Still more hoops: we sweep Lac qui Parle

So, Jackson Loge is a sophomore? Years ago we might have said "just a sophomore." There was a time in our school's history when this young man most likely would not have played varsity until a junior. This "policy" seemed evident but lest there be any doubt, the coach articulated it for me with these words: "We don't do that here" (promote sophomores).
Policies all have their reasons I'm sure. We hire school administrators to show wisdom, just like there's a zero tolerance thing about any sort of threat. Safety is surely essential. Yet I wonder if back in my day of being in school, something disturbing scribbled on a chalkboard (whiteboard today) might just be erased. I guess as of today (Monday), we still don't know of a resolution of the recent major incident, an incident calling for some pretty substantial action to be taken.
In the meantime, basketball continues! That's an understatement: our boys and girls teams played doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday. The Tigers won throughout. And in the Saturday boys phase, sophomore Jackson Loge thrilled by reaching his 1000th point career milestone. Just a sophomore! That's really incredible.
We congratulate the talented young man who comes from elite basketball lineage. I'm not quite old enough to have seen his grandfather play but I sure remember father Kevin. Today Jackson Loge is a cog with the MACA Tigers who are bound to be a team to watch for the climactic March phase.
Jackson scored 32 points Saturday in his team's 75-74 win over the Lac qui Parle Eagles at Lac qui Parle. He vaulted over the 1000-point mark. Back when the "we don't do that here" quote was uttered, the player who was intriguing me was Paul Libbon. I merely asked if we might see that young man get a varsity opportunity. The retort was "we don't do that here."
I'm sure coaches had to worry about parents wondering why players so young were getting out there to play, forcing older players to spend more bench time. That wouldn't surprise me. But it appears to have been a losing plea in the long run. Is that good? I'm inclined to say yes. One argument I heard against the old system was that it made the older players feel too comfortable. Those guys might then get a little lethargic, to lack motivation. I remember some of my fan friends talking this way after a disappointing loss.
Today's Tigers are on a run with three straight wins. And we're over .500 to 6-5. We overcame a superb LQPV player in Austin Bonn. Bonn was rather spectacular Saturday as he scored 36 points. His team tasted defeat for just the second time this season. LQPV sits at 8-2.
Loge made 12 of his 20 field goal attempts. He was joined in double figures by two of his mates: Thomas Tiernan (eleven points, four of six in shooting) and Cade Fehr (ten points, four of five). Tiernan is a sophomore and Fehr a senior. Jaden Maanum and Brandon Jergenson each scored eight points, and Toby Gonnerman put in six. Jergenson and Gonnerman are sophomores and Maanum a senior.

Jackson Loge (image from "hudl")

The Tigers made eight of 15 in 3-pointers for 53 percent. Four individuals each had two makes: Maanum, Jergenson, Tiernan and Fehr. Fehr made both of his attempts.
Our freethrow numbers were 15-for-26 for 58 percent. Loge made eight of his 14 attempts and Gonnerman was six of eight. Of course Loge was a factor in rebounds where he set the pace with 15. Five of his boards were offensive and ten defensive. Cameron Koebernick led in assists with five and Loge had four. Jergenson and Loge each had a blocked shot.
We led the Eagles at halftime 39-37 and held our own through the second half. LQPV had a 37-36 edge in the second half.
 
Girls: Tigers 86, Lac qui Parle 55
There was no suspense in this game, in contrast to the boys affair. Surely we took charge. We used three-pointers in a big way: eleven of these bombs in our 86-55 triumph over the host Eagles. The orange and black shot 52 percent from the field.
Emma Bowman hit five 3-pointers as did MacKenna Kehoe, so surely it was a fun night for Janet Kehoe to cheer again! She's an old co-worker and friend. It was Bowman with the team-best scoring total of 23. Kehoe was up there too with 19. Malory Anderson had impact within the offense with 13 points, plus she collected six rebounds. Meredith Carrington and LaRae Kram achieved double figures with matching totals of ten points. Tom Carrington cracked a smile I'm sure.
The Tigers came out of this demanding phase of the schedule with a 6-7 record. LQPV's numbers: 8-5.
Final note: I remember back in the early '80s, I was so impressed with how our boys 'B' team looked, their athleticism and potential. And, I got that impression because some of these kids obviously were suited to be varsity candidates. A problem with the system then, was that these players' development was held up. You might say they atrophied some by being held at below varsity.
I tried to be optimistic and shared a remark with a fan, a parent who happened also to be a UMM teacher: "It'll be fun seeing these guys in two years." His immediate retort, rendered with some bitterness: "I don't want to see them."
Not the most upbeat of times. By the end of the 1980s, some issues had to be taken care of in Morris extracurricular.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Doubleheader night of hoops success here

A doubleheader night of winning basketball was nice for a school district that is maybe stressed due to the recent incident involving the threat. The MAHS gym was alive Friday night for the display of winning hoops. The boys and girls squared off against Benson. Benson probably had a fair number of fans here too.
The MACA teams gave the most reason to cheer.
 
