Winter of our discontent

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We'll begin February with some desperation about the weather, won't we? We accept being in kind of a zombie state, suspended animation, as we mark time through February. We have been checking the forecasts recently with exasperation: precious little relief from unpleasant weather. 

The cold might be the worst, at least the persistent nature of it. The distinguishing trait of this winter might be the blending of arctic-like cold with strong winds. Memory indicates to me that extreme cold is usually marked by stillness. The weather people on TV should just dispense with the "windchill" talk. We all know what the blending of cold and wind means. 

Remember Dick Guindon, the Star Tribune cartoonist from long ago (like the '70s)? He was an acquired taste. I read that his medium of charcoal made him stand out. Many people my age can remember several of his classics, one of them based on Minnesota winter weather. A group of young schoolchildren are off to school, walking. It's an odd-looking little group with the caption explaining that they were walking to school "backwards." We can all recall when we turned away from a stiff wind in winter to protect ourselves. We'd literally walk "backwards." It's something we all knew about but had never seen portrayed in the media before, at least I hadn't. 

So the cartoon was really a hoot. 

Back in my newspaper days I was probably too busy to really get bummed by the worst of winter weather. Today? It's a different chapter of my life to be sure. The weather gets to me. Maybe this is exacerbated by other things that are going on around us. Like, our political culture. 

"Political culture" seems almost too generous a term. Political disagreements existed when I was young but they were civil and mostly intelligent. You had Democrats and Republicans, both interested in what was best for America. Tip O'Neill could be friendly with Ronald Reagan at the end of the day, after they had disagreed strongly about various things. That was "politics" in my younger days. Today? I am getting hesitant to even write about it. 

My writing isn't going to persuade anyone or even get anyone to be contemplative. Is it all over? Is the whole "American experiment" nearing an end? 

West Central Minnesota has gotten under the magnifying glass for this. We didn't need this. It would not have happened if the Anfinson family had not agreed to cooperate for an Associated Press feature article, an article that has appeared to run the breadth of the U.S. The thrust is: it is neighbor-vs.-neighbor out here, you know the lingo: "liberals, conservatives, MAGA" etc. We hate each other, and Reed Anfinson explained to the writer that he knows where his gun is (if it comes to that). 

I agree there is considerable conflict. I genuinely worry about the state of the country. But I'm not sure West Central Minnesota needed to become a poster child in all this. We definitely are. I am guessing that Shelly Anfinson is not pleased with the likely fallout from the AP article. She runs our Morris newspaper, which flirted with closing before the Anfinsons took over. 

I write more about the AP article, the Anfinsons and Benson on my companion blog "Morris of Course." I invite you to read with this permalink:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/ap-writer-stirs-pot-with-article-re.html 

 

Worst winter ever?

Lest we think the current weather is rock-bottom for inducing a sense of futility/exasperation, a friend enlightens me on this, gives persective. He is on the road in his work.

 

No, there were worse winters in our time. ‘96-‘97 (I think) was when there was a ton of snow. I remember seeing a US Army snow plow out on highway 75 while doing my school route – strangest machine I’d ever seen. That was the year of the terrible flooding in the spring because of all the snow. Then there was the winter of ‘68 when we had so much snow that you had to put those yellow or orange Styrofoam balls on your car antennas so that you could be seen at intersections. Driving in town was like going through a chain of tunnels. Unless you’re talking about cold, but we’ve had winters where the temp was below 0 for weeks at a time. I remember driving on my school route in February of ‘96, listening to WCCO that morning when Mike Lynch broke in to say it was 60° below in Tower, Minn. Actually, there’s nothing unusual about this winter, it’s fairly “normal." We were just spoiled by a couple consecutive winters with less snow and not as cold temps.

 

Better snow removal

Have you ever been annoyed by city snowplows that go by and leave a big ridge at the foot of your driveway, causing you to shovel on some occasions when you might not have to otherwise? There are municipalities that try to relieve this annoyance, I will have you know. So a friend shared with me the following:

 

Why can’t the city invest in some of those add-on secondary blades that some cities have for their plows, where-in the second blade drops when the plow goes by a driveway and channels the snow away from the end of the driveway? I’ve seen a video of that, looks slick. I’d rather the city spent my tax dollars on those than the solar-powered “Welcome to Morris” signs that they’re buying. And, if they can fine homeowners for throwing snow into the streets, why can’t we fine the city for pushing snow into our driveways?

 

Sports, sports, sports

I will shortly try to get caught up with my writing about MACA and MBA sports. Oh, and MAHACA too - alphabet soup to be sure. 

I am happy to do this, let me emphasize. I am starting to feel concerned by the frequency of games. We seem to be getting more games on Saturday now. In a nutshell: it is hard to keep up. Also, I don't have much time to sit back and enjoy an article I have just written. It gets forgotten quickly as the new game is upon us, a whole new set of "stats" to process. At a certain point it does get aggravating. 

I began my coverage of Tiger sports in 1972, so this is my 50th year of the activity, longevity that I am proud of, even if almost no one knows about it. As I recall, I covered Tiger football and baseball in my first year but nothing in winter. 

I was asked to do this by Sun Tribune editor Arnold Thompson. Yes, my journalism background goes back to ol' Arnold, who had "girlie" burlesque photos under the glass on his office desk. Those were different times. We had different standards, but I don't buy this excuse where Andrew Cuomo is concerned. What about Bill Cosby? My feelings about Bill are that his mind was steamrolled when he was young by urges that God created within him. So, let's get mad at God, seriously. 

I have never even dated a woman, so I cannot be sued by anyone. I remember going to DeToy's once with friend and co-worker Howard Moser, and I mused with him: "How would everyone in here react if they saw me come in with a woman?" And the gimlet-eyed Howard said: "They all know you're too smart to do that."

Might the whole thing be Freudian?

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

So my birthday is today (1/28) and I'm 67

Your blog host at the time of my sixth birthday. It was January of 1961 and UMM was in the middle of its first year. My father Ralph was the only music faculty in the institution's maiden voyage. What an adventure it was, as UMM had to deal with the headwinds of some skepticism. But prevail the institution did. I'm not sure about the course right now. I'm not sure if the liberal arts basis is manageable any more, in this digital "info" age. But we ceaselessly root for UMM. And in my case, especially the music department! We mourn the recent death of Jim Carlson in Florida. He sang in my father's men's chorus in its trip to the Seattle World's Fair a.k.a. Century 21 Exposition, in 1962. Carlson would later open the curtain for jazz as a showcase for both the music dept. and UMM as a whole. It appears the Fest is no more.

