I feel that has faded. It fades as the Internet blossoms ever more, serving the wide swath of needs we feel on any given day. And to think it started as a novelty. We could have seen this coming, couldn't we?
The Internet is a bottom-up information experience, not top-down. Young people, who really do want to learn, can seize it the way in which they really truly want to be fulfilled. It's a total miracle, except maybe not in the eyes of those who have made their living in the legacy monopolistic bricks and mortar model. That model is slowly breaking down. Just give it more time.
In the meantime, I hope the foolish, impulsive and immature kids who scribble threatening messages can get some empathy and get straightened out. We were all kids once.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Boys end regular season w/ 54-51 win

The MACA boys traveled to face the Redmen Monday. "Redmen" is the nickname for Sisseton, South Dakota.
It was the Tigers prevailing in this, their last regular season game for the 2019-20 slate. It was a game organized into quarters and not halves. Halves is the Minnesota system. I'm not sure why it matters so much.
Anyway, the Tigers took control pretty well early-on, as we led 22-13 at the end of one quarter. Somehow the Redmen clamped down on us in quarter No. 2, in which we scored a mere three points. Sisseton scored 14, but after that the first quarter complexion returned for quarter No. 3. The Tigers outscored the Redmen 17-8. The fourth quarter story was a 16-12 Sisseton advantage, not enough to bring the host victory. So we won in the 54-51 final.
"Redmen" might be seen as an objectionable nickname in today's environment. But it probably has the blessing of area residents, a fair number of whom are indigenous people who give a sense of identity. That has been my understanding.
I remember when Carthage College of Wisconsin came to UMM for a football game and an issue was raised with their "Redmen" name. UMM is a place where such issues are likely to be raised. Indigenous people have a distinctive role in our campus's past. Carthage does not have the rationale of acknowledging natives in this way.
I remember writing about the little dust-up here. I remember speaking with a local clergy person who resented the issue being made by UMM-oriented people. Agree or not, many reasonable people will say a team nickname is such a benign thing, just leave well enough alone. Wasn't it like pulling teeth, to say the least, to get UND to drop "Fighting Sioux?" I wrote about that too when it was a big imbroglio.
It's the kind of thing where, much of the time, I can see both sides. I guess when in doubt, just adopt a "cats" nickname. When the NFL expanded to Carolina and Jacksonville, both new teams coined "cat" names.
I would never suggest that a Native American nickname be worth fighting for. I still wonder about the Benson Braves. They have hung in there with little to no controversy. I think it's understood that no harm was ever intended. Benson is just a small school so why subject them to the hassle of changing name/mascot, because it's a true hassle involving more expense than you might think.
One can assume that Sisseton adopted "Redmen" as a gesture of genuine pride and not in homage to old movie westerns. Notre Dame's "Fighting Irish" reflects died-in-the-wool pride. Sisseton's symbol or logo on "Maxpreps" is of a Native American with headdress in fact.
 
Tigers 54, Sisseton 51
The Redmen of Sisseton did in fact put up a fine battle vs. our cat-themed MACA team on Monday. Our Tigers overcame their mysterious slump of the second quarter. A player like Jackson Loge can help a team overcome lots of lapses. Loge poured in 35 points this time. He made 12 of 21 shots from the field, 57 percent.
No other Tigers scored in double figures but Thomas Tiernan came close with nine. Teirnan made three of six shots. The rest of the team only supplied spare change offensively. Toby Gonnerman, a former Benson Brave, and Cade Fehr each scored four points and Durgin Decker had two. Our team field goal numbers were 19-for-39, 49 percent.
In 3-pointers we made four of 15 with Tiernan having three of the makes and Loge the other. Our freethrows ended up pretty important. Here we see 12 of 15 numbers with Loge having ten of the makes (in 13 attempts) and Decker the other two. Loge had three offensive rebounds and 13 defensive for 16 total.
Fehr snared three rebounds, all on the defensive boards. Our rebound total was 24. Loge made his presence felt in assists with five, of our team total 14. Brandon Jergenson and Loge each had a steal. Loge had our only two blocked shots.

Injury setback for MACA girls
Some bad news from MACA girls basketball: I am informed by Meredith Carrington's grandfather Tom that Meredith has now suffered the same injury as her sister Maddie: a torn ACL. Very unfortunate. I'm told the injury happened late in Saturday's Litchfield game.
The Carrington sisters are both cross country runners. Maddie's misfortune happened during the Homecoming powder puff football game. I questioned the very existence of that game at the time. But of course I question the existence of football, period! I will continue to write about Tiger football for as long as the school sponsors it. You have to respect that.
The MACA girls basketball Tigers will play Eden Valley-Watkins on Thursday evening at Minnewaska. Tom says he'll be there.

Carthage College as represented today

Background re. the "Redmen" name
Writing about the Sisseton Redmen brings back memories for me, from when Carthage football came to UMM. My clergy friend, who was contrary to UMM's sensitive stance, suggested before the game that maybe Carthage should cancel out.
Email was still a rather new novelty (quaint). I emailed a Carthage spokesman who I thought might give me a reaction to the "controversy." I got an answer and this individual said a statement would be forthcoming from a top administrator, probably very top. But I never learned of any further statement being made. I think they were just glad to get the game played and return home.
This had to be before 2005. In 2005 there were developments that caused the school to make a constructive adjustment. Here's the deal: In 2005 the NCAA ruled that Carthage along with several other colleges would be ineligible to host NCAA-sanctioned playoffs and tournaments because of the nickname "Redmen." I respect Native American assertions that "we are not mascots."
Carthage, a private Lutheran college in Kenosha, had coined "Redmen" in 1920. I remember a logo complete with a feather. Guilty as charged, I guess.
Carthage "re-articulated" its nickname as "Red Men" - two separate words - and removed any connotations that might be associated with the old version. It's all about the simple color now. So it's "Red Men" and "Lady Reds." Except, holy cow, use of "lady" with a college sports team seems horribly retro to me. I know some people have made an issue of that. OK some people cringe! Imagine "Lady Cougars." No, don't.
Carthage's old logo with the feather was replaced by a new one with a torch, a shield and a 'C'.
Carthage is a private liberal arts college affiliated with the ELCA (my own church synod, First Lutheran in Morris). Carthage has adjusted to the times, but they probably have a bad taste in their mouths re. UMM. Unfortunate.
 
OK, now it's the post-season
The Tigers are seeded No. 2 in Section 3AA-North. We'll host the No. 7 seed, New London-Spicer, at 7 p.m. Saturday. All the quarter-finals games are Saturday. A slam-dunk for us to win? Don't ever be premature, even though we did beat those Wildcats of NL-Spicer 74-47 in December. Our girls team couldn't take anything for granted against Litchfield.
The Tigers' won-lost record is 14-10, NL-Spicer's is 4-21. As they say, all teams are 0-0 for the playoffs.
Other sub-section action will have Minnewaska vs. Montevideo, Redwood Valley vs. ACGC and Benson vs. Paynesville. 'Waska has the No. 1 seed.
The sub-section semi-finals are set for Thursday, March 5.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Kendra Wevley lifts MACA over Litchfield