Boys: Tigers 83, Benson 64
Our fans not only felt delighted with the nearly 20-point margin of victory, but also the .500 mark we sported at night's end: 5-5. A little ascendance is the goal now. Prospects look good as we see some individuals putting up pretty impressive stats.
Our fortunes took off in the second half as we pulled away from the mere two-point lead we had at halftime, 37-35. We outscored the Braves 46-29 in the second half. So the final was 83-64. Beating Benson was a plum because the Braves have been comfortably over .500 this season.
Benson normally impresses from beyond the three-point stripe. On Friday their long-rangers weren't falling quite so much. Still they had eight makes. We had enough weapons to overcome.
Jackson Loge is bound to start getting more scouting attention from other teams. How do we contain this guy? The sophomore's stats are revealing him to be quite the impact player. Surely he's following in his father's footsteps. Against Benson, Jackson scored 31 points on ten of 18 in field goal shooting.
Thomas Tiernan treated the fans to sharp three-point shooting, and he posted 15 total points. In fact, all of this Tiger's field goal shooting was from three-point range. He had a harvest of five 3's in the eleven attempts. The third Tiger to score in double figures was Jaden Maanum: 12 points on four of eleven in shooting. Jaden is a senior and he connected for two 3-pointers.
Cameron Koebernick scored nine points on three of seven in field goals. All three of his FGs were from 3-point distance. Here's the rest of the MACA scoring list: Brandon Jergenson (5), Durgin Decker (4), Cade Fehr (3), Toby Gonnerman (2) and Bradley Rohloff (2). As a team we shot 26 of 68 for 38 percent, and in 3's our numbers were 12 of 38. Durgin Decker and Cade Fehr each made a '3'.
Loge went to the freethrow line for 15 shots and he made 11. The team freethrow numbers were 19-for-25 (76 percent). Loge muscled his way for 23 rebounds, the dominant stat. Maanum had four boards and these Tigers also contributed: Decker, Jergenson, Tiernan, Koebernick, Gonnerman and Fehr. The assist list was topped by Maanum with five. Jergenson and Tiernan each had four assists while Loge, Koebernick and Fehr each had one.
Maanum stole the ball twice. These Tigers each had one steal: Decker, Jergenson, Tiernan, Loge and Fehr. We're not surprised to see Loge tops in blocked shots: four. Maanum and Jergenson each had one block.
Benson had five players score led by Will Enderson with 17 points. Abe Peterson and Cole Hedman each produced 15 points. Ben Peterson had eleven and Sam Lenarz six. Lenarz, Hedman and Enderson kept Benson's three-point attack viable, each making two, while the Peterson boys, Abe and Ben, each made one.
Ben Peterson and Enderson each pulled down seven rebounds. Abe led in assists with three and in steals with four. Enderson blocked a shot.
The Tigers can't take anything for granted against Benson in the future - the Braves had 9-4 W/L numbers entering the weekend. They can get hot in 3's anytime.
 
Girls: Tigers 67, Benson 61
The girls portion of the doubleheader presented ample reason to cheer among the orange and black partisans. Coach Dale Henrich's Tiger squad beat the Braves of Benson 67-61. The orange and black trailed by four at halftime, 34-30, but the second half was a quite different story: we outscored the Braves 37-27.
It was a night for Tiger Emma Bowman to shine. Emma poured in 19 points to lead the charge. She made a three-pointer and had our only blocked shot. Malory Anderson came through with 12 points and Meredith Carrington with eleven. Here's the rest of the list: LaRae Kram (9), Kylie Swanson (6), Kendra Wevley (5), MacKenna Kehoe (3) and Shannon Dougherty (2). Swanson connected twice from three-point land.
Anderson with her 13 rebounds led there. Carrington and Bowman each had three assists, and Anderson led in steals with five. The Tigers entered the weekend at 5-7. And Benson's mark: 4-7.
Kaitlyn Berreau was Benson's top scorer with 22 points. Claire Ricard was another force for the visitor with 12. Hannah Andrews scored nine, followed by Beth Cain (8), Abby Lundebrek (7), Marissa Connelly (2) and Kimmy Pagel (1). Berreau had quite the sharp shooting eye with five 3-pointers. Andrews made three long-rangers and Ricard one. Lundebrek had the team-best eleven rebounds. She and Andrews each had four assists. Abby also contributed four blocked shots.
Success Saturday too: Enough basketball lately? Two doubleheaders in two days? The kids could use a break! Wait, the fans too. But hey, it helps shorten the winter. The MACA girls and boys played at Lac qui Parle Valley Saturday. Just like on Friday, we won both ends. The girls beat LQPV 86-55. The boys story was closer but a win: 75-74.
 