 

Just a temporary reprieve with the winter temperatures yesterday (Wednesday). So today it's Friday, normally a most upbeat day with the weekend beckoning. Our spirits remain somewhat dragged down by all we've been through. The pandemic never really lets go. Human beings are social creatures by nature. We relish contact with each other. The instinct is confronted by the ubiquitous threat of the virus. 

Under these circumstances I mark my 67th birthday. It's today, Jan. 28, the date of the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster. I don't think we see as many flashbacks in the media as we used to. A friend from my church has her birthday on December 7 which is Pearl Harbor Day. We have this "infamy" in common. 

But I try not to think about the Challenger thing. The disaster happened because NASA felt pressure to stick to its timetable in order to better compete with the Pentagon for future projects and contracts. The people responsible for that ought not sleep well at night. 

Human impulse can go awry in so many ways. This is why we seek forgiveness from our Lord. I grew up during the Vietnam war debacle. About 60,000 young U.S. men with promising lives ahead of them got killed. I would say that qualifies as a pretty significant mistake. 

I can irritate people with my memory about things. Like, how it was risky voicing any sort of war skepticism up through a certain year. My memory isn't good enough to pinpoint the year. But up until then, you encountered risk by voicing skepticism about the desire to prosecute and escalate the war. 

The blame was primarily at the doorstep of Lyndon Johnson. One theory is that Johnson was so assertive with certain causes deemed "liberal," he had to satisfy the "conservatives" that he could be "tough" with national defense. So it was a trade-off. It only cost the lives of about 60,000 young men. Oh, and of course some women too - this is presumed. 

I get tired of hearing our leaders always refer to "our men and women in uniform." It is understood that both genders are involved. The problem is one with the English language. Of course more men than women were involved with direct combat. Up through the '60s, the division between the sexes was much more pronounced than today. 

Up until my senior year in high school, serious varsity sports for girls did not even exist. And when it started, naturally the girls had to go through growing pains. They could look awkward out on the basketball court. The progress was nonstop after that. I wonder if our Morris Area High School could research and find the five names of the varsity starters in the first-ever girls basketball game here. Would be nice to see these names on a plaque at the school, or to invite them, if they're all still with us, to a commemorative event. It would be wonderful to see a standing ovation, n'est-ce pas? 

One's birthday is a time for reflection naturally. I am wondering seriously if I was in fact a victim of the Cold War. We set up the USSR as this big boogeyman. We feared the "domino effect" in Southeast Asia. We felt the solution as in WWII was to send waves of young men with guns, grenades, bazookas and the like into the field to kill the enemy. Apparently this was a necessary thing in WWII, to stop the Wermacht. But that was then. 

The troops of WWII came home to proclaim "freedom isn't free." Well, sounds nice to be sure. But for the life of me, I could not see the wisdom behind the Vietnam venture, not at all, as we got the "World Events" posters updated in our elementary school classrooms. I learned the word "strive" from such a poster. As in, the South Vietnamese were "striving" to do something. My generation ended up saying "I don't care what the South Vietnamese are striving to do." 

Today our government has friendly relations with the very element in Vietnam that we were fighting. Wait a minute, how's that? And while the conservative Goldwater types were thumping their chest over the necessity of war once, today this element of our population is applying the brakes, doing a reversal. Now we're supposed to stay away from the pointless Middle East wars. 

And regarding Russia, the place that we once thought was such a fountain of everything bad in the world, we're supposed to re-think on that. That push is led by the Americans who call themselves conservatives, led by Donald Trump and the Fox News people. 

Laura Ingraham now says she "retracts" her support for the Iraq war. The "neocon" Dick Cheney was a symbol for promoting the war effort, but now? My goodness, Liz Cheney is near the top of the list of adversaries of Donald Trump. The latter is the godlike figure who dictates to American conservatives everything they are supposed to think. They cannot even think for themselves any more. We're now supposed to have a bond with Russia. 

Tucker Carlson suggests we should support Russia and also support strongman leaders who diss "democracy." I put "democracy" in quotes because it has become a contentious matter in America. We all once felt "democracy" was a cornerstone of our nation - the WWII vets were quite strong proponents. But now? "Democracy" is held in question. 

I can only observe as I have no power to affect such things. 

The Trump element asserts itself from church pews all across the U.S. I have begun to lose some longtime friendships over this. I am deeply concerned by this nation's drift to embracing Fascism. But mine is a lone voice in the wilderness. Or as Alex Karras famously said: "Mongo just pawn in game of life." 

For the record I am now 67 years old. Up to now I have not been touched by the coronavirus. I have gotten all three "jabs" and at no point did I question the wisdom of being vaccinated. That makes me quite the anti-Trumpist. I reject Tucker Carlson along with all the Republicans that are influencing their flock to be wary of the shots - some of these people including locally here in Morris, have died. That is a pretty serious consequence. 

But then so were the 60,000 young American lives taken in the Vietnam war. 

The WWII generation believed in strong public education for all. After all, it was "big government" that had won WWII. So we got a big bulky monopolistic education system in America that could abuse kids. So in that sense, I am likely a victim of the Cold War. 

Is there hope? Heaven help us all if there is no hope. If Trump ascends to the presidency again and starts carrying out vengeance, perhaps even with torture and executions, heaven help us all, and ditto with his likelihood to consider deploying nuclear weapons. If Trump does that, the U.S. could become obliterated right out of existence, as the Third Reich was. 

Is that the kind of world you want for your kids? And you aren't concerned about climate change either? My church of First Lutheran definitely is, but we have become a forlorn little minority. Pockets of Christianity have survived everywhere, even through the worst.

People locally are not familiar with my relatives. I'm at center in photo above, posing with identical twin cousins Allan and Norman Ohlson. Their father Edwin was Mom's brother. Edwin has left us - his wife Doris is still alive. She lives with Allan in California. Norman died before his time. He was a decorated veteran of the Vietnam war and I suspect his death was connected in some way. I cannot distinguish the twins in photo. One of them holds the Williams family dog "Misty," a miniature German schnauzer. Misty was the first of our three cherished house dogs, to be succeeded by Heidi and Sandy. Mom's family in Brainerd had a dog named "Teddy" but she said the dog was really Edwin's. And Teddy died not long after Edwin left for the service in WWII, a case of heartbreak, Mom felt. I don't recall my father talking about any family dogs from when he was young.