Tigers 63, Litchfield 61
The post-season is underway in prep hoops. The excitement level can surely get higher. The suspense factor was higher than many MACA GBB fans were expecting, no doubt, on Saturday. The Tigers launched into Section 3AA-North play. Fans might not have expected a real close game. That's because back on November 26, the Tigers beat Litchfield 69-43. It was at our home court.
The home court was the site again Saturday when the Dragons came to town. Litch showed much greater competitiveness this time. Or, was our play slackening some? Fans can speculate. Litchfield deserved credit for making a strong run at the Tigers. But it wasn't enough. The Dragons weren't breathing quite enough fire. (Hard to avoid that imagery.)
Coach Dale Henrich's Tigers fended off the challenge and downed Litchfield by a mere two points, 63-61, to advance. Go Tigers! A hero at the end was Kendra Wevley. Kendra surely put a smile on coach Henrich's face when she made a jump shot with negligible time remaining. Just prior to that, Katleyn Cruze made a shot for Litch that tied the score. Time finally ran out on the Dragons. So it's MACA now on the way to the sub-section semis.
MACA fans had to worry early-on in Saturday's contest: Litch shot out in front 9-2. But the orange and black answered with an 11-2 run.
The first half wound down with the teams seeming dead-even. They got tied at 24-all. Emma Bowman hit an important 3-point shot, important not just to give us a three-point lead, it must have boosted optimism. But this sure wasn't going to be a repeat of the Nov. 26 game. The halftime score was 27-24.
The Tigers were buoyed in the most dramatic way possible, with three-pointers, as second half play unfolded. We got a lead pushed up to eleven points. But we sure weren't going to pull away. Litch wasn't going to make this easy. The Dragons found the range from 3-point range just like the Tigers had. At the fore for the visitor was Lily Osterberg. Lily had four 3's total in the game and led her team with 17 points. Her teammate Sydney McCann scored 15 followed by Cruze with 13 (along with 12 boards).
Litch closes out the season with an 11-16 record.
The MACA scoring list was topped by Bowman: 16 points. Meredith Carrington had impact with her 14. LaRae Kram came through with eight. The always-dependable Mallory Anderson scored seven but also grabbed 17 rebounds.
Our record now: 17-9. So we're getting ready to face Eden Valley-Watkins in the semis. Hey, the game site is none other than Minnewaska! How about that?
The game is set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 27.
 
Tigers 71, Montevideo 52
The MACA boys are closing out their regular season. The Tigers may have problems with Hancock, the neighboring "small town," but against other teams we're quite capable, like Montevideo. On Friday our Tigers made the trip to Thunder Hawk (formerly Mohawk) country of Monte. Any sting from the recent loss to Hancock seemed pretty well erased by night's end. We handled those T-Hawks in the 71-52 final. Now, let's go back to the drawing board re. Hancock.
The Tigers built a 36-24 advantage by halftime on Friday. The second half was similar with a 35-28 Tiger scoring advantage. Don't forget to check our "Maxpreps" page for stat updates.
My, the stats show Jackson Loge to be quite the dominating presence. He truly was the go-to guy. He poured in 39 points as he made 12 of 20 field goal tries. The sophomore sensation was followed in scoring by Brandon Jergenson, another sophomore, with 13 points. Brandon was a sharp six of eight in shooting. It drops off after that. We see Thomas Tiernan with four points and then: Durgin Decker (3), Jaden Maanum (3), Riley Reimers (2), Toby Gonnerman (2), Cade Fehr (2), Brock Peterson (2) and Cameron Koebernick (1).
As a team we shot 26 of 48, 54 percent, in total field goals. Our 3-point shooting wasn't much of a factor: we had two makes which were by Decker and Maanum. We were two of eight as a team. Loge availed himself of freethrow opportunities where his numbers were 15-for-19. He was dominant. Jergenson and Koebernick each made one freethrow and our team stats were 17/24, 71 percent.
Loge made his presence felt on the boards where he snared ten rebounds. No one else had an appreciable number, and our team numbers were three offensive and 18 defensive for 21 total. Loge had our only offensive rebounds.
Maanum had three assists while several mates were close behind. Our assist total was 15. In steals we recorded 12 led by Maanum and Tiernan each with three. Loge had our only blocked shot. The West Central Tribune described Loge as "virtually unguardable" in this game.
We close out the regular season on Monday at Sisseton SD.
How much stock should be put in the Monte game outcome? The Thunder Hawks were still winless at night's end, at 0-24. Ouch! So maybe we can't put the Hancock game behind us after all. The MACA record as I write this: 14-10. Interest is building with the post-season getting near.
Monte's scoring Friday was led by Sam Olson with 12 points. Bradyn Schultz put in ten and Andrew VanBinsbergen nine. Then we see Kaden Boike (8), Cade Weber (8), Tyler McKee (3) and Colby Buseman (2). Weber made two 3's followed by these T-Hawks each with one: Olson, Schultz and McKee. The rebound leader was VanBinsbergen with five. Boike had two assists. Olson had three steals, and Buseman blocked three shots.
 
Excellence on wrestling mat
Section wrestling is an event bathed in excitement - I well remember. At stake are those coveted state berths. And in the aftermath of the 2020 event, we can report with pride that three MAHACA Tigers are in for state.
Let's exude pride regarding Ethan Lebrija, Dalton Rose and Davin Rose. Lebrija and Dalton Rose were champions at their weights, and Davin was second. MAHACA had nine earn place finishes. In fourth place was Colten Wohlers. Fifth place achievers were Dylan Rose, Dain Schroeder, Noah Amundson and Dillon Nelson. Sixth was achieved by Tristan Raths.
I again urge everyone to check the KMRS-KKOK website daily for news and sports. It's go-to.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

The way we pinpoint locations of things

I got to talking with a library employee about the amusing way small town people sometimes describe the location of something. We'll refer to where a particular institution or landmark "used to be." For example, "it's where the (fill in the blank) used to be."
I still think of the Federated Co-op building as the Arvid Beyer Ford dealership. Arvid's place next to the now-departed Morris Auto Plaza made car sales a really big deal along that stretch of highway. I used to take photos at both places every week for the Canary. Car dealers don't need the services of a newspaper photographer any more. Or, they shouldn't. The ease and economy of picture-taking has eliminated the need for specialists.
Morris Auto Plaza became Diamond Buick in Alexandria. "MAP" is fading in our memory like Coborn's Grocery Store. (But we'll never forget the late Tony O'Keefe of MAP.)
Coborn's was an interesting place because they sold gas and were open 24 hours. Back when Floyd Schmidgall had the restaurant now known as Detoy's, it went through a long period of being open 24 hours. Some interesting clientele could be found there late at night. The restaurant could accommodate the "bar rush" which I now believe is a dead institution.
Small town people give directions as if the listener ought to have no trouble following them. I think we all know how genuinely befuddled we can be, when trying to make our way in unfamiliar environs.
Joggers find they have a special responsibility of sometimes talking to people in cars with rolled-down windows. I had two interesting episodes of this. One time a middle-age guy and his elderly mother were on the outskirts of town, asking about the medical clinic. The guy said it was a non-emergency. Still, I felt it was essential to help them. I found it impossible to give easy-to-follow instructions from where we were, so I offered to hop in their vehicle and guide them. This is what we did.
On another occasion, some people entering town at the vicinity of the armory were on their way to a wedding at the WCROC Hort. Garden. I found it impossible to clearly give instructions from that place. So again I got in their vehicle and guided them out there. I imagine people there thought it strange when I immediately got out of the vehicle and resumed running.
It is difficult to give directions to the nursing home in Morris. That place gets out-of-town visitors of course.
It's interesting how graffiti or "urban art" can be a reference point for understanding where something is. I remember in the early years of the Prairie Pioneer Days 10K run, someone prepared a map that had "women and wine in '79." The phrase was painted in a pretty noticeable way on a building. I assume it was graffiti and not something approved by the owner.
Speaking of urban art, I used to suggest to George Haugen of Don's Cafe that some urban mural art be put on the side of the building. Some guys are spray paint masters with this. I have heard it suggested that the old "Freshen Up with 7-Up" sign be restored on the back of a main street building. Such things easily become landmarks.