Boys hockey: Breckenridge-Wahpeton 4, Storm 2
A down second period opened the door for Breckenridge-Wahpeton to defeat the Storm boys hockey team Thursday. The 4-2 score had the Storm on the short end. Three of the winner's goals came in the second period.
The first period ended with the Storm leading 1-0. Jack Riley got our goal with assists from Will Breuer and Zach Bruns, so the Lee Center crowd had a fair share of optimism. Unfortunately we put up a zero in the second period puck action.
B-W got going with a Tanner Barth unassisted goal at 10:16. Then it was Brayden Wahl putting the puck in the net for the visitor - James Finkral and Thomas Withuski supplied assists at 14:25.
B-W went up 3-1 with a Jesse Kruse goal that had Jase Jensen assisting (at 15:20). Barth gave B-W a little cushion with a third period goal that had Kruse with the assist.
Bruns got the Storm's second goal at 16:39 of the period, assisted by Breuer and Hunter Blume. Chase Engebretson saved 21 of 25 shots as our goalie. The B-W goalie was Jared Aamold (24-26). The loss was just our second of our sterling 2019-2020 campaign. Our win total is 12.
 
Girls hockey: Luverne 9, Storm 0
The MBA girls struggled in a 9-0 loss at the hands of Luverne. Action was Thursday on the Luverne ice. Alas, victory has eluded our MBA Storm girls this winter, but we have a tie.
Luverne struck for three goals in each of the periods. Let's compliment their quality play. Indeed, they owned a 15-3-1 record at night's end. Their first goal was by Reghan Bork with an assist by Roz Oye. Kamryn Van Batavia got the second goal with assists by Rylee Gee and Claire Baustian. Then it was Anika Boll scoring with Regan Felt's assist.
Bork scored in unassisted fashion in the second period. Brynn Thier kept the "mo" going with an unassisted goal. Then it was Shelby Kracht getting the puck in the net unassisted. Bork scored with an unassisted flourish in the third period. Baustian used assists from Gee and Van Batavia to strike with a goal. Then it was Bork scoring Luverne's last goal, assisted by Oye.
The goalies were Leah Thompson for MBA and Mallory Vontersch for Luverne. Vontersch stopped 14 of 14 shots.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Troubling tension as result of school incident

(KXRA image)

Does the recent incident at the Morris school make you feel uncomfortable about the place, in a basic way? Here's a building full of kids who can act in all sorts of foolish ways. Isn't that a given with kids?
Kids can be emotionally abused not only by their peers but by adults. It's an environment that can beat down a kid's self-esteem. It can breed fear and cynicism. Aren't these the factors leading to a whole lot of home-schooling? Home-schooling got established as a bastion for religious zealots. Hasn't it evolved to be more broad-based now? It has become ever more practical, as the boon of the worldwide web is realized.
Our culture can be slow in catching up with all the digital-inspired changes.
I sought an update this weekend on the school threat investigation. Where did I go first to seek any new tidbits? Where would you go? I am sure it would be the radio station website. The new owners of the Morris newspaper have essentially abandoned their website, and I frankly think that's a big deal. People really do want to use these media-affiliated sites.
As much as people groused about Fargo ownership of the Morris paper, you'd have to acknowledge that the website was worth the trouble to visit. That's a restrained compliment - it was probably better than that. And so what if some of the linked material came from other Forum properties? Sports from the West Central Tribune? That seems small potatoes now in terms of complaining about.
Forget about getting timely sports news from the paper's website now. The site hearkens back to the early days of the Internet, frankly, when a site was a rather fixed "billboard." These sites impressed because the whole concept was so new. Any website looked impressive then. It was a whole new frontier.
I smile as I observe what the Morris radio station is doing now: sports updates that are more than two or three sentences (or just the score). And not only that, I've seen some decent updates about Minnewaska sports even with photos. Weekend sports posted before the end of the weekend. Neat! All of this raises the radio station's stature while diminishing the newspaper.
I see no more reason to look at the paper now than before the transfer of ownership. Maybe less. Why hasn't the paper done anything to explore the controversy or dispute involving the water treatment plant? The city and the water treatment companies are in conflict. I'd be fascinated reading a nice investigative article. Jim Morrison would certainly have seen that this was pursued. But not now. The radio station has made a limited effort.
 