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

Tigers split in doubleheader hoops night

First, a plug for MAHS music: the jazz concert is coming up at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the concert hall. Sports is always high-profile but let's keep music at a comparable level of importance!

 

Secondly, we're having another awful morning of weather as I prepare this post. I started when it was still dark out. Now that the sun is up, it isn't any better: cold as heck and windy. I got the car warmed up and went to DeToy's where they have the biscuits and gravy special on Wednesday morning. I will "plug" this along with the Monday jazz concert. I think Bo DeToy has done great managing his business through the unusual circumstances of the past couple of years.

 

The coverage below includes the doubleheader played by MACA boys/girls hoops Tuesday at home. I invite you to compare my coverage with what you see on the Morris newspaper website. They have someone paid to do this.

 

Boys: Tigers 96, Melrose 50

Was this just too one-sided? Well, MACA fans will certainly accept the result. It was a 96-50 win over the Melrose Dutchmen. Indeed, the Tigers were a scoring machine. 

Melrose is a conference foe. I am always reminded that Melrose was dynastic in boys basketball when I was in high school. They had superstar Mark Olberding who was destined for the Gophers and then the pros. They had lots of other talent too. But on Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2022, Melrose basically got creamed by our Tigers at Tiger Center. We owned a 44-30 lead at halftime. Our momentum grew through the second half. 

Abundant opportunity to cheer, to be sure. But suspense? None! Three Tigers scored in double figures. Jackson Loge added another superlative game to his creds: 32 points on 11-of-24 shooting. Brandon Jergenson supplied 19 points on 8-of-14. Then we see Thomas Tiernan with 13 points, 5-of-6. 

Lots of players got in the act. Continuing with scoring: Sam Kleinwolterink 7, Tyler Berlinger 7, Toby Gonnerman 6, Cole Wente 5, Trey Hunt 3, Kyle Fehr 2 and Brenden Hardy 2. The Tigers were good on 37 of 67 shots, 55 percent. 

We were productive from 3-point range. I have gotten out of the habit of writing "3-point land." Loge made four shots from 3-point land in ten tries. Tiernan is often at the fore in this department, and he sank three long-rangers in four attempts. Three Tigers were each one-for-one: Berlinger, Hunt and Kleinwolterink. And, Wente was 1-for-2, so our team numbers were 11 of 24, 46 percent. 

From the freethrow line we were 11-for-14, 79 percent. Loge attacked the boards for 17 rebounds of which seven were offensive. Second-high was Jergenson with five, two offensive. The Tigers had 38 total rebounds, 14 offensive. 

Loge excelled in assists too with his team-leading seven. Jergenson had four assists and our team total was 23. Jergenson had four of our team total 16 steals. Our turnover total was eight. Loge had all three of our shot blocks. The Tigers are ranked No. 3 and retain a perfect won-lost : 16-0.

 

Girls: BOLD 57, Tigers 45

It was a doubleheader night but our teams did not have a common opponent. So for the girls, they faced off against BOLD. The girls did not fare as well as the boys, as the outcome was a 57-45 defeat. The Tigers were up by two at halftime, 27-25. The loss put our record at 5-11. The BOLD Warriors are on the other side of .500 at 10-7. 

Maddy Grove buoyed our cause with 25 points. Meredith Carrington put in eight and had four assists. Kaylee Harstad added to the mix with six points and seven boards. Cate Kehoe and Sydney Dietz each scored three. Carrington made two 3-pointers and Grove made one. 

The Warriors outscored the Tigers 32-18 in the second half. The BOLD won-lost is 10-7. They had three big guns in the scoring department: Mari Ryberg with 22 points, Lainey Braulick with 17 and Leslie Snow with ten. The three were complemented by Abby Meyers with four, Lidia Plass with two and Anna Moorse with one. Braulick made their only three-point shot. Ryberg collected ten rebounds and Meyers had seven. 

Snow with her five assists led there. Ryberg and Braulick had four and three assists respectively. Meyers blocked two shots.

 

Wrestling: Tigers 38, Lakeville North 37

Indeed it was a close match as MAHACA vied with Lakeville North at New Ulm. There was lots of high-caliber wrestling but forfeits helped too! So, a review of the dual shows Tyce Anderson at 106 and Grayson Gibson at 113 both getting their arms raised in forfeits. Every little push helps! 

Alex Sperr strode onto the mat to face Hunter Flen at 120 pounds. Sperr was on the short end of a fall. 

Dallas Walton achieved an 8-2 decision win over Aidan Johnson. The Tigers gave up some points via forfeit at 132 pounds. The Lakeville North wrestler at 132 was Brekken Obitz. Davin Rose at 138 dropped a major decision to Jore Volk. Caden Rose at 145 won by fall over Riley Forar in 4:48. 

Hunter Massner got pinned by Zach Hanson at 152. Dain Schroeder at 160 lost by fall to Kley Krause. Connor Olson at 170 was decisioned by Blake Krause. Asher Malek was our 182-pounder and he prevailed by technical fall over Logan Campbell, 18-2. Hunter Gibson took care of business with a fall win over Brayden Cerutti in :32. 

Then at 220, Brock Marty won by fall over Michael Anderson in 3:06. Our big guy was Levi Kellenberger at 285 and he was bested by Conor Popp, a fall in 5:08.

The local media reports that the mayor has covid. The fellow has been quoted in the Star Tribune of Minneapolis saying he voted for Donald Trump, so maybe he has not been vaccinated? Republicans are more likely to be vaccine skeptics. "Meat Loaf" was an anti-vaxxer. 

News flash this a.m.: Brianna Keilar of CNN is blasting Fox News for "killing people with anti-science B.S." Our own state representative went on local radio to say he hadn't gotten the vaccine. He sounded none too enthusiastic about getting it. These politicians need to realize how influential their words can be. The likes of Jeff Backer could end up killing people. He will brainwash himself that it isn't his fault. 

A lot of "red state" people here need to start waking up. If Marshall of the radio station had "pushed back" on the state rep, the rep would have slammed the door on doing any more interviews with the guy. Then, Marshall might fear for his own job security. Never mind that he is right. Being right is often not a cover in the news media. If you know what's good for you, sometimes you have to put your finger up in the wind. But people are dying in the pandemic. 