("roadside america" image)

Here's an interesting item: Did you know that the "smiley face" water tower in Freeport was the result of vandalism? Isn't the smiley face an essential feature or reference point along I-94? Of course Freeport also has Charlie's Cafe. Normally we rely on franchise restaurants along the Interstate. The Freeport place is a throwback. The water tower and restaurant are like quaint reminders of "Route 66." That highway was characterized by totally local, some highly idiosyncratic landmarks. Didn't "Lucy and Ricky" of the famous TV show make a trek along Route 66, making note of the amusing localisms?
We're inclined to think of the franchises as bland and predictable. However, there's some "old oaken bucket" thinking that goes on here. Purely local businesses could be hit-and-miss and maybe a little scary for people "passing through." Franchises are a known product with standards.
It's so easy to romanticize Route 66. It has been the subject for songs and a regular TV series. But we prefer the Interstate Highway system of today. The Interstate system is a perfect example of how the big Federal government can really do positive things. And did you know, "Ike" Eisenhower sold this by referring to "national defense" in the legislative title? I guess the smooth travel throughout the U.S. was seen as a defense objective, loosely of course. Calling something "national defense" helps get the support of the sometimes-stubborn conservative politicians.
I have lived in Morris since 1960. Any time I'm in conversation with another long-time resident, we can get going about where certain things "used to be." We can go on and on until we start laughing about it. People like us can assume that everyone else is familiar with these things, so when describing the location of something, we might say "it's out where (such-and-such) used to be."
Del Sarlette and I were talking once about the touring big band of Maynard Ferguson, and we felt sorry for the bus driver who was having to find the high school in town after town. I remember being on the outskirts of the St. Cloud State campus when the bus for the rock group "Kansas" pulled up beside me and the guy needed directions to the venue.
An old joke is about how men are much less likely to ask directions than women. Myth or fact?
A friend has just sent me an email heads-up about the "smiley face" water tower in Freeport. It can never be allowed to be phased out, right? Even though it came about by "vandalism?" Only in America, I guess.
Do you remember here in Morris, the well-known "Spirit of '76" city street sweeper, which eventually and regrettably had to be retired?
Here's the word I got on the Freeport "smiley face":
 
I presume you saw the reports about Freeport and their dilemma of what to do with the smiley face water tower. Seems it’s rusting out and becoming a hazard (they haven’t actually used it for water for years). The city can’t afford to restore it, but people don’t want to lose the landmark. I read where the smiley face was actually a result of vandalism, but the city decided to leave it alone. I haven’t eaten at Charlie’s Café in decades – I assume it’s still there. I remember Charlie himself greeting people at the door – he and his bad toupee. I assume he’s dead and gone by now.
 
It's amusing how small town people will give directions and conclude with "you can't miss it." Del's late father Walt laughed about how he was once given directions that included "you'll see a big rock." Walt was amused about another small town trait, that of two motorists going opposite directions on main street and they'll stop to talk to each other. "And if you honk at them, they get mad," Walt said. You might want to refer to the book "How to Speak Minnesotan" by Howard Mohr.
 
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com 

Girls defeat BOLD: preview of the playoffs?

Tigers 75, BOLD 66
MACA will have the advantage of home court for the start of 3AA-North play this Saturday. We own the No. 3 seed and will play the No. 6 team, Litchfield.
The regular season ended swimmingly for coach Dale Henrich's Tigers. Following a 32-all stalemate in the first half, the orange and black impressed the rest of the way. We outscored the BOLD Warriors 43-34 in the second half. We got our 16th win with a score of 75-66 at the Olivia court. BOLD was no pushover - their record now is 17-9.
The Warriors have the No. 4 seed for 2A-North. They are matched against Sleepy Eye for the start of playoffs.
The Tigers limited BOLD to just one 3-pointer in the Tuesday action. The '3' was made by Ashley Trongard. Meanwhile we had five successes in 3's with Emma Bowman leading the way: three makes. Bowman topped the MACA scoring list with 23 points.
Meredith Carrington and MacKenna Kehoe each made one 3-pointer. Malory Anderson was second-high in scoring with 14 points. No. 3 on the list is Kendra Wevley: eleven. Carrington followed with nine, LaRae Kram with eight and Kylie Swanson with seven. Kehoe's three points came on her long-range shot.
The BOLD scoring attack was led by Makayla Snow with 23 points. Three other Warriors scored in double figures: Brenna Weis with 12, Leslie Snow with ten and Trongard with ten. The rest of the list has Mari Ryberg with six points, Lanie Mages with four and Abby Meyers with one. Makayla Snow's nine rebounds put her atop that list, while Trongard collected eight. Trongard and Makayla Snow led in assists with five and four respectively. Trongard and Ryberg each had three steals. Makayla Snow and Trongard each blocked two shots.
The Tigers needed some time to build up a head of steam. They tapped the "transition game" to find more success. After having lapses with a zone on 'D', the Tigers maneuvered into a "man" scheme and that helped. A pat on the back to coach Henrich. The West Central Tribune observed that the "man" approach left the Warriors "discombobulated." So I guess that's a real word. Don't think I've ever used it.
We picked up steam sufficiently to get the score tied by halftime. Bowman really facilitated the offense. BOLD may have been set back by a knee injury experienced by Weis. Weis scored 12 points in the first half before having to sit out the second.
OK, some details about what's coming up for MACA: Game-time is 7 p.m. Saturday at the local gym. How will we fare vs. Litch? Well we played them in the regular season, November 26, and we prevailed 69-43. The Saturday winner will play the winner of No. 2 Eden Valley-Watkins and No. 7 Paynesville. The Section 3AA-North semis are set for Thursday, Feb. 27.
 

Boys hockey: Alexandria 7, Storm 1
Our MBA Storm could not overcome their seventh-seeded position versus the No. 2 seed, Alexandria, in Tuesday puck action. The skaters vied at Runestone Community Center.
Alexandria skated smoothly on their home ice to achieve the 7-1 win over the Storm. Nevertheless the Storm fans can reflect on lots of success: 20 wins over the course of the season, against six losses. The Cardinals of Alexandria move on to play Little Falls, the third seed, this coming Saturday in St. Cloud. It's a Section 6A semi-finals contest. Little Falls climbed with a 6-0 win over Sartell.
The Storm got into a hole in the first period. Joe Westlund scored the first of four Alex goals while MBA was scoreless. Westlund took advantage of assists by Derek Pesta and Andrew Revering. Caleb Strong scored the second Alex goal at 4:34. Westlund assisted. Pesta put the puck in the net to make the score 3-0 as assists came from Joe Bigger and Strong. It was Jacob Partington scoring Alex's fourth goal which was an unassisted job at 11:06.
The MBA fans could cheer as Brady Loge scored what would prove to be our lone goal. It had a Reece Kuseske assist.
Alex's Pesta and Bigger worked together for the goal and assist, respectively, at 4:47. Shane Birkeland scored for Alex with assists from two of his mates: Partington and Brenna Lattimer. The Cardinals showed a final flourish with a third period goal. It was by Lattimer with assists from Strong and Pesta.
Chase Engebretson was our goalie and he had 36 saves. Landyn James wore the goalie equipment for the Cards and he had 16.
 

