R&J Sports

hockey polls

2012-03-05T16:15:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – A sweep to close out the regular season and just five losses in the last 23 games have North Dakota ranked No. 12 in both national polls this week.

After closing out the regular season with a pair of wins over Minnesota State, UND climbed two spots in the USCHO.com poll and three spots in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, and is now ranked 12th in both.

Boston College was the unanimous No. 1 in both polls.

The Sioux will host Bemidji State in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) playoffs March 9-11 at Ralph Engelstad Arena. UND is 16-5-2 since suffering a 1-0 loss at BSU on Nov. 20.

USCHO.com Division I Men’s Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (50) 25-10-1 1000 1
2. Ferris State 22-9-5 904 3
3. Minnesota Duluth 22-8-6 846 2
4. Michigan 21-11-4 821 6
5. Minnesota 24-12-1 792 4
6. Boston University 21-12-1 776 4
7. Massachusetts-Lowell 22-10-1 703 8
8. Union 20-7-7 697 7
9. Denver 21-11-4 591 9
10.Maine 20-11-3 526 10
11.Miami 21-13-2 508 11
12.North Dakota 20-12-3 419 14
13.Cornell 15-7-7 409 13
14.Merrimack 17-10-7 366 12
15.Michigan State 19-13-4 347 15
16.Western Michigan 17-13-6 249 16
17.Notre Dame 19-16-3 171 18
18.Colorado College 18-14-2 155 19
19.Air Force 17-9-7 71 20
20.Lake Superior State 18-15-5 39 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Michigan 37, Harvard 26, Quinnipiac 26, Colgate 11, Ohio State 6, St. Cloud State 2, Nebraska Omaha 1, Robert Morris 1.

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (34) 25-10-1 510 1
2. Ferris State 22-9-5 443 3
3. Minnesota Duluth 22-8-6 408 2
4. Minnesota 24-12-1 381 5
5. Michigan 21-11-4 374 6
6. Boston University 21-12-1 343 4
7. Union 20-7-7 323 7
8. Massachusetts-Lowell22-10-1 322 8
9. Denver 21-11-4 234 10
10.Maine 20-11-3 177 11
11.Miami 21-13-2 167 9
12.North Dakota 20-12-3 124 15
13.Cornell 15-7-7 13 13
14.Merrimack 17-10-7 75 12
15.Michigan State 19-13-4 67 14

Others Receiving Votes: Western Michigan 9, Colorado College 5, Notre Dame 5, Northern Michigan 3, Air Force 2.

Minnesota Lynx Unveil 2012 Draft Central

2012-03-05T15:59:00.000-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Lynx today unveiled a special section on LynxBasketball.com devoted to the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft. With “March Madness” grabbing the attention of women’s basketball fans around the country, Draft Central features scouting reports on the top 15 seniors across the country, as well as updated statistics on over 60 draft eligible seniors. Additionally, Lynx Draft Central also features mock drafts from Michelle Smith of ESPNW, Nate Parham of Swish Appeal and Doug Feinberg from the Associated Press and a positional breakdown from National TV Analyst Debbie Antonelli.

“Building off of last season’s on-court success, it’s very important to engage our fans in what will be another important draft for our franchise,” said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. “We are extremely excited about the possibility of adding a premium talent at the No. 3 overall pick to our already loaded roster. We’re committed to providing our fans with the best possible draft coverage and our Draft Central will help them educate themselves on the top collegiate prospects during the tournament.”

Draft Central includes a module at the top featuring links to detailed individual scouting reports on the top 15 draft eligible seniors, including Miami’s Shenise Johnson and Riquna Williams, Ohio State’s Samantha Prahalis, Stanford’s Nnemkadi Ogwumike and Tennessee’s Glory Johnson and Shekinna Stricklen. Each scouting report features quotes from the Lynx coaching staff, assessments from national analysts and local beat writers and a breakdown of each player’s collegiate career.

The Lynx have six draft picks in the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft, which will be held in April. Minnesota holds two picks in the first round (3rd and 12th overall), three in the second round (18, 19 and 20) and one in the third round (31).

The 2011 WNBA Champion Lynx will kick off their title defense with the team's Home Opener on Sunday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Target Center against the Phoenix Mercury on ABC. Lower-level tickets are available for as little as $10 a game for the 17-game home season and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or visiting the Lynx website at www.lynxbasketball.com.

Sioux keep climbing, ranked 12th in both polls

2012-03-05T15:55:00.000-06:00

A sweep to close out the regular season and just five losses in the last 23 games have North Dakota ranked No. 12 in both national polls this week.
After closing out the regular season with a pair of wins over Minnesota State, UND climbed two spots in the USCHO.com poll and three spots in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, and is now ranked 12th in both.

Boston College was the unanimous No. 1 in both polls.

The Sioux will host Bemidji State in the first round of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) playoffs March 9-11 at Ralph Engelstad Arena. UND is 16-5-2 since suffering a 1-0 loss at BSU on Nov. 20.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll
Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (50) 25-10-1 1000 1
2. Ferris State 22-9-5 904 3
3. Minnesota Duluth 22-8-6 846 2
4. Michigan 21-11-4 821 6
5. Minnesota 24-12-1 792 4
6. Boston University 21-12-1 776 4
7. Massachusetts-Lowell 22-10-1 703 8
8. Union 20-7-7 697 7
9. Denver 21-11-4 591 9
10. Maine 20-11-3 526 10
11. Miami 21-13-2 508 11
12. North Dakota 20-12-3 419 14
13. Cornell 15-7-7 409 13
14. Merrimack 17-10-7 366 12
15. Michigan State 19-13-4 347 15
16. Western Michigan 17-13-6 249 16
17. Notre Dame 19-16-3 171 18
18. Colorado College 18-14-2 155 19
19. Air Force 17-9-7 71 20
20. Lake Superior State 18-15-5 39 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Michigan 37, Harvard 26, Quinnipiac 26, Colgate 11, Ohio State 6, St. Cloud State 2, Nebraska Omaha 1, Robert Morris 1.

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll
Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (34) 25-10-1 510 1
2. Ferris State 22-9-5 443 3
3. Minnesota Duluth 22-8-6 408 2
4. Minnesota 24-12-1 381 5
5. Michigan 21-11-4 374 6
6. Boston University 21-12-1 343 4
7. Union 20-7-7 323 7
8. Massachusetts-Lowell 22-10-1 322 8
9. Denver 21-11-4 234 10
10. Maine 20-11-3 177 11
11. Miami 21-13-2 167 9
12. North Dakota 20-12-3 124 15
13. Cornell 15-7-7 13 13
14. Merrimack 17-10-7 75 12
15. Michigan State 19-13-4 67 14

Others Receiving Votes: Western Michigan 9, Colorado College 5, Notre Dame 5, Northern Michigan 3, Air Force 2.

State Boys’ Hockey Tournament

2012-03-05T15:11:00.002-06:00

(via mshsl) In the sixth year of seeding the qualified teams, Hermantown was chosen No. 1 in Class A and Duluth East was chosen No. 1 in Class AA for the 2012 State Boys’ Hockey Tournament.

The Hawks of Hermantown qualified for the ninth time and are seeking their second state title. The Greyhounds of Duluth East are making their 19th trip to the tournament and are seeking their fourth state title.

All but one qualifying team has past tournament experience. Maple Grove is making its inaugural appearance. Hill-Murray of Maplewood leads all teams by making its 25th appearance this year.

Class A teams will play their quarterfinal games on Wednesday, March 7, and Class AA teams will follow suit on Thursday, March 8. Both classes will continue with championship semifinals on Friday, March 9, and then third-place and championship games on Saturday, March 10. Consolation semifinals for Class A are scheduled Thursday, March 8, with Class AA following suit on Friday, March 9, and both consolation championship games on Saturday, March 10. All 2012 State Boys’ Hockey Tournament championship-round and third-place games in both classes will be played at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. All consolation rounds for both classes will be played at Mariucci Arena on the University of Minnesota Minneapolis campus.

The seeding process had the 16 coaches of the section champions log onto a special page of the League Web site. Each coach then ranked the other teams one through seven. The highest and lowest rankings for each team were discarded, leaving five rankings for each team. From those rankings, the top four seeds were selected. In conference calls with all eight head coaches of each class, League Associate Director Craig Perry announced the top four seeds. An impartial participant then blindly drew the four remaining teams from a hat to establish the opponent for each seeded team.

Detailed statistics provided by qualified teams are available on the League’s Web site — www.MSHSL.org — as a Media Guide link under Tournaments, then Winter, then Boys’ Hockey.

Class A Preview
(No. 2 Seed) St. Thomas Academy, Mendota Heights (23-5-0) vs. Little Falls (19-9-0): The Cadets of St. Thomas Academy are making their seventh appearance and will attempt to defend their 2011 championship. They also won titles in 2006 and 2008. St. Thomas Academy finished the regular season at No. 2 in the final Let’s Play Hockey poll. This year the Cadets defeated three other tournament qualifiers: 3-2 in overtime over No. 3-seeded Breck School of Golden Valley, 4-3 in overtime over unseeded Marshall School of Duluth, and 8-1 over unseeded Rochester Lourdes. Four of their losses were against Class AA qualifiers: 5-4 to Duluth East, 3-2 to Edina, and 2-1 and 5-2 to Hill-Murray. The Cadets have given up one less goal per game (40 total) than last year’s title team and have equaled the number of goals scored (153). Seventeen players have points on the season, led by senior forward Peter Krieger with 46 (14 goals, 32 assists). Junior forward Alex Johnson has 20 goals and 23 assists, and senior defenseman Eric Schurhamer has 14 goals and 27 assists. Senior Ian West and junior David Zevnik have combined for seven shutouts in the Cadets’ last 12 games while giving up only five goals. West has a .932 save percentage and Zevnik has a .909 save percentage. The Flyers of Little Falls, ranked 16th in the final LPH poll, are making their sixth appearance and seek their first title. The only team of either tournament-qualifying class they played was top-seeded Hermantown in their last regular season game that ended with a 2-0 loss. Little Falls has been very successful killing penalties (87.9 percent). Senior Joey Hanowski leads the Flyers with 57 points (31 goals, 26 assists) and is complemented by juniors Ben Newman with 21 goals and 24 assists and Luke Majerle with 14 goals and 29 assists. Junior goaltender Michael Stumpf has 609 saves and a .913 save percentage and held a scoreless streak of over 180 minutes from Jan. 13 through Jan. 27.

(No. 3 Seed) Breck School, Golden Valley (24-3-1) vs. Marshall School, Duluth (21-7-0): The Mustangs of Breck School, consolation champions last year, are making their fourth consecutive and ninth overall appearance. They earned previous titles in 2000, 2004, 2009 and 2010. This year they were ranked No. 3 in the final LPH poll. The Mustangs scored 218 goals this year while their opponents scored 70 against them. The team may break the school’s single season goals-scored record of 218 set by its 2010 title team. Two of their losses were against tournament qualifiers: 3-2 to St. Thomas Academy and 5-3 to Class AA qualifier Moorhead. They defeated Marshall School 7-5 early in the season and beat unseeded Rochester Lourdes 6-3 later. They also defeated Class AA qualifier Lakeville South 6-4. Senior forward Conor Andrle led Breck School with 27 goals and 49 assists. Junior forward Thomas Lindstrom and senior forward Grant Opperman each have a team-high 31 goals, with Opperman adding 42 assists and Lindstrom adding 37 assists. Senior Jack Kenney is the primary goaltender and has a save percentage of .900 on 524 saves. Marshall School is making its sixth appearance and seeks its first title. Four of its losses came against Class A tournament qualifiers: besides Breck School, the Hilltoppers lost 4-3 in overtime to St. Thomas Academy, 5-1 to Hermantown and 4-2 to fourth-seeded Thief River Falls. They beat Rochester Lourdes 4-0 and dropped a 5-2 game against Class AA qualifier Benilde-St. Margaret’s. Nearly one-third (37) of the Hilltoppers’ goals came on the power play. Senior forward Judd Peterson, a Mr. Hockey finalist, broke the school’s single season scoring record held by current University of Minnesota-Duluth and Hobey Baker Award finalist Jack Connolly. Peterson has 79 points on 44 goals and 35 assists. Junior Kris McKinzie added 43 points and senior Jake Bushey added 33 points among 18 players who have points on the season. Senior Christian Coffman and junior Cadem Flahery share goaltending duties. Coffman has a .921 save percentage and Flaherty has a .894 save percentage.

(No. 1 Seed) Hermantown (28-0-0) vs. Rochester Lourdes (20-8-0): The Hawks of Hermantown are making their third consecutive and ninth overall appearance in the school’s first undefeated, untied season. They finished as runners-up to Breck School in 2010 and to St. Thomas Academy last year and were ranked No. 1 in this year’s final LPH poll. Hermantown won the 2007 title going 29-0-1. During the regular season Hermantown defeated Thief River Falls 3-1, defeated Marshall School 5-1, and beat Little Falls 2-0. The Hawks scored 168 goals this year to their opponents’ 35 which established a new school record for fewest goals given up. Senior wing Jared Thomas led the Hawks with 71 points on 26 goals and 45 assists. Seniors Andrew Mattson and Jared Kolquist added 42 and 39 points, respectively. Senior Matt Mensinger compiled a 22-0 record in the net and his save percentage is .938. The Hawks return with 11 players from their 2011 squad. The Eagles of Rochester Lourdes, a co-op with Stewartville, returns for the third consecutive year and eighth overall appearance with various other co-op arrangements or singly. Last year Rochester Lourdes went two and out. The Eagles were ranked No. 9 in this year’s final LPH poll. Four of their losses and one of their wins came against tournament qualifiers: they defeated New Ulm 8-4, but lost 5-2 to Little Falls, lost 8-1 to St. Thomas Academy, lost 4-0 to Marshall School, and lost 6-3 to Breck School. This year the Eagles netted 142 goals, including 32 on power plays, to their opponents’ 74. Junior forward Jason Samuelson led Rochester Lourdes with 30 goals and 33 assists. Junior Alex Funk has a team-high 32 goals plus 30 assists, and senior Landon Farrell has 16 goals and 35 assists. Senior Jesse Neumann and junior Andrew Ellingson share the goaltending duties with save percentages of .862 and .869, respectively.

(No. 4 Seed) Thief River Falls (22-4-2) vs. New Ulm (17-11-0): The Prowlers of Thief River Falls, a co-op with Goodridge and Warren-Alvarado-Oslo that finished third last year, were ranked No. 4 in this year’s final LPH poll. This is the third appearance for the Prowlers as a co-op, and Thief River Falls made nine singular appearances dating back to the inaugural 1945 tournament through 1965. If the Prowlers win it would be their third title, having won in 1954 and 1956. Thief River Falls lost 3-1 to Hermantown this season, defeated Marshall School 4-2, and also lost 7-0 to Class AA qualifier Moorhead. The team scored 110 goals to its opponents’ 51. Senior forward Riley Soderstrom led the Prowlers with 27 goals and 25 assists this season. Senior wings Evan Ose and Austin Odberg have 38 and 34 points, respectively. Senior Jon Narverud is the primary goaltender and has a save percentage of .846. Unranked New Ulm, which includes students from New Ulm Cathedral and Minnesota Valley Lutheran of New Ulm, is making its third consecutive appearance as that pairing and fourth overall. The Eagles bowed out in both the 2010 and 2011 consolation semifinals, and lost to Rochester Lourdes 8-4 this season. They have never won a state championship. They outscored opponents 141 to 99 this season, including 34 power-play goals. Senior Brody Peterson tallied 41 goals and 27 assists this year, with seniors Dylan Schreckenberg and Jeff Banal adding 55 and 53 points, respectively. Sophomore Brach Kraus has the bulk of the minutes in the net and has a .902 save percentage.

Class AA Preview
(No. 2 Seed) Maple Grove (24-2-2) vs. Hill-Murray, Maplewood (22-6-0): The Crimson of Maple Grove earned the second seed and third ranking in the final LPH poll making their inaugural state tournament appearance. Four of their wins and one of their losses came against tournament qualifiers: a 4-1 loss to top-seeded Duluth East, plus 5-4 and 5-3 wins against unseeded Benilde-St. Margaret’s, and 3-0 and 5-3 wins against No. 4-seeded Edina. Maple Grove has 166 goals on the season, 32 of which came on the power play and 12 of which were earned short-handed. Senior forward Dylan Steman, with his team-leading 65 points on 27 goals and 38 assists, set school marks for single-season points and single-season assists. Senior forward Tony Paulson added 25 goals with 30 assists, and senior Shane Wolden has 50 points on 21 goals and 29 assists. Senior Kyle Koop has 627 saves on the season. Hill-Murray, ranked ninth in the final LPH poll, is making its 25th appearance and seeks to add a fourth title, having won in 1983, 1991 and 2008. The Pioneers defeated two qualifiers and lost to two: they beat unseeded Lakeville South 5-3 and beat unseeded Moorhead 6-1, but lost 3-2 in their season opener to unseeded Benidle-St. Margaret’s of St. Louis Park and 4-2 to No. 3-seeded Eagan. They also beat Class A qualifier St. Thomas Academy 2-1 and 5-2. Hill-Murray scored 35 of its 156 goals on the power play and another nine short-handed. Junior Jake Guentzel leads the team with 76 points on 23 goals and 53 assists, followed by junior Zach LaValle with 61 points (25 goals, 36 assists) and senior Charlie Sampair with 49 points (29 goals, 20 assists). Junior John Dugas has the most minutes in net and a .900 save percentage.

(No. 3 Seed) Eagan (24-3-1) vs. Moorhead (21-6-0): The Wildcats, fifth-ranked by LPH, seek their first title in their third appearance. During the regular season they defeated Lakeville south twice, 4-3 and 5-4, and also defeated Hill-Murray 4-2. Eagan has 177 goals on the season, 32 of which were power-play scores, and have given up 46. The team’s season record, plus the number of goals scored and allowed are all school records. Eighteen different players have points on the season, led by senior Nick Kuchera with 54 (17 goals, 37 assists), senior Michael Zajac with 51 points (25 goals, 26 assists), and senior Will Merchant with 50 points (24 goals, 26 assists). Senior Christian Butler is the No. 1 goalie and has a .910 save percentage. The Spuds of Moorhead, who bowed two and out last year, earned the No. 10 ranking in the LPH poll. They are making their 13th appearance and have won no titles yet. They split a series, losing the first 5-3 and winning the second 6-2, to Benilde-St. Margaret’s, lost 6-1 to Hill-Murray and lost 6-3 to top-seeded Duluth East. They also defeated Class A qualifier Breck School 5-3. Twenty-one percent of their 100 goals came on the power play. Junior Tony Uglem has a team-high 23 goals with 13 assists. Three other players have 30 points: senior Bryant Christian (8 goals, 22 assists), and juniors Nicholas Uglem (11 goals, 19 assists) and Thomas carey (8 goals, 22 assists). Senior goaltender Michael Bitzer, a finalist for the Frank Brimsek Award, has a .929 save percentage on 670 saves.

(No. 1 Seed) Duluth East (27-1-0) vs. Lakeville South (20-8-0): The Greyhounds of Duluth East, the 2011 runners-up, are making their fourth consecutive and 19th overall appearance. They were top-ranked in this year’s final LPH poll and seek a fourth title, having previously won in 1960, 1995 and 1998. Duluth East defeated Maple Grove 4-1 and Moorhead 6-3 in back-to-back regular season contests, and also defeated Class A qualifier St. Thomas Academy 5-4. Duluth East outscored opponents 161 to 48, including 41 power-play goals. Senior forward and son of Head Coach Mike Randolph, Jake Randolph, has 70 points on 33 goals and 37 assists. Senior forward Dom Toninato has 65 points (28 goals, 37 assists), and junior forward Ryan Lundgren added 15 goals and 34 assists. Junior goaltender Dylan Parker went 16-0 this year and has a save percentage of 0.933. Lakeville South, ranked 10th in the final LPH poll, is making its second appearance and is seeking its first title. Five of the Cougars’ eight losses came against tournament qualifiers: 5-1 against Eagan, 5-3 against Hill-Murray, and twice, 4-3 and 5-4, against Eagan, plus a 6-4 loss to Class A qualifier Breck School. Lakeville South has scored 174 goals, including 45 power-play goals, and has given up 72. Mr. Hockey senior finalist Justin Kloos leads the team in points (99), goals (39), and assists (41). Senior Alex Harvey added 77 points (36 goals, 41 assists) and senior Joe Freemark has 43 points on 13 goals and 30 assists. Senior goaltender Hunter Ziniel, who was cut from the team as a junior, has the most minutes in net and has a .891 save percentage on 387 saves.

(No. 4 Seed) Edina (23-5-0) vs. Benilde-St. Margaret’s, St. Louis Park (22-6-0): The Edina Hornets are returning for their 23rd appearance. They were ranked No. 4 in the final LPH poll and are in the hunt for their 11th title. They won previously in 1969, 1971, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1997, and 2010, plus 1974, 1978 and 1979 as Edina East. During the regular season the Hornets lost twice, 3-0 and 5-3, to Maple Grove and defeated Lakeville South 5-1, plus lost 3-2 to Class A qualifier St. Thomas Academy. Sophomore Connor Hurley paced this year’s squad with 55 points on 24 goals and 31 assists. Ninth-grader Dylan Malmquist added 25 goals and 23 assists, while junior Andy Jordahl contributed 10 goals and 22 assists. Junior Willie Benjamin (.886 save percentage) went 18-5 in the net for Edina and senior Connor Beaupre (.857 save percentage) went 5-0. The Red Knights of Benilde-St. Margaret’s are making their fourth appearance, scoring 195 goals this season, 46 of them on the power play, while giving up just 58. Junior Grant Besse, with his 44 goals this season, has the school career record of 107. He also provided 39 assists. Both senior Christian Horn and junior T.J. Moore have 65 points; Horn on 25 goals and 40 assists, and Moore on 28 goals and 37 assists. Junior Dan Labosky has a team-high 47 assists, plus added 16 goals. Both junior Justin Quale and senior Anders Jecha are 11-3 in the net, with Quale having a .923 save percentage and Jecha a .889 save percentage.