I can sleep well at night, knowing I respect the best sources for health advice. Maybe it's best at this time that we walk away from the Christian faith, seriously. The "evangelicals" have done so much damage to the U.S. There are plenty of intelligent Christians out there, people who will not join in on the "let's go Brandon" chant.

 

Republicans will not want you thinking about the issues I raise here. They want you thinking about the green M&Ms. Or, to have you calling in on Governor Youngkin's "tipline" re. errant public school teachers. How crazy, because I thought Republicans and libertarians wanted local control of schools.

 

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

Tigers bury Lakers in Friday boys hoops

Tigers 65, 'Waska 30

Thanks to the Echo-Press for having some game review details on the MACA boys basketball win over Minnewaska. It was a romp for the Tigers in front of their home fans at Tiger Center. The score: 65-30. Boffo! 

So we're 15-0 and getting an ever more lofty state-level reputation. We're judged to be No. 5 among the 126 Class AA teams "through the QRF," the Echo-Press reports. Our defense held the Lakers to 34 percent shooting. 

So often these days the media describe Jackson Loge as a "future Augustana player," whereas I'd like to see more of a focus on the present. Jackson Loge is a "Morris Area Chokio Alberta Tiger." The future will come along eventually. On Friday Loge's total of eleven points was second-best on the team to Brandon Jergenson's 17. 

Lots of Tigers scored. Loge and Jergenson were joined on the list by: Thomas Tiernan 9, Durgin Decker 5, Tyler Berlinger 5, Cole Wente 4, Brenden Hardy 4, Sam Kleinwolterink 3, Trey Hunt 2, Toby Gonnerman 2, Ayden Schmiddgall 2 and Evan Oberg 1. 

The Lakers were led by Hunter Kostelecky whose total was nine points.

 

Wrestling: Tigers excel at New Ulm

High school sports persists through all of the weather adversity of this winter. The MAHACA wrestlers excelled in the New Ulm Triangular, turning back both their opponents. The Tigers impressed with a 34-27 win over host New Ulm. Then they took care of business with the narrow 38-37 triumph vs. Lakeville North. 

Please visit my companion blog "Morris of Course" for updates on MACA girls basketball and UMM women's basketball from Saturday. Quite the day with activities considering our arctic-like circumstances! The MACA girls lost to Litchfield and the UMM women beat Martin Luther in a game that was free to watch, reportedly because of "labor" being unavailable for the admission counter! How about that. I even write about the Firemen's steak upper, overpriced but what the heck. Good opportunity to get out of the house. Please click on permalink below:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/a-bleak-winter-saturday-but-stuff-was.html 

 

MAHACA 34, New Ulm 27

Tyce Anderson strode onto the wrestling mat to vie with Elijah Rieser at 106 pounds. Tyce was the 7-0 decision victor. 

Grayson Gibson at 113 lost by fall to Parker Kamm in 3:50. Alex Sperr at 120 pinned Tegan Kral of New Ulm in 5:08. The 126-pound spot had a double-forfeit. Then at 132, fans saw New Ulm's Winsten Nienhaus win by decision over Dallas Walton 8-0. 

Our Davin Rose at 138 won by fall over Isaiah Rieser in 1:47. Caden Rose vied for the Tigers at 145 and beat Marqarion Haefner 8-0. Hunter Massner at 152 decisioned Wyatt Pollard 6-4. Dain Schroeder at 160 lost by an 8-2 decision to Ryan Wiltscheck. 

Connor Olson vied at 170 and this Tiger lost by tech fall 15-0 to Ty Frederick. At 182 pounds, Asher Malek won by fall in 2:38 over Ethan Lieb. Our 195-pounder was Hunter Gibson and he pinned Dylen Carreon in 4:38. Brock Marty was our 220-pounder and he lost by decision 8-3 to Julian Hernandez. 

Levi Kellenberger was our "big guy" at 285 and he lost by fall to the New Ulm "big guy," Jaden Drill, in 1:16.

 

The New Ulm landmark

I remember learning about the famous statue in New Ulm, "Hermann the German," when I spent New Year's Eve there many years ago. (When I reminisce on this site, most often it's about things that happened many years ago.) 

"Hermann the German"

The Hermann monument dominates the Minnesota River Valley from a hill overlooking the city. New Ulm was home to many German immigrants. The statue depicts "Arminius," an ancient Cheruscan, but locals refer to the statue as "Hermann the German." 

Quite the story: Hermann was a slave chieftan. In the year 9, he turned against his masters and led a ragtag army to victory over three Roman legions, thereby saving Germania from conquest. Rome was out thanks to Hermann the German. Sounds like a more genuine story than "St. Urho," n'est-ce pas? 

I was in New Ulm for New Year's Eve back in 1988, easy to remember because we watched the "Fog Bowl" on TV between the NFL's Bears and Eagles. The game was played at Soldier Field, Chicago. Game conditions were described as "abysmal." During the second quarter, a thick fog rolled over Soldier Field and from there, chaos ensued.

Eagles quarterback Randall Cunningham (later to be a Viking of course) threw for 407 yards but no touchdowns. TV cameramen struggled. Well, ring in the new! The Bears beat the Eagles 20-12. 

Remember when Cunningham, as a Viking, "took a knee" even though he could have thrown toward Randy Moss and maybe made something happen? I believe Brian Billick made that play call. 

Well, I did have a happy time in New Ulm in that bygone year. I was with the Wohlers crew.

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

Minnewaska's 3's too much for MACA

Minnewaska 53, Tigers 51

Good outside shooting can have impact over a short span, indeed. So it was outside shooting that the Lakers of Minnewaska tapped in their Thursday win over MACA. The game was at 'Waska. The school overlooks beautiful Lake Minnewaska, frozen in the stillness of winter. 

The Tigers showed a promising brand of play in the first half. We built a lead of as many as seven points. 'Waska began connecting from outside. So the story at halftime was a four-point deficit for our Tigers, score of 23-19. The Lakers kept on cruising, building their advantage up to nine, but coach Dale Henrich's Tigers were not down for the count. A 7-0 run got the orange and black to within two. 

It became anybody's ballgame as the scoreboard showed a tied score four times. It was an entertaining game that had frequent lead changes. We had the ball with less than ten seconds left. The situation: 'Waska up by two. Alas, we could not get off a shot. So 'Waska came away with the 53-51 win. 

The Lakers upped their record to 8-6 while MACA fell to 5-9. The stat report reveals the telling number of nine 3-pointers by the host team. 