'Waska boys hoops: Lakers 81, BBE 47
The Lakers performed like a well-tuned machine Tuesday against the BBE Jaguars. It was a machine with several effective parts. Yes, balance characterized this 81-47 win by the Lakers. The decisive success at BBE produced win No. 16 against six losses. BBE was left at 10-13.
Back in my newspaper days, I remember twice being in a traveling party for Tiger hoops and we showed up in the wrong town of the BBE combo. I don't recall ever getting to a game late. Good times, they were, when Rick Lucken was still with us. Rest in peace, Rick. He left us too soon due to circumstances having to do with commuting for his job.
The Minnewaska scoring list is very long, so lots of happy parents who could see their sons score. 'Waska outscored BBE 47-21 in the first half and 34-26 in the second. Five Lakers scored in double figures led by Aaron VerSteeg with 16 points. Right behind him was Sam Hested with 15. Brady Hoffman put in 13 points, and Peyton Johnsrud and Grant Jensen ten each.
Here's the rest of the list: Drew Nelson (5), Jaden Stewart (4), Aiden Tank (3), Luke Barkeim (2), Connor Johnsrud (2) and Mitchel Gruber (1). Hested connected twice from 3-point range while Jensen, Nelson and VerSteeg each made one '3'.
The Jaguars had two players each score ten points: Kaden Pieper and Will VanBeck. Jackson Peter followed with nine, then we see Ryan Schwinghammer with six, Brady Birch and Luke Dingmann each with five, and Adal Gomez with two. Pieper and VanBeck each made two 3-pointers. Peter and Birch each made one. Peter topped rebounds with four. Don't confuse him with Pieper - I almost did - and in assists it was Pieper with four.
Pieper was one of five Jaguars each with one steal. Joining him were Peter, VanBeck, Birch and Schwinghammer. Schwinghammer blocked two shots. The Lakers play Friday at ACGC.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

My hair turns gray(er), the norm continues

Yours truly at old Sun-Tribune

It's "deja vu all over again," based on the Monday outcome in local prep boys basketball. Hancock has shown competitiveness beyond what the modest size of the town would suggest, over most of my lifetime. This phenomenon affected me pretty directly over a time, when I wrote on sports for the Morris newspaper.
I made rather clear through my reporting that something might be amiss, that Morris ought to do better just based on the realities. There were times when it was all we could do to be competitive vs. Cyrus. The smaller towns are of course wonderful places.
I'm not sure we should just shrug about Hancock coming over here to the prestigious floor of the UMM P.E. Center and beating a Morris team that is actually having a pretty decent season. And of course Hancock is good. But we're the markedly bigger community. I'm having to say this again? Something like 40 years after the pattern first became concerning?
Even if the anomaly gets addressed, it's too belated, Kemosabe.
Why should I care anymore? I know, people will say to my face "no one cares what you think." I remember reporting on a volleyball invitational where we placed fourth and the combined enrollment of the top three schools was less than ours. I reported this with some accent. I got a call of thanks from a player's parent, but I was also reprimanded by a higher-up at the paper, someone who I would suggest was installed to keep me in check or to even terminate me. I was not terminated, certainly not during that time period, and by the time I finally left, the pattern of duress for newspapers caused by the Internet had fully set in. Besides, my parents needed me more at home.
Maybe I should have left earlier. "Yeah, and we wish you had," would be proclaimed by the good old boy clique of people around certain politically blessed coaches. Well congratulations you all - you made your bed, you can sleep in it. Not that my adversaries are bad people - on a personal level I find them mostly quite agreeable. It's the responsibility of the higher-ups, people with administrative titles, to sometimes reject the good old boy faction and make proper decisions.
"Deja vu all over again" of course makes no sense, or rather it's an amusing redundancy. It's a Yogi Berra-ism. The expression gets used so much, many people have come to take it seriously. John Fogerty had an album called "It's Deja Vu All Over Again."
 
Owls 71, Tigers 64
On Monday night the Tigers of MACA met the Hancock Owls at the P.E. Center. Games at the P.E. Center are sad, I feel, because they make us wonder why we can't get more of our post-season games there. Would be so convenient, right in Morris, n'est-ce pas? In the "old days" we were blessed with more local games. Nowadays the "car caravans" have to head south.
The story at our P.E. Center Monday was a Hancock victory. Let's take a look at the "Maxpreps" page for the game, a great site. We see the final score of 71-64. We see that MACA owned the two-point lead at halftime, 35-33. The Hancock coach must have drawn up some sharp strategy for second half play - those Owls outdid us 38-29. Maybe the Morris coach wasn't as sharp. And why do so many Morris people bristle so badly if I put forth the latter thought? "It's just sports."
In fact, you could argue that we as a society place way too much emphasis on this activity. What inherent benefit comes from kids playing basketball? So few kids are actually out on the floor playing anyway. And the fans just sit there on their rear ends. Are we this desperate to just try to make the winter seem shorter?

Fans saw two MACA Tigers score 15 points Monday. Thomas Tiernan was a sharp six of seven shooting FGs and posted 15. Jaden Maanum achieved the total with five of ten shooting stats. Right behind these two was scoring stalwart Jackson Loge: 14 points with 5/14 FG numbers. Other scorers were Durgin Decker (eight points), Cade Fehr (6), Brandon Jergenson (3) and Toby Gonnerman (3). Our team FG numbers were 24-for-53, 45 percent.
Maanum held up our long-range shooting with his five 3-pointers in ten tries. Decker and Tiernan each made two 3's while Jergenson and Loge each made one. As a team we were 11 of 26 in 3's, 42 percent. From the freethrow line we made five of nine attempts with Loge making three.
The Tigers had 25 rebounds with eight coming on the offensive end. Loge set the pace in assists with eight of our team total 18. Decker and Fehr each had three assists. Loge had our only steal. Loge had two blocked shots and Jergenson had one.
 
Matchups and hair styles?
It's hard not to sit in the stands and not root for the smaller town, right? What satisfaction could Morris really take? Remember Edgerton vs. Austin in the state? Our version of "Hoosiers?" I have always felt sorry for Austin: those boys were innocent, just wanted to play basketball.
I remember the days when some of the Hancock fans brought a giant "prop" to the P.E. Center - cardboard scissors - to taunt Morris because a couple of our players had hair judged by many to be on the long side. Well, we can't all be Apostolics.
I wrote a humorous take on the scissors incident and Jim Morrison said he liked it.
 
We could do better?
Morris had a population of 5,297 as of 2017. Hancock's population by comparison: 732. Well congrats you Owls. I still have my souvenir T-shirt from 1988: "Hancock's at state in '88." That was in girls basketball. The coach had an ignoble end to his tenure.
The population numbers suggest that Morris might have as many as seven or eight different teams that could compete evenly with Hancock. We hear that the Hancock school is really thriving. A source tells me some elementary families in the Starbuck area have issues with the Minnewaska school, so they turn to Hancock. That's nice although I enjoy covering the Lakers.
Hancock's success Monday extended its winning streak to eight. Their record was 16-6 coming out of Monday. It's not like MACA is having a bad season - our record is 13-10.