Tickets and Special Promotions
All Class AA championship sessions are reserved seating only. Any unsold tickets allocated to participating schools go on sale one hour before each two-game session. All Class A sessions and consolation games for both classes are general admission seating. Adult tickets are $17.00 for championship sessions and $12.00 for consolation sessions. Student tickets are $11.00 for championship sessions and $8.00 for consolation sessions.

A visit to any participating Wells Fargo metro location can yield you a $2 discount coupon for students 13 and younger for Class A games. The discount coupons are also available for the Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball Tournaments.

Television and Web Streaming
KSTC TV, Channel 45, will televise all championship-round games live. For specific cable channel coverage, visit www.KSTC45.com. All of the televised games will also be streamed live and free on the Web at Prep45.com. The consolation games of both classes will be recorded for delayed playback on Prep45.com. Fans may also follow all games live statistically by clicking on links at the League Web site — www.MSHSL.org.

UMC athletes named to NSIC All-Conference Second Team

2012-03-02T14:41:00.000-06:00

(Burnsville, Minn.)- The 2011-12 NSIC All-Conference Teams have been announced, as voted on by the league coaches. Earning honors from the University of Minnesota, Crookston Women’s Basketball team were Brittany Wiese (G, 5-7, Jr, Albertville, Minn.) and Megan Eul (G, 5-10, Sr, Rosemount, Minn.) who were both named to the NSIC Women’s Basketball All-Conference Second Team.

Wiese played and started in just 19 games due to as season-ending injury. She averaged 30 minutes/game and was averaging 15.2 points/game before her injury. She dished 69 assists and grabbed 30 steals. She scored a season-high 24 points against Augustana College on December 17. Wiese is majoring in sport & recreation management. She is the daughter of Ken and Lori Wiese.

Eul started in all 26 games this season. She averaged 29 minutes/game and 13.7 points/game. She shot 45.7% from the field, 36.4 % from long range and 78% from the free-throw line. She led the Golden Eagles in rebounding with 163 boards. She dished 37 assists, blocked 14 shots, stole 29 passes and led UMC in scoring with 357 points. Eul is majoring in early childhood education. She is the daughter of Liz and Craig Eul.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at: www.goldeneaglesports.com.

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.

All-Summit League winners

2012-03-01T16:04:00.000-06:00

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - North Dakota State forward Taylor Braun was named to the All-Summit League first team and guard Lawrence Alexander made the All-Newcomer Team in a vote of the league's media, coaches and sports information directors announced Thursday, March 1.

Braun, a 6-foot-7 sophomore from Newberg, Ore., is North Dakota State's leading scorer and rebounder with 15.7 points and 6.6 rebounds per game. In league play, he averaged 17.7 points and 6.5 rebounds. He is NDSU’s first all-league first-teamer since Ben Woodside and Brett Winkelman in 2008 and 2009.

Alexander, a 6-foot-3 freshman from Peoria, Ill., is NDSU's second leading scorer with 12.9 points per game and leads the team with 4.7 assists per game. He was the league's highest scoring newcomer and ranked fourth among all players in assists averaging 13.8 points 4.6 assists in league play.

Oral Roberts forward Dominique Morrison was voted Player of the Year, Western Illinois guard Ceola Clark III was named Defensive Player of the Year, ORU forward Steven Roundtree was named Sixth Man of the Year, and ORU's Scott Sutton was voted Coach of the Year.

No. 5-seeded North Dakota State (17-12) is scheduled to play No. 4-seeded Western Illinois (16-13) at 6 p.m. Sunday, March 4, in the quarterfinals of the Summit League tournament at Sioux Falls Arena in Sioux Falls, S.D.
2011-12 Summit League Men's Basketball Awards

First Team
Taylor Braun, G, So., North Dakota State
Frank Gaines, G, Jr., IPFW
Reggie Hamilton, G, Sr., Oakland
Dominique Morrison, F, Sr., Oral Roberts
Nate Wolters, G, Jr., South Dakota State
Alex Young, F, Sr., IUPUI

Second Team
Ceola Clark III, G, Sr., Western Illinois
Michael Craion, F, Sr., Oral Roberts
Jordan Dykstra, F, So., South Dakota State
Jackson Stevenett, F, Jr., Southern Utah
Charlie Westbrook, G, Sr., South Dakota

Honorable Mention
Travis Bader, G, So., Oakland
Reggie Chamberlain, G, Sr., UMKC
Warren Niles, G, So., Oral Roberts
Terell Parks, F/C, Jr., Western Illinois
Steven Roundtree, F, So., Oral Roberts

All-Newcomer Team
Lawrence Alexander, G, Fr., North Dakota State
Ian Chiles, G, So., IUPUI
Obi Emegano, F, Fr., Western Illinois
Terell Parks, F/C, Jr., Western Illinois
Corey Petros, C/F, RFr., Oakland

Player of the Year: Dominique Morrison, Oral Roberts

Newcomer of the Year: Lawrence Alexander, North Dakota State

Defensive Player of the Year: Ceola Clark III, Western Illinois

Sixth Man of the Year: Steven Roundtree, Oral Roberts

Coach of the Year: Scott Sutton, Oral Roberts

Wolves Re-assign Rookie Guard Malcolm Lee to Sioux Falls

2012-02-29T14:50:00.000-06:00

Minneapolis/St. Paul – The Minnesota Timberwolves today announced that the club has re-assigned rookie guard Malcolm Lee to the Sioux Falls Skyforce of the NBA Development League. Lee is expected to play tomorrow as Sioux Falls plays host to Bakersfield.

Lee appeared in three games for the Skyforce in his first stint with Sioux Falls, averaging 9.7 points, 2.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 25.3 minutes. He tallied 16 points and dished out six assists on Feb. 7 vs. Dakota, had nine points and seven assists in a win over Idaho on Feb. 10, and recorded four points, four rebounds and five assists vs. Canton on Feb. 11.

Lee, acquired on draft night from the Chicago Bulls, has yet to appear in a regular season game for the Wolves after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee on December 30.

Per NBA rules, a first- or second-year player can be assigned to the team's D-League affiliate a maximum of three times in a season.

NDSU's Nathan Anderson Named Summit League Men's Golfer of the Week

2012-02-29T14:22:00.002-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - North Dakota State's Nathan Anderson was named Summit League Men's Golfer of the Week by the league office Wednesday, Feb. 29, after getting his first collegiate victory.

Anderson, a junior from Oxbow, N.D., shot an even-par 72 in the first round and a 76 in the second round to win the Quintero Invitational by six shots over Creighton's John Rasmussen.

Anderson is just the second NDSU men's golfer to earn the award and the first since Nick Olsgaard in February 2010.

Nicole Smart named GWC Player of the week

2012-02-29T08:33:00.000-06:00

For the second time this season, North Dakota senior guard Nicole Smart has been named the Great West Conference Player of the Week, as announced by league offices today. She nabbed conference honors after leading the Fighting Sioux to a pair of Great West victories last week in Texas. Those wins helped to lead the Sioux to their second GWC regular-season title in three years.

Just yesterday, Smart was named the College Sports Madness Great West Conference Player of the Week.

A native of Ada, Minn., Smart averaged 16.5 ppg last week in the Lone Star State.

In the 60-58 victory at Texas-Pan American on Thursday, she led the squad with a career-high 19 points, and was clutch down the stretch. With 54 seconds left in the game, Smart sank her only three-pointer of the night. She then drained a pair of free throws with 19 seconds left on the clock, extending UND’s lead to four. She finished 5-for-12 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 at the free throw line.

On Saturday against Houston Baptist, she finished with a team-high 14 points on 5-for-12 shooting from the field, including a pair of three-pointers in each half. Inside UND’s 14-6 first-half-ending run, Smart swished a pair of baseline three’s, including one to end the half. Inside the four-minute mark of the second half, she drilled back-to-back shots from beyond the arc to give UND a 22-point advantage.

Others nominated: Devyn Weymouth (Houston Baptist), Nicole Maticka (NJIT), Bianca Torre (Texas-Pan American) and Sammie Jensen (Utah Valley).

17th Annual Taste of the Timberwolves

2012-02-28T14:42:00.002-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Timberwolves FastBreak Foundation will host its 17th annual Taste of the Timberwolves, presented by Starkey Hearing Foundation, on Tuesday, March 6 from 6-9 p.m. at Target Center.

The 2012 Taste of the Timberwolves' cornerstone sponsors include POPP Communications and Log House Foods and the event will continue to showcase some of the finest local restaurants and food vendors. Taste of the Timberwolves tips off with the traditional great fare of Taste and concludes with an exciting live auction and Timberwolves players competing against each other in an entertaining game of Family Feud.

Taste of the Timberwolves is the annual fundraising gala for the Timberwolves FastBreak Foundation, which provides and supports hands-on programs that positively impact Minnesota youth. The "Taste-ing" begins at 6 p.m. with attendees enjoying cuisine from some of the Twin Cities' best restaurants as Wolves players and basketball staff members serve the food.

Taste-goers will have the opportunity to bid on unique items, experiences and merchandise during silent and live auctions, including a road trip with the Wolves to Memphis and Charlotte from March 26-28 and a Twin Cities Sports Package that includes unique experiences and tickets from the Wolves, Vikings, Twins, Gophers and Saints. Other auction items will include special Timberwolves player experiences that cannot be won elsewhere.

Following a live program, Timberwolves players will compete against each other in a live version of the Timberwolves Family Feud. Along with great food, fun and entertainment, each guest in attendance will receive an exclusive team-autographed print.

"We're excited to celebrate our 17th Taste of the Timberwolves event this year. The entire Timberwolves organization is proud of what this great event has come to represent to our fans and our community over the past 16 years," said Timberwolves President Chris Wright. "This unique evening gives our fans an opportunity to interact with our players and coaches while raising the funds that allows our FastBreak Foundation to continue its great work with Minnesota's youth in need. We sincerely appreciate everyone who contributes to Taste and makes our Foundation's work possible."

Restaurant and food vendor participants at this year's Taste include: 2 Gingers, Anheuser-Busch, Bacardi, Bar 508, Caribou Coffee, CRAVE/Sopranos, Dickey's BBQ, Ellsworth Creamery, FACES, Granite City Food & Brewery, Huberts/A Chef's Production, Log House Foods, Kieran's, MillerCoors, Northern Vineyards, O'Donovan's, Pepsi, Pinstripes, SEVEN, Sky Deck, Vescio's and Wildfire Grill.

Over the past 16 years, Taste of the Timberwolves has raised more than $4 million dollars for the Timberwolves FastBreak Foundation.

Lynx Trade Forward Charde Houston to Phoenix

2012-02-28T14:38:00.003-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Lynx today announced the team has executed a sign-and-trade deal with Phoenix, sending forward Charde Houston and the 24th overall pick in the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft to the Mercury in exchange for the 18th overall selection in this year's draft.

“Charde was an important part of our team for the last four years,” said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. “She was able to positively impact our team, not only with her play on the court, but also with her personality off the court and with the fans. Charde had expressed an interest getting more playing time, and hopefully this trade will give her a larger opportunity. We are appreciative of everything she has done for our organization and wish her the best in Phoenix.”

A four-year veteran out of Connecticut, Houston was originally selected by the Lynx in the third round (30th overall pick) of the 2008 WNBA Draft. She was named an All-Star during her sophomore season in 2009, averaging career highs with 13.1 points and 5.5 rebounds in 23.3 minutes per game. Last season, Houston averaged career lows in minutes (7.8 mpg), points (2.9 ppg) and rebounds (1.7 rpg) in 27 appearances. She holds career averages of 9.5 points and 3.9 rebounds in 18.3 minutes per game.

The Lynx have six draft picks in the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft, which will be held in April. Minnesota holds two picks in the first round (3rd and 12th overall), three in the second round (18, 19 and 20) and one in the third round (31).

The 2011 WNBA Champion Lynx will kick off their title defense with the team's Home Opener on Sunday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Target Center against the Phoenix Mercury on ABC. Lower-level tickets are available for as little as $10 a game for the 17-game home season and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or visiting the Lynx website at www.lynxbasketball.com.

State Wrestling Tournament preview

2012-02-27T15:52:00.003-06:00

All three of the 2011 team champions return to defend their respective titles: the Jackson County Central Huskies in Class A; the Simley Spartans in Class AA; and the Apple Valley Eagles in Class AAA. Jackson County Central, which tied Frazee for top honors in 2011, is looking for its third consecutive title. Simley of Inver Grove Heights is looking for its fifth consecutive title and Apple Valley is seeking its seventh consecutive
title.

Two teams are making their first tournament appearances this year: Barnesville in Class A and Champlin Park in Class AAA. On the opposite end of the spectrum, the Eagles of Apple Valley return for their 30th consecutive and 31st overall appearance. In the individual competition, 20 champions return for more gold medals - five in Class AAA, 10 in Class AA, and five in Class A. This will also be the first year that new weight classes are in effect. The National Federation of State High School Associations which writes rules for wrestling adopted the current 14 weight structure following an exhaustive study by the National Wrestling Coaches Association. Actual weigh-in information of 195,000 wrestlers was analyzed and the current structure was developed to include approximately 7.14 percent of all wrestlers per weight with the intent of providing an equal distribution of all wrestlers across all weights. The new structure also includes a new weight in the low 180-pound range.

Here are the current and former weight classes for comparison:
Current Former
106 103
113 112
120 119
126 125
132 130
138 135
145 140
152 145
160 152
170 160
182 171
195 189
220 215
285 285

The 2012 State Wrestling Tournament opens Thursday, March 1, and runs through Saturday, March 3, at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. The three-day format features all of the team dual competition on Thursdayfollowed by exclusive individual competition Friday and Saturday. This is the fourth year that the teams have been seeded. The 24 coaches of the section champions logged onto a special page of the League Web site and each coach ranked the other teams one through seven. The highest and lowest rankings for each team were discarded, leaving five rankings for each team. From those rankings, the top four seeds were selected. In conference calls with all eight head coaches of each class, League Associate Director and Tournament Director Craig Perry announced the top four seeds and then conducted a blind draw of the four remaining teams to establish the opponent for the seeded teams.

Class A Team Highlights
Six teams that competed in the 2011 tournament, including the two-time defending champions from Jackson County Central (Section 2), return to this year's field. The Huskies are also the top-seeded team this year. Jackson County Central, which shared top honors with Frazee in 2011, is making its third consecutive and fourth overall appearance under this name. In addition to the past two years, the Huskies also claimed top honors in 2008. Jackson County Central, as a co-op with Southwest Star Concept of Okabena, made four additional appearances between 1998 and 2007 and won titles in 1999 and 2000. Jackson also made three appearances as a co-op with Heron Lake-Okabena-Lakefield between 1993 and 1997. The other returning teams are: Kimball Area (Section 5); Minneota (Section 3); Zumbrota-Mazeppa (Section 1); Pierz (Section 7) and Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial (Section 4). The Kimball Area Cubs, who are the No. 2 seed this year, are making their second consecutive and fifth overall appearance. They earned the consolation title in 2011.

The Minneota Vikings enter this year's tournament as the No. 3 seed and they're hoping to improve on last year's third-place showing. This year marks their third consecutive and fifth overall appearance. The Cougars of Zumbrota-Mazeppa, who placed sixth last year, are making their third consecutive and seventh overall appearance. Pierz returns for its second consecutive and ninth overall appearance. In 2011 the Pioneers were eliminated in the consolation semifinals. If the Pioneers win it would be their third title. They won previous back-to-back championships in 2004 and 2005.

Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial, this year's No. 4 seed, is the final returning team. The Knights, who earned fourth-place honors in 2011, are making their fourth consecutive appearance and their sixth under this name. Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial also made one additional appearance as a co-op with Mankato Loyola in 2004.

Barnesville (Section 6) and Badger/Greenbush-Middle River (Section 8) round out the Class A field. It is the fifth appearance as a co-op for the Badger/Greenbush-Middle River Gators, but their first since 2005. Greenbush made one additional appearance in 1986. The Barnesville Trojans are making their debut appearance at this year's tournament. The 9 a.m. Thursday Class A seeded quarterfinal pairings and the team records followed by the final rankings of The Guillotine wrestling publication are: No. 2 Kimball Area (32-0 No. 2) vs. Barnesville (22-4 No. 12); No. 3 Minneota (23-2 No. 3) vs. Zumbrota-Mazeppa (20-10 No. 11); No. 1 Jackson County Central (22-3 No. 1) vs. Pierz (26-4 No. 10); No. 4 Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial (18-4 No. 5) vs. Badger/Greenbush-Middle River (16-1 No. 4).

Class AA Team Highlights
The Spartans of Simley (Section 4) return as the four-time defending champions. This is the fifth consecutive and 18th overall appearance for the Spartans, who are the No. 1 seed this year. In addition to the past four years, Simley also won championships in 1987, 1988, 1989, and 1992. Four other teams also return from the 2011 field: Monticello (Section 5); Scott West, a co-op between Belle Plaine, Jordan, and Holy Family Academy of Belle Plaine (Section 2); Foley (Section 6); and Kasson-Mantorville (Section 1).

Foley and Scott West are both making fifth consecutive appearances. The Foley Falcons are the No. 3 seed this year and are looking to improve on last year's fourth-place showing. This is their 19th overall appearance and they won previous titles in 1989, 1993, and 1994. The Scott West Panthers, who placed second last year, enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed. This is their 13th appearance.

The KoMets of Kasson-Mantorville, who are making their third consecutive and sixth overall appearance, finished third last year. They enter this year's tournament as the No. 4 seed. The Monticello Magic return for their second consecutive and third overall appearance. They lost in the consolation semifinals in 2011.

Perham (Section 8), Milaca/Faith Christian (Section 7), and Windom/Mountain Lake/Butterfield-Odin (Section 3) are the final teams competing in the Class AA field. The Perham Yellowjackets are making their sixth appearance, but first since 2009, and the Milaca/Faith Christian Wolves are making their 10th appearance, but first since 2010. The Cobras of Windom/Mountain Lake/Butterfield-Odin return after a three-year absence to make their fourth appearance.

The 11 a.m. Thursday Class AA seeded quarterfinal pairings and the team records followed by the final rankings of The Guillotine wrestling publication are : No. 2 Scott West (23-0 No. 2) vs. Monticello (13-12 No. 11); No. 3 Foley (25-1 No. 3) vs. Windom/Mountain Lake/Butterfield-Odin (19-5 No. 10); No. 1 Simley (25-3 No. 1) vs. Milaca/Faith Christian (28-9 No. 7); No. 4 Kasson-Mantorville (24-5 No. 4) vs. Perham (21-5 No. 8).

Class AAA Team Highlights
Apple Valley (Section 3) returns as the six-time defending champion. The Eagles, who are the No. 1 seed, are making their 30th consecutive and 31st overall tournament appearance. In addition to the past six years, they also won team championships in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004. Three other teams also return from the 2011 qualifying field. St. Michael-Albertville (Section 7) returns for its 14th consecutive and 22nd overall appearance. The Knights placed second last year and are the No. 3 seed this year. If they win it would be their seventh title. They won previously in 1996, 1997, 2004, 2005, 2006, and 2007. White Bear Lake Area (Section 4) is making its third consecutive and overall appearance. The Bears took the consolation crown in the 2011 tournament. Prior Lake (Section 2) is the final returning team. The Lakers, who are the No. 4 seed this year, are making their second consecutive and fourth overall appearance. They're hoping to improve on last year's third-place showing.

The other teams competing in Class AAA are: Hastings (Section 1); Little Falls (Section 8); Willmar (Section 6); and Champlin Park (Section 5). The Hastings Raiders return to tournament action for the first time since 2007. They are the No. 2 seed this year and are making their 11th appearance. If they win it would be their second title; they claimed their first in 1996. The Flyers of Little Falls are making their fifth appearance, but first since 2006, and the Willmar Cardinals are making their third appearance, but first since 2005. The Rebels of Champlin Park are making their debut tournament appearance.
The 9 a.m. Thursday Class AAA seeded quarterfinal pairings and the team records followed by the final rankings of The Guillotine wrestling publication: No. 2 Hastings (28-6 No. 2) vs. Little Falls (22-8 No. 10); No. 3 St. Michael-Albertville (27-6 No. 3) vs. Champlin Park (17-10 unranked); No. 1 Apple Valley (26-1 No. 1) vs. Willmar (20-5 unranked); No. 4 Prior Lake (23-11 No. 9) vs. White Bear Lake Area (20-7 No. 11).

Class A Individual Highlights
106 pounds - Cameron Sykora (41-1) of Border West, who won the title at 103 pounds last year, returns in search of more gold. Joey Majerus (38-5) of Zumbrota-Mazeppa and Cody Hanson (34-6) of St. James, also return. They placed third and fourth at 103 pounds, respectively. There are no perfect records in this weight class.

113 pounds - There are four returning medalists: Shane Novak (38-1) of New York Mills, runner-up at 112 pounds; Tyler Keller (33-7) of Medford, fifth at 103 pounds; Tyler Berghuis (34-6) of Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City, sixth at 103 pounds; and Quinten Berres (37-1) of Kimball Area, sixth at 112 pounds. No one has a perfect record.

120 pounds - Mitchel Lexvold (42-1) of Kenyon-Wanamingo, last year's champion at 119 pounds, leads the field. Two additional medal-winners also return: Isaac Novacek (39-0) of Badger/Greenbush-Middle River, third at 112 pounds; and Dustin Esplan (36-4) of New Richland-H-E-G, third at 119 pounds. Novacek boasts the only perfect record.

126 pounds - Oakley McLain (38-4) of Kenyon-Wanamingo, who won at 125 pounds in 2011, leads the returning qualifiers. Hayden Rouser (40-2) of Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City and Gus McCarthy (36-6) of Border West also return. Rouser placed fourth at 119 pounds last year and McCarthy was fifth at 125 pounds. Andy Poster (34-0) of Royalton/Upsala has the only perfect record.