Our Meredith Carrington had the game-best point total of 17 points. Maddy Grove broke into double figures too with eleven. Sydney Dietz put in eight points and complemented that stat with eight rebounds. Shannon Dougherty attacked the boards for nine rebounds. We certainly excelled at the freethrow line with numbers of 16 of 19. Super! 

Victory was within reach but the desired extra break or two were not forthcoming.

 

Boys hockey: Storm 4, Fairmont 1

MBA established some distance on the scoreboard in their Thursday clash with a foe from down by the Iowa border. This was a Storm vs. Fairmont night. The 4-1 win for the Storm got our record up to .500 at 7-7, and let's throw in a tie. 

Trevor Buss put the MBA skaters up 1-0 in the first period. His goal was an unassisted job at :27. The score became 2-0 in the second period as Buss worked his magic again, again unassisted (13:55). Charlie Goff scored our third goal at 2:43 of the third. Brett Hansen and Marshall Tolifson supplied assists. 

Fairmont scored as Eli Anderson got the puck in the net, assisted by Brock Lutterman and Alexander Moeller (4:35). Goff got the game's final goal with assists from Ian Rajewsky and Brady Pederson (16:11). Christopher Danielson was our goalie and he had 18 saves. Carson Johnson of Fairmont had 30 saves.

Notice inflation much?

The tug-of-war continues between the fire-breathing, frothing-at-the-mouth MAGA people, and the considerable other faction of society. So much emphasis on the cultural or social issues. So much concern among concerned Christians of the fundamentalist churches about our moral standards. But right under your nose, all you knaves, the central bank (Federal Reserve) has been devaluing our currency and setting the stage for scary inflation. 

You all have not woken up to it yet. You have probably seen a news note here and there. "Oh, inflation." It hasn't seemed to register. Inflation reduces the value of money. It has a direct effect on your quality of life. 

It hasn't caught up to you yet? Maybe because you're so preoccupied with your bashing of Joe Biden and the Democrats? Your concern is so laser-focused on that stuff? Well it appears to be. Meanwhile we have an official inflation rate of seven percent. That's official but most likely it's higher, based on all sorts of anecdotal stuff. 

Oh, the value of your home is going up, right? That's inflation. But how do you benefit from that? The only real consequence for you is that you'll be looking at higher property taxes. Sort of a lose-lose. Well, you can sell your house? Why should I feel induced to do that? What if we like where we live now? Can't our wishes be respected? 

We of course can join hands to try to apply pressure to get our property taxes reduced. People in Stevens County sure cared when the proposed jail was up for consideration. I still remember the big meeting at the armory. I wasn't blogging then. I did confer some with jail skeptics like the late Jerry Lesmeister over the phone. 

I am wondering why the softball complex is not being evaluated by local taxpayers according to the same criteria. This project appears mired in delays and mediocrity. Our school activities director has warned that "someone's gonna get run over" at the place. Any steps to address parking been drawn up? The complex will be a big mud hole come spring. Imagine heavy equipment moving in there, if in fact the project's planners have the funds available to secure such work. 

Prices are going up and delays are shocking when it comes to contractors these days. I have experienced this myself with my own home, but many stories are out there. I see few if any signs that relief is on the way. If the softball complex supervisors have not yet arranged for all the work, have not paid all the bills, then I think it's Katy bar the door. 

Why can't softball games just be played up on the public school grounds? I count four ball diamonds there. There is the huge advantage of the massive school parking lot right there. A couple of those ball fields could be spruced up just a little. 

The new main varsity field at the softball complex has horrible, unforgivable arrangements for fan seating. 

Maybe the movers and shakers at the Twin Cities 'U' will notice what is happening out here, "come to the rescue" with the kind of resources we'd expect from the state level. Community Education? I don't think so. The public here was led to believe the "softball complex" would be a big deal. I began getting suspicious as the weeks and months passed. 

In June, the Morris school board voted 6-1, yes with a dissenting vote, to set aside $223,000 more for the softball complex. I have seen almost no progress at the place since the board conducted that vote. Well, it's not like the board members were spending their own money. It's OPM, other people's money. Keep an eye on this. 

Why just one board member with the wisdom to hold back? Where are all the people who were so animated by the county jail issue? 

Oh, the board "also voted to approve the funds independent of any other parties agreeing to pay for it," according to kmrs-kkok. Oh my, is this a reference to when the City of Morris said "no" on a second request for funds? Well, kudos to the city on this one. Although, I might indict the city for agreeing to the first payment. 

Just say "no" unless you're totally convinced of the project's viability. When I first heard about it, I tried to be glass-half-full and wondered if Morris might make a bid to host the state high school softball tournament. I was quite naive. 

Inflation is shooting up as we speak. The Federal Reserve is under intense pressure to do things that could poke the stock market bubble. In a few months, the softball complex might be the furthest thing from our thoughts, except we might wonder why we let go of all the tax dollars. Well, we elect those people. Kurt Wulf was the only "no" vote on the board. 

Inflation example: $20 a head for the steak supper at the fire hall Saturday night. Outrageous. It hasn't hit home with you yet? 

Please observe drawing closely, monitor status.

The Morris Area school board (kmrs-kkok image)

 

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

Girls take command in win over Ortonville

The Tigers surged big to lead 37-18 at halftime of the Tuesday road game. The site was Ortonville. Ortonville is home of the Trojans. The Tigers finished their work in the second half to come away with a 64-42 win. It was our fifth triumph of the season, eight losses. Ortonville is having a struggling campaign. 

Maddy Grove supplied lots of fuel Tuesday with her 20 points. A trio of Tigers scored eight each: Meredith Carrington, Sydney Dietz and Shannon Dougherty. Grove complemented her team-best point total with four rebounds an four assists. Dougherty snared eight rebounds. 

Kaylee Harstad added seven points to the mix. She also contributed five rebounds and four steals. Cate Kehoe put in six points, plus she had six rebounds. 

My "Morris of Course" blog has extensive updates on other Tuesday action involving our prep athletes. So with the permalink below, you may read about the MAHACA wrestling team, MBA girls and boys hockey and MACA boys basketball. Thank you so much and God bless. The year 2022 is my 50th anniversary of writing about Tiger sports for the media.

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/dominant-form-by-mahaca-vs-bold-at.html 

  

In invite you to compare my coverage to what you see on the Morris newspaper website. 

I believe the local commercial news media have not yet acknowledged the death of Jim Carlson. He died unexpectedly on Christmas Eve in Florida. I have kept watch to see how the media handles this, or didn't handle it. 