Hancock had an iron-man circle of five do all the scoring. Kody Berget led the charge with 21 points. It warms my heart to still see the Berget name in Hancock sports. Kody was complemented by Matt Thompson (15), Adam Shaw (14), Preston Rohloff (13) and Daniel Milander (8).
Berget supplied lots of punch with his long-range shooting: seven 3-pointers. Shaw was dead-on for four makes. Rohloff and Thompson each made one. Thompson was a huge force on the boards with 26 rebounds. Milander led in assists with eight and in steals with three. The Berget name in Hancock sports is like "Staton" and "Berens" in Benson!
The Tigers will seek to re-group Friday at Montevideo.
Is Katie Erdman the permanent editor of the Morris newspaper? She's 100 percent Hancock with her background. The Morris paper has included a disproportionate amount of Hancock news for some time. People express irritation with this but it just continues. The Hancock school menu on page 2? Jim and I wouldn't resort to that and we had two papers to put out every week.
Katie I'm sure would not conceal her happiness about the Hancock Owls doing well.
Morris has had problems over many years acting like the truly "big town" we are, relative to surrounding communities. Prairie Pioneer Days is gone in summer. Meanwhile "Cyrus Days" does just fine. Oh and there's Hancock July 4 complete with its high school marching band. Hard to explain all this.
Morris showed a truly vibrant air back in 1971 for the Centennial. Now I wonder if we'll pay much attention at all to our Sesquicentennial which would be in 2021. Too many people want to head to "the lake" on summer weekends. Del Sarlette has suggested we have an "apathy festival" in Morris but he says there's a problem: no one shows up for the planning meeting. Rimshot.
 
Girls hoops: Tigers 66, Paynesville 40
MACA hoops was active at the MAHS gym as well as at UMM. The Monday story was happier for the girls' fans. The Tigers took charge in a win over Paynesville, score of 66-40. The halftime score was 30-19. No backstory in reporting on this game, and that I like.
The orange and black improved to 15-9. Paynesville is struggling this winter.
Malory Anderson was a key contributor with 14 points and 13 rebounds. Meredith Carrington too scored 14 points and made a 3-pointer. MacKenna Kehoe made our other '3' and this Tiger scored eleven. Kylie Swanson came through with nine points and LaRae Kram with eight. Emma Bowman scored four followed by Kaylie Raths, Shannon Dougherty and Kendra Wevley each with two.
Carrington dished out three assists. Anderson had seven steals. Kehoe and Swanson each blocked a shot.
Harley Kunstleben was a sharp shooter for green-clad Paynesville and she made four 3's while leading the team in scoring: 14 points. Here's the rest of their list: Lindy Hennen (8), Katie Uhlenkamp (6), Maddie Hentges (5), Kali Reiter (5) and Grace Utsch (2). Hentges made a 3-pointer to complement Kunstleben's total.
 
Addendum: I have given Sarlette a hard time for years for supporting the "sucker ad" in the newspaper honoring Boy Scouts. Mainly I object to "sucker ads." The headlines of today suggest the Boy Scouts are in embarrassing trouble. It's something about bankruptcy, having to do with improper behavior (to sanitize it). So, will there be no more Scouts and thus no more "sucker ad" in the paper? The problem could solve itself.
  
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Pastor Grindland took the boomers' hands

Would The Reverend Clifford Grindland be in the ELCA today? He has departed us for the next life. My family attended his funeral in Alexandria. He was well-established when in his prime here. We must not let the memories of such people get too distant. Time will draw a misty curtain.
The pastor was among those mature community leaders who took on the rather considerable mantle of leading the young boomer generation through adolescence, toward adulthood. Yeoman's work? I'm not sure that says it all.
The post I'm writing today is complicated because I wish to show reverence, yet I'd be dishonest if I didn't suggest the generation gap caused real problems. The "gap" was not one of those memes that get exaggerated in our popular culture. It was real. I have read, and will agree, that it was just as intense as the U.S. Civil War but without the visceral element. Things got at least borderline visceral in some places. The restlessness of the youth bubbled up to troubling levels.
But there was our Lutheran pastor, the gentle Pastor Grindland. BTW "ELCA" stands for Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (yes "in," not "of"). The synod is becoming ever more a "refuge" for Christians who do not wish to be part of the extreme conservative strain of the faith. So I wonder about the late Cliff. He was salt of the earth with his image, but also not particularly attuned to issues that leapt to the forefront for boomers.
Could the youth of today possibly understand? I suspect not, in many respects. That's why, like I said, sharing these thoughts today is rather delicate.
Every community had this dichotomy: the young and restless boomers who saw themselves as really "with it," and the adults who were so resolute with their norms/values. There was a disconnect, as the boomers did not like being constrained by a lot of the tradition. The First Lutheran kids went on a trip where we watched an old black and white movie about Martin Luther. I assure you, nothing in the whole world seemed more irrelevant to us kids than Martin Luther.
Frankly we pooh-poohed some of the community elders. Grindland was at First Lutheran so long, it became easy to start thinking of him as perhaps stale. In more blunt terms, maybe a "fossil." I will remind: boomers could be very smart-alecky when young. Our hubris could be high on the scale.
We asserted ourselves partly because we knew we were right on some fundamental issues. Atop that list was the Vietnam war. We were impatient about civil rights. So often we felt our elders simply didn't wish to rock the boat.
I could not have cared less about our church "missionaries." I guess they were in the Cameroon.
"Woodstock" was a phenomenon at the polar opposite of what Rev. Grindland's element in the populace would countenance or even understand. "Woodstock" is remembered as primarily a multi-culture celebration, no inhibitions about our differences.
Tom Brokaw helped start a meme of how our parents, the "Greatest Generation," deserved nothing but praise and appreciation. How could we harbor any negative feelings about those folks, folks who knew how to take responsibility to get the bills paid? Brokaw had a chapter in his celebrated book called "Shame" which was an admission that the sweet older folks did have a blind spot when it came to race. That would seem like a pretty big shortcoming.
But in our modern age, we are urged to try to accept reconciliation. The "conflict resolution" principle goes hand in hand with that. If you have a conflict with someone, shouting and emotions are not the answer. Don't shout profanities like "Sarge" of "Beetle Bailey," instead we have formal rules and guidelines by which we should soberly abide. It really is a step forward.
The boomers of today, rather humbled and with their hormones less active - don't underestimate the latter, seriously - have been guided to pretty unrestricted love of the Greatest Generation. Love conquers all, or at least makes life more livable.
(Let me insert here that I have had to re-word some paragraphs here out of concern that some of my more candid comments about the attitudes of my generation could cause some to bristle. "You had to be there," which was the title of a self-published book by the late Doug Rasmusson.)
 