132 pounds - Ben Rynda (34-4) of Trinity School at River Ridge of Bloomington, fourth at 125 pounds last year, is the highest returning qualifier. The only other returning medalist is Taner Trembley (36-2) of Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial; he placed fifth at 119 pounds last year. No one has a perfect record.

138 pounds - Three medal-winners return: Michael Jarnot (40-0) of Holdingford, runner-up at 153 pounds; Bruce Lemon (38-5) of Frazee, sixth at 130 pounds; and Jacob Anderson (33-2) of River Valley, sixth at 135 pounds. Jarnot has the only unblemished record. 145 pounds - Three medalists from last year's 140-pound weight class return: Larry Bomstad (39-0) of Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City, third; Adam Cooling (37-2) of Madelia/Truman/Martin Luther, fourth; and Garret Hoffner (38-0) of Mahnomen/Waubun, fifth. Bomstad and Hoffner boast the only perfect records.

152 pounds - The 2011 champion at 145 pounds, Curt Maas (39-1) of Medford, leads this year's qualifiers. Two other medalists also return: Jordan Chouanard (35-1) of Aitkin, third at 145 pounds; and Chris Pfarr (32-8) of LeSueur-Henderson, sixth at 125 pounds. There are no perfect records.

160 pounds - Two returning medal-winners return: Darick Vancura (40-1) of Jackson County Central, runner-up at 145 pounds; and Stephen Erlandson (29-2) of Breckenridge/Campbell-Tintah, runner-up at 160 pounds. There are no perfect records.

170 pounds - There are no returning medal-winners. Cooper Moore (42-0) of Jackson County Central has the only perfect record.

182 pounds - Brett Pfarr (38-1) of LeSueur-Henderson and Nate Meixell (33-3) of Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial are the only returning medal-winners. Pfarr was the runner-up at 152 pounds in 2011, and Meixell was the runner-up at 189 pounds. There are no perfect records.

195 pounds - Adam Josephson (39-1) of Minneota, who placed third at 189 pounds last year, is the only returning medalist. Nathan Rose (41-0) of Sibley East of Arlington and Christopher Zimmer (35-0) of Walker-Hackensack-Akeley/Nevis both have unblemished records.

220 pounds - Josh VanOverbeke (37-1) of Minneota is the only returning medal-winner. He placed third in the heavyweight class in 2011. There are no perfect records.

285 pounds - Alex Yeager (33-2) of Badger/Greenbush-Middle River, who earned championship honors in the heavyweight class last year, is one of two returning medalists. Colin Turchin (37-1) of Bertha-Hewitt/Verndale is the other; he placed fourth at heavyweight in 2011. No one has a perfect record.

Kimball Area leads the Class A field with 10 qualifiers. Minneota, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City, and Pierz each qualified nine wrestlers.

Class AA Individual Highlights
106 pounds - Two returning medalists compete in this weight class: Skyler Petry (40-2) of Waterville-Elysian-Morristown/Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton, fifth at 103 pounds; and Anthony Luft (34-5), sixth at 103 pounds. No one has a perfect record.

113 pounds - Kyle Gliva (24-2) of Simley of Inver Grove Heights, who won the title at 103 pounds last year, leads this year's field. Jarred Oftedahl (35-0) of Benilde-St. Margaret's of St. Louis Park is the only undefeated competitor. He was runner-up at 103 pounds last year. Other returning medal-winners are: Tristan Manderfeld (27-1) of Foley, third at 103 pounds; and Abbot Aho (38-4) of Fergus Falls, third at 112 pounds.

120 pounds - Brett Stolarzyk (33-6) of Stewartville returns in search of another championship; he earned top honors at 112 pounds last year. Three other medalists also return: Luke Betchwars (38-4) of Scott West, fourth at 103 pounds; Eric Bourgeois (34-5) of Monticello, fourth at 112 pounds; and Ty Griffin (32-3) of Rockford, sixth at 112 pounds. No competitors enter undefeated.

126 pounds - Eric Madson (39-3) of Hutchinson looks to improve on last year's third-place finish at 125 pounds. John Weeding (38-3) of Dawson-Boyd/Lac qui Parle, who placed fifth at 119 pounds in 2011, is the only other returning medalist. No one has a perfect record.

132 pounds - Joe Munos (41-0) of South Saint Paul, champion at 125 pounds in 2011, returns in search of a title at 132 pounds. He is the only competitor with a perfect record. Three additional medal-winners also return: Jonah Gahm (39-4) of Milaca/Faith Christian, fourth at 125 pounds; Mason Brownlee (31-6) of Montgomery-Lonsdale/Le Center, fifth at 125 pounds; and Jordan Hanan (33-5) of Annandale/Maple Lake, sixth at 119 pounds.

138 pounds - Nate Lynn (31-1) of Adrian Area is the only returning medalist. He finished fourth at 130 pounds last year. No competitors enter with a perfect record.

145 pounds - Two defending champions compete for more gold at 145 pounds. Jake Short (40-1) of Simley won the title at 140 pounds last year and Gabe Fogarty (39-3) of Scott West won the title at 135 pounds. One additional medal-winner returns: Dustin Ellsworth (27-4) of Saint Paul Harding, fifth at 140 pounds. No one is undefeated.

152 pounds - The 2011 champion at 145 pounds, Nick Wanzek (38-4) of Simley, enters competition in pursuit of another title. Charlie Pesch (29-9) of Scott West is the only other returning medalist, placing sixth at 145 pounds last year. There are no perfect records.

160 pounds - Taylor Lewandowski (38-1) of Foley, is the defending champion at 160 pounds. Sam Haas (41-1) of Dawson-Boyd/Lac qui Parle, who finished fifth in this class last year, is the only other returning qualifier. No one has a perfect record.

170 pounds - Two competitors return to the tournament undefeated: Micah Barnes (40-0) of Simley, runner-up at 160 pounds last year; and Garret Miller (37-0) of Plainview/Elgin-Millville, who placed third at 160 pounds. 182 pounds - Blake Petrich (40-1) of Staples-Motley looks to improve on his third-place finish at 171 pounds last year. He is joined by Jamison Evans (41-1) of Grand Rapids, who placed sixth at 160 pounds. There are no perfect records.

195 pounds - Broc Berge (41-0) of Kasson-Mantorville, 2011 champion at 189 pounds, returns in search of another title. He is the only undefeated wrestler in this class. Justin Ladehoff (25-1) of Milaca/Faith Christian, who placed sixth at 171 last year, is the only other returning qualifier.

220 pounds - There are no returning medal-winners and no undefeated competitors.

285 pounds - Defending heavyweight champion Austin Goergen (33-1) of Caledonia/Houston/Spring Grove and 215-pound champion Michael Kroells (41-0) of Scott West lead the qualifiers in this weight class. They are joined by Sam Stoll (41-1) of Kasson-Mantorville, last year's runner-up at heavyweight. Kroells and Jesse Hein (41-0) of Perham have the only perfect records in this weight class.

Simley leads the field with 12 qualified wrestlers. Foley has 10 qualifiers and Scott West has nine.

Class AAA Individual Highlights
106 pounds - There are no returning medalists and no perfect records.

113 pounds - Five 2011 medal-winners, including 103-pound champion Tommy Thorn (40-1) of St. Michael-Albertville, return. The others are: Tanner Johnshoy (37-7) of Prior Lake, runner-up at 103 pounds; Erik Olson (30-8) of Sauk Rapids-Rice, fourth at 103 pounds; Luke Rowh (35-8) of Hastings, fifth at 103 pounds; and Nick O'Brien (38-4) of Wayzata, sixth at 112 pounds. There are no perfect records.

120 pounds - Four 2011 medalists return: Cole Sladek (35-3), runner-up at 112 pounds; Seth Gross (39-3) of Apple Valley, third at 103 pounds; Dustin Weinmann (37-2) of Irondale of New Brighton, fifth at 112 pounds; and Dakota Wangsness (30-9) of Albert Lea Area, sixth at 103 pounds. There are no perfect records.

126 pounds - Mitch Bengtson (40-0) of St. Cloud Apollo returns in search of more gold. He was the champion at 119 pounds last year. He is joined by three other returning medal-winners: Lucas Hansen (30-7) of Albert Lea Area, third at 112 pounds; Sam Brancale (31-1) of Eden Prairie, third at 119 pounds; and Amin Buta (32-8) of Minneapolis South, fifth at 125 pounds. Bengtson boasts the only undefeated record.
132 pounds - Dakota Trom (27-4) of Apple Valley leads a field of six returning medalists. He won at 125 pounds last year. He is joined by: Eric Bauer (30-4) of Hastings, third at 125 pounds; Ben Morgan (34-2) of Forest Lake, third at 130 pounds; Alex Johannes (32-4) of Willmar, fourth at 130 pounds; Mark Voss (35-8) of St. Michael-Albertville, fifth at 119 pounds; and Carsen Canedy (36-5) of Northfield, sixth at 119 pounds. There are no perfect records.

138 pounds - Grant Nehring (39-3) of St. Cloud Apollo, who placed third at 135 pounds last year, is the top returning qualifier. Five other 2011 medalists also move up in search of a title: Tyler Isaacson (35-6) of Forest Lake, fourth at 119 pounds; Adam Hammer (36-3) of Osseo, fourth at 135 pounds; Ben Donnelly (33-8) of Woodbury, fifth at 130 pounds; Matt Kahnke (30-12) of Prior Lake, fifth at 135 pounds; and Jake Hanson (35-4) of Rochester Mayo, sixth at 130 pounds. No one has a perfect record.

145 pounds - Mark Hall (35-0) of Apple Valley, who was the champion at 130 pounds last year, is the only returning medal-winner. He also boasts the only perfect record.

152 pounds - Adam Jackson (38-3) of Rosemount, who earned runner-up honors in this weight class last year, is the highest returning medalist. Cody Skog (34-5) of Cambridge-Isanti and Derek Weinman (33-7) of Irondale, also return. They placed third and fourth last year, respectively, at 140 pounds.

160 pounds - Five 2011 medal-winners, including the defending champion at 140 pounds Brandon Kingsley of Apple Valley, return in pursuit of a championship. The others are: Travis Holt (37-5) of Cambridge-Isanti, runner-up at 135 pounds; Corey Parsons (32-3) of Andover, fourth at 152 pounds; Dalton Westerlund (24-4) of Albert Lea Area, fourth at 145 pounds; and Anton Kalista (36-4) of Lakeville North, sixth at 160 pounds. No competitors have a perfect record.

170 pounds - Kyle Begin (34-2) of Anoka, the 2011 champion at 160 pounds, is the only returning qualifier. No one in this class is undefeated.

182 pounds - Five 2011 medal-winners will vie for the title at 182 pounds. Clayton Jennissen (39-3) of Cambridge-Isanti, runner-up at 171 pounds, and Daniel Woiwor (33-5) of Apple Valley, runner-up at 145 pounds, are the top returning qualifiers. Joining them are: Beau Bibeau (31-4) of White Bear Lake Area, third at 171 pounds; Chase Morlock (37-4) of Moorhead, fourth at 160 pounds; and Richard Carlson (37-2) of Mounds View, fifth at 160 pounds. There are no perfect records.

195 pounds - Two returning qualifiers look to improve on last year's results. Jake Swenson (35-7) of Hastings placed fourth at 171 pounds and Tommy Petersen (27-1) of Lakeville South finished sixth at 189 pounds in 2011. Clay LeVasseur (21-0) of Rogers is the only undefeated competitor. 220 pounds - Isaac Eichmann (34-7) of Hastings, runner-up at 215 pounds last year, and Michael Burkhardt (35-4) of Coon Rapids, fourth place at 215 pounds, lead the field of qualifiers. No wrestlers enter with a perfect record.

285 pounds - Tanner Lowe (27-4) of Coon Rapids and Corey Anderson (40-2) of Shakopee return to the heavyweight competition in search of a championship. Lowe placed third last year and Anderson finished fourth. There are no perfect records.

Apple Valley qualified 13 wrestlers and St. Michael-Albertville qualified nine. Albert Lea Area and White Bear Lake Area were next with eight individual qualifiers apiece.

The Schedule and Ticket Information
This year's schedule features the team tournament running all day on Thursday, March 1. The action starts with the Class A and Class AAA quarterfinals at 9 a.m. They will be followed by the Class AA team quarterfinals at 11 a.m., which will be run simultaneously with the Class A and Class AAA consolation semifinals.

At 1 p.m. on Thursday, all three classes will wrestle in the team championship semifinals and Class AAA will also have its consolation semifinals. The consolation and third-place team matches for all three classes will begin at 5 p.m. Thursday evening, followed by the team championship matches for all three classes at 7 p.m.

On Friday, March 2, the Class AAA individual first round begins at 9 a.m. The Class A individual first round starts at 11 a.m., followed by the Class AA individual first round at 1 p.m. On Friday evening, the Class AAA individual quarterfinals begin at 5 p.m. The Class A and Class AA individual championship quarterfinals will follow at 6 and 7 p.m., respectively. The evening session will conclude with all wrestlebacks at 8 p.m.

On Saturday there will be five rounds of competition. The first starts at 10 a.m. and will consist of all individual consolation quarterfinals. The second round will start approximately at 11:15 a.m. and will entail all individual championship semifinals. Round Three begins approximately at 1:15 p.m. and will encompass all individual consolation semifinals. At approximately 5 p.m., all individual fifth- and third-place matches will begin, followed by awards. The day will end with all individual championships beginning at approximately 7:30 p.m. Awards will also follow the final round.

Other than the first matches of each session, all subsequent rounds will start immediately following the conclusion of the previous competition in that session. Thus, most of the start times are approximate. Fans should bear that schedule in mind in planning their arrival at Xcel Energy Center. Ticket prices are $14 per adult and $9 per student for each session.
Daily passes are available for $26 for adults and $17 for students. Season passes, good for the entire tournament, are available to adults for $78 and to students for $51.

Live Web Streaming
The championship semifinals and championship matches of the team and individual competition for all classes will be streamed live by Prep45.com on the Web and are available at no charge.

Tournament results will be posted periodically each day on the League Web site - http://www.MSHSL.org.

Series ticket packages for WCHA 1st round on sale Tuesday

2012-02-27T15:13:00.002-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - Series ticket packages for North Dakota's Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) first-round playoff series will go on sale on Tuesday, Feb. 28 at 10 a.m. Central.

Ticket packages for both the general public and UND students go on sale beginning at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Student tickets will be available online only at Ticketmaster.com. General public ticket packages can be purchased by calling 1-800-745-3000, logging on to Ticketmaster.com or by visiting the UND Ticket Office at the Ralph Engelstad Arena. The ticket office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

UND students will receive an e-mail with a keyword needed to purchase a series ticket passage. Student ticket packages will be held for students until the student pre-sale ends on Thursday, March 1 at 5 p.m. All unsold student tickets will then be released to the general public at 10 a.m. on Friday, March 2. Students may purchase up to four reserved seat tickets per UND student ID.

Series ticket packages are $40 for adults, $20 for youth and $14 for UND students.

Single-game WCHA first-round playoff tickets will go one sale on Tuesday, March 6 at 10 a.m. Single-game tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for youth and $7 for UND students. Single-game tickets are subject to availability.

The first round of the WCHA playoffs take place March 9, 10 and 11 (if necessary). Game times are 7:37 p.m. on Friday and 7:07 on Saturday and Sunday. All times Central. UND's first-round opponent has not yet been determined.

NDSU's Colwell Named Summit League Baseball Player of the Week

2012-02-27T14:15:00.000-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - North Dakota State first baseman Nick Colwell was named Summit League baseball Player of the Week by the league office Monday, Feb. 27.

Colwell, a senior from Shoreview, Minn., hit .700 (14-for-20) in NDSU's four-game sweep at Northern Colorado. He had two doubles, two triples and nine RBIs, stole a base, and scored seven runs.

Colwell had at least two hits in each game and tied the NDSU single-game record for hits when he went 5-for-6 in the third game of the series. He raised his season batting average from .200 to .533.

Western Illinois senior right-hander Dustin Hunter was named Pitcher of the Week after going seven innings for a win at Alabama A&M, where he allowed two hits and zero earned runs while striking out a career-high 12.

hockey polls

2012-02-27T14:13:00.002-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota is ranked 14th in the USCHO.com poll and 15th in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, both of which were released on Monday.

UND (18-12-3, 14-11-1 WCHA) maintained its position in the USCHO poll and fell three spots in the USA Today poll after a split last weekend at Denver.

Boston College unseated Ferris State atop both polls.

The Fighting Sioux will host Minnesota State University, Mankato in the final weekend of the regular season.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (44) 23-10-1 993 2
2. Minnesota Duluth (5) 22-7-5 922 4
3. Ferris State (1) 22-9-5 861 1
4. Boston University 20-11-1 814 5
Minnesota 23-11-1 814 6
6. Michigan 21-11-4 805 3
7. Union 20-7-7 661 8
8. Massachusetts-Lowell 20-10-1 612 7
9. Denver 19-11-4 538 9
10. Maine 19-11-3 496 10
11. Miami 21-13-2 487 15
12. Merrimack 16-9-7 474 12
13. Cornell 15-7-7 435 11
14. North Dakota 18-12-3 376 14
15. Michigan State 19-13-4 361 13
16. Western Michigan 17-13-6 244 19
17. Northern Michigan 16-12-6 177 NR
18. Notre Dame 17-16-3 119 18
19. Colorado College 16-14-2 112 16
20. Air Force 17-9-7 52 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Ohio State 49, Quinnipiac 26, Harvard 25, Lake Superior State 25, Colgate 12, Niagara 7, Nebraska Omaha 1, New Hampshire 1.

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston College (31) 23-10-1 504 2
2. Minnesota Duluth (2) 22-7-5 468 4
3. Ferris State (1) 22-9-5 418 1
4. Boston University 20-11-1 399 6
5. Minnesota 23-11-1 381 5
6. Michigan 21-11-4 372 3
7. Union 20-7-7 255 8
8. Massachusetts-Lowell 20-10-1 249 7
9. Miami 21-13-2 192 15
10. Denver 19-11-4 189 10
11. Maine 19-11-3 185 11
12. Merrimack 16-9-7 158 13
13. Cornell 15-7-7 106 9
14. Michigan State 19-13-4 91 14
15. North Dakota 18-12-3 87 12

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Michigan 14, Western Michigan 5, Ohio State 4, Notre Dame 2, Air Force 1.

ND boys/girls State Tournament to be held at Fargdome

2012-02-24T09:17:00.000-06:00

The NDHSAA sponsored State A Boys’/Girls’ Basketball Tournament will be held at the FARGODOME, 1800 University Drive North, March 8-10, 2012. Ed Lockwood, Athletic Director for Fargo Public Schools, will be the tournament manager.

East Region basketball is scheduled for February 28, March 2-3 and West Region slated March 1-3 with the top 4 boys and girls teams from each region advancing to state competition March 8. State tournament action begins at 1:00 p.m. in the Bison Sports Arena with the girls’ West Region 1st seed playing the East Region 4th seed. Boys’ contests begin at 2:00 p.m. at the FargoDome with the same bracket pairings.

Thursday March 8 and Friday March 9 provide afternoon and evening sessions. Saturday’s consolation action begins at 9:30 a.m. Tournament play continues concluding with the girls’ championship slated for 6:00 p.m. and boys’ title round following at approximately 8:30 p.m.

For more information, please go to www.ndhsaa.com.

PTP Basketball Players of the Week

2012-02-23T14:56:00.000-06:00

(February 21, 2012)
Kari Skersick (Bagley) and Jace Hennen (Ada-Borup) have earned the final Girls and Boys Basketball Players of the Week awards for the 2011-2012 season.

Kari helped the Flyers to a 2-1 record for the week. She scored 24 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in a 57-46 win over Lake Park-Audubon on Tuesday. On Thursday, she had a career high 32 points and 8 rebounds in a 69-14 victory against Section 8AA foe, Park Rapids. Kari finished her week off by scoring 28 points in a 50-49 loss at Warroad. For the week, she averaged 28 points and shot 29-31 from the free throw line.

Jace had a game high 33 points, including scoring his career 1000th point, against Mahnomen in a 94-55 victory. To make Jace’s game even more impressive, he went 8 for 8 from behind the 3 point line and added 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals in the Cougars only game for the week.

There were several other outstanding performances during last weeks action, including: Justine Yost (Waubun) with 20 points and 9 steals, Jake Pavek (Mahnomen) averaging 30 points and 15.5 rebounds in two games and Tyler George (Bagley) averaged 19.5 points and 6.5 assists in two games.

UND's Knight named WCHA Offensive Player of the Week

2012-02-21T16:19:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - University of North Dakota junior center Corban Knight has been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in UND's series last weekend against Michigan Tech.

Knight registered three goals and four points while winning more than 62 percent of his faceoffs as the Fighting Sioux took three of four WCHA points from the Huskies. Knight had two goals and an assist in UND's 4-2 win on Friday, then scored the lone Sioux goal in Saturday's 1-1 overtime tie. It was the first 3-goal series of Knight's career.

The 6-foot-2, 193-pound Knight won 15 of 24 (62.5 percent) faceoffs on Friday and 18 of 29 (62.1 percent) on Saturday. A key member of UND's special teams units, Knight helped the Sioux go 3-for-7 (42.9 percent) on the power play and a perfect 6-for-6 on the penalty kill.

In 28 games this season, Knight has 30 points and is tied for the team lead with 19 assists.

Minnesota's Kent Patterson and Kyle Rau were named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week and WCHA Rookie of the Week, respectively.

Knight and the 14th-ranked Sioux travel to Denver on Friday and Saturday for a WCHA series against the ninth-ranked Pioneers.

State Girls’ Gymnastics Meet

2012-02-20T14:54:00.002-06:00

Perham, which is the eight-time defending Class A champion, returns in search of more gold when the 2012 State Girls’ Gymnastics Meet opens at the Sports Pavilion on the University of Minnesota campus on Friday, Feb. 24. Three other qualifying teams also return from last year’s Class A field. In Class AA, five teams, including the two-time defending champions from Northfield, return from the 2011 field.