The coverage did not have to be with a standard "obituary." Carlson was a public figure when he lived here, and established the famous UMM Jazz Festival. It was truly famous. One of the biggest fans was Bob Bruininks who had a stint as U of M president. 

Once Carlson's death became known as absolute fact, someone in the local commercial media could have seen to it that a little "splash" be organized. It would be like a feature article. It could quote a few UMM jazz veterans. 

Our civic consciousness here has been eroding in recent years. This seems rather obvious but hardly anyone seems to care. The reaction to the end of Prairie Pioneer Days has been for the city and (alleged) Chamber of Commerce to get in a pissing match. As if that solves anything. But this is how things are going in our Morris. 

The U has allowed the Jazz Fest to wither away and die. It's just gone. Even if we accept this, certainly we could acknowledge the passing of someone like Jim Carlson with a little feature treatment in the local press. That is, if anyone really gives a rip. The Carlsons lived in Morris and supported the Morris public school. They belonged to a church here. They moved to the Villages in Florida for retirement. 

Back when I was with the Morris paper, if certain people thought I committed an oversight with something, they would tear into me, often with name-calling and foul language. Seems like kind of a Morris norm. 

I remember the controversy that centered on our Morris school system in the late 1980s. There was verbal venom and back-stabbing with consequences that I think are still felt today. If you are a newer resident of Morris, you can be thankful you weren't drawn into that. Our school appears to be in very good shape today, very stable. 

So let's remember the late Jim Carlson and all he did for Morris, which went well beyond jazz. I can memorialize him, but my online writing does not get the attention that the commercial media still does.

A recent photo of Jim Carlson, from The Villages FL

The weather

Climate change is marked by "extreme weather." It's not just "warming," it's all kinds of unexpected stuff. Conservative politicians used to like to poke fun at the climate change realists, whenever temperatures got cold for a time. "Warming?" 

Well, we needn't change our language about the phenomenon. It's "climate change" with "extreme weather." 

Donald Trump has been a big climate change denier, as he has called it a "hoax," and he could well be elected president again in 2024. We should be profoundly fearful about that. He should have been indicted for something by now. It is ridiculous because his voice is on tape with the Georgia secretary of state. Does tech actually make it harder to convict people? Legal authorities are just sitting on their hands about all of this. The weeks drag on. 

And soon the campaign in the mid-terms will begin. The Republicans are set for a complete takeover in the U.S. They are modifying voting systems to their liking. Meanwhile there is mass apathy among the U.S. population. So we see apathy at the national level as well as in our Morris MN. It is all profoundly sad. 

 

Bear with me some

The harshness of this winter has impeded yours truly some. There's a spot in front of the soils lab where drifts build up rapidly whenever there's a northwest wind. Recently during a spell of real inclement weather, the roads out and around looked open - I saw headlights - so I chanced a trip downtown to maybe get a frozen pizza. I hadn't eaten since breakfast. 

I didn't quite make it to the end of Northridge Drive. I had to race back to get a shovel. There is a happy ending as I eventually got out, but it was work, but worse than that I feared the embarrassment of being noticed there. Someone driving a 4-wheel drive pickup night notice me! I remember years ago when my old neighbor, the late Bert Ahern, got stuck in the same spot. So I'm in good company with this episode, with a UMM professor! 

In my haste while shoveling out, I shoveled without gloves on for a couple minutes, ended up with blisters on two fingers. It is healing properly but I do not feel 100 percent for typing yet. 

Problem No. 2: During another spell of the godawful weather, I walked to town 3-4 times over a weekend, as I had decided to put off clearing my driveway. Fine, I was comfortable enough, but I had my reading glasses in my jacket pocket. The extreme cold must have caused them to become brittle. They came apart when I was indoors. 

I bought a new pair but these don't function quite the same as the previous, so more adjusting is called for. I require maximum-strength reading glasses. My writing at this time is a little more labored, but I stick with it, and please bear with me. It's hard for me to get along without doing some writing.

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

Let's diss Gov. Youngkin's anti-CRT order

Perhaps a picture of Glenn Youngkin should appear next to the definition of "disingenuous" in the dictionary. I'm thinking of the old paper dictionaries of course. Those are a relic. We'd flip through the pages and occasionally see a little drawing of something. "Iguana."

"Disingenuous" means "not candid or sincere, typically by pretending that one knows less about something than one really does." 

First off, do I really need to repeat the fact that Republicans or conservatives don't lose any sleep over cultural issues? Not even abortion? They come at us with bluster about the cultural stuff. The political folks in the Dakotas exemplify this. They recognize that it really "sells." It seals the deal for them getting elected and re-elected. 

Want proof? When judges first started moving in the direction of erasing Roe vs. Wade, you would expect all the conservative folk to really be high-fiving it, wouldn't you? Instead they came out looking scared. A talking point was quickly established: this ostensible move was "just a narrow procedural ruling." They raced to the microphones to say this, even Donald Trump himself, the most grotesque monster in the right wing parade. 

"Just a procedural ruling." Won't you even celebrate it as such, as a move toward hopefully getting abortion banned? 

No doubt, abortion is a concerning topic, certainly not one to address in a glib or simplistic way from either side. I just happen to have the personal opinion that a ban is impractical and we should leave Roe/Wade alone. And you know what? Republicans may be saying a little prayer to themselves at the end of the day, hoping for same. Now that certain judges appear to be getting serious, the conservative crowd really would like to just whisper to them to knock it off. 

Republicans want to reserve the right to have an abortion discreetly performed for their mistress. But the anti-abortion talk is important for them selling themselves to a certain constituency. A majority of churchgoers in Stevens County would appear to be in that constituency. I'd like to see the churches return to the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Glenn Youngkin

So now we see the Youngkin name in the news. Glenn won the governor's office in Virginia, part of a major Republican ascendancy in the state. He and most likely others prevailed because of the Democratic Party having too much of a symbiotic relationship with the teacher unions. I believe Terry McAuliffe would have won the governor's race were it not for the teacher union angle. The consequences of these things are major. 

And so Youngkin to no one's surprise has clamped down on "critical race theory." It emerged as a campaign issue. That's not because it deserved attention as a legitimate issue. It's because the barking dogs of conservative media saw it as sort of a prize. It helped their ratings with the reactionary element in society, and the politicians were paying attention. 