Nixon era and its discord
I remember seeing Pastor Grindland at a Republican caucus. I saw him because I was making rounds as a journalist. If this was his behavior in the 1980s, then I have little doubt he was a Nixon Republican earlier.
Nixon, who pulled strings to get the Vietnam war extended so he could get elected, to prevent Democrats from getting credit for ending it. Nixon, who engineered the Cambodia incursion. Nixon, who thought his ridiculously belated announcement of the winding-down of hostilities would actually protect him from Watergate.
The dragging-on of the Vietnam war put me in a stupor. The adult generation could have seen reality better and applied pressure to get us out. Kids desperately attempted this, dangerously so, and we ended up with scars, though nothing like the pain and death experienced by the servicemen themselves.
We were all in a funk during the Gerald Ford administration. We desperately sought pure goodness with the election of Jimmy Carter.
To my amazement, the Vietnam war actually did come to a close. So did economic inflation which had been such a depressing specter. A brighter future did in fact arrive. I wasn't expecting it.
And so we got revisionist history: our parents, who we loved anyway, were propped up through revisionist history as nothing but saints. I would suggest the truth was far more complicated. Our parents had warts as all people and generations do.
It has been said of the WWII/Depression generation that "they never changed." Their children, quite to the contrary, kept re-defining themselves in ways that commanded attention and yes, some adulation, as if it was being scripted. Remember the term "yuppies?" Our parents never showed any need for that.
"I'm OK, you're OK?" Balderdash.
Pastor Grindland appeared the very same person at the end of his church tenure as when he started. He was moral and proper but also had the stripes of so much of his generation: averse to some inconvenient topics, topics that boomers felt would be enlightening.
Boomers gained influence to where we truly adjusted our U.S. culture.
So, today's First Lutheran Church in Morris is in a synod that has decided to reflect the progressive side of the faith. It's a much more uninhibited set of values than would have been considered palatable in a past time. The door opened for this with our ascendance in the culture: the boomers. Oh, we're not monolithic. But where there is consensus is on the need to at least discuss issues and questions that would not have commanded attention from our parents - many of these issues would have made them squirm.
Boomers would be familiar with this reaction from our parents. My own parents were racially inclusive but didn't choose to discuss this in terms of being a cause. A cause would suggest conflict and the WWII crowd was temperate.
Victorian attitudes about sex were a scourge.
The ELCA which is First Lutheran's synod is wrestling quite intensely with the political issues now. Even Bishop Elizabeth Eaton who I greatly respect thinks there might be too much of a tilt toward moral relativism. My reaction is that I think people can deal with God one-on-one on the matter of sin and our human failings, but the church as an institution should be tolerant and uplifting. So I'm most enthused about staying in the ranks.
I worry about the Apostolics. I wonder if we'll soon be hearing about those churches pulling down a big screen at the front of the sanctuary and just showing video of a Trump rally for the full hour of the Sunday service. "Fake news!"
As for the late Pastor Grindland, would this kind soul still be in the ELCA? I'm not sure the answer would be yes. He was in that special group every community had once, of adult leaders of the boomers. Never to be replaced. Yeoman's work, yes. Wally Behm was our principal. It was hard to imagine any of these people as having been kids. What does that mean?
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

My photo of First Lutheran Church, Morris MN

Tigers overcome Will Enderson and Braves

Tigers 80, Benson 70
The Tigers continued a demanding portion of the schedule with an 80-70 win over the Benson Braves on February 13 at Benson. It was a pretty hard-fought game that had MACA leading by two at halftime, 34-32. We created a little breathing room in second half play where our advantage was 46-38.
The night was big for Will Enderson of the Braves as he scored his 1,000th career point. He reached the milestone in a dramatic way with a three-pointer late. He had a quite productive overall night as he scored 28 points, but it wasn't enough to propel his team past the Tigers. He made four 3-pointers. His offensive efforts were complemented by Ben Peterson who scored 20 and made two 3's, while Abe Peterson and Cole Hedman each made one. Abe's point total was nine. Hedman's was eight and Matt Laumeyer put in five.
Ben Peterson led in rebounds with six and in assists with four. Enderson blocked a shot.
Our Tigers came out of the night with 13-8 won-lost numbers. Benson's W/L story: 14-9. Congrats to Will Enderson of the Braves.
The story for our Tigers had Jackson Loge again showing his offensive prowess: 23 points. He made seven of 16 in field goals including his only three-point attempt. Toby Gonnerman showed some productive offense as he connected on six of nine shots and scored 17. Brandon Jergenson came through with 13 points, two of four in field goals.
Three Tigers each supplied six points: Durgin Decker, Thomas Tiernan and Cade Fehr. Cameron Koebernick scored five points and Jaden Maanum four. We shot 25 of 51 in field goals for 49 percent, and in 3's we were four of 14. The four 3's were by Jergenson, Tiernan, Loge and Koebernick.
We had a pretty good harvest from the freethrow line: 26 points on 39 attempts, 67 percent. Jergenson and Loge led this effort with eight each and Gonnerman had five.
Loge dominated rebounding with his 23 total, eight offensive and 15 defensive. Gonnerman was second-high with seven rebounds. Our team stats were eleven offensive, 32 defensive for 43 total. Loge's five assists were team-best. Three Tigers each had one steal: Decker, Jergenson and Tiernan. Loge blocked three shots and Jergenson blocked one.
 
Tigers 69, Ortonville 49
The Tigers seized the lead and assumed control of their February 11 game against the Ortonville Trojans. Ortonville is where my old contemporary Jon Fellows settled for his teaching/coaching career. Let's never forget Jon's father the late Don Fellows, MAHS counselor. The yearbook was dedicated to him in 1972. He was 100 percent salt of the earth.
The February 11 story for hoops had the Tigers gain a 42-24 lead by halftime. Then in the end, the score was 69-49 as the squad moved forward. Orange and black fans at the local gym enjoyed the action. Basketball sure helps keep the winter from wearing on us too much. This past week has been aggravating. (My late mother thought the word "aggravate" was misused a lot.)
Well, Jackson Loge had another fine offensive night, par for the course. The sophomore phenom put in 21 points with eight of eleven field goal numbers, 73 percent. There was one other double figures scorer: Brandon Jergenson who made all but one of his five FG attempts and scored ten points. Then we see Thomas Tiernan and Cameron Koebernick each with nine. Tiernan shot three of four and Koebernick was four of nine.
Brock Peterson scored eight points on four of eight. The rest of the list shows Durgin Decker and Jaden Maanum each with four points, and Toby Gonnerman and Cade Fehr each with two. Our team field goal shooting was 28-for-65, 43 percent.
Tiernan made two 3-pointers while Decker and Jergenson each made one. As a team we were four of 15 in 3's, 27 percent. Loge put up six shots from the freethrow line and made five. We were nine of 19 in freethrows, 47 percent. Loge was perched atop the rebound list as is typical - his total was 12, two offensive and ten defensive. Peterson snared five rebounds and Cade Fehr had four. We had 12 offensive rebounds and 26 defensive for 38 total.
Loge supplied four assists and Fehr three. Bradley Rohloff had two steals while Peterson blocked two shots. The Tigers improved to 12-8.
 
Girls: Tigers 73, Ortonville 28
MACA buried Ortonville in a non-conference GBB game Tuesday at MAHS. We shot up 44-18 by halftime and owned the 73-28 advantage at game's end, for our 14th win of the campaign. Ortonville has found victory elusive.
Steals were a huge weapon for coach Dale Henrich's crew. We executed 34 as we swarmed over the Trojans. Malory Anderson had nine steals followed by Kylie Swanson (8), Meredith Carrington (5), Sydney Dietz (4) and Emma Bowman (3).
Carrington and MacKenna Kehoe each made two 3-pointers. Bowman made one long-ranger. Carrington had six rebounds and Anderson five. Carrington and Anderson each had three assists.
We're saving the scoring for last here. And here we have: Bowman (17), Carrington (15), Anderson (12), Kendra Wevley (8), LaRae Kram (9), Kehoe (6), Dietz (4) and Swanson (2).
We reached mid-week with our record 14-8, a nice course to be on as the post-season nears.
The Trojans' offense was held up by Emily Ross whose point total was 18. It's pretty scant after that: Paige Seidell with four and these Trojans each with two: Taylor Ross, Kendall Gronholz and Meg Moberg. Ross had quite the night shooting 3's as she made six. Looks like she needs a little more of a supporting cast.
 