Two Class AA individual champions also return to defend their titles. Meaghan Howell of Northfield is looking for her second consecutive title on the uneven bars and Julia Stedman of North, North St. Paul, is seeking her consecutive title in the floor exercise.

New individual champions will emerge in all of the Class A events.

Class A Highlights

Eight-time defending champion Perham returns with six of the Yellowjackets’ gymnasts who competed in the state meet last year. Three additional teams that competed in the 2011 team competition also return: Melrose Area, third; New Prague, fourth; and Breck School of Golden Valley, sixth. The other qualifying teams are Austin, Jackson County Central, the co-op of Rush City/Pine City/Hinckley/Finlayson, and Big Lake.

Ten of 30 event medal-winners will return for the 2012 Class A individual competition.

Mikayla Dockendorf of Sartell-St. Stephen, who earned runner-up honors last year, is one of four returning competitors in floor exercise. The other returning medalists are: Hailey Brinkman of Melrose Area, third; Sarah Hoffman of New Prague, fourth; and Laura Jore of Big Lake, sixth.

Jessica Stelter of Detroit Lakes is the only returning qualifier in the uneven bars. She placed fifth in 2011.

In the balance beam competition, two medal-winners return: Brinkman of Melrose Area placed third and Libby Lee of Breck School finished sixth.

Sydnee Donnelli of Jackson County Central and Tara Svalland of Worthington are the only two medalists returning in the vault. Donnelli placed fifth in 2011 and Svalland tied for sixth.

Brinkman, who placed third last year, is the only returning medal-winner in the all-around competition.

Class AA Highlights

Northfield, which includes students from Cannon Falls and Randolph, returns as the two-time defending champion. The Raiders return seven gymnasts from last year’s team. In addition to Northfield, four other teams also return from the 2011 field: Roseville Area, runner-up; Park of Cottage Grove, third; Cambridge-Isanti, fourth; and St. Cloud Tech, which includes students from St. Cloud Cathedral, sixth. The other qualifying teams are Lakeville North, Stillwater Area, and Minnetonka.

Fifteen of 30 event medal-winners in 2011 will return for 2012 Class AA individual competition.

Emily Guimont of Edina is the only returning medalist in the balance beam. She placed third last year.

Julia Stedman of North, North St. Paul, who earned runner-up honors in 2011, is the highest returning medal-winner in the vault competition. Three other medalists also return; Mackenzie Dent of Eden Prairie, third; Leah Robinette of East Ridge of Woodbury, fourth; and Kasondra Tulloch of Park, fifth.

Four medal-winners, including defending champion Meaghan Howell of Northfield, return on the uneven bars. The others are: Tulloch, runner-up; Robinette, fourth; and Kellie Dougherty of White Bear Lake Area, fifth.

Stedman of North, who captured the top honor last year, is the highest returning medalist in the floor exercise. Three other medal-winners also return: Rachel Deephouse of Park, third; Dent, fourth; and Tulloch, sixth.

Tulloch and Stedman are the only returning medalists in the all-around competition. They placed second and fourth, respectively, in 2011.

Schedule & Tickets

The meet is scheduled for Friday and Saturday, Feb. 24 and 25, at the Sports Pavilion on the University of Minnesota campus in Minneapolis. Team competition is scheduled for Friday, with Class A competition beginning at 11 a.m. and Class AA competition beginning at 6 p.m. The identical time schedule will be followed for Saturday's individual and all-around events, with Class A beginning in the morning and Class AA beginning in the evening.

Tickets for the meet are available at the Sports Pavilion. Adult tickets cost $12.00 per session and student tickets cost $8.00 per session.

The entire state meet — team competition on the 24th and individual competition on the 25th — will be webcast live and free on Prep45.com

A visit to any participating Wells Fargo metro location can yield a $2 discount coupon for students 13 and younger. The discount coupons are also available for the following tournaments: Girls’ Hockey, Class A Boys’ Hockey, and Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball.

UND ranked 12th/14th in latest men's hockey poll

2012-02-20T14:44:00.003-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota made a significant jump in one poll and held its ground in the other in the weekly national men's hockey polls released on Monday.

The Fighting Sioux climbed three spots from No. 15 to No. 12 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll, tied with Cornell for the biggest jump in this week's poll. UND maintained its No. 14 ranking in the USCHO.com poll.

UND most recently took three of four points from Michigan Tech last weekend in Grand Forks, winning 4-2 on Friday and tying 1-1 on Saturday. The Sioux will travel to Denver on Friday and Saturday for their final road series of the regular season. The Pioneers are ranked No. 9 in this week's USCHO.com poll and No. 10 in the USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine poll.

Top-ranked Ferris State retained its spot atop both polls.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Ferris State (36) 22-8-4 979 1
2. Boston College (11) 21-10-1 939 3
3. Michigan (3) 20-10-4 860 5
4. Minnesota Duluth 20-7-5 836 4
5. Boston University 18-11-1 757 2
6. Minnesota 21-11-1 748 7
7. Massachusetts-Lowell 20-9-0 736 6
8. Union 19-6-7 677 8
9. Denver 18-10-4 521 10
10. Maine 18-10-3 511 11
11. Cornell 14-6-7 472 12
12. Merrimack 15-9-6 434 9
13. Michigan State 18-12-7 388 16
14. North Dakota 17-11-3 384 14
15. Miami 19-13-2 331 19
16. Colorado College 16-12-2 254 15
17. Ohio State 15-11-5 227 17
18. Notre Dame 16-15-3 140 13
19. Western Michigan 16-13-5 133 18
20. Colgate 17-12-3 52 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Lake Superior State 47, Northern Michigan 44, Air Force 14, Quinnipiac 8, Nebraska Omaha 6, Clarkson 1.

USA Today/USA Hockey Magazine Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Ferris State (28) 22-8-4 504 1
2. Boston College (6) 21-10-1 470 4
3. Michigan 20-10-4 424 5
4. Minnesota Duluth 20-7-5 405 3
5. Minnesota 21-11-1 363 7
6. Boston University 18-11-1 337 2
7. Massachusetts-Lowell 20-9-0 320 6
8. Union 19-6-7 289 8
9. Cornell 14-6-7 184 12
10. Denver 18-10-4 174 10
11. Maine 18-10-3 164 11
12. North Dakota 17-11-3 135 15
13. Merrimack 15-9-6 104 9
14. Michigan State 18-12-4 92 NR
15. Miami 19-13-2 55 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Colorado College 27, Ohio State 20, Notre Dame 7, Air Force 3, Nebraska Omaha 3.

NDSU's Luke Anderson Named Summit League Pitcher of the Week

2012-02-20T14:42:00.000-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - North Dakota State's Luke Anderson was named Summit League baseball co-Pitcher of the Week by the league office on Monday, Feb. 20. It is his first career award.

Anderson, a senior right-hander from Savage, Minn., held No. 5-ranked Arizona to two hits and two earned runs with three strikeouts in an 8-2 victory on Saturday, Feb. 18.

Anderson held Arizona batters to an .095 average and retired seven straight to preserve a 2-2 tie before NDSU rallied for six runs in the eighth inning.

He shared the award with Western Illinois senior left-hander Rich Mascheri, who pitched seven scoreless innings with four hits and five strikeouts in a season-opening win at Georgia State.

Western Illinois outfielder Dan Dispensa was named Player of the Week after hitting .583 (7-for-12) with three doubles, four RBIs, two walks, two stolen bases and three runs scored in the four-game series at Georgia State.

ND State Class B Boys BB Tournament

2012-02-16T18:47:00.002-06:00

The NDHSAA sponsored State B Boys’ Basketball Tournament will be held at the Grand Forks Alerus Center, 1200 South 42nd Street, March 1-3, 2012. Todd Olson, Athletic Director for Grand Forks Public Schools, will be the tournament manager.

The three-day event will begin Thursday, March 1, at 1:00 with opening round play. Thursday and Friday, March 1-2, will have 1:00 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. sessions. Doors will open to the public one hour before each session.

Saturday, March 3, consolation competition will begin at 1:00 p.m. Third place competition will start at 6:00 p.m. with the title game following. Doors will open to the public one hour before each session.

Tickets may be purchased in advance online at www.aleruscenter.com or by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000. Additional information can be found at www.ndhsaa.com.

PTP Players of the Week

2012-02-15T14:22:00.000-06:00

(February 13, 2012)
Jess Trandem (Fosston) and Sam Lerud (Waubun) have been recognized as the Pine to Prairie Girls and Boys Basketball Players of the Week for their
efforts on the court this past week.

Jess (Sr., Forward) scored 16 points while shooting 66% from the field. She
also added 5 assists, 3 steals and 10 rebounds in a 60-31 win over Mahnomen. Jess followed that effort up with 11 points, 4 assists, 4 steals
and 9 rebounds as the Greyhounds defeated Ulen-Hitterdal.

Sam led thw Waubun Bombers to a win over lake Park-Audubon as he scored 21 points, and added 7rebounds, 7 assists and 6 steals. In a thrilling come back loss to Mahnomen, Sam scored 40 points – including 8 threepointers,
grabbed 11 rebounds and added 6 steals and 6 assists.

MSHSL, Wells Fargo offer discounted youth tournament tickets

2012-02-14T16:42:00.000-06:00

The Minnesota State High School League and Wells Fargo, its premier corporate partner, are once again sponsoring a state tournament discount ticket program for elementary and middle school students. Students 13 and younger will receive $2.00 off the admission to select state tournaments by picking up a Tournament Discount Coupon at participating Minnesota Wells Fargo stores and redeeming the coupon at the venue box offices.

“We are thrilled to work with Wells Fargo to provide discount student tickets for nearly all of the winter tournaments,” said David Stead, executive director of the Minnesota State High School League. “Being part of the thrill and excitement of a state tournament is a great way to keep young people interested in athletics and fine arts activities.”

Each participating Minnesota Wells Fargo store will have approximately 100 Tournament Discount Coupons available for the following tournaments:
* Dance Team: February 17-18, Target Center, Minneapolis
* Girls’ Hockey: February 22-25, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul
* Girls’ Gymnastics: February 24-25, University Sports Pavilion, Minneapolis
* Boys’ Class A Hockey: March 7-10, Xcel Energy Center, St. Paul
* Girls’ Basketball: March 14-17, Target Center and Williams Arena, Minneapolis
* Boys’ Basketball: March 21- 24, Target Center and Williams Arena, Minneapolis

“Wells Fargo has been the premier partner of the Minnesota State High School League since 2003, and we are pleased to support both the organization and the Tournament Discount Ticket Program,” said Dave Kvamme, regional president for Wells Fargo in Minnesota. “The coupons are available at 157 Wells Fargo stores across the state of Minnesota. We hope our customers and their families will come out to support our state’s talented high school athletes.”

The Tournament Discount Coupons are free, but are available only while supplies last. No purchase is necessary. For more information about this ticket program, contact Nancy Myers at (763) 560-2262.

UND, UNO to play outdoors in Feb 2013

2012-02-14T16:16:00.002-06:00

OMAHA, Neb. - The University of North Dakota men's hockey team will face the University of Nebraska Omaha in an outdoor game on Feb. 9, 2013 in Omaha at the home of the College World Series.

The Omaha Sports Commission, Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA), University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha Lancers and Mutual of Omaha jointly announced TD Ameritrade Park Omaha will be the site for this first-of-its-kind hockey event. The Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will feature the Omaha Lancers playing United States Hockey League opponent the Lincoln Stars at 12:30 p.m., followed by the UNO Mavericks facing off against Western Collegiate Hockey Association foe the North Dakota Fighting Sioux.

Tickets for the two games will go on sale Monday, October 1, 2012, and prices will start at $30. One ticket will cover both the Omaha Lancers and UNO Mavericks games. Officials expect the Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will draw hockey fans from across the region. UNO and Omaha Lancer season ticket holders will be able to order tickets for the game during their regular ticket renewal program. Tickets will be sold to the public through ticketmaster.com and the CenturyLink Omaha box office.

"Outdoor hockey games have become extremely popular in cities around the country and we think games featuring UNO, the Omaha Lancers and their rivals will be a big hit in Omaha," Omaha Sports Commission President Harold Cliff said. "The Omaha Sports Commission is proud to host this event and we want to thank Mutual of Omaha for serving as title sponsor of this unique sports competition.

"We believe outdoor hockey will be extremely popular at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha," MECA President and CEO Roger Dixon said. "Our goal is to offer a wide variety of sporting events at the ballpark and we think outdoor hockey will be an exciting attraction."

"This will be a tremendous event both for our long-time fans and folks who may be relatively new to college hockey," UNO's Director of Athletics Trev Alberts said. "As we attempt to grow our flagship sport, a game like this will showcase all that UNO hockey has going for it - a supportive community, great facilities, outstanding opponents and national exposure."

"Our players are already excited to play in a game like this, which is sure to receive plenty of local and national attention," said Dean Blais, UNO Mavericks head coach. "We have had very competitive games against North Dakota since we joined the WCHA, and playing outdoors in front of a big crowd will only make these games more fun for everyone."

"Lancers fans have seen a lot in the long and storied history of the Omaha Lancers, but they haven't seen anything like this," Omaha Lancers President and Managing Partner Ben Robert said. "This year begins with the opening of our new arena in Ralston, while the February 9 Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will showcase two fixtures of the Omaha sports community against two of their biggest rivals in what will be a day the City of Omaha will never forget."

"An extraordinary amount of hard work has been done to make this event possible," said Mike Aikens, Omaha Lancers head coach. "It will be a great day for hockey, the people of Omaha and State of Nebraska."

"The Lancers-Stars rivalry is known for being one of the fiercest and most respected in amateur sports, and showcases what USHL hockey is all about," Lincoln Stars President Jim Pflug said. "We appreciate the effort of everyone to make Mutual of Omaha's Battles on Ice a reality."

"Bringing these two teams together in an event like this will only add to the intensity that has been established over the years," said Chad Johnson, Lincoln Stars head coach. "We're looking forward to being a part of it."

This game will be an exceptional, and unique, opportunity to showcase collegiate hockey," said North Dakota Athletics Director Brian Faison. "We are looking forward to a great event."

"This will be a great event and an exciting venue to continue building the healthy rivalry that we have with the Mavericks," said Dave Hakstol, North Dakota Fighting Sioux head coach. "Our team and fans are looking forward to the opportunity to be part of an outdoor game that is sure to bring national attention to college hockey."

"The UNO Mavericks and Omaha Lancers both have outstanding hockey traditions and Battles on Ice will showcase these two great teams as never before," Mutual of Omaha Senior Vice President John Hildenbiddle said. "Mutual of Omaha is very proud to sponsor this unique event, further establishing Omaha as the nation's amateur sports capital."

UND to play outdoor hockey game in 2012!!

2012-02-14T15:54:00.000-06:00

OMAHA SPORTS COMMISSION BRINGS OUTDOOR HOCKEY TO TD AMERITRADE PARK OMAHA WITH THE MUTUAL OF OMAHA BATTLES ON ICE

FEBRUARY 9, 2013 GAMES FEATURES UNO MAVERICKS AND OMAHA LANCERS AGAINST TOP CONFERENCE RIVALS
Omaha, Neb. – Outdoor hockey is coming to Omaha on Saturday, February 9, 2013. The Omaha Sports Commission, Metropolitan Entertainment & Convention Authority (MECA), University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha Lancers and Mutual of Omaha jointly announced TD Ameritrade Park Omaha will be the site for this first-of-its-kind hockey event. The Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will feature the Omaha Lancers playing United States Hockey League opponent the Lincoln Stars at 12:30 p.m., followed by the UNO Mavericks facing off against Western Collegiate Hockey Association foe the North Dakota Fighting Sioux.
Tickets for the two games will go on sale Monday, October 1, 2012, and prices will start at $30. One ticket will cover both the Omaha Lancers and UNO Mavericks games. Officials expect the Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will draw hockey fans from across the region. UNO and Omaha Lancer season ticket holders will be able to order tickets for the game during their regular ticket renewal program. Tickets will be sold to the public through ticketmaster.com and the CenturyLink Omaha box office.
“Outdoor hockey games have become extremely popular in cities around the country and we think games featuring UNO, the Omaha Lancers and their rivals will be a big hit in Omaha,” Omaha Sports Commission President Harold Cliff said. “The Omaha Sports Commission is proud to host this event and we want to thank Mutual of Omaha for serving as title sponsor of this unique sports competition.
“We believe outdoor hockey will be extremely popular at TD Ameritrade Park Omaha,” MECA President and CEO Roger Dixon said. “Our goal is to offer a wide variety of sporting events at the ballpark and we think outdoor hockey will be an exciting attraction.”
“This will be a tremendous event both for our long-time fans and folks who may be relatively new to college hockey,” UNO’s Director of Athletics Trev Alberts said. “As we attempt to grow our flagship sport, a game like this will showcase all that UNO hockey has going for it – a supportive community, great facilities, outstanding opponents and national exposure.”
“Our players are already excited to play in a game like this, which is sure to receive plenty of local and national attention,” said Dean Blais, UNO Mavericks head coach. “We have had very competitive games against North Dakota since we joined the WCHA, and playing outdoors in front of a big crowd will only make these games more fun for everyone.”
“Lancers fans have seen a lot in the long and storied history of the Omaha Lancers, but they haven’t seen anything like this,” Omaha Lancers President and Managing Partner Ben Robert said. “This year begins with the opening of our new arena in Ralston, while the February 9 Mutual of Omaha Battles on Ice will showcase two fixtures of the Omaha sports community against two of their biggest rivals in what will be a day the City of Omaha will never forget.”
“An extraordinary amount of hard work has been done to make this event possible,” said Mike Aikens, Omaha Lancers head coach. “It will be a great day for hockey, the people of Omaha and State of Nebraska.”
“The Lancers-Stars rivalry is known for being one of the fiercest and most respected in amateur sports, and showcases what USHL hockey is all about,” Lincoln Stars President Jim Pflug said. “We appreciate the effort of everyone to make Mutual of Omaha’s Battles on Ice a reality.”
“Bringing these two teams together in an event like this will only add to the intensity that has been established over the years,” said Chad Johnson, Lincoln Stars head coach. “We’re looking forward to being a part of it.”
This game will be an exceptional, and unique, opportunity to showcase collegiate hockey,” said North Dakota Athletics Director Brian Faison. “We are looking forward to a great event.”
“This will be a great event and an exciting venue to continue building the healthy rivalry that we have with the Mavericks,” said Dave Hakstol, North Dakota Fighting Sioux head coach. “Our team and fans are looking forward to the opportunity to be part of an outdoor game that is sure to bring national attention to college hockey.”
“The UNO Mavericks and Omaha Lancers both have outstanding hockey traditions and Battles on Ice will showcase these two great teams as never before,” Mutual of Omaha Senior Vice President John Hildenbiddle said. “Mutual of Omaha is very proud to sponsor this unique event, further establishing Omaha as the nation’s amateur sports capital.”

State Girls’ Dance Team Tournament

2012-02-14T14:52:00.000-06:00

All six championship teams return to defend their titles at the 2012 State Girls’ Dance Team Tournament. The Divas of Marshall School of Duluth are the only team seeking a sixth consecutive title. They won the Class A Jazz titles in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011. The other five returning champions are all looking for their second consecutive titles.

The 16th Minnesota State High School League tournament for dance teams, which features squads from 47 schools, will be held at Target Center in Minneapolis. The Jazz dancers will compete on Friday, Feb. 17, and the High Kick competition is set for Saturday, Feb. 18.

The 2012 tournament will actually be the 38th state competition for dance teams. Until 1997 the previous events were conducted by the Minnesota Association of Dancelines, later renamed the Minnesota Association of Dance Teams. The Minnesota State High School League added girls’ dance team as a sponsored athletic activity in March 1996. Although sponsored by the League as an athletic activity, individual schools’ girls’ dance teams must meet stringent federal Title IX guidelines to be considered a sport.

An all-tournament team will again be named at this year’s tournament. Twelve students will be chosen from each class in each division — Jazz and High Kick. The awards will be presented during the championship award ceremonies.

High Kick Division

All three of the 2011 champions will try to defend their titles in the High Kick category: Cannon Falls in Class A, Sartell-St. Stephen in Class AA, and Eastview of Apple Valley in Class AAA. Of the 2011 finalists, 17 return to compete in the High Kick category.

Class A Qualifiers: (Section 1) Cannon Falls, Lake City, and Dover-Eyota; (Section 2) Aitkin, Marshall School of Duluth, and Mayer Lutheran; (Section 3) Yellow Medicine East of Granite Falls, Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd, and BOLD of Olivia; (Section 4) Pelican Rapids, Bagley, and Crosby-Ironton.

Class AA Qualifiers: (Section 1) Chaska, Austin, and Faribault, which also includes students from Bethlehem Academy of Faribault; (Section 2) Totino-Grace of Fridley, Fridley, and Hill-Murray of Maplewood; (Section 3) Marshall, Waconia, and Hutchinson; (Section 4) St. Cloud Cathedral, Sartell-St. Stephen, and Sauk Rapids-Rice.

Class AAA Qualifiers: (Section 1) Apple Valley, Eastview of Apple Valley, and Burnsville; (Section 2) Wayzata, Hopkins, and Eden Prairie; (Section 3) Centennial of Circle Pines, Spring Lake Park, and Eagan; (Section 4) St. Cloud Tech, Blaine which includes students from Legacy Christian Academy of Andover, and Brainerd, which includes students from Pillager.

Jazz Division

The Divas of Marshall School of Duluth are in the hunt for their sixth consecutive Class A Jazz title. Benilde-St. Margaret’s of St. Louis Park and Maple Grove also return to defend their Class AA and Class AAA titles, respectively. Overall, 17 finalists from 2011 return to compete in the 2012 tournament.

Class A Qualifiers: (Section 1) Cannon Falls, St. Charles, and Zumbrota-Mazeppa; (Section 2) Marshall School of Duluth, Aitkin, and Mayer Lutheran; (Section 3) Yellow Medicine East of Granite Falls, Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd, and Renville County West; (Section 4) Pelican Rapids, Frazee, and Crosby-Ironton.