Now, Youngkin I'm sure is an intelligent person. He knows full well that CRT is not some sort of pure propaganda from the so-called political left. I'm sure he realizes that it is benign if not fully well-intentioned. But. . . Youngkin signed an executive order Saturday that banned the teaching of critical race theory in Virginia. 

"But it's likely to face legal challenges," "Axios" tells us. Well of course it will. But separate from that, aren't conservatives in league with libertarians? And don't libertarians feel that the nature of school instruction content should be managed locally, by locally-elected people? Not politicians in distant state government offices? 

But Youngkin knew he could push some buttons with this. That's all he cared about, "cementing his base" as they say. Why be so calculating when you just ought to show your best judgment on behalf of the people? Sink or swim with your own best judgment? Wouldn't that allow you to sleep well at night? But that's not the nature of our political world today. 

Are we all becoming transactional in a manner that reflects Trump? How would our Lord God judge us on this? 

Beyond the concern I have already cited, there is the matter of Youngkin's executive order being overly broad, by a country mile. So, how would teachers even approach the subject of American history? How could they do it without taking undue risks now? How to explain about Manifest Destiny? 

The subject of the so-called "Indian wars" of the late 19th Century would now be way too much of a hot potato. There were elements of pure genocide in that. Would it be OK to teach that, just a little bit? Historically we have approached that history with the idea that the Native Americans deserved at least some sympathy, that our U.S. government did some very cruel things. But would a teacher today dare even to imply as much? Would a teacher feel pressure to present "the other side," the other side that a degree of genocide was defensible? That would be the other side. 

Have you ever read about the Washita massacre? There were other such incidents. 

Let me boil all this down to one point: History is a messy story of the strong oppressing the weak. We cannot pretend to live in total harmony or that our history should reflect such a saccharine view. Republicans want to tamp down "divisive" topics in curricula. But how would they even justify the existence of Martin Luther King Day on Monday? Answer: they wouldn't. 

America has changed. Here's a headline from Yahoo News this morning: "Laura Ingraham clapped in celebration while reporting that General Milley, a hated figure for Trump fans, has Covid-19." Stevens County is full of such "Trump fans." 

When will the storm break? If Republicans don't really care about the cultural stuff like CRT, what then is their priority? It is siphoning ever more wealth into the hands of a sliver of people at the top. Mark my word. People like T. Denny Sanford, the guy who got rich off high-interest credit cards. He has a little investigation looking over his shoulder now. He's probably too rich to get nicked by it.

Also from Yahoo News: "Up to three-quarters of the $800 billion PPP flowed to business owners instead of workers, study finds." 

Way to go, GOP. Just keep squawking about "critical race theory."

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

Tigers down Enderlin ND w/ super second half

Why not play on Saturday too? The prep sports slate can get kind of intense sometimes. But fans of the Tigers had to enjoy what they saw at the home gym Saturday. Great therapy during this disheartening mid-winter weather, eh? High school sports does a lot to counter that. 

I'm not sure it's enough for this winter, though. Unusual to see extreme cold at the same time the wind really whips up. "Hunker down" might well be the theme. But enthused fans assembled at Tiger Center on Saturday. We had an unusual opponent: Enderlin from out-of-state, the fourth-ranked team in North Dakota Class 'B'. 

As in the Tigers' previous game, versus Montevideo, the opponent carved out a first half advantage. Enderlin showed the superior shooting eye in the first half. So it was the visitor getting the 30-25 lead. The second half was an entirely different story. The Enderlin Eagles cooled off to 8 of 32 in shooting. Jackson Loge got in the groove with the kind of offensive prowess fans are used to seeing. Loge came through with 19 of his 25 game-total points. 

The Tigers won this game 64-54. (We also won the Monte game.)

Enderlin was handed its third loss. Their win total is eight. Meanwhile the Tigers continue to own the No. 3 state ranking. 

We overcame the Eagles' Carson Bartholomay who made four 3-pointers and posted 17 points. He was complemented by the Hurlbuts, Joe with 14 points and Gus with 13. 

MACA owns a 13-0 record. Our field goal shooting numbers were 23 for 63, 37 percent. Loge made eight of 23 shots en route to his game output of 25 points. Brandon Jergenson was four of eleven in the process of scoring ten. Thomas Tiernan made two of eight and posted nine. Cole Wente and Toby Gonnerman each scored six points. Tyler Berlinger put in four and Durgin Decker and Sam Kleinwolterink two each. 

Loge led our 3-point shooting with his four makes in nine shots. Jergenson and Tiernan each made two long-rangers. We were eight of 23 as a team, 35 percent. 

Our freethrow stats were ten of 14, 71 percent. Loge was five of six at the line. Tiernan made three freethrows and Decker two. Loge had seven of our team total 20 rebounds. Two of his boards were offensive. Decker and Wente each had four assists among our team total 12. Berlinger executed two steals. Our turnover total was eight. 

Loge blocked two shots and Jergenson blocked one. "Let's go Brandon." No, let's not hear that, please.

Paying last respects

Recently I have tried doing what I can, with the online resources at my disposal, to highlight the recent sudden and tragic death of Jim Carlson in Florida. How much reach do I have? I really cannot know for sure. I would hope that my writing helps make the public aware of Jim's passing, along with the legacy he leaves as jazz educator and promoter. 

Oh but his talents went well beyond jazz. Jazz represents the clear stamp he left on West Central Minnesota music. His UMM Jazz Festival helped put Morris on the map, maybe better than any other event. As much as this asset had impact, it appears the institution isn't much interested today in keeping it going. A good source tells me it's done. Well, we lost Prairie Pioneer Days initially, so maybe the shock value of these developments has diminished. 

Jim Carlson

I wrote five posts on Jim in the days following his passing. What I'm writing here might be considered a sixth. We had to wait a while to become aware of any sort of official obituary. Well, that wait finally ended Thursday. The appropriate funeral home in Florida came through. So I'm wondering if the obit will make its way into Morris-based commercial media this week. 

Will it be in Tuesday's Morris newspaper? How about the kmrs-kkok site where Marshall so often handles things capably? I call him "Marshall Tucker." 

I'd like to see Marshall do an expose on the softball complex, but that will probably only happen in my dreams. I'm a dinosaur in journalism with my attitude that we cannot trust the sugar-coated pronouncements of people behind projects like this. I came of age during Vietnam and Watergate. "Burn baby burn!" 