Hear the "Dragnet" theme. . .
So, we see on the radio station site Saturday that the Morris police chief has been working diligently to get to the bottom of the school incident. Should this make us feel comfortable? Here again I'll show that if I were an attorney, I'd be a defense attorney. I'd be scared, very scared really, about certain innocent kids being put on the spot. Going to school is compulsory. No one deserves suspicion outside of the one guilty party.
And, even when (or if) the guilty party gets identified, I think we should all hope the kid isn't "crucified." The family of that child should not be ruined, in effect.
Should we even take the risk of having kids? Don't we as a society want to cut some slack for kids? Look at the photo of the Morris police chief: Is this a guy you'd feel comfortable seeing on the other side of the table for an interrogation? He looks like a hot shot all right.
Police Chief Reggie Welle said the department has done about 30 interviews? Would you want your child to even take part in such a thing? As a price paid for simply going to school? When you as a parent don't even have a choice about this? Think of the kids who were hurt in the infamous Hancock school van accident. All for the sake of compulsory attendance at this big brick building called a "school?"
Welle said his department has gone through hours of surveillance video. Is the omnipresent video an intimidating presence at the school? Could it catch kids doing harmless but inappropriate things? Worst of all, the department has taken handwriting samples "from a number of students for analysis with a Stillwater firm." Nothing like out-of-town experts, I guess. I remember in high school here, I experienced a first day of school one year where we were taken on a wild goose chase on our orange bus north of town into the country. We learned later that the new routes were drawn up by "an expert from Hutchinson." CW: out of town people must be smarter.
Handwriting samples? What if you're innocent and asked to do such a thing? Might a lawyer advise a kid to simply not do it? To not say anything? Well, I guess I'm programmed like a defense attorney.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Minnewaska boys & girls win Thurs. games

Thursday was a night of hoops success for Minnewaska Area. The boys story showed a 20-point margin of victory as the Lakers took care of business vs. Sauk Centre.
The Lakers looked comfortable at the Sauk Centre court as they built a 20-point halftime bulge. The score at that time: 35-15. The margin stayed the same as each team scored 35 points in the second half. So the score at the final horn was 70-50. It was victory No. 6 for Minnewaska Area compared to three losses. Sauk Centre's record: 5-5.
Scoring balance was a Minnewaska strong suit. We can list ten players in the scoring column. The list is topped by Sam Hested and his 16 points. Peyton Johnsrud and Grant Jensen each dropped in 12 points, and Aaron VerSteeg joined the double figures list with his ten. Mitchel Gruber and Brady Hoffman each scored five, and Luke Barkeim had four. The other three Lakers with points were Drew Nelson (3), Mason Stewart (2) and Connor Johnsrud (1).
Balance certainly describes the Lakers' 3-point shooting effort: five individuals each with a make! These five were Peyton Johnsrud, Gruber, Jensen, Hested and Nelson.
Rebound leaders were Peyton Johnsrud with eight and VerSteeg with seven. Peyton set the pace in assists with four. He and Hoffman each had two steals.
Sauk Centre got down on the scoreboard despite having really good three-point shooting. Here we see Jay Neubert and Macoy Thiesen each with two makes followed by Riley Gritz, Logan Suelflow, Nolan Ziemer, Austin Schuster and Isaiah Hornick each with one.
Despite the long-range success, only one Streeter scored in double figures: Neubert with 12 points. Hornick scored nine and Thiesen eight. Then we see Suelflow (7), Gritz (5), Ziemer (3), Schuster (3) and Marcus Schmiesing (1).
Sorry, but the individual totals for Sauk Centre add up to 48 points not 50, and the discrepancy is from the West Central Tribune of Willmar.