Class AA Qualifiers: (Section 1) Benilde-St. Margaret’s of St. Louis Park, Chaska, and Simley of Inver Grove Heights; (Section 2) Totino-Grace of Fridley, Duluth Denfeld, and Fridley; (Section 3) Mound-Westonka, Marshall, and Holy Family Catholic of Victoria; (Section 4) St. Cloud Cathedral, Sartell-St. Stephen, and Sauk Rapids-Rice.

Class AAA Qualifiers: (Section 1) Eastview of Apple Valley, Lakeville North, and Burnsville; (Section 2) Wayzata, Maple Grove, and Eden Prairie; (Section 3) Eagan, Spring Lake Park, and Centennial of Circle Pines; (Section 4) St. Cloud Tech, Blaine, which includes students from Legacy Christian Academy of Andover, and Brainerd, which includes students from Pillager.

Scoring

Judges observe the routines and award points on a 100-point scale. Judging criteria are subdivided into four categories. The three common categories of criteria are: 1) Presentation; 2) Execution; and 3) Choreography. The fourth category is unique for each type of dance. In the High Kick division the judges look for straight backs and legs, pointed feet, uniform height and place of kicks, level hips, foot placement, and arm connections. In the Jazz category judges are looking for rotation timing and completion, posture, difficulty of skills, and flexibility movements.

Point values in each of the five judging criteria are awarded as follows: 9-10 for Excellent; 7-8 for Above Average; 5-6 for Average; and 3-4 for Below Average. After the qualifying competition for each type of dance in each class, six finalists are announced and those teams compete again to determine the state champion.

Tournament Schedule
Friday, Feb. 17 — Jazz
Noon-1:30 p.m. Class A Qualifying Competition
1:45 p.m. Class A Finalists Announced
2:15-4:30 p.m. Class AA and Class AAA Qualifying Competition
4:45 p.m. Class AA Finalists Announced
5:00 p.m. Class AAA Finalists Announced
5:45 p.m. Class A Finals and Awards Presentations
7:15 p.m. Class AA and Class AAA Finals and Awards Presentations

Saturday, Feb. 18 — High Kick
Noon-1:30 p.m. Class A Qualifying Competition
1:45 p.m. Class A Finalists Announced
2:15-4:30 p.m. Class AA and Class AAA Qualifying Competition
4:45 p.m. Class AA Finalists Announced
5:00 p.m. Class AAA Finalists Announced
5:45 p.m. Class A Finals and Awards Presentations
7:15 p.m. Class AA and Class AAA Finals and Awards Presentations

Tickets for the 2012 State Girls’ Dance Team Tournament will be available at the Target Center box office beginning at 10 a.m. each day. Adult tickets cost $14 and student tickets cost $9.

A visit to any area Wells Fargo bank can yield a $2 discount coupon for students 13 and younger. The discount coupons are also available for the following tournaments: Girls’ Gymnastics, Girls’ Hockey, Class A Boys’ Hockey, and Girls’ and Boys’ Basketball.

Live Webcast

The entire tournament will be webcast live and free at Prep45.com. Advisor Aric Harrier of New London-Spicer and advisor Cary Hagrud of Pelican Rapids will be bringing students to do this year’s webcast.

Detroit Lakes Senior Alex Mason Scores AMAZING hockey goal!

2012-02-14T08:16:00.000-06:00

Detroit Lakes HS Sr. Alex Mason is gaining national attention with his lacrosse style breakaway goal that went viral. In just 3 days, his video has been witnessed over 260,000 times. Not to mention it was a shorthanded goal! Many hockey players are dubbing it one of the best goals of the year...in ALL of hockey! Check it out for yourself!

T-Wolves rookie Derrick Williams to participate in NBA Cares Special Olympics

2012-02-13T16:33:00.000-06:00

Exhibition Game Part of 2012 All-Star Weekend Festivities
Minneapolis/St. Paul – The NBA and Special Olympics today announced the first-ever NBA Cares Special Olympics Unity Sports Basketball Game which will take place as part of the 2012 NBA All-Star weekend festivities in Orlando and will feature Timberwolves rookie forward Derrick Williams. With support from The Coca-Cola Company, the game will tip off on Center Court at NBA All-Star Jam Session on Sunday, Feb. 26, and will feature 12 Special Olympics athletes from across the country, along with NBA Legends Chris Mullin, Clyde Drexler and Dikembe Mutombo, current WNBA players, and celebrities. In addition to Williams, NBA players Kevin Durant and Kemba Walker will also participate in the game.

The exhibition game will combine athletes with and without intellectual disabilities as teammates to showcase the power of Special Olympics’ Unified Sports® program, which helps unite communities and foster an environment of acceptance and inclusion. In addition, as part of the NBA Cares All-Star Community Caravan, NBA/WNBA legends and players will host a clinic for local Special Olympics athletes at Jam Session immediately following the game.

"I'm honored to be joining these incredible Special Olympic athletes for the inaugural Unity Game," said Williams, who will be participating in the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge on Feb. 24. "I looking forward to participating in All-Star Weekend and this event will make it even more memorable."

“The NBA is excited to expand our longtime partnership with Special Olympics by hosting the Unity Sports basketball game as part of our NBA All-Star festivities,” said NBA Senior Vice President of Community Relations Todd Jacobson. “The NBA Cares Special Olympics Unity Sports Basketball Game is about having fun, promoting fitness and bringing people together.”

“We are proud to have this unique opportunity to show the world the incredible talents of our Special Olympics athletes, playing alongside basketball legends from the NBA and WNBA,” said Peter Wheeler, Special Olympics’ Chief Officer of Strategic Properties. “This is another great moment in our long-standing partnership with the NBA and we hope that this Unity Sports basketball game shows NBA fans the power of sports to unite us all.”

NBA Cares Special Olympics Unity Sports Basketball Game roster:

East West
Marc Campbell, ON Jesse Burnett, CO
Keyuana Davis, FL Jackie Buxton, OR
Kerri Gilroy, MA Steve Lynn, OK
Rickie Kelly, WI Anthony Nunn, MN
Andre Larry, FL Sean Vigil, UT
Tony Payne, TN Jennifer Wardlow, NC

These 12 Special Olympics athletes and their families will be treated to an unforgettable NBA All-Star experience including dinner with an NBA legend, in-arena recognition at NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm, and tickets to the NBA All-Star Game.

The NBA’s global partnership with Special Olympics began more than 30 years ago when the league helped to introduce basketball as a new sport to the organization. The NBA has since provided sponsorship to Special Olympics basketball tournaments, created public service announcements featuring NBA players, and participated in major Special Olympics events. In addition, the NBA's Basketball without Borders program has featured international clinics for Special Olympics athletes in China, Puerto Rico, Russia, France, Greece, Italy, Brazil, Spain, and Mexico.

Four Lynx Among Finalists for 2012 USA Olympic Team

2012-02-13T15:06:00.002-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – USA Basketball today announced that Lynx players Seimone Augustus, Rebekkah Brunson, Maya Moore and Lindsay Whalen are among the 21 finalists for the 2012 USA Women's Olympic Team. The Lynx have been represented on the Olympic Team roster three times in franchise history: Augustus (2008) and Katie Smith (2000, 2004). The finalists were selected by the USA Basketball Women’s National Team Player Selection Committee.

"We are excited that they have a chance to be a part of this opportunity with USA Basketball," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. “We all have seen firsthand the impact these women have on a team and we wish them the best of luck in their efforts to make the final Olympic roster.”

No stranger to representing her country in international play, Augustus (6-1, guard/forward) is looking to play in the Olympics for the second time in her career after winning a gold medal in 2008. She appeared in all eight games off the bench in 2008, averaging 7.9 points and 2.3 rebounds per game, as the USA swept their way to the gold.

Brunson (6-2, forward) appeared in both the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship and 2003 Pan American Games with Team USA. Her performance in the 2007 FIBA Americas Championship helped Team USA qualify for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, averaging 9.0 points and 3.6 rebounds per contest as the U.S. went unbeaten.

Moore (6-0, forward) is looking to make the final roster after helping the U.S. qualify for the Olympics during the 2010 FIBA World Championship. She appeared in all nine games during the competition, averaging 8.7 points and 3.3 rebounds in 18.3 minutes per contest as the USA went unbeaten to secure their spot in London.

Whalen (5-9, guard) was also a member of the unbeaten 2010 FIBA World Championship team that avenged their 2006 bronze medal. She averaged 5.9 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists in 18.4 minutes off the bench, including scoring a team-high 16 points in their second round victory over Canada.

Joining the Lynx players as finalists are: Jayne Appel (San Antonio Silver Stars), Sue Bird (Seattle Storm), Swin Cash (Chicago Sky), Tamika Catchings (Indiana Fever), Tina Charles (Connecticut Sun), Candice Dupree (Phoenix Mercury), Sylvia Fowles (Chicago Sky), Brittney Griner (Baylor University), Lindsey Harding (Atlanta Dream), Asjha Jones (Connecticut Sun), Kara Lawson (Connecticut Sun), Angel McCoughtry (Atlanta Dream), Renee Montgomery (Connecticut Sun), Candace Parker (Los Angeles Sparks), Cappie Pondexter (New York Liberty), Diana Taurasi (Phoenxi Mercury) and Sophia Young (San Antonio Silver Stars).

The Olympic National Team is coached by University of Connecticut head coach Geno Auriemma. He will be assisted on the Olympic coaching staff by DePaul University head coach Doug Bruno, Olympic gold medalist and Washington Mystics assistant coach Jennifer Gillom and Atlanta Dream head coach Marynell Meadors.

Team USA is seeking its fifth consecutive and seventh overall gold medal, as well as extending its 33-game Olympic winning streak. The 2012 Olympic basketball tournament will be held from July 28 to August 12 in the Olympic Park Basketball Arena (preliminary round and quarterfinals) and North Greenwich Arena (semifinals and finals).

Minnesota Lynx Sign Guard Erin Thorn

2012-02-13T15:03:00.000-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL â€“ The Minnesota Lynx today announced the team has signed free agent guard Erin Thorn. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Thorn, a 5-9 sharpshooting guard, lived up to her reputation last season with the Chicago Sky, shooting 39.5 percent from three-point range, ranking 13th in the WNBA, and 94.7 percent (18-for-19) from the free throw line. She appeared in all 34 games during the 2011 campaign, averaging 5.4 points, 2.4 assists and 1.7 rebounds in 16.8 minutes per game.

"We are excited to welcome Erin to the Minnesota Lynx organization," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. "She is a fantastic shooter and a threat to score from anywhere on the court. Erin will add some excellent depth to our backcourt this season."

"We're happy to add someone of Erin's experience," said Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve. "Erin has been around the league for a long time and carries a strong reputation for being a heady player with leadership qualities. Additionally, Erin has tremendous versatility and can play both guard positions, which will be a valuable asset for our bench."

A nine-year veteran out of BYU, Thorn was originally drafted by the New York Liberty in the second round of the 2003 WNBA Draft. She spent the first six years of her career with the Liberty, enjoying perhaps the best season of her career in 2007 with career highs in points, assists, rebounds and minutes. Thorn spent the last three seasons with the Sky, appearing in all 102 games and shooting an impressive 40.7 percent from three-point range during that time. In her career, Thorn has averaged 5.1 points in 16.0 minutes per game.

The 2011 WNBA Champion Lynx, who own the No. 3 pick in April's 2012 WNBA Draft, will kick off their title defense with the team's Home Opener on Sunday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Target Center against the Phoenix Mercury on ABC. Lower-level tickets are available for as little as $10 a game for the 17-game home season and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or visiting the Lynx website at http://www.lynxbasketball.com.

'Piggyback Bandit' declared a threat to MN athletes & is banned from games

2012-02-10T16:41:00.000-06:00

On Friday, Minnesota State High School League executive director Dave Stead banned Sherwin Shayegan, described as "The Piggyback Bandit" for jumping on the backs of high school players, from all league-sanctioned events.

In a letter sent on Friday to the league's more than 400 member schools, Stead said Shayegan has been banned from sporting events in three other states, was spotted Thursday in St. Cloud and is known to be in Minneapolis.

On Thursday, the North Dakota High School Activities Association banned Shayegan from attending any sanctioned events. He is also banned from attending high school-sanctioned events in Oregon and Montana.

NDSU Baseball picked 4th in Summit League Preseason Poll

2012-02-10T14:12:00.000-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - The North Dakota State baseball team was picked to finish fourth in The Summit League according to a preseason poll of the league's seven head coaches released Friday, Feb. 10.

Fourteen-time defending tournament champion Oral Roberts was the unanimous pick to win the league again with 36 points, Western Illinois was second (27), South Dakota State third (25) and NDSU fourth (21).

Southern Utah (19), Oakland (11) and IPFW (8) rounded out the fifth through seventh spots in order.

NDSU was 22-32 overall and placed third in The Summit League with a 15-12 record last year under head coach Tod Brown, who is beginning his fifth season.

The Bison return seven position starters and six pitchers who threw at least 20 innings last year. The top returning hitters are sophomore designated hitter Blake Turbak (.349) and sophomore center fielder Tim Colwell (.333).

NDSU is scheduled to open the season Feb. 17-19 with a three-game series at Arizona. The home openers are scheduled for April 10-11 against Valley City State and Mayville State, and the Summit League schedule begins April 13-15 with a four-game series at Western Illinois.

The top four teams in the regular-season standings will advance to the Summit League tournament May 24-26 at J.L. Johnson Stadium in Tulsa, Okla., with the winner of the double-elimination bracket earning the league's automatic berth in the NCAA playoffs.

2012 Summit League Baseball Preseason Poll

Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Oral Roberts (6) 36
2. Western Illinois 27
3. South Dakota State 25
4. North Dakota State 21
5. Southern Utah (1) 19
6. Oakland 11
7. IPFW 8

Minnesota Lynx Re-Sign Guard Candice Wiggins

2012-02-10T14:07:00.000-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL - The Minnesota Lynx today announced the team has re-signed guard Candice Wiggins. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Wiggins played a pivotal role for the Lynx during their championship run a season ago, appearing in all 34 games off the bench. Wiggins averaged 17.1 minutes per game last season, while shooting a career-best 39.5 percent from three-point range. The fourth-year Stanford graduate ranked second on the team with a career-high 49 three-pointers, including matching a career-best with five treys on three different occasions. Wiggins finished the season averaging 5.9 points, 1.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists per contest.

"We are very excited to bring Candice back for our title defense this upcoming season," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. "The energy that she provides off the bench and her ability to stretch the floor was instrumental to our success last season. We are looking forward to her continued growth as a player this season."

"Candice was an extremely important part of our team's success last season," said Lynx Head Coach Cheryl Reeve. "She acts as a disruptive force defensively coming off of our bench and provides our team with excellent energy. Candice has a great ability to create offensive opportunities with her defense, which was a tremendous benefit for our team throughout the course of the season."

Drafted by the Lynx with the third overall pick in the 2008 draft, Wiggins had an excellent rookie season in Minnesota, coming off the bench in 29 of 30 games and averaging 15.7 points per game, the league's highest scoring average ever for a player off the bench. Her season concluded with being named the WNBA's Sixth Woman of the Year, the first time in team history a player had earned the honor. Wiggins holds career averages of 11.6 points, 2.7 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.2 steals per contest.

The Lynx, who own the No. 3 pick in the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft, will kick off their title defense with the team's Home Opener on Sunday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Target Center against the Phoenix Mercury on ABC. Lower-level tickets are available for as little as $10 a game for the 17-game home season and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or visiting the Lynx website at lynxbasketball.com

Kevin Love Named to NBA Western Conference All-Star Team

2012-02-09T18:52:00.000-06:00

Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Love has been named to the 2012 Western Conference All-Star team, the National Basketball Association announced today. Love was named to the team via a balloting by NBA head coaches. The 2012 NBA All-Star Game will be played at Amway Center in Orlando on Sunday, Feb. 26.

The honor is the second of Love's career as he made his first appearance in last year's game. Love is the second player in franchise history to make more than one All-Star Game appearance, joining Kevin Garnett (10 appearances). Tom Gugliotta, Wally Szczerbiak and Sam Cassell all made one appearance as a Timberwolves player. Love recorded two points and four rebounds in 12 minutes during the 2011 NBA All-Star Game at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles.

"I'm excited to be playing in the All-Star Game again and proud to be representing the Timberwolves organization at this premier event," Love said. "I'm thankful to the NBA head coaches for voting me in, as well as to all the great Wolves fans that have been behind me and my teammates all season long."

Love, the 2011-12 NBA leader in double-doubles with 22, ranks second in rebounding (13.7 rpg), fourth in scoring (25.0 ppg), first in free throw made (175) and first in minutes (39.4 mpg). He has tallied 30+ points seven times this season. Love has recorded seven 30-point/10-rebound games this season; no other player has more than four such games. He has notched 19 20-point/10-rebound games this season -- 10 more than the next highest total.

Love scored a season-high 39 points and added 12 rebounds vs. Houston on Jan. 23. He sank the game-winning three-pointer as time expired in the Wolves' 101-98 win at the Los Angeles Clippers on Jan. 20. Love started the season with eight-straight games of 20+ points and 12+ rebounds, the longest streak to start a season in the NBA since Kareem Adbul-Jabbarâ€™s 10 consecutive to start the 1975-76 season.

Wolves fans can celebrate Kevin Love being named to play in his second All-Star Game by taking advantage of a special ticket offer. Fans can buy an upper level ticket for the Feb. 10 game vs. Dallas and receive a FREE ticket to the Feb. 15 game vs. Charlotte. To purchase tickets, call the Kevin Love hotline at 612-673-1640. Offer expires Feb. 10 at 3:00 p.m.

Three UND players named WCHA Scholar-Athletes

2012-02-09T18:09:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota senior goalie Brad Eidsness, sophomore forward Taylor Dickin and sophomore defenseman Dillon Simpson have each been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Scholar-Athletes today by the league office.

To earn recognition as a WCHA Scholar-Athlete, conference-member student-athletes must have completed at least one year of residency at their present institution prior to the current academic year and must also have a grade-point average of at least 3.50 on a 4.0 scale for the previous two semesters or three quarters, or may qualify if his or her overall GPA is at least 3.50 for all terms at his present institution.

Eidsness, a graduate student from Chestermere, Alberta, was one of 14 WCHA players to earn the honor for the third straight year, while Dickin and Simpson were both first-time honorees. Dickin is an undeclared major from Winnipeg, Manitoba, while Simpson is a pre-entrepreneurship major from Edmonton, Alberta.

“It is with a great deal of pride today that we announce our seventh annual group of WCHA Scholar-Athletes,” said WCHA Commissioner Bruce McLeod, associate commissioner Sara Martin, Michigan Tech Athletics Director Suzanne Sanregret and University of Minnesota Faculty Representative Perry Leo in a joint statement.

“This announcement has become one of the real highlights for the Western Collegiate Hockey Association each season as it focuses attention on a truly exceptional group of student-athletes. These outstanding young men and women have gone above and beyond to achieve great success both on and off the ice and their accomplishments are a testimony to the amount of dedication and hard work they put in throughout the school year. Together, they represent their teams and their league in a most impressive way and we could not be more proud of each and every one of them. On behalf of the entire WCHA, We wish them all the success in the world.”

UND has now had 22 WCHA Scholar-Athlete recipients since the award was introduced during the 2005-06 season.

Volleyball Uniform Requirements to Change in 2016

2012-02-09T16:35:00.000-06:00

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (February 9, 2012) — In an attempt to more clearly distinguish between the libero and other team members, uniform requirements will be changing in high school volleyball.

The National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Volleyball Rules Committee, at its January 9-11 meeting in Indianapolis, approved new uniform requirements that will take effect in 2016. All rules changes passed by the Volleyball Rules Committee were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

The revised rule will require the libero to wear a uniform top that is immediately recognized from all angles as being in clear contrast to and distinct from the other members of the team. The libero and/or his/her teammates shall wear a solid-colored uniform top. The solid-colored uniform top shall clearly contrast from the predominant primary color(s) of the teammates’ uniform top, with the predominant color(s) being the color(s) appearing on approximately half of the uniform.

Other requirements of the solid-colored top are 1) the sleeves shall be the same color as the body of the uniform top; 2) piping/trim no wider than 1 inch in total at its widest point may be placed along the seams and may be a different color(s) than the uniform top; 3) lettering and collars may be different color(s) than the uniform top; and 4) numbers shall be a contrasting color to the uniform top and meet all other specifications in Rule 2-2-4.

“Some uniforms were affecting the officials’ ability to identify the libero and determine legal playing action,” said Becky Oakes, NFHS director of sports and liaison to the Volleyball Rules Committee. “The tradition is that volleyball is a sport with colorful uniforms. Because there has been increasing difficulty identifying the libero because of uniform design, the rules needed to make sure the libero was easily identified.”

The rule will take effect July 1, 2016, which should give uniform manufacturers time to make the necessary changes and allow high schools to make uniform changes in their normal budgeting process and not incur additional expense, according to Oakes.

The committee also made a change to Rule 10-3, which deals with illegal alignment penalties.

The rule now states, “Illegal alignment is charged when an illegal substitute is identified in the set after the whistle/signal for serve and results in a loss of a rally/point.”

Oakes said that the committee wanted to add consistency to the rule and that a team should face the same consequences regardless of whether it plays an illegal libero or an illegal substitute.

In addition, some changes were made to the responsibilities for referees.

In Rule 5-3-4d, prior to a deciding set, the second referee shall conduct the coin toss at the officials table. The second referee shall then confirm with the first referee the result of the coin toss. Formerly, the coin toss would take place at center court, and the first referee had the option of conducting the coin toss or passing it off to the second referee.

“This rule change will give the second referee some extra responsibility,” Oakes said, adding that the committee believes that the change will be a much more efficient procedure.

Referees now will be required to carry a watch, per a change to Rule 5-2-2, to serve as an alternate to the visual timing device in the event of a malfunction with the on-site device.