Minnewaska 47, Tigers 45
The MACA girls put on a second half surge but it wasn't quite enough to overcome Minnewaska Area Thursday. The Tigers outscored the Lakers 30-14 in the second half. However, 'Waska's 33-15 advantage in the first half proved insurmountable. So the 'Waska girls came away with the victory, 47-45 at the 'Waska gym.
What explains such a turnaround from the first half to the second? We needed more of the second half quality spread out. But the Lakers are to be commended. They attacked us with a pretty balanced scoring effort. Lead scorer Maddie Thorfinnson had the modest total of 13 points. Avery Hoeper was second-high with ten. Continuing: Emma Thorfinnson (8), Isabella Ortendahl (6), Michele Stai (4), Hannah Hoffmann (3) and Alexis Piekarski (3).
The Thorfinnson girls made 3-pointers as did Hoffmann. It was Maddie leading in rebounds with seven. Plus she topped steals with three. Maddie blocked a shot. The Lakers' success put them within a game of .500 at 11-12. Meanwhile the Tigers sat at 14-9.
Alas, we made no three-point shots in this contest: unusual. The low-scoring game saw Emma Bowman top our scoring with ten points. LaRae Kram and Kylie Swanson were right behind, each with nine. Then we see Meredith Carrington and Malory Anderson each with seven, MacKenna Kehoe with two and Sydney Dietz with one. Anderson was at the fore in rebounds, collecting ten.

Boys hockey: Becker-Big Lake 6, Storm 5
The Thursday story for the MBA Storm boys was surprising, considering the won-lost records of the teams involved. Our Storm were fired up to try to reach the 20-win plateau for the regular season. Instead we came out of the night at 19-5, due to the loss we were dealt by Becker-Big Lake. It was mighty close, score of 6-5. And B-BL came out of the night with a 3-22 record. The puck action was in Benson.
The Eagles of B-BL got a 2-1 advantage in period No. 1. MBA surged with a 3-1 second period advantage, but the pendulum went back toward B-BL in the third: a decisive 3-2 advantage. Chalk up the win for a B-BL team that appears to have had a struggling season.
Jaden Keo of the Eagles scored the night's first goal with assists from Jacob Boe and Jack Beckstrom. Then it was MBA's Will Breuer getting the puck in the net with assists from "the Bradys," Loge and Goff. Then it was Luke Ruppelius scoring an unassisted short-handed goal for the opposition. Loge got our second goal of the night with Hunter Blume and Brady DeHaan assists - it was a power play job.
Loge scored again at 8:21 unassisted style. B-BL's Tyler Schmitt scored a power play goal at 12:41 with assists by Ruppelius and Keo. Then it was our Zander Hoffman scoring with assists from Reece Kuseske and Breuer.
A wild third period got going with Schmitt scoring with a Jacob Bahe assist. Our Hunter Blume struck with an unassisted goal at 3:35. Ethan Tobako kept the pressure on for the Eagles as he scored at 5:42, using assists from Schmitt and Trent Rupar.
Dillon Lindenau scored the game-winner with 37 seconds remaining. Keo assisted. Our goalie was Peyton LeClair while Caden Weber worked in goal for the victor. Certainly the Eagles savored this, just their third win of the season. Perhaps they play tougher competition in their territory.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

This image from Twitter shows the Tigers around Jackson Loge to acknowledge Loge's career milestone of 1,000 points.

A "home" game at UMM: Tigers beat Redwood

The expression "got their money's worth" would appear to have some extra meaning, from the Saturday prep game at UMM. The game involved our MACA boys basketball team and Redwood Valley, a section rival. I heard out and around Sunday morning that the ticket price was $9. Well. . .
As someone who keeps an eye on "creeping inflation," I took note. My source doubted that the usual pass for MACA sports was valid on this day.
Fans would watch the prep teams on the "big floor" of UMM. It's a storied place from the annals of area prep sports, although MACA no longer plays much if at all there in the post-season. These days it seems fans must head immediately to the south. We head to Monte, Granite Falls and then Marshall if we're fortunate to get that far.
Marshall is a considerable distance from here by my standards. In general it seems prep sports fans have to travel out of town a lot. The late Les Lindor who was school board chairman expressed concern about this, thinking the demands could be unreasonable. I suppose there's a cost angle too.
Back in my newspaper days, when I felt pressure sometimes to make a trip, so as to pay adequate attention to a particular team, lest I be burned in effigy, I felt another concern: driving back from a distant place - Marshall qualifies - at a very late hour. A person could get sleepy while driving.
I shook my head when fans had to drive a long way for a post-season game involving the No. 1 seed against No. 8. So often these games seem little more than formalities. Or even embarrassments. I remember reading about a little controversy when a No. 1 seeded hockey team absolutely demolished a No. 8 seed. Why go through this?
Then again, there are exceptions like a few years ago, when our No. 1 seeded boys basketball team lost at home in the first round to No. 8 Paynesville. I expressed my usual shock. But as is typical, fans made up excuses or explanations for our dud. They'd say "oh, Paynesville was really good." Well I suppose they were, to beat the No. 1 seed. Often I'll hear "we weren't making our shots," or "(the opponent) got hot shooting."
I remember the year our boys took New London-Spicer into OT in about the second to last game of the regular season, then a couple of weeks later, playing in the post-season at Collegeville in the aftermath of a winter storm that left roads in less than ideal shape, New London-Spicer killed us in a game that seemed over right from the start. A close friend of the coach told me New London-Spicer "got hot shooting!" Well, OK.
My habit through the years after a lowlight performance has been to hold the coach's feet to the fire a little. I figure, why not? But this didn't exactly endear me to a segment of the Morris community.

Tigers 72, Redwood Valley 69
The fans who paid $9 or whatever to see the Tigers Saturday were treated to an exciting game, most definitely. Fans were thrilled at the end to see a 3-pointer that vaulted us into winning position. We downed Redwood Valley 72-69. It was Thomas Tiernan who hit the game-winning '3' at the buzzer. Wow!
The game was tied 66-all as time wound down. First Jackson Loge vaulted us forward with a '3' when he found himself wide open.
The clock showed three seconds left when Bryant Haas of the Cardinals hit a '3' from the corner. Teams huddled for a timeout. The KMRS website reported that Tiernan inbounded the ball to Loge who bounced a pass back to Tiernan. The rest is history. A radio announcer might simply intone "yes!" Yes the Tigers had this 72-69 win under their belt.
We had to overcome Loge being in foul trouble in the first half. Redwood Valley outscored us 37-31 in the first half. We got out of the hole with a 41-32 advantage in the second half.
The win was our 11th against eight losses. The Redwood Valley numbers: 13-8.
Haas led the Cardinals with 21 points while Carter Guetter and Connor Josephson each put in eleven. Here's an enthusiastic plug for the KMRS-KKOK website, its sports department, worth visiting every day. It is disappointing to see the Morris newspaper give up on its website, rather shocking really.
Thanks to "Maxpreps" for having detailed stats on the game available. I will note that the individual point totals for MACA add up to 71 points, not 72 - a nit-pick.
Consulting Maxpreps, we learn Loge led our scoring with 22 points. The sophomore sensation made eight of 13 field goal attempts. He was one of four double figures scorers. Tiernan made five of eleven shots and scored 14.
Toby Gonnerman came through with 11 points on a perfect five-for-five. What a sophomore class: Loge, Tiernan and Gonnerman are sophomores! Back in the early 1980s, the 'B' team was the "sophomore team." Those were trying times.
Cameron Koebernick, senior, came through with ten points.
Durgin Decker is another sophomore to watch and he scored five as did senior Cade Fehr. Senior Jaden Maanum scored four. Our team field goal shooting numbers were 29-for-54, 54 percent.
Let's take a look at three-pointers where Tiernan made four in ten attempts. Loge made both of his long-range tries. Decker made his only attempt as did Fehr. In 3's we were eight-for-19 for 42 percent.
The Tigers made five of 12 freethrow tries, 42 percent. Loge was four of six and Gonnerman one-for-one. Rebounding saw Loge and Fehr share team-best honors, each with seven. Loge had one offensive and six defensive. All seven of Fehr's boards were defensive. Tiernan picked up three rebounds. Just three of our rebounds were offensive while we picked up 21 defensive.
Loge led in assists with five. Our team total was 17. Tiernan had our only two steals. Brandon Jergenson had impact with his two blocked shots. Loge had the other shot block.
Someone told me it's a guy named Fragodt who gets the stats on Maxpreps - thank him for that.
I can write unconfirmed info on my blogs anytime. I could not do that with the newspaper. A blog is fluid, it can be changed or updated anytime. Thanks for reading.
If the $9 charge for tickets is true, it's abhorrent. Oh, apparently there was a "senior" price of $4. Why do senior citizens get so many breaks? Why not have a "young working family" discount? Huh? Why not?
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Minnewaska boys stun top-ranked BOLD