Girls: Lakers 57, Litchfield 48
The Lakers of girls hoops turned on the jets in second half play vs. Litchfield. They decisively left behind the stalemated score at halftime, of 22-all. So they surged to their seventh win against five losses by a final score of 57-48. Litch's W/L numbers: 4-7.
The 'Waska second half advantage was by 35 to 14. The coach must have cooked up some special second half strategy. Two Lakers shared team-high in scoring, each with 13 points: Emma Thorfinnson and Avery Hoeper. Maddie Thorfinnson and Alexis Piekarski each put in seven points. Hannah Hoffmann had six followed by Michele Stai with three, and Addy Randt and Isabella Ortendahl each with two.
Sorry, but the individual totals which I obtained from the West Central Tribune add up to 53 points, not 57. It's too bad these discrepancies happen.
Three-point shooting saw Hoffman and Emma Thorfinnson each make two while Maddie Thorfinnson and Stai each connected once from beyond the stripe. The rebound leaders were Thorfinnson (first name N/A) and Hoeper each with five. It was Maddie Thorfinnson getting credited with an assist. She led in steals with three followed by Piekarski with one. Maddie blocked a shot.
Let's take a look at Litchfield and here we see Sydney McCann as top scorer with ten. Kamri Driver scored nine points and these three Dragons each had six: Janessa Olson, Lily Osterberg and Neriah Lara. Morgan Kaping and Katelyn Cruze each had four points and Izzy Pennertz added to the mix with three.
Driver was the Dragons' main driver in 3's with three. Olson, Osterberg and Lara each made one. Three Dragons each had four rebounds: McCann, Greta Hansen and Lara. Driver and Lara each had a steal.

Erratum
A subhead in the Friday West Central Tribune had ACGC beating Minnewaska 51-1 in wrestling! Obviously a screw-up by the paper. It happens to all of us. Minnewaska actually has the third-ranked team in the state.
The subhead pertained to the MAHACA Triangular, I guess. The article was just three paragraphs. I guess ACGC beat MAHACA 51-15. MAHACA went on to beat Benson 50-30.
I always found the wrestling triangulars and quads to be confusing and boring, frankly, because it was hard to figure out what was going on at any time. It seemed rather like mass confusion. You hear a crescendo of cheers from one part of the gym and wonder what the heck just happened. Buzzers would be confusing so you'd see little kids dash out to the refs and tap them to indicate a period was done.
Such an event was not my cup of tea, hardly, for appreciating high school sports. You'd have to be a parent, I guess, to feel real enthusiasm, and they would not appreciate me saying that.
Wrestling is a disturbing sport IMHO: Kids feel too much pressure to lose weight, the losers end up looking overly humiliated, and the forfeits really take luster from the entertainment. I have heard parents refer to an allegedly weak wrestler as a "fish." I say kudos to the kids who stick it out when they might have attracted this moniker. That's more than I could do. All I ever was, was a writer. No risk of concussion.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Brandon Jergenson makes five 3's in win

Tigers 65, Paynesville 61
The Tigers got back in the groove following the unfortunate break in their schedule, caused by the incident at the school. The boys helped put the unpleasant thoughts aside by defeating Paynesville. "Unpleasant" certainly describes how normal life and routine at the school had to be interrupted.
Most pleasant was how coach Mark Torgerson's squad made ten 3-point shots in Tuesday's 65-61 win over Paynesville, a sub-section rival. (I still vividly remember when Paynesville came here as giant-killer, the No. 8 seed, and prevailed. Ouch.)
The Tigers weren't to be denied in the Tuesday play. Brandon Jergenson in particular wasn't going to let anything get in his way. My, Brandon's shooting eye was sharp. He made half of our 3's, yes five of them, so kudos. I wanted to list the other Tigers making 3's but this info is strangely absent from the Willmar paper's coverage.
No surprise to see Jergenson atop our scoring list with 17 points. Jackson Loge took somewhat of a back seat this time, scoring 12, and 12 was also the total for Thomas Tiernan. Toby Gonnerman added eight points to the mix. Durgin Decker put in five followed by Cade Fehr and Jaden Maanum each with four. Cameron Koebernick's output was three.
Loge was in the front seat for rebounding with his nine, and he was followed by Decker with eight. It was Decker leading in assists with seven while Loge had five. Loge was the front seat Tiger in blocked shots with four.
We built up a 31-23 lead by halftime. The success put us within a game of .500 at 4-5. Paynesville is similarly situated at 5-5. Paynesville picked up steam in the second half with a 38-34 advantage.
The Bulldogs needed a little more balance in their scoring. Two of the green guys really stood out: Corbin Froelich with 25 points and Grady Fuchs with 22. After that it's rather negligible: Rendan Uhlenkamp (4), Carter Wessel (3), Chase Bayer (3), Caden Spanier (2) and Levi Bast (2). Froelich topped the rebounds list with seven. He was also team-best in steals with four.
 