The final rule change comes with the increasing presence of electronic media in high school sports. Rule 11-2-3 now allows state associations to determine the number of electronic media time-outs transmitted for matches and to have the option to reduce the number of charged time-outs.

A complete listing of all rules changes approved by the committee is available on the NFHS Web site at www.nfhs.org. Click on “Athletics & Fine Arts Activities” on the home page, and select “Volleyball.”

Volleyball is the third-most popular girls sport and 13th-most popular boys sport at the high school level according to the 2010-11 NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey. There are 409,332 girls at 15,479 high schools and 50,016 boys at 2,078 high schools participating nationwide.

Football Rules Press Release

2012-02-09T15:06:00.000-06:00

INDIANAPOLIS, IN (February 9, 2012) — High school football players must sit out one play next year if their helmet comes off while the ball is live.

In cases where the helmet comes completely off without it being directly attributable to a foul by the opponent, the player will have to leave the game for at least one down.

This addition to Rule 3-5-10 was one of eight rules changes approved by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) Football Rules Committee at its January 20-22 meeting in Indianapolis. All rules changes were subsequently approved by the NFHS Board of Directors.

“The committee made this rules change after reviewing data from multiple states regarding the frequency of helmets coming off during live-ball play,” said Julian Tackett, chair of the Football Rules Committee and commissioner of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association. “It is the committee’s hope that this serves notice for schools to properly fit players with helmets to reduce the incidence of these situations and remind the players not to take steps that alter the fit.”

Another significant change next season will be a new interpretation of a legal catch. A receiver now will be required to establish possession of the ball and contact the ground inbounds while maintaining possession – regardless of the opponent’s action.

“In previous years, the covering official could have ruled that an airborne player attempting to catch the ball would have come down inbounds, but was prevented from doing so because of contact by the opponent,” said Bob Colgate, NFHS director of sports and sports medicine and liaison to the Football Rules Committee. “Now, the player must establish possession and contact the ground inbounds for a legal catch.”

The Football Rules Committee also cleared the way for state associations and their member schools to place corporate advertising and/or commercial markings on the field of play. These types of markings previously were only allowed in the end zones and outside the field.

Rule 1-2-3l will state that while corporate advertising and/or commercial markings will be allowed, the markings may not obstruct the yard lines, hash marks or nine-yard marks.

A risk-minimization change was made to Rule 2-3-7 that changes an interpretation for blocking below the waist.

“The previous interpretation was that it was not a foul for a player to block below the waist if the hand(s) of the opponent was first contacted below the waist,” Colgate said. “This revision changes that interpretation and stipulates that such action is a foul.”

After experimentation in Minnesota and Iowa, the committee revised Rule 9-3-8 to prohibit members of the kicking team from initiating contact (blocking) against members of the receiving team until the ball has broken the plane of the receiving team’s restraining line, or until the kicking team is eligible to recover the free kick.

The other three rules changes approved by the committee include Rule 1-5-3c(8), which expands the list of illegal equipment to include play cards that are not worn on the wrist or arm, as well as Rule 9-4-3h, which now states that grasping the tooth and mouth protector, as well as the face mask, is a foul. Also, to provide guidance to game officials, the committee clarified Rule 9-4-3k by adding the direction in which the opponent was pulled during a horse-collar.

Finally, the NFHS decided to extend the effective date of its new glove rule from 2012 to 2013. During the 2012 season, both gloves meeting the current standard and gloves meeting the new standard will be legal for play.

“The game of football at the high school level is in great shape, and the committee continues to review all available data to minimize the risk to participants,” Tackett said. “A hallmark to the NFHS playing rules is the constant emphasis on risk minimization, as well as historic tenets regarding the balance between offense and defense and making the rules appropriate for the levels of the coaches, players and officials.”

Football is the No. 1 participatory sport for boys at the high school level with 1,134,377 participants in the 2010-11 school year, according to the High School Athletics Participation Survey conducted by the NFHS through its member state associations. In addition, the survey indicated there were 1,561 girls who played football in 2010-11.

NDSU Women’s Golf Picked Third in Summit League Preseason Poll

2012-02-08T15:06:00.002-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - The North Dakota State women's golf team was picked to finish third in The Summit League according to a preseason poll of the league's 10 head coaches released Wednesday, Feb. 8.

Fourteen-time defending league champion Oral Roberts was picked first with 79 points and seven first-place votes and UMKC was second with 75 points and three top votes ahead of the Bison with 59 points.

IUPUI was fourth (57, Oakland fifth (47), South Dakota State sixth (40), Southern Utah seventh (36), Western Illinois eighth (29), IPFW ninth (19) and South Dakota last (9).

North Dakota State is led by Amy Anderson, a junior from Oxbow, N.D., who leads The Summit League by more than three full strokes with a 72.82 average. Anderson was Summit League champion and tied for 12th at the NCAA championship last year.

The Bison are fifth in the league in team scoring with a 316.91 average. Oral Roberts leads the league at 308.25.

NDSU coach Matt Johnson, a teaching professional since 1995 and owner of The Sports Bubble in Fargo since 2004, is in his third season with the Bison. He coached the NDSU men's team from 2001 to 2004.

North Dakota State is scheduled to open the spring portion of its schedule Feb. 27-28 at the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Islander Classic. The Bison have four tournaments scheduled before the Summit League championship April 23-24 at the Primm Valley Golf Club in Primm, Nev.

2012 Summit League Women's Golf Preseason Poll
Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. Oral Roberts (7) 79
2. UMKC (3) 75
3. North Dakota State 59
4. IUPUI 57
5. Oakland 47
6. South Dakota State 40
7. Southern Utah 36
8. Western Illinois 29
9. IPFW 19
10. South Dakota 9

PTP Players of the Week

2012-02-07T17:21:00.000-06:00

February 6, 2012)
Taylor Kujava (Ada-Borup) and Jake Pavek (Mahnomen) have earned the Girls and Boys Pine to Prairie Player of the Week Award for their respective efforts on the basketball court. For both Taylor and Jake, this is their second Player of the Week award of the season. Taylor earned her previous one on December 29th and Jake earned his on January 23rd.

Taylor (Sr., Forward) Averaged 21 points and 15 rebounds in the Cougars two victories last week. Ada-Borup defeated Lake Park-Audubon and Ulen- Hitterdal to run their season record to 18-1 on the year.

Jake (Jr., Forward) had a couple of big nights last week. Against Climax- Fisher, Pavek scored 25 points and grabbed 24 rebounds. In a big win over North Division leading Fertile-Beltrami, Jake scored 44 points and had 22 rebounds. He also surpassed the 1,000 career point mark in the game against
the Falcons.

Two other Pine to Prairie Conference basketball players reached the 1,000 career point mark during last week’s games. Landon Schultz (Ulen-Hitterdal) and Kari Skersick (Bagley) both eclipsed that milestone. In addition, other outstanding efforts for the week were turned in by Sean
Benson (Bagley) and Justine Yost (Waubun).

NDSU ranked 9th in Summit League Men's Golf Preseason Poll

2012-02-07T14:27:00.000-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - The North Dakota State men's golf team was picked to finish ninth in The Summit League according to a preseason poll of the league's 10 head coaches released Tuesday, Feb. 7.

Defending champion UMKC was picked to win with 74 points and three first-place votes, IUPUI was second with 73 points and six first-place votes, and Southern Utah was third with 67 points and one top vote.

Oral Roberts placed fourth with 56 points and the next four spots were separated by only five points. South Dakota State was fifth (41), IPFW sixth (39), Western Illinois seventh (37) and Oakland eighth (36).

North Dakota State (17) and South Dakota (10) rounded out the voting. NDSU placed ninth at last year's league championship.

Senior Zach Stenstad from Woodbury, Minn., is NDSU's leading golfer with a 76.00 stroke average that ranks 27th in The Summit League. IUPUI leads the league in team scoring at 292.71 and North Dakota State is ninth at 307.92.

NDSU's coach is Billy Iverson, the assistant golf professional at Oxbow Country Club. Iverson is in his eighth year with the Bison.

North Dakota State is scheduled to open the spring portion of its schedule Feb. 27-28 hosting the Quintero Invitational against Creighton and Nebraska Omaha at the Quintero Golf and Country Club in Peoria, Ariz.

The Bison have three tournaments scheduled before the Summit League championship April 23-24 at the Primm Valley Golf Club in Primm, Nev.

2012 Summit League Men's Golf Preseason Poll

Team (First-Place Votes) Points
1. UMKC (3) 74
2. IUPUI (6) 73
3. Southern Utah (1)67
4. Oral Roberts 56
5. South Dakota State 41
6. IPFW 39
7. Western Illinois 37
8. Oakland 36
9. North Dakota State 17
10. South Dakota 10

Local athlete runs personal best

2012-02-06T16:01:00.000-06:00

Spencer Ruebke, a graduate of Ada-Borup High School who is now running track for MSU-Moorhead, placed 5th out of 26 runners in the 1600 meter race in last Saturday's Concordia Duals event.

Ruebke ran a personal best 4:27.51. He also ran the first leg of the 4K relay in which MSUM placed first.

Ruebke, a sophomore at MSUM, is the son of Chuck & Tammy Ruebke.

USCHO.com DI men's hockey poll

2012-02-06T15:54:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota will return from a week off ranked No. 16 in the latest USCHO.com Division I men's hockey poll released today.

UND, which has lost just three times in its last 15 games (11-3-1), climbed one spot from last week's No. 17 ranking. UND will travel to third-ranked Minnesota Duluth on Friday and Saturday. The Bulldogs had been the nation's top-ranked team prior to last weekend's split at Alaska Anchorage.

Boston University, one of six teams to receive first-place votes, was the No. 1 team in this week's poll, followed by No. 2 Minnesota, No. 3 UMD, No. 4 Michigan and No. 5 Boston College.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Boston University (12) 16-8-1 930 3
2. Minnesota (22) 19-9-1 922 2
3. Minnesota Duluth (10) 18-6-4 899 1
4. Michigan (4) 17-9-4 805 7
5. Boston College 16-10-1 770 5
6. Ferris State (1) 18-8-4 760 6
7. Massachusetts-Lowell (1) 18-7-0 716 9
8. Merrimack 15-6-5 704 4
9. Notre Dame 16-11-3 536 8
10. Colorado College 15-9-2 534 11
11. Union 16-6-7 507 11
12. Maine 16-8-3 445 15
13. Cornell 11-6-6 333 14
14. Denver 15-9-4 319 13
15. Ohio State 14-10-5 289 10
16. North Dakota 15-10-2 253 17
17. Michigan State 15-11-4 218 NR
18. Western Michigan 14-11-5 202 16
19. Northern Michigan 12-10-6 108 19
20. Miami 15-13-2 93 18

Others Receiving Votes: Colgate 87, Lake Superior State 45, Quinnipiac 12, Air Force 4, Harvard 4, St. Cloud State 2, Northeastern 1.

Lynx Execute Sign-And-Trade Deal

2012-02-02T15:39:00.000-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The Minnesota Lynx today announced that the team has executed a sign-and-trade deal with Phoenix, sending guard Alexis Hornbuckle to the Mercury in exchange for a 2013 second-round pick.

"Alexis was a key member of our championship team last year," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. "Many of her attributes extended beyond the court, as she provided valuable leadership to our team and a winning mentality. On the court she plays with a lot of energy and intensity and is a good defender. Unfortunately for all of us, with our depth at the guard position, there just wasn't a lot of playing time available. We think this trade provides her with more of an opportunity, and that's something she wanted. We thank her for her contributions to our team and wish her nothing but the best in Phoenix."

Originally acqui red via trade by the Lynx on July 26, 2010, Hornbuckle averaged 1.1 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.6 assists in 7.2 minutes per game last season, her second with Minnesota. Hornbuckle, drafted by the Detroit Shock with the fourth overall selection in the 2008 WNBA Draft, owns career averages of 4.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 123 games.

The Lynx, who own the No. 3 pick in the upcoming 2012 WNBA Draft, will kick off their title defense with the team's Home Opener on Sunday, May 20 at 11:30 a.m. at Target Center against the Phoenix Mercury on ABC. Lower-level tickets are available for as little as $10 a game for the 17-game home season and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or visiting the Lynx website at www.lynxbasketball.com.

2012 ND State HS Wrestling Tournament, Bismarck, February 16-18

2012-02-02T15:09:00.000-06:00

The NDHSAA sponsored State Wrestling Tournament will be held at the Bismarck Civic Center, 315 S. 5th Street, on February 16-18, 2012. Jim Haussler, Athletic Director for Bismarck Public Schools, will be the tournament manager.

Schools participate in the three-day event that named Bismarck as Class A Dual and Class A Individual Team Champions and South Border as Class B Dual and Oakes as Class B Individual Team Champion in 2011.

The tournament will begin on Thursday, February 16 at 8:30 a.m. with weigh-ins and doors opening to the public at 9:00 a.m. Action begins at 10:00 a.m. with A Duals and B Individual competition. Evening action begins at 6:00 p.m. with the Parade of Athletes.

On Friday, February 17, competition begins at 10:00 a.m. with consolation round matches. Class A & B individual semi-finals and team dual championship wrestling will begin at 5:00 p.m.

Saturday, February 18, starts at 10:00 a.m. with 3rd and 4th round consolation competition. At 2:15 p.m. inductees will be recognized and at 3:00 individual introductions/championships begin.

Tickets are on sale at the Bismarck Civic Center. Tickets may be purchased online through Ticketmaster, in person at any Ticketmaster outlet, or at the Bismarck Civic Center Box Office. For ticket information, please go to http://www.bismarckciviccenter.com/ or call (701) 355-1384. Tournament information can be found under ‘Publications’ at www.ndhsaa.com in the NDHSAA January and February Bulletins

NDSU’s Anderson to Compete in World University Golf Championships

2012-02-02T15:02:00.000-06:00

FARGO, N.D. - North Dakota State’s Amy Anderson is one of five golfers who will compete for the United States in the 14th World University Golf Championships this July.

Anderson, a junior from Oxbow, N.D., joins Georgia’s Emilie Burger, North Carolina’s Catherine O’Donnell, Michigan State’s Caroline Powers, and Vanderbilt’s Lauren Stratton on the team.

The four-round tournament runs July 3-6 at the Ypsilon Golf Resort in Liberec, Czech Republic. It is a 72-hole stroke play format.

This is the second of two international summer events for Anderson. She will play for Team USA in Scotland June 8-10 for the Curtis Cup Match, regarded as the most prestigious event in women’s amateur golf.

The World University Golf Championships, sponsored by the International University Sports Federation (FISU), are contested every two years. The United States has competed in all of the events since its inception in 1986.

The U.S. women’s team has won the gold medal seven times and has finished fourth or higher in the other six championships. Most recently, O’Donnell won the 2010 gold individual medal and the U.S. finished third in Antequera, Spain.

Three players compete as the team and two play as individuals. The team score is an aggregate of the best two scores out of three each day. All five players are in contention for individual honors.

Megan Eul Named to Academic All-District Women's BB Team

2012-02-02T14:59:00.000-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.) The University of Minnesota, Crookston Sports Information Department announced today that Megan Eul (F, 5-10, Sr. Rosemount Minn.) has been named to the Capitol One Academic All-District team for her outstanding performance in the classroom and on the basketball court. The award is given by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA). Eul’s stats will be updated and she will advance for final voting for a chance to earn a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-American team.

District 52 Winners
NCAA Division II
Mikayla Barondeau - NORTHERN STATE UNIVERSITY
Megan Eul - UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA, CROOKSTON
Kaitlin Petri - CHADRON STATE COLLEGE
Vanessa Jones - NEBRASKA-KEARNEY
Michelle McDonald - WINONA STATE UNIVERSITY

UMC's Megan Eul honored with NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award

2012-02-02T14:55:00.000-06:00

Burnsville, Minn. - Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) Commissioner Butch Raymond is proud to announce the third annual NSIC Myles Brand All-Academic with Distinction Award winners. The honor, named for the late NCAA President Dr. Myles Brand, is bestowed to senior NSIC student-athletes who have a cumulative grade point average of 3.75 or higher, are exhausting their eligibility and are on track to graduate. Each student-athlete will be recognized by the NSIC with a certificate of achievement and a wrist watch. Furthermore, each institution is highly encouraged to have these student-athletes be publicly recognized at a home athletic event. A total of 85 student-athletes from the NSIC’s 14 institutions will receive the award in its third year.

Golden Eagle Women’s Basketball player Megan Eul (F, 5-10, Sr. Rosemount Minn.) earned the honor this year. She is majoring in early childhood education at the University of Minnesota, Crookston.

“The NSIC is excited to have this opportunity to honor an elite group of our student-athletes for their accomplishments. We feel very privileged to name the award after Dr. Brand in recognition of his strong support and the continued emphasis he placed on academics in the ‘Life in Balance’ theme of Division II,” said Raymond.

Dr. Myles N. Brand, visionary leader, educator and reformer, served as the President of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) from 2003-2009. He passed away in September 2009 at the age of 67 after a battle with pancreatic cancer. Brand presided over passage of the most comprehensive academic reform package for intercollegiate athletics in recent history – a package that refocused the attention of student-athletes, coaches and administrators on the education of student-athletes. Brand also changed the national dialog on college sports to emphasize the educational value of athletics participation and the integration of intercollegiate athletics with the academic mission of higher education. His impact on Division II ran deep by implementing an identity campaign and a strategic-positioning platform tied to specific divisional attributes. He challenged Division II to continue its game-environment and community-engagement focus, and improve academic success rates. (some text taken from www.NCAA.org web site)

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics Web site at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

T-Wolves Ricky Rubio Named Western Conference Rookie of the Month

2012-02-01T15:49:00.000-06:00

Minneapolis/St. Paul - The NBA today announced that Minnesota Timberwolves guard Ricky Rubio has been named Western Conference Rookie of the Month for games played from the start of the season (Dec. 25) through January. The honor is the first of Rubio's career and just the fourth Rookie of the Month Award in franchise history.

Rubio ranks fifth among rookies in scoring (11.4 ppg) and first in assists (8.9 apg) and steals (2.24 spg). The first-year guard is tied for first in the NBA in point/assist double-doubles with nine and he ranks 12th overall in double-doubles. In 11 games as a starter, the Wolves are 7-4 with Rubio averaging 12.5 ppg, 9.7 apg, 5.5 rpg and 2.82 spg. Overall, he ranks 4th in the league in assists with 8.9 apg and 3rd in steals with 2.24 spg.

For the season, Rubio is averaging 11.4 points, 4.7 rebounds, 8.9 assists and 2.24 steals in 21 games. He has scored a career-high 18 points three times this season and dished out a career-high 14 assists on Jan. 8 at Washington. Rubio's six steals vs. Detroit on Jan. 18 were the most by a Wolves player since player since Kevin Garnett had seven vs. the L.A. Clippers on Jan. 27, 2007.

Other highlights for Rubio this season include recording 18 points, 12 assists and five steals at Atlanta on Jan. 14, posting 17 points, 12 assists, seven rebounds and four steals in a 105-90 victory over Dallas on Jan. 25, tallying 18 points, 10 assists and four rebounds in an 87-79 win against San Antonio on Jan. 27 and registering 18 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in a 120-108 road win at Houston on Jan. 30.

Cleveland's Kyrie Irving was named the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month. Other nominees for the Eastern and Western Conference Rookies of the Month were Detroit's Brandon Knight, Houston's Chandler Parsons, Miami's Norris Cole, New Jersey's MarShon Brooks and Phoenixss Markieff Morris.

Pine to Prairie Basketball Players of the Week

2012-01-31T17:51:00.000-06:00

January 30, 2012)
There were many outstanding performances in the Pine to Prairie Conference this past week in both girls and boys basketball. Headlining the outstanding performances were Shelby Kaster (Win-E-Mac) and Troy Peterson (Ulen-Hitterdal) as they were selected as the Conference Players of the Week by the league coaches and athletic directors.

Shelby (So., Forward) reached a career milestone as she notched her 1000th point against BGMR on Friday. She scored 31 points and grabbed 15 rebounds in the victory. For the week, Shelby had 62 points, 49 rebounds and 10 blocked shots as the Patriots went 3-0 for the week.

Troy (Sr., Center) had 30 points and 7 rebounds in a win over Lake Park-Audubon on Tuesday. He then added 35 points and 15 rebounds on Friday as Ulen-Hitterdal defeated Norman County West. In the first half of the NCW game, Troy surpassed the 1000 career point plateau.

Other outstanding efforts for the week in girls basketball include: Megan Kolness (Ada-Borup), Cassie Kihne (Win-E-Mac) who also reached the 1000th point milestone last week, Korbyn Ross (Win-E-Mac), Andi Knudsvig (Lake Park-Audubon) and Bailee Bartunek (Lake Park-Audubon). On the boys side, Tyler George (Bagley) and Jake Walker (Win-E-Mac) also had strong weeks.

“Play 4 Kay” Night on Friday, Feb 3 at UMC Women’s and Men’s Games

2012-01-31T14:31:00.000-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- The University of Minnesota, Crookston’s (UMC) Athletic Department announced today that Friday, February 3 will be “Play 4 Kay” Night at the Golden Eagle Women’s and Men’s Basketball games at Lysaker Gymnasium. The Golden Eagles will take on the University of Mary at 6 & 8 p.m.

Fans who wear pink to the games will be entered for chances to win great prizes. If you don’t have pink apparel, pink t-shirts will be sold at the games for $10 so everyone can be entered into the drawings. In addition, all fans have the opportunity to be one of three contestants to take part in a $100 half court shot competition courtesy of the NCAA CHOICES grant.

The WBCA Pink Zone is being rebranded as Play 4Kay for February 2012. The mission of the initiative, which was brought to life in 2007, will remain intact: a nation of coaches raising breast cancer awareness on the court, across campuses, in communities and beyond. The Kay Yow Cancer Fund will continue to be the official charity of the initiative.