Thursday told a tale regarding boys basketball in this part of the state: 1) BOLD is not a world-beater, and 2) MACA may have to go back to the drawing board some.
First, the BOLD misfortune: the high-flying Warriors were taken down a notch by a team most familiar to our local orange and black fans. That team is Minnewaska Area. In fact, our orange and black has shown that it has the tools to beat the Minnewaska Lakers.
How valid are comparative scores? We could go back and forth on that one, particularly as we weigh prep sports. We're reminded of the wisdom of Al Hendrickson, the late and revered coach of Tiger wrestling. He said "the only thing predictable about high school athletes is their unpredictability."
The Lakers surely took the court as the underdog Thursday. Not only that, they were in BOLD's neighborhood, in Bird Island. BOLD entered Thursday as the top-ranked Minnesota team in Class 'A'. They're the team of the Sagedahl boys. The Tigers have experienced their share of frustration vs. the Warriors.
But on Thursday, those Lakers were quite unfazed and worked to a road win, score of 78-66, yes a margin of double digits. BOLD's offense had its wings clipped some. The Lakers clearly asserted themselves in the first half as they outscored the host 39-24. Wow! BOLD righted its ship some when play resumed. Gavin Vosika of BOLD made a jumper that put the margin to seven, 48-41.
The Lakers kept their poise against a trapping stance that was employed in the hoped-for catch-up scheme. The poise revealed itself in a 7-0 run, opening up a bulge to 57-43. Sam Hested made an inside shot that gave some breathing room. But BOLD answered as Matt Moorse made a '3' to finish an 8-0 run.
BOLD kept things interesting as fans saw the margin whittled to five on several occasions. It's not over yet. A Vosika layup got the Warriors as close as they were going to get, score of 68-63.
Minnewaska's Aaron VerSteeg was pinpoint from the freethrow line down the stretch. Teammate Luke Barkeim induced a charging call. The time left: 1:39. The Lakers were en route to this most savory victory. The stats show Peyton Johnsrud as having done much to lift 'Waska's fortunes. Johnsrud led all scorers with 28 points as he made nine of 13 field goal tries and seven of eight in freethrows. The junior guard led his squad in 3's with three.
The Lakers shot 68 percent from the field. VerSteeg had the team's other '3' and he was team-best in rebounds with 15. Jensen had a total point output of 16. VerSteeg put in 15 points and Barkeim 12. Three other Lakers added to the mix: Sam Hested 3, Drew Nelson 2 and Brady Hoffman 2. Jensen dished out three assists. Barkeim had two steals.
The Sagedahls certainly weren't quiet on this night for BOLD. We see Jordan with 24 points and Drew with 18. Vosika came through with 14 and Moorse with ten. That's it, just four players scoring for BOLD.
The three-pointer story had Drew Sagedahl with three makes, Moorse with two and Jordan Sagedahl with one. Drew snagged four rebounds and also led in assists with seven, while Vosika had five assists. Jordan Sagedahl had four steals. The loss for BOLD was their first blemish of the season. Meanwhile the Lakers of Minnewaska Area forged ahead with confidence high, owners of a 13-6 mark.
The Tigers defeated Minnewaska 67-60 on January 21 at 'Waska. We lost to them 57-43 on December 5 at home. On Thursday we played Melrose and it was not encouraging.
 

Melrose 72, Tigers 49
Our offense turned pretty cold for Thursday night BBB action at home. The West Central Tribune described the game as a "blowout" as the Tigers came out on the short end against Melrose. We were held to 23 points in the first half and 26 in the second, and were dealt defeat in the 72-49 final.
Melrose gained its 15th win against five losses. The Tigers' record: 10-8.
Here's our individual scoring: Jackson Loge 19, Jaden Maanum 12, Toby Gonnerman 6, Cade Fehr 5, Durgin Decker 2, Thomas Tiernan 2, Dalton Koehler 2 and Bradley Rohloff 1. Maanum made two 3-pointers and Fehr made one. Loge was top rebounder with eight. Brandon Jergenson led in assists with four and he had our only steal. Loge had the only blocked shot.

We're not alone with school threats
The specter of school threats must be becoming a distraction. On the heels of our messy situation in Morris, regarding such extraordinary measures in response - dogs brought here from elsewhere? - other schools are dealing with threats.
Here's an email I received this afternoon regarding a situation in YME:

I heard on the radio this AM about a bomb threat at YME HS (Granite Falls). Apparently the perp was immediately identified via security camera footage and the situation was settled and normalcy restored quickly. There it didn’t sound like the FBI or other criminal investigation units were summoned, so I don’t know why MAHS went to all that trouble – or maybe we don’t have good enough camera coverage? Or, it could be the location of the written threat, and the timing of the discovery – the YME deal was in a restroom, and I think the MAHS one in the conference room so less coverage? Who knows.

From the KMHL (Marshall) website:

There were a few tense moments in Granite Falls Wednesday evening when a custodian at the Yellow Medicine East High School discovered a possible bomb threat.
According to the Granite Falls Police Department, the custodian found the threat shortly after 7 p.m. Surveillance video showed a person of interest – police say the student admitted to writing the threat, and told authorities there was no bomb.
According to authorities, the suspect is a minor and there will not be further information made available. 

Lac qui Parle too
Here's an item from a newspaper regarding Lac qui Parle and its little incident.

MADISON — The threatening message written on a door of a bathroom stall at Lac qui Parle Valley Schools in late January was the work of one individual and the matter is no longer considered a threat to students or the school, according to a news release from the Lac qui Parle County Sheriff's Office.

The release said an individual student has confessed to writing the message. The student, who is cooperating, has been removed from the school, pending discipline and/or prosecution. The student is a minor, so no information about the juvenile will be released, the news release said.

The investigation into the matter was a partnership of the Sheriff's Office, the Lac qui Parle County Attorney's Office, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and school staff.

So, what to do? Will cameras have to be set up to cover every inch of a school building, all the time during school hours? Will it get to the point where people will be paid to be live monitors of the video cams, perhaps seated in a "boiler room" situation? But wouldn't this create a whole lot of unpleasant tension? It would seem caricature.
Nevertheless, for legal reasons I suppose schools have to pull out all stops. Will we reach the point where we realize school itself might be more trouble than it's worth, I mean if schools take on the atmosphere of prisons, which I feel is pretty close to happening anyway? Hey teachers leave those kids alone - yes it's song lyrics.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com