Marshall will probably have his usual big bowl of Sugar Frosted Flakes. Same with the newspaper, although I consider the paper to be brain-dead in terms of even seeing expose potential. I think Marshall at least sees it. Me? I'm a throwback. 

A friend commented re. speculation that Jim's obit would appear Tuesday:

 

The obit just came out Thursday, and as all material for publication has to be in to the paper office by Thursday noon, it may not appear in the next issue (if in fact the Florida Funeral home even sent it to the Morris paper). The paper’s obituary page on their website is all messed up when I checked it today. Pedersen Funeral Home can't be counted on for all death notices as many times the family takes care of “arrangements” on their own, or through the Minnesota Cremation Society, so Morris deaths won’t necessarily appear on their website. And if the family opts out of the media contact fee with the funeral home, then nothing may show up.

 

Systems with obituaries are "morphing" just like all of communications. Some people think "social media" is good enough. I'll demur on that. 

Jim Carlson's Jazz Fest is stored away in our memories. I guess that's where it will have to stay. I ought to be admired some for my attitudes on such things. Of course I am not. I'm an agitator. I don't know what's good for me.

Jim Carlson, at right, at his best during the Jazz Festival at Edson. Edson is part of the facility named for Edward and Helen Jane Morrison. Helen Jane is 100 years old!

 

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

Boys escape halftime deficit, beat Montevideo

The orange and black of MACA prevailed over the purple of Montevideo on Thursday. The site was Monte. The predicted bad weather held off. It is arriving as of 8:30 a.m. Friday. But the roads were good for the Tigers to head south Thursday for the West Central Conference game. 

The host Thunderhawks led at halftime by four, 30-26. But the Tigers turned on the jets for second half play, to outscore the purple squad 37-22. So we prevailed. The Tigers upped their conference mark to 3-0 with this 63-52 triumph. 

The Willmar newspaper continues to refer to us as "Morris/CA." We of course are "Morris Area Chokio Alberta." Today they refer to one of our players as "Tyler Berling." Of course it's Tyler Berlinger. Tyler was a key player coming off the bench for our win over Hancock at UMM. 

The soaring success of the unbeaten Tigers puts us at No. 3 in the state AA picture. Will we get all the way to the summit? Stay tuned. Monte's coach felt heartened by how his team performed in a losing cause. The T-Hawks are 5-4. 

Jackson Loge and Thomas Tiernan were a 1-2 punch with their offensive prowess. Loge made ten of 16 shots to post the team-best scoring total of 21. Tiernan was six of 13 and scored 18 points. Durgin Decker and Berlinger each came through with eight points. Brandon Jergenson scored six points and Cole Wente two. 

Our team shooting stats were 26 of 51, 51 percent. Tiernan made four 3-pointers and Jergenson made two. I hope fans are not chanting "let's go Brandon." I would view that as being in poor taste. We were six of 19 in our team 3's, 32 percent. The freethrow stats were five of 12, 42 percent, with Berlinger and Tiernan each making two. 

Rebounds: here it was the rangy Loge pulling down eleven to lead, four offensive. Decker was No. 2 with seven boards, two offensive. We had 27 total rebounds, nine offensive. Wente led in assists with four. Three Tigers each had two steals: Decker, Berlinger and Tiernan. Our turnover total was ten. 

Loge was quite the presence around the basket with six blocked shots. Such a performance is par for the course for this Augustana-bound athlete. We're 12-0 now! 

Three Monte T-Hawks had a point total of ten: Justin Collins, Andrew Van Binsbergen and Mason Jerve. Also scoring were Kaden Boike 8, Hunter Strand 7 and Bradyn Schultz 7. Collins made two 3's while Strand and Schultz each made one. Strand and Collins each collected six rebounds. Van Binsbergen led in assists with six, followed by Schultz with three. Van Binsbergen and Boike each had two steals. Collins blocked a shot.

My coverage of the Hancock game is on my "Morris of Course" site. Thanks always for checking in. Here's the permalink:

https://morrisofcourse.blogspot.com/2022/01/maca-boys-force-22-turnovers-in-downing.html

 

Wrestling: tough opponent

This is a rare opportunity for yours truly to write about MAHACA wrestling. I'm not a fan of the "MAHACA" name - yes, pronounced that way - but sometimes in life you have to accept things you don't like. How about "Morris" as a name? Wouldn't that be novel? 

Anyway, while I relish the opportunity to type these kids' names, it was not an upbeat night for Tiger wrestling on Thursday. We were up against the No. 1-ranked team in Class A, the Jaguars of Brooten-Belgrade-Elrosa. The site was Belgrade. The Tigers fell to the Jaguars 58-9. 

Jeremiah Schmidgall wrestled at 113 pounds and lost by technical fall. Alex Sperr prevailed in a 13-7 decision at 120 pounds. Dallas Walton bowed in a 3-1 outcome at 126 pounds. Ethan Lebrija was edged 7-6 in the battle of 132-pounders. Davin Rose won by fall in 3:15 at 138. Caden Rose was defeated in a 9-3 decision at 145. Hunter Massner bowed in a tech fall at 152. Dain Schroeder lost by fall in :37 at 160. Asher Malek lost by fall in 3:31 at 182. 

Then it was Hunter Gibson dropping an 11-4 decision at 195 pounds. Brock Marty was pinned in 5:16 in the battle of 220-pounders. Javon Johnson lost by fall in :43 in the showdown of the big guys.

 

Boys hockey: Willmar 4, Storm 3

The skating athletes took to the ice at the Willmar Civic Center Thursday: MBA vs. Willmar. Fans enjoyed a hard-fought contest. In the end it was the Cardinals of Willmar prevailing by one goal, 4-3. The MBA record was left at 5-6-1. The Willmar numbers: 4-7. 

The Cardinals got the only first period goal which was by Cullen Gregory, with assists by Henry Mickelson and Jason Malmgren. 

The second period was a 2-2 standoff. Willmar's Malmgren scored unassisted. The Storm struck for the first time as Brady DeHaan got the puck in the net with assists from Trevor Buss and Hunter LeClair. Then it was Willmar asserting itself as Dylan Staska scored unassisted. MBA's Cole Blume scored with Charlie Goff's assist. 

The third period was a 1-1 standoff. Willmar's Ethan Stark scored unassisted. MBA's Ian Rajewsky scored the evening's final goal with assists from Sam Thompson and Goff. 

Our goalie was Christopher Danielson who had 29 saves in 33 attempts. Willmar's Braxton Heid had 30 saves in 33 attempts.

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