The justification behind the rebranding is to keep the story and legacy of Kay Yow at the forefront of everything the Fund commits itself to. Coach Yow's third recurrence of breast cancer in 2006 was the catalyst to the WBCA Pink Zone. Before her passing on January 24, 2009, Coach Yow, along with her teammates the WBCA and The V Foundation, achieved the feat of uniting thousands in the fight against women's cancers and since then the movement continues to grow and change lives each and every year during the month of February. (From http://www.kayyow.com/Play4Kay)

The Golden Eagle Basketball teams return to Lysaker Gymnasium on Saturday, February 4 to host Northern State University. Tip-off is scheduled for 4 & 6 p.m.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at Golden Eagle Sports and on Twitter at @UMCAthletics.

USCHO.com Division I men's hockey poll

2012-01-30T15:04:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - With three straight victories and an 11-3-1 record over its last 15 games, North Dakota is ranked No. 17 in the latest released today.

UND climbed one spot from last week's ranking after sweeping conference rival Wisconsin in Grand Forks last weekend. UND won 5-3 on Friday and 4-2 on Saturday to improve to 15-10-2 overall and 11-9-0 in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth remained the nation's top-ranked team, followed by No. 2 Minnesota, No. 3 Boston University, No. 4 Merrimack and No. 5 Boston College.

After a week off, UND will return to action Feb. 10-11 at top-ranked Minnesota Duluth.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Minnesota Duluth (28) 17-5-4 959 1
2. Minnesota (21) 19-9-1 918 3
3. Boston University 15-8-1 799 2
4. Merrimack 15-8-1 799 2
5. Boston College 16-10-1 777 7
6. Ferris State (1) 17-8-3 716 10
7. Michigan 15-9-4 689 8
8. Notre Dame 15-10-3 673 4
9. Massachusetts-Lowell 16-7-0 596 11
10. Ohio State 14-8-5 531 6
11. Colorado College 14-9-1 451 12
12. Union 15-6-6 451 14
13. Denver 15-8-3 383 15
14. Cornell 11-6-4 338 9
15. Maine 14-8-3 326 20
16. Western Michigan 13-10-5 290 13
17. North Dakota 15-10-2 227 18
18. Miami 15-11-2 220 17
19. Northern Michigan 12-9-5 111 19
20. Colgate 14-9-3 87 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Michigan State 69, Lake Superior State 52, RIT 15, Nebraska Omaha 10, Michigan Tech 5, Quinnipiac 5, Harvard 4, Northeastern 1

MN Lynx to participate in Nat'l Girls & Women in Sports Day Award Ceremony

2012-01-25T15:09:00.000-06:00

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – To help celebrate the 26th National Girls and Women in Sports Day (NGWSD) on Wednesday, February 1, the Minnesota Lynx will participate in a ceremony at the Minnesota State Capitol from 12 - 1:00 p.m. Members of the Minnesota Lynx org anization will be on hand to help spread awareness of this day.

"The Minnesota Lynx are excited to take part in the state's National Girls and Women in Sports Day," Conrad Smith, Lynx Chief Operating Officer said. "This day is very important to our organization. We thank everyone who has contributed to this event for their hard work in promoting female athletics today and all year."

National Girls and Women in Sports Day was first chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1986 and honors female athletic achievement and recognizes the positive influence of sports participation for girls and women. The day is recognized in all 50 states.

For more information about the event, go to: http://ngwsd-mn.com/2011-Event.html

Lynx season tickets for the 2012 WNBA campaign, which beings on May 20, are available for as low as $153 and can be purchased by calling 612-673-8400 or by visiting www.lynxbasketball.com.

PTP Players of the Week

2012-01-24T15:23:00.000-06:00

(January 23, 2012)
Brooke Brommenschenkel (Norman County West), Jake Pavek (Mahnomen) and Joel Merkens (Ada-Borup) haven been awarded Pine to Prairie Girls and Boys Basketball Player of the Week honors. All three players had outstanding weeks in helping to lead their respective teams.

Brooke scored 22 points and had 7 steals as NCW defeated Mahnomen. Brommenschenkel added 16 points and 3 steals in a loss to the Fosston Greyhounds. For the week, Brooke averaged 19 points and 5 steals.

Jake scored 23 points and grabbed 15 rebounds against Norman County West and followed that effort up with 27 points and 13 rebounds against Norman County East. Jake averaged 25 points and 14 rebounds for the week, continuing his string of doubledouble games.

Joel scored 25 points andgrabbed 10 rebounds in a 71-53 victory over Fosston. He then added another double-double against Bagley with a 20 point and 12 rebound effort as the Cougars defeated the Flyers at Bagley.

Other outstanding efforts for the week include: Neil Henrickson Ulen-Hitterdal) and Troy Peterson (Ulen-Hitterdal).

Lynx Re-Sign Six-Time WNBA All-Star Taj McWilliams-Franklin

2012-01-23T18:24:00.000-06:00

Minneapolis/St.Paul - The Minnesota Lynx today announced the re-signing of 13-year WNBA veteran Taj McWilliams-Franklin. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not disclosed.

"We are pleased to have Taj back with us for the 2012 season," said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. "She was a big part of our championship team, and will play a big role in our attempt to win back-to-back titles."

A six-time WNBA All-Star, McWilliams-Franklin played a key role in Minnesota's championship run last season, averaging 10.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists in eight playoff games, including 8.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in the WNBA Finals vs. Atlanta. For the season, McWilliams-Franklin averaged 8.3 points, 6.0 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 34 games (33 starts).

"I'm excited to be back with the Lynx for the 2012 WNBA season." McWilliams-Franklin said. "Last year was a great year. We all worked hard to achieve our goal of winning the championship. I'm looking forward to getting back with my teammates and Coach Reeve and the assistant coaches and doing it all over again."

"Taj is the consummate pro and her value to our team is immeasurable," Head coach Cheryl Reeve said. "Her return puts us in the best position to defend our title."

McWilliams-Franklin has career-averages of 11.6 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 407 career games over 13 seasons.

USCHO.com DI hockey poll

2012-01-23T14:46:00.002-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - The University of North Dakota is ranked 18th nationally in the latest USCHO.com Division I men's hockey poll released earlier today.

The No. 18 ranking represented a slight drop for North Dakota, which slipped one spot after a Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) series split at St. Cloud State last weekend. UND won 3-2 on Saturday after suffering a 3-1 defeat on Friday.

Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth garnered 45 of 50 first-place votes and retained its spot atop the poll. Boston University, which received the other five first-place votes, maintained its No. 2 ranking. Minnesota, Notre Dame and Merrimack rounded out the top five.

UND, which is 9-3-1 over its last 13 games, hosts Wisconsin on Friday and Saturday at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Minnesota Duluth (45) 17-4-3 995 1
2. Boston University (5) 15-6-1 952 2
3. Minnesota 17-9-1 790 4
4. Notre Dame 14-9-3 750 7
5. Merrimack 13-5-5 720 6
6. Ohio State 14-7-4 703 5
7. Boston College 14-10-1 680 3
8. Michigan 15-9-4 675 10
9. Cornell 11-4-4 654 9
10. Ferris State 15-8-3 532 13
11. Massachusetts-Lowell 14-6-0 526 14
12. Colorado College 14-9-1 518 11
13. Western Michigan 12-9-5 360 8
14. Union 13-6-6 349 12
15. Denver 13-8-3 319 15
16. Michigan State 13-9-4 250 16
17. Miami 14-10-2 242 20
18. North Dakota 13-10-2 133 17
19. Northern Michigan 11-8-5 103 NR
20. Maine 12-8-3 101 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Lake Superior State 47, Colgate 43, Quinnipiac 24, Nebraska Omaha, Harvard 8, RIT 7, St. Cloud State 2.

6th Annual Cops and Kids Hockey Game

2012-01-19T16:20:00.002-06:00

On Sunday January 22nd, at the Moorhead Sports Center, the Moorhead Police Department will proudly host the 6th annual Cops and Kids hockey game. The evening will consist of a 5:30 pm game against boys and girls from the PeeWee, Bantam and U-12 teams. The “Kids” team will be coached by Moorhead High boy’s hockey captains.

The purpose of the event is to promote positive interaction with community youth and local law enforcement. Admission is free courtesy of Moorhead Public Service. There will be a silent auction for autographed sports memorabilia, including a team autographed UND Fighting Sioux jersey, and a raffle for prizes donated by area businesses. There will also be a free drawing for all youth in attendance for an autographed John Lee stick and a Fargo Force jersey. All money raised will be donated to the Moorhead Youth Hockey Association and the Moorhead Police Explorer Post.

Please feel free to contact Officer Scott Kostohryz at 218-790-4128 or scott.kostohryz@moorheadpolice.com if you have any questions about this event.

UMC Softball team to hold chili feed

2012-01-18T14:53:00.000-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.) -- The University of Minnesota, Crookston's Women's Softball team will hold a chili feed on Thursday, February 2 at the Crookston Eagles Club. The chili feed will run from 4:30 until 7 p.m. Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for children 10 and under. Additional bowls of chili can be purchased for $2 at the Eagles. The chili feed tickets can be purchased from any Golden Eagle Softball team member or coach. For more information contact Head Coach Mitch Bakken at 281-8414 or bakke044@umn.edu .

All proceeds of the event go toward Minnesota, Crookston's spring training games which include five games at the Vadnais Heights Dome on February 28-29 and 12 games at Cocoa Beach Spring Training in Titusville, Fla. from March 9-15.

The Golden Eagles open the 2012 season on Tuesday, February 28-29 when the team travels to the Vadnais Heights Dome to play Northern State, MSU Moorhead, Minnesota Duluth and Bemidji State in non-conference games. The Golden Eagles open the NSIC season on March 24-25 when the team hosts Winona State and Upper Iowa at the UMC Softball Field. The double-headers are scheduled for 1 p.m. on both days.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at http://www.goldeneaglesports.com .

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at /Golden Eagle Sports /and on Twitter at /@UMCAthletics./

NCE/UH sports meeting

2012-01-17T21:48:00.002-06:00

There will be a public meeting to discuss the proposed athletic pairing between Norman County East High School and Ulen-Hitterdal High School to be held at the high school in Twin Valley on Monday, Jan 23rd at 5:00 PM. It will consist of an open forum where comments and questions will be heard by the school board, Superintendent Krogstad, Principal Lundin and Activities Director Radniecki.

The comment and question session will end at 5:40 PM. At that time the board will commence a special board meeting with the proposed pairing being the only item on the agenda. A vote will be held by the board at this meeting to determine if Norman County East High School is going to proceed with this pairing.

PTP Players of the Week

2012-01-17T18:17:00.000-06:00

(January 16, 2012)
Jenna Lundon (Waubun), Shelby Kaster (Win-E-Mac) and Tate Mosher (Fertile-Beltrami) have been chosen as the Pine to Prairie Girls and Boys Basketball Players of the Week. All three had outstanding efforts and helped their teams to a combined record of 6-1 for the week.

Jenna (Sr., Guard) reached a career milestone when she scored her 2000th career point during a win over Norman County East. She finished the night with 22 points, 11 rebounds, 7 steals and 4 assists. For the week, Lundon averaged 18.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 4.0 steals and 3.0 assists while leading her team to a 2-1 record for the week.

Shelby (So., Forward) had a big night against Bagley as the patriots picked up another North Division victory. Kaster had 24 points and 20 rebounds in the win. She also added 4 steals and 3 assists as her team went 1-0 on the week.

Tate (Sr., Guard) led the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons to a 3-0 week. He had 27 points, 4 rebounds and 6 assists in a win over Win-E-Mac. Mosher followed that effort up with 33 points, 8 rebounds and 6 assists against Mahnomen and then capped of the week with a 34 point, 10 rebound and 3 assist performance against Climax-Fisher. Tate hit two three-pointers in the last 8 seconds of the game against Climax-Fisher to send the game into overtime. He scored 11 of the Falcons’ 15 points in overtime to seal the win.

Other outstanding performances for the week include: Andi Knudsvig (Lake Park-Audubon), Bailee Bartunek (Lake Park-Audubon), Sam Lerud (Waubun), Jake Pavek (Mahnomen), Neil Henrickson (Ulen-Hitterdal), and Tyler George (Bagley).

Local K of C Free Throw Contests

2012-01-16T16:00:00.000-06:00

All boys and girls ages 10 to 14 as of Jan. 1, 2012, are invited to participate in a local level of competition for the 2012 Knights of Columbus Free Throw Championship.

This event in Mahnomen is being hosted by the Mahnomen Knights of Columbus Council #2573 on Saturday, Jan. 28th, 11:30 a.m., at the Mahnomen High School gymnasium, Mahnomen, MN. Registration begins at 11:15 a.m., immediately following the Mahnomen Elementary recreation program. For additional information on the Mahnomen event, please contact Ray Bisek, Joe Dewey, Dave Vipond, or Leo Bettels.

The Free Throw Shooting Contest in Ada will be on Sunday, Jan. 29th, at 1pm at the Ada-Borup High School.

Winners in each gender/age level will progress through local, district, and state competitions. International champions are announced by the K of C International Headquarters based on scores from the state-level competitions.

Boys and girls from the surrounding schools, 10 to 14 years (Jan. 1st) are encouraged to participate and will compete in their respective age and gender divisions for this local competition. Boys and girls, ages 10 and 11 will shoot from a 12’ foul line using a woman’s regulation sized basketball. Boys and girls ages 12, 13, and 14 will shoot from the normal regulation 15’ foul line, with girls using a regulation woman sized basketball. All contestants at the local level are recognized for their participation with participation certificates. Winners from this local competition will advance to the District level of competition, which will be held on Sunday, Feb. 12th.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our youth to participate in a fun-filled event that promotes good sportsmanship and competition. In past years, winners from our local level have advanced all the way to the state competition.

USCHO.com DI men's poll

2012-01-16T15:10:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - The University of North Dakota maintained its No. 17 ranking in the most recent USCHO.com Division I men's poll released earlier today.

UND, which has lost just twice in the last 11 games (8-2-1), is coming off of a Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) split with Minnesota last weekend, winning 2-1 on Friday and losing 6-2 on Saturday. Minnesota climbed one spot to No. 4 following the split.

Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth was the unanimous No. 1 once again after receiving all 50 first-place votes. Boston University and Boston College, ranked second and third, respectively, rounded out the top five.

UND will travel to St. Cloud State next weekend. The Huskies were unranked in this week's poll but did receive a pair of votes.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Minnesota Duluth (50) 15-14-3 1000 1
2. Boston University 13-6-1 871 6
3. Boston College 14-8-1 856 4
4. Minnesota 16-8-1 783 5
5. Ohio State 14-6-3 780 2
6. Merrimack 12-4-5 747 7
7. Notre Dame 13-8-3 731 3
8. Western Michigan 12-7-5 627 10
9. Cornell 10-4-3 571 9
10. Michigan 14-8-4 563 15
11. Colorado College 13-8-1 505 8
12. Union 12-5-6 417 14
13. Ferris State 14-8-2 396 13
14. Massachusetts-Lowell 12-6-0 370 11
15. Denver 13-8-3 338 16
16. Michigan State 12-9-3 205 18
17. North Dakota 12-9-2 201 17
18. Colgate 12-8-2 156 12
19. Lake Superior State 13-10-3 129 19
20. Miami 12-10-2 91 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Northern Michigan 81, Nebraska Omaha 43, Quinnipiac 15, Harvard 6, Northeastern 6, Minnesota State 4, Maine 3, RIT 2, St. Cloud State 2, Mercyhurst 1.

UMC Ice Fishing Tourney

2012-01-11T14:19:00.002-06:00

CROOKSTON, Minn. – Fish for prizes and support scholarships at the same time during the 2nd Annual Justin Knebel Memorial Ice Fishing Tournament to be held Saturday, February, 4, 2012. The tournament, which supports scholarships at the University of Minnesota, Crookston, will be held at Zippel Bay Resort on Lake of the Woods, Williams, Minn. Tickets are available for $25 ($30 at the gate) by contacting Alysa Tulibaski at 701-215-4300 or Bill Tyrrell at 218-281-8436. Tickets are also available at Zippel Bay Resort, 6080 39th St. NW, Williams, Minn., 800-222-2537.

Registration, limited to the first 150, begins at 10 a.m. on the ice at the tournament site with fishing from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Prizes will be awarded to the first person to catch a fish, along with prizes for the largest walleye, northern, sauger, and perch caught during the tournament. The registration fee also includes a $5 raffle ticket and road access fee. Additional raffle tickets will be available at the gate. All proceeds from the tournament support the Justin Knebel Memorial Scholarship Fund at the U of M, Crookston.

D-II men's BB poll

2012-01-10T15:15:00.000-06:00

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the first time ever, a team from the South Atlantic Conference heads the national rankings for NCAA Division II as Lincoln Memorial is the new No. 1-ranked squad in the latest NABC/Division II men’s basketball poll.

The Railsplitters, who stand at 14-0 on the season, moved to the top spot after losses last week by the top two teams, Metropolitan State and Southern Indiana. They will face an immediate test this week as the nation’s No. 1 team, as they are slated to play Saturday at Anderson, a team that handed them two of their three losses a year ago.

Kentucky Wesleyan moved up two spots as well to No. 2, while fellow Great Lakes Valley Conference member Bellarmine moved up to No. 3. West Liberty also advanced back into the top five at No. 4, while Metropolitan State slipped to No. 5 after its loss Friday at Colorado School of Mines, who jumped to ninth as a result of that victory.

Tarleton State moved up to No. 6 this week, followed by Southern Indiana, who dropped five places after a loss to Missouri S&T, with Northern Kentucky jumping three spots to No. 8. Colorado School of Mines and Cal Poly Pomona rounded out the top 10.

Midwestern State, one of the four remaining undefeated teams in Division II, begins the second 10 at No. 11, followed by Bowie State, Winona State, Indiana (Pa.) and Christian Brothers, one of six new teams in this week’s poll. Minnesota State-Moorhead moved up to No. 16, followed by Alabama-Huntsville, Hillsdale, Fort Hays State and Montevallo.

The final five teams in this week’s poll are St. Cloud State, District of Columbia, Missouri Southern, Northwest Missouri State and West Georgia.

NABC/Division II Coaches Poll (Jan. 10, 2012)
Rec Pts Pvs
1. Lincoln Memorial, Tenn. (6) 14-0 196 3
2. Kentucky Wesleyan (2) 12-0 194 4
3. Bellarmine, Ky. 11-1 186 5
4. West Liberty, W.Va. 12-1 163 7
5. Metropolitan State, Colo. 13-1 159 1
6. Tarleton State, Texas 11-1 154 9
7. Southern Indiana 11-1 151 2
8. Northern Kentucky 12-0 145 11
9. Colorado School of Mine 12-1 142 12
10. Cal Poly Pomona 9-1 129 6
11. Midwestern State, Texas 12-0 126 16
12. Bowie State, Md. 9-1 115 15
13. Winona State, Minn. 13-2 88 10
14. Indiana, Pa. 10-2 81 20
15. Christian Brothers, Tenn. 11-2 69 NR
16. MSU Moorhead 12-1 59 19
17. Alabama-Huntsville 9-3 52 13
18. Hillsdale, Mich. 13-1 46 NR
19. Fort Hays State, Kan. 10-3 45 8
20. Montevallo, Ala. 12-2 39 NR
21. St. Cloud State 11-2 33 NR
22. District of Columbia 12-1 31 NR
23. Missouri Southern 12-3 29 14
24. Northwest Missouri State 12-1 27 NR
25. West Georgia 14-2 26 25

Others receiving votes: Findlay (Ohio) 20, Western Oregon 20, Alaska-Anchorage 16, Arkansas-Monticello 15, South Carolina Aiken 13, Western Washington 10, Bentley (Mass.) 6, Charleston (W.Va.) 4, Seattle Pacific (Wash.) 4, King (Tenn.) 3, West Texas A&M 3, Missouri-St. Louis 1.

Dropped out: Findlay (17), Alaska-Anchorage (18), Augustana (21), Arkansas Tech (22), Western Washington (23), Benedict (24).

Records and previous rankings are through games of Jan. 8, 2012. The next poll will be released on Tuesday, Jan. 17

Transfer Mitch MacMillan joins brother, Mark, at North Dakota

2012-01-10T15:06:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - University of North Dakota Head Coach Dave Hakstol announced today that forward Mitch MacMillan has transferred to UND and will join the team immediately. MacMillan is eligible to begin practicing with the team, but will not be eligible to compete until January 2013.

MacMillan will have two years of NCAA eligibility remaining when he resumes competition next January.

A native of Penticton, British Columbia, MacMillan transferred to UND from St. Cloud State, where he had five assists in 14 games this season. In 28 games last season as a freshman, MacMillan had four goals and two assists.

MacMillan's younger brother, Mark, is currently a freshman forward at UND. The last time the two were teammates was in 2009-10 with Alberni Valley of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL), when they were the team's top two scorers and combined for 173 points (87 goals, 86 assists) in 59 games.

PTP Players of the Week

2012-01-10T14:20:00.000-06:00

(January 9, 2012)
Alecia Stene (Sr., Center) from Norman County East and Alex Wentzel (Sr., Forward) from Climax/Fisher have been selected as the Conference Girls and Boys Players of the Week.

Alecia helped lead the Eagles to a 2-0 record last week. Against Barnesville, Alecia had 21 points, 16 rebounds, 2 steals and 3 blocked shots. She followed that effort up with 15 points, 14 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocked shots against Norman County West.

Alex recorded three double-doubles in the three games the Knights played last week. Wentzel tallied 24 points against Red Lake County Central, 21 points against Mahnomen and added 22 points against Central Valley giving him a 22.3 points per game average for the week.

Other notable performances for last week included: Jenna Lundon (Waubun) averaging 23 points and 6.5 rebounds in two games, Jace Hennen (Ada-Borup) averaged 17 points in two wins, Tyler Schow (Win-E-Mac) scored 19 points in a win, Sam Lerud (Waubun) scored a career high 39 points in a win, and Seth Carlin (Fosston) recorded 18 points and 8 rebounds in a win.