Girls: Melrose 32, Tigers 29
The trip back including I-94 must have seemed long for the MACA girls basketball team Tuesday. Offense was scant from our squad in the road contest. The Melrose gym was most inhospitable. Where's the offense? Or perhaps we should compliment the Melrose defense. We scored a mere eight points in the last 18 minutes of play.
We held a 21-20 lead at halftime but that faded steadily as action continued. Eight points in the second half? That was a formula for futility as the orange and black was dealt a 32-29 defeat at the hands of the Dutchmen. Melrose is impressing thus far in 2019-20: a record of 8-3.
Yes, Melrose wasn't burning the nets either and a look at their individual scoring shows no one in double figures. So we see Makiya Luetmer with nine points to top the list. Ashley Rademacher and Kyja Birch each scored seven points, while Kinsey Wensmann and Audrey Welle each scored four. Maddie Rosenberger concludes the list with one.
Rademacher and Luetmer each made a three-pointer. Birch was team-best in rebounds with eight. Rademacher stole the ball four times.
Our individual scoring list isn't bound to impress much but Malory Anderson held things up with her 12 points. She recently reached a significant individual scoring milestone. So Anderson was rather a bright spot and we can also feel heartened seeing three Tigers each make a three-pointer: Meredith Carrington, Emma Bowman and MacKenna Kehoe.
A lot of the stats aren't available in the Wednesday West Central Tribune. Anderson was followed in scoring by: Carrington (5), Kylie Swanson (4), Kehoe (3), Bowman (3) and LaRae Kram (2). This was a West Central Conference game.
I have warm memories of traveling along I-94 as I attended St. Cloud State in the '70s. Melrose had superstar Mark Olberding in uniform when I was in high school. He was awesome and went on to a pro career.
 
The incident at the school
Well, that was most concerning: the reported threat of some kind that caused everyone to just scatter on Friday. Very sad naturally, but people my age are engaged in some head-scratching, as we wonder if the reaction would have been so substantial back in our day. Seriously. Oh yes, times were different, as could be reflected upon in a variety of ways.
Those were pre-political correctness times. Not that maximum safety hasn't always been a good thing. But I don't know, we just saw things in a less frenetic way then. Frankly I think a threat scribbled on a blackboard - it would have been a blackboard then, not a whiteboard - would not have shut everything down. Honestly, here's what I think the reaction would be: the first person to see it would think it's "some silly kid" engaged in the kind of mischief that can be the stock-in-trade of silly kids everywhere. So the remedy might merely be to apply the eraser!
It's hard to believe, but back then we didn't get all excited over unclean jokes with a sexist bent. We didn't like them but I guess it was like water off a duck's back. We knew bullying was bad but we figured the victims just needed to pick themselves up, dust themselves off, try to fare better on another day. Learn from it. Learn from the hard knocks.
Oh, we stood idly by while the objectification of women was rampant. Down deep we all thought, I'm sure, that such judgments were quite unpleasant and inappropriate. We chalked it up to the patriarchy, most likely.
We must wonder if the perfect is the enemy of the good today. So we wonder if the Friday threat at the school required such an awesome response: dogs brought here from the Twin Cities etc. Neat to see the dogs being such a skilled resource.
We hear threats that the responsible party for the prank or whatever should shell out what probably will be a king's ransom. I don't know about that. A good defense attorney might be able to sink his teeth into that. In our society we are supposed to cut slack for kids and the silly mistakes they can make. Yes, even mistakes that can end up costing money. One of my age peers who works downtown agreed with me, on how maybe the application of a simple eraser could have ended the whole thing.
Risks? Ricks are omnipresent. Could I have an anvil land on me as I walk through town? Robert Stack as "Rex Kramer" in "Airplane" would say "forget it, Striker, that never happens."
Of course, we hope and pray nothing bad ever happens. Would I have been scared in high school hearing of a notorious "note" of some kind? I think not. But look out for the girls smoking in the bathroom.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Win No. 11 for MBA Storm boys, 6-2

Storm 6, Windom 2
The MBA Storm boys are showing command on the ice. Ushering in the new year, the winning Storm (11-1) burst out to a 5-0 lead and finished up business with a 6-2 triumph over Windom. The puck action was on Friday, Jan. 3, at Windom.
We inched out to a 1-0 lead in the first period as Brady DeHaan scored with a Reece Kuseske assist (10:35).
The second period was when we really took charge as the puck went in the net four times. Will Breuer scored the first of these, assisted by Zach Bruns and Jack Riley, at 1:50. It was a power play job. DeHaan took advantage of a Kuseske assist to score at 2:13. Then it was Bruns showing some scoring magic at 4:44, assisted by Kaleb Breuer and Riley. Bruns was at it again at 11:02, this time with an assist from Kaleb Breuer. Windom got on the scoreboard at 13:00: Kyle Espenson scored with a Wyatt Haugen assist.
The third period was a 1-1 standoff. Windom's Simon Pell got the puck in the net at 1:29 with a Kaleb LaCanne assist. The night's final goal was by our Riley at 16:01, unassisted.
Our goalie Chase Engebretson saved 14 of 16 shots. He opposed Dan Stubbe whose numbers were 24/30.
 
Girls hockey: Windom 5, Storm 1
Girls hockey action in the new year had our Storm going up against Windom on January 3. The skaters glided over the Windom ice. When the three periods were done, MBA had a lone goal which was by Libby Pendill in the third period. Windom was the 5-1 winner.
Neither team scored in the opening period, then the second period belonged to host Windom. Windom seized the lead at 3-0 and then outscored the Storm 2-1 in the third. We came out of the day still in search of win No. 1. Windom's record: 4-11.
Elly Bang scored Windom's first goal with an assist from Madelyn Schumacher. Marissa Becker put Windom up 2-0 with an unassisted goal. Then it was Becker putting the lead at 3-0 as she scored with a Meakin Bang assist. The score became 4-0 in the third when Miranda Cory did the job unassisted. Then came the MBA goal by Pendill, unassisted. Abby Ignaszewski scored the day's final goal for Windom with an assist from Elly Bang.
Our goalie was Leah Thompson who saved 37 of 42 shots. Windom's goalie: Kaylie Baerg (23 of 24).

Minnewaska wrestling: 54-19 win
The Minnewaska Area wrestling juggernaut continues to impress. The Lakers are among the cream of the state's crop now. Up there at No. 3 in Class 'A'. The upper weights in particular have firepower. They're quite the attraction in Laker country, and a recent exhibit of their prowess was the 54-19 win over New London-Spicer.
Fans can really count on the upper weights. So when the Lakers got down 19-9, it wasn't much cause for skepticism. Indeed the squad rolled before the night was over. The last eight bouts had a Laker's arm raised at the end. The lighter wrestlers are working to try to match those standards. Give them time.
The success vs. NL-Spicer was in the Eden Valley-Watkins Triangular in Eden Valley. At 106 pounds it was Nick Ankeny taking to the mat for the Lakers, and he won by a 3-2 decision over Isaiah Nelson. Mason Schiffler was on the short end of a major decision outcome at 113 pounds. Luke Knudsen won that bout 11-2.
Then at 120 pounds, Cole Baker of the Lakers lost by fall in 1:38 to Ty Bisek. Jacob Blair chalked up a 'Waska win at 126 pounds: a pin of Jase Neal in 2:50. Caden Koziol was bested by Luke Ruter of the Wildcats in a 5-2 decision. David Lilienthal lost by fall in 2:32 to Blake Vagle. Chase Boelke was a fall winner over Brody Lien in 3:59.
Mason Blair fueled momentum with a fall win over Grant Hubbard in 1:09. The "mo" grew with Max Reichmann's 5-3 decision over Tim Thein. Ryan VanLuik won by fall in :57 over Lucas Tuchtenhagen. Forfeit wins were awarded to Lakers Tyson Meyer and Tyler VanLuik at 189 and 195 pounds, respectively.
Dylan Jergenson manned the 220-pound slot and he too was unchallenged. So was Jakob Swalla, the Lakers' big guy at 285 pounds. Yours truly gets annoyed when there are lots of forfeits in wrestling. It's just no fun.
 
 'Waska boys hoops: Lakers 71, Canby 36
Minnewaska Area put up 71 points in a boys hoops win over Canby in the Marshall Fastbreak Club Tournament. Grant Jensen scored 16 of those points in the Lakers' 71-36 win. The outcome was sealed at halftime as the Lakers owned a 42-17 lead. They cruised in the second half with a 29-19 advantage.
Peyton Johnsrud contributed ten points for the winner. This was the Lakers' sixth win of the season against one loss. Sam Hested came through with nine points while Drew Nelson and Aaron VerSteeg each scored eight. Then we see Jaden Stewart and Brady Hoffman each contribute seven, followed by Luke Barkeim (5) and Cole Harste (1). Nelson and Stewart each found the range to make two 3-pointers.
Hested was the rebound leader with seven. VerSteeg set the pace in assists with seven. VerSteeg led in steals with six followed by Jensen with four.
Canby had just one double figures scorer: Dylan Bruns with ten points. Joey Hiedman scored eight. Zach Waldrum made two 3-pointers and Will Varcoe made one.
Minnewaska Area takes a .500-plus level of confidence into the new year!

BOLD 64, Minnewaska 51
The Minnewaska boys got a tough test in facing BOLD recently. The two teams are considered top-notch in the WCC. Fans anticipated this contest with relish at the 'Waska gym. Unfortunately for the Laker backers, BOLD was up to this test in winning fashion. The BOLD Warriors were bold and precise in a 64-51 win over the Lakers.
BOLD got en route to its ninth win with a 38-23 halftime advantage. BOLD's loss total: zero. 'Waska came out of the day at 6-2. BOLD had just five players score led by Drew Sagedahl with 28 points and the team-best three 3-pointers. The other Sagedahl in BOLD's arsenal, Jordan, had 17 points and made one '3'.
Gavin Vosika also scored 17 points, Trenton Ziesmer scored four and Matt Moorse two. The individual totals appear to add up to 68, not 64. The individual totals were gleaned from the January 4 West Central Tribune. BOLD is impressive enough without stats having to be inflated! But congrats to them. I hate to nag the Tribune but I always add up the individual points.
The BOLD rebound leaders were Vosika and Drew Sagedahl with eleven and nine, respectively. Vosika executed seven assists. He and Drew each had six steals, and Drew blocked two shots.
It was quite the "iron man" night as 'Waska also had only five players score. The list was topped by Grant Jensen whose output was 17. Peyton Johnsrud scored 14 points. Aaron VerSteeg came through with eleven, Sam Hested with five and Brady Hoffman with four. Johnsrud connected for three 3-pointers while Jensen, Hested and VerSteeg each had one.
Hested with his eleven rebounds led there. Jensen with his four assists was tops. VerSteeg stole the ball twice, and Hoffman swatted aside two shots.
The Warriors are looking like the class of Minnesota Class 'A'.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Kylie Swanson has only '3' in home loss

Breckenridge 58, Tigers 53
The MACA girls had a chance to get to .500 Thursday. Instead they were dealt a 58-53 defeat by the Cowgirls of Breckenridge. So we came out of the day at 4-6. Many conquests lie ahead for coach Dale Henrich's crew. We're past the holidays now. Everyone was thrown into a funk by what happened at our school on Friday, geez.
On Thursday our hoops action was non-conference. Let's usher in 2020! The Cowgirls picked up their sixth win against five losses. Breckenridge was the prime district-level rival of the Tigers when I was in high school. Those were historic times really as we were just getting started in girls athletics.
Things looked encouraging halfway through the Thursday affair. Coach Henrich had to feel encouraged by the 25-22 score that had his squad up. The orange and black faded after that as we were outdone 36-28.
We had scoring balance as an attribute. Malory Anderson and MacKenna Kehoe each scored 12 points and Meredith Carrington put in ten. But it was Kylie Swanson who had our only three-point make. Normally we do better in that department. Swanson had five points for her night's work. Emma Bowman contributed eight points and Kendra Wevley six.
Anderson was tops in rebounds with 12. Anderson performed four assists, and she and Carrington each had four steals. Wevley blocked a shot.
 
Boys: Tigers 64, Breckenridge 53
Ah, so many memories of Tigers vs. Cowboys games in past District 21 tournaments. They're still the Cowboys and Tigers. Green vs. orange and black. There's no "district" anymore but the teams do renew the rivalry on a non-conference basis.
So on Thursday the teams took to our MACA court where it was the orange and black prevailing. Yes, in a 64-53 final. We got our third win as Jackson Loge scored 18 points and gathered in 18 rebounds. Plus he swatted aside three Breck shots. Our record at night's end: 3-5. Breck's mark: 4-5.
Jaden Maanum scored 14 points and led our three-point shooting with two makes. Brandon Jergenson and Thomas Tiernan each made one '3'. Durgin Decker was a double figures scorer with his ten. Tiernan and Jergenson used their 3's to post totals of seven and five, respectively. Cameron Koebernick and Cade Fehr each scored four points, and Toby Gonnerman had two.
Maanum was the top assist producer with six. Tiernan had two steals.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com