USCHO.com DI hockey poll

2012-01-09T15:03:00.002-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - The University of North Dakota has climbed two spots and is now ranked No. 17 in the most recent USCHO.com Division I men's poll released earlier today.

UND, which has lost just once in the last nine games (7-1-1), is coming off of a 3-1 non-conference win over Clarkson Saturday night at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg.

Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth was the unanimous No. 1 in this week's poll after receiving all 50 first-place votes. Ohio State maintained its No.2 ranking, while No. 3 Notre Dame, No. 4 Boston College and No. 5 Minnesota rounded out the top five.

UND will host Minnesota on Friday and Saturday at Ralph Engelstad Arena in Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) action.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Minnesota Duluth (50) 14-3-3 1000 1
2. Ohio State 14-4-3 928 2
3. Notre Dame 13-6-3 907 5
4. Boston College 13-7-1 846 4
5. Minnesota 15-7-1 806 3
6. Boston University 11-6-1 698 10
7. Merrimack 11-4-4 656 7
8. Colorado College 12-7-1 632 6
9. Cornell 9-4-2 525 13
10. Western Michigan 10-7-5 493 8
11. Massachusetts-Lowell 12-5-0 473 12
12. Colgate 12-6-2 392 9
13. Ferris State 13-8-1 370 17
14. Union 10-5-6 357 14
15. Michigan 12-8-4 343 16
16. Denver 11-8-3 293 11
17. North Dakota 11-8-2 160 19
18. Michigan State 11-9-2 157 15
19. Lake Superior State 12-9-3 125 18
20. Northern Michigan 10-7-4 121 NR

Others Receiving Votes: Miami 108, Northeastern 48, Nebraska Omaha 11, Harvard 7, Maine 6, Quinnipiac 2, Air Force 1, Mercyhurst 1, St. Cloud State 1

3 T-wolves on 2012 NBA All-Star Ballot

2012-01-04T14:33:00.000-06:00

Minneapolis/St. Paul – The 2012 NBA All-Star Ballot was unveiled today during a special tip-off event in Orlando, the Official Host City of NBA All-Star 2012. Kevin Love, Michael Beasley and Ricky Rubio will represent the Timberwolves on the ballot as fans worldwide have the opportunity to vote for their favorite players as starters for the 61st NBA All-Star Game. The 2012 NBA All-Star Game, which will air live on TNT and ESPN Radio in the U.S., and reach fans in more than 200 countries and territories in more than 40 languages, will be played at Amway Center on Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012.

Love, who made his first All-Star Game appearance last season, is averaging 25.4 points and 15.2 rebounds per game. He ranks second in rebounding, sixth in scoring and fifth in minutes per game (39.0). The fourth-year forward recorded 31 points and 20 rebounds at Milwaukee on Dec. 27, the fifth 30/20 game of his career. He tied his career-high with five three-pointers in a 99-82 win vs. Dallas on Jan. 1, and is currently shooting a career-high .440 from long distance. In 2010-11. Love averaged 20.2 points and a league-leading 15.2 rebounds per game, en route to being named the NBA's Most Improved Player.

Beasley currently is averaging 14.0 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. He tallied 19 points on 8-for-15 shooting, including 2-for-2 from three-point range, in the Wolves' 106-96 win vs. San Antonio on Jan. 2. In 2010-11, Beasley averaged a career-high 19.2 points per game.

In his rookie season, Rubio is averaging 8.8 points, 3.8 rebounds and 6.4 assists in 26.8 minutes per game. He is shooting .517 (15-for-29) from the field and .500 (4-for-8) from three-point range. Rubio scored a career-high 14 points and dished out seven assists in the Wolves' 99-82 win vs. Dallas on Jan. 1. The rookie scored 12 points and tallied a career-high 12 assists in the Wolves' 103-101 loss to the World Champion Miami Heat on Dec. 30. Among rookies, Rubio ranks first in assists (17th overall), seventh in rebounding and ninth in scoring.

2012 NBA All-Star Balloting presented by Sprint gives fans around the world the opportunity to vote daily for their favorite players as starters for the 2012 NBA All-Star Game. There are several ways fans can cast their votes as part of this season’s all-digital program, including in 16 languages on NBA.com and through mobile phones by texting the player's last name to 6-9-6-2-2 ("MYNBA") or by visiting m.NBA.com on any wireless carrier. Sprint customers can also access the ballot and vote through the new “Sprint NBA Mobile” application, the most comprehensive app in the marketplace for NBA fans.

2012 NBA All-Star Balloting presented by Sprint also includes expanded SMS voting. Fans can now vote for 10 different players per day, per phone number, via SMS voting by sending 10 separate SMS messages, each one with a different player's last name. Fans can vote for All-Stars via SMS at any time by texting from their mobile phones. Previously, fans could cast one SMS vote for one player per day.

Fans can vote directly on NBA.com or use their Facebook profile information to help create an NBA.com All-Access account, which enables them to complete a ballot.

Wireless and SMS balloting, as well as voting on NBA.com, will conclude on Jan. 31. Starters will be announced live on TNT on Feb. 2, during a special one-hour pregame show at 7 p.m. ET featuring Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Shaquille O’Neal and Kenny Smith. The special will air prior to TNT’s exclusive doubleheader featuring the Chicago Bulls at the New York Knicks (8 p.m. ET) and the Denver Nuggets at the Los Angeles Clippers (10:30 p.m. ET).

The NBA All-Star ballot lists 120 players – 60 each from the Eastern and Western conferences – with 24 guards, 24 forwards, and 12 centers from each conference comprising the list. Voters select two guards, two forwards and one center from each conference.

The 120 players on the ballot were selected by a panel of media who regularly cover the NBA: Bill Simmons (Grantland), Sekou Smith (NBA.com), Doug Smith (Toronto Star/PBWA), and Ian Thomsen (Sports Illustrated).

NBA All-Star 2012 in Orlando will bring together some of the most talented and passionate players in the league’s history for a global celebration of the game. TNT will televise the All-Star Game for a 10th consecutive year, marking Turner Sports' 28th year of All-Star coverage. NBA All-Star Saturday Night presented by State Farm will feature the Haier Shooting Stars, Taco Bell Skills Challenge, Foot Locker Three-Point Contest, and Sprite Slam Dunk. Other events at NBA All-Star 2012 will include the NBA Rising Stars Challenge, Sprint NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, and NBA All-Star Jam Session. Orlando also hosted NBA All-Star in 1992.

NCHC names Jim Scherr as First Commissioner

2012-01-04T14:08:00.000-06:00

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The National Collegiate Hockey Conference, the new eight-school, Division I men’s hockey conference that will start play in the 2013-14 season, today announced highly respected, veteran sports executive Jim Scherr as its first Commissioner.

Scherr, who has over 20 years in sports management leadership, including as the Chief Executive Officer of the United States Olympic Committee and executive director of USA Wrestling, was introduced by Brian Faison, University of North Dakota Athletic Director, at a news conference at Penrose House in Colorado Springs, the headquarters city of the Conference.

“The selection of Jim Scherr as our first Commissioner is the culmination of a thorough, national search to identify an exceptional sports business executive who will provide the leadership, vision and credibility to make our new Conference the benchmark for excellence in collegiate hockey,” Faison said. “While the position attracted dozens of very impressive candidates, Jim distinguished himself as someone who exceeded the leadership criteria established by our athletic directors. Jim’s depth of experience will serve the Conference well and we are delighted he has agreed to accept this important position.”

“I am honored to have been selected by the National Collegiate Hockey Conference to become its first Commissioner,” Scherr said. “I am grateful to the athletic directors and coaches of our Conference’s member institutions for their support, confidence and trust. We have just 21 months before we drop the puck to launch our first season and there’s a lot to accomplish. This is a once-in-a-career opportunity and I look forward to leading a Conference, including the eight outstanding hockey programs with their coaches, staffs, student-athletes and fans, that has the potential to become the premier single-sport conference in intercollegiate athletics.”

The eight member institutions of the National Collegiate Hockey Conference are: Colorado College, University of Denver, Miami University, University of Minnesota Duluth, University of Nebraska Omaha, University of North Dakota, St. Cloud State University and Western Michigan University. The Conference was assisted in the search for the Commissioner by its consulting team of The Goldwater Group and Stafford Sports.

Scherr will immediately begin building a Conference staff and working on several key organizational functions and projects, including hockey operations and competition, business development and marketing initiatives.

Scherr served as CEO of the USOC from 2005 to 2009, overseeing 45 Olympic sports and directing the day-to-day operations of an organization dedicated to providing unparalleled service and support to America’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes. During that time, the 2008 U.S. Olympic Team collected 110 medals, the most ever for an American Olympic team in a non-boycotted Games, to lead the overall medal count at the Beijing Summer Games. At the 2006 Winter Games in Torino, Team USA finished an impressive second with 25 Olympic medals, the highest total for an American team in a Winter Games held outside of the United States.

Scherr was the Interim CEO of the USOC from 2003 to 2005 and led the organization through a critical period that resulted in the most comprehensive reorganization of its governance and management structures in history, culminating with sweeping changes to the USOC constitution and bylaws and the appointment of a new, 11-person Board of Directors in May 2004.

He was Chief of Sport Performance for the USOC from 2000-2003, directing the programs and services offered by the UYSOC in support of America’s athletes and National Governing Bodies.
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A former Olympian and World silver and bronze medalist in men’s freestyle wrestling, Scherr served as Executive Director of USA Wrestling from 1990 to 2000. He successfully reorganized and restructured the national office, resulting in record levels of athlete and coach memberships, initiated a financial turnaround and spurred an upsurge in wrestling participation and medals.

Most recently, Scherr was founder and CEO of 776 Original Marketing in Colorado Springs, a company he started in 2009 to provide marketing and public relations services. Clients have included national governing bodies, international federations and other sports organizations.

Scherr has been inducted into the South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame, Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame, National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Nebraska Wrestling Hall of Fame. He was NCAA Division I wrestling champion for the University of Nebraska (1984), USA Wrestling Man of the Year (1994) and a member of the U.S. Olympic Wrestling Team in 1986, 1988 and 1989.

Scherr graduated from the University of Nebraska with a BS degree in Business Administration in 1985 and earned an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management in 1989.

Safety alert from MSHSL

2012-01-03T17:43:00.002-06:00

The recent injury to Benilde-St. Margaret’s hockey player Jack Jablonski has prompted staff of the Minnesota State High School League to remind all participants involved in hockey about the continued emphasis on eliminating checking from behind. The following note was sent today to all League athletic administrators, to all hockey coaches, and to all hockey officials.

- - - - - - - - - -
As you are probably aware, a member of the Benilde-St. Margaret’s boys’ hockey team was injured in a junior varsity hockey game last week. In that contest an inadvertent check from behind resulted in the severe injury. This situation reminds all of us in the hockey community to renew our efforts to emphasize the elimination of hitting from behind in hockey and to emphasize proper contact techniques.

For nearly a decade the MSHSL has identified the reduction and removal of checking from behind as a major point of emphasis for coaches, officials and hockey players. This education process continues the foundation laid for boys and girls who grew up playing youth hockey under the guidelines created by Minnesota Hockey and USA Hockey. High school coaches, officials and student-athletes all have an essential and continuing role in helping to remove this type of contact from games and practices.

Currently, 124 girls’ hockey teams with students from 241 schools and 156 boys’ hockey teams drawing students from 270 schools participate in MSHSL high school hockey. Together, players from those teams working with the thousands of high school hockey coaches and officials across the state can sustain this awareness and emphasis to ensure the game will be played within the rules which will help eliminate these potentially catastrophic injuries.

With that in mind, MSHSL staff makes the following recommendations.
Coaches:
* Daily remind your hockey players to eliminate checking from behind.
* Prior to checking or contact drills, emphasize proper checking and contact technique.
* Before every game and every period remind your team to be aware of hitting from behind situations and to stay away from those situations.
* Be grateful when officials enforce the rules which will make the game safer for all involved.
Officials:
* In your pre-game meetings with captains and coaches emphasize appropriate contact and checking.
* Prior to each period talk to the captains or coaches to again remind them of the points of emphasis.
* When there are checks from behind do not hesitate to make the call—you are protecting all of the players involved.
Hockey Players:
* Remember what your coaches and the officials have taught you—stay away from checking from behind situations.
* Remind each other to keep it clean and hit the brakes when you see the numbers on the back of the jersey.

16th Annual Timberwolves Shootout

2012-01-03T16:20:00.002-06:00

The 16th annual Timberwolves Shootout will be held at Target Center on Saturday, Jan. 7 with six games featuring top-ranked high school teams. The Shootout will feature seven of Minnesota's top boys basketball programs along with five elite entries from outside of the state.

The Timberwolves Shootout has attracted some of the best basketball talent from all over the country. Through the years, 23 future NBA players have participated in the Shootout, including Timberwolves All-Star forward Kevin Love along with recent top draftees DeMarcus Cousins, Jrue Holiday and All-Star Josh Smith. In addition, more than 200 participants proceeded to play Division I college basketball. This year's Timberwolves Shootout will bring in many players expected to play in Division I college basketball programs.

The Shootout's first game (11:00 a.m.) features the St. Thomas More (Rapid City, S.D.) Cavaliers against Minnesota's Benilde-St. Margaret's Red Knights. St. Thomas More has won the South Dakota Class A title three times in the past six years (2006, 2007 and 2011) and was runner-up in 2010. The Cavaliers, who finished 25-1 last season, return two starters, led by guard Skye Warwick who signed with Division II's Northern State this fall. Benilde St. Margaret's is ranked No. 1 in Class AAA. The Red Knights are led by three Division I signees, who are combining for more than 50 points per game this season. Isaiah Zierden, who is headed to Creighton, is one of the stateâ€™s top outside shooters. He is averaging a team-best 19.1 points per game. Sanjay Lumpkin, who signed with Northwestern, adds 18.9 points and Will Dunn, a strong outside threat who will play at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne next year, is averaging 12.6 points per game.

The Rice Lake (Wisc.) Warriors and Duluth East Greyhounds will face off in the second game at 12:30 p.m. Rice Lake, currently No. 2 in Wisconsin’s Division 2 rankings, returns four starters, including Minnesota signee Wally Ellenson, who is averaging 18.6 points per game. His brothers join him in the starting five. Junior forward Ellwood Ellenson is averaging 7.6 points and Henry Ellenson, a freshman, adds 12.3 points. Alex Cuskey, a 6-foot-4 forward, was a first team All-conference selection last year and averages 14.2 points per game. Duluth East is a high-scoring team that is playing without its top player, senior Johnny Woodward, who is sidelined with a shoulder injury. Point guard Taylor Stafford is averaging 30.5 ppg and scored a tournament record 114 points in three games at the Best Buy Holiday Classic. Six-foot junior guard Shaq Coleman is averaging 16.1 points per game.

An interstate matchup will take place at 2:00p.m. as the Pelican Rapids Vikings take on the Minnetonka Skippers in a small school vs. big school tilt. Pelican Rapids won the 2009 Class 2A state title on the Target Center floor with a perfect 33-0 mark. The Vikings finished 23-5 last season and are ranked second in the state this year. They are led by seniors Luke Halbakken and Casey Bruggeman, who are averaging 18.4 and 17.2 points per game, respectively. The Vikings have good size with four players 6-foot-5 or taller. Minnetonka is arguably the stateâ€™s most improved team this season. The Skippers were just 4-23 last year, but added three transfers, including two starters. The Skippers are getting excellent scoring balance with four players averaging double figures. Senior guard Tommy McDermott is averaging a team-best 16.2 points per game. Junior Riley Dearring, who played at Minneapolis DeLaSalle last season, is scoring 16.1 points per contest. Patrick Henry transfer Latrell Love add s 15.9 points and senior Joe Risinger is contributing 11.9 points per game.

The fourth game of the day (3:30 p.m.) will feature an Iowa-Minnesota border battle, pitting Iowa's Cedar Falls Tigers against Minnesota's Prior Lake Lakers. Cedar Falls returns eight letter winners from a team that won the Mississippi Valley Conference Valley Division last season. The Tigers are led by outstanding athlete James Harrington, who also excels at football and track -- he has signed with Alabama for track. Harrington is averaging 22.8 points per game. Caleb Konieczny is adding 15.0 points per game for the Tigers. Prior Lake is a young team that has made strong strides from a 6-21 season last year. Sophomore point guard Jon Sobaski is one of the top playmakers in the state and is averaging 17.1 points per game. Seven-foot junior center Carson Shanks has already committed to Utah State and is averaging 10.1 points per contest for the Lakers.

Another Iowa-Minnesota border battle follows at 5:00 p.m. as Iowa's Sioux City East Black Raiders takes on Minnesota's defending Class AAAA champion Hopkins Royals. Sioux City East is led by Iowa signee Adam Woodbury. The 7-foot-1 center led the Black Raiders to the Iowa State Tournament last season, averaging 18.5 points and 12.4 rebounds per game. He is contributing 17.4 points and 11.0 rebounds this year. J.C. Fuller, a 6-foot-3 senior point guard, is an experienced playmaker and scorer and is averaging 16.8 points per game. Hopkins won its second straight Best Buy Holiday Classic this past week, defeating its opponents by an average of 28.7 points in the three games. The Royals have won three straight Class 4A titles and are going for an unprecedented fourth consecutive crown. Senior Zach Stahl was named the Best Buy Holiday Classic MVP after scoring 22.7 points per game. He is averaging 21.8 points on the season. Senior shooter Demitrius Martin has more than doubled his scoring from last season as he is contributing 15.0 points per game. Point guard Siyani Chambers, who is headed to Harvard, is adding 14.8 points. Andre McDonald, who is the stateâ€™s top wide receiver, has shown off his skills on the hardwood by averaging 10.0 points. The Vanderbilt commit is an outstanding athlete and leaper.

The final game of the day (6:30 p.m.) will feature the second Wisconsin-Minnesota border battle of the day as Wisconsin's Onalaska Hilltoppers takes on Minnesota's Apple Valley Eagles. Onalaska is currently ranked No. 1 in Wisconsinâ€™s Division 2. The Hilltoppers are led by 6-foot-4 shooting guard Matt Thomas, who is one of the top juniors in the state of Wisconsin. Thomas, who is drawing scholarship offers from most of the top Midwest schools, including Minnesota, is averaging 21.4 points per game. Nick Arenz, a 6-foot-8 big man, signed with Wisconsin Green Bay in the fall. Arenz, who suffered an ACL tear last year, is averaging 12.4 points per game. Apple Valley is led by standout sophomore point guard Tyus Jones, who is ranked fifth in the Class of 2014 by ESPN. He helped lead the USA 16-and-under team to the gold medal this past summer in Mexico. Jones is averaging 27.4 points per game and has three games of 30 or more points this season. Junior guard Dustin Fronk is one of the state's top outside threats and adds 18.1 points per game.

Tickets for all six contests are available for $10 at the Target Center box office on the day of the Shootout. The ticket is good for the entire day and also includes a free ticket to a future Timberwolves game.

2012 Timberwolves Shootout Schedule
11:00 p.m. St. Thomas More (S.D.) vs. Benilde-St. Margaret's
12:30 p.m. Rice Lake (WI) vs. Duluth East
2:00 p.m. Pelican Rapids vs. Minnetonka
3:30 p.m. Cedar Falls (IA) vs. Prior Lake
5:00 p.m. Sioux City East (IA) vs. Hopkins
6:30 p.m. Onalaska (WI) vs. Apple Valley

Scott Berry wins coaching award

2012-01-03T15:40:00.000-06:00

(Kansas City, MO) – The Fellowship of Christian Athletes has selected Mayville State University (Mayville, ND) Head Coach Scott Berry as the recipient of the 2011 Jerry Kindall Character in Coaching Award. Berry will receive his award during the FCA Baseball Breakfast held Saturday, January 7 at the American Baseball Coaches Convention in Anaheim, CA.

Berry has led Mayville State University’s baseball program since 1982. In his 30 years as head coach, Berry has accumulated an impressive 826-478 career record, which places him among the top winningest coaches in NAIA baseball. Berry’s teams are a dominant presence in the Dakota Athletic Conference (DAC) by winning 21 conference championships, 18 conference playoff championships and tallied 21 appearances in the NAIA national playoffs.

Coach Berry has also accumulated several personal awards and recognitions. He has been inducted into four Hall of Fames, including: Mayville State University Athletic Hall of Fame (1996), NAIA Hall of Fame for Baseball (2002), North Dakota Amateur Baseball Association Hall of Fame (2003), and the Christian Sports Commission Hall of Fame (2009). He’s also tallied 11 different NAIA District 12 Coach of the Year honors and 19 conference coach of the year awards, been awarded the NAIA Great Plains and Region 3 Coach of the Year, received the North Dakota Associated Press Sportswriters and Sportscasters “Special Achievement Award,” and the NAIA Robert E. Smith Achievement Award among many others.

“I have known Scott personally for over 25 years and can readily testify that he is an exceptional godly man,” said FCA Baseball Leadership Board Chairman, Dave Altopp, adding that “his faith was never more clearly demonstrated than during his wife’s recent losing battle with cancer.” One of Scott’s former players, Mark Andresen, wrote in his letter of recommendation for the Kindall Award that “Coach Berry has touched the lives of numerous people and continues to be a ‘rock’ even as he struggles with the realities of life.” Andresen further commented that in “losing the love of his life, Coach Berry relied on his faith, his immediate family, and his baseball family to help provide support in dealing with this loss.” His immediate family includes a daughter and three sons, all of whom have played for him at Mayville State.

A native of LaMoure, N.D., Berry played college baseball for the Mayville State Comets under legendary coach Al Meyer. After graduating he went on to coach teams in Ellendale, Binford, Rolla and Casselton (ND) before returning to Mayville in 1981 as Coach Meyer’s assistant. He then took the program’s helm in 1982.

Named after Jerry Kindall, former major league player and retired head coach at the University of Arizona, the Character in Coaching Award is presented annually to the college or high school baseball coach who best exemplifies the Christian principles of Character, Integrity, Excellence, Teamwork and Service on and off the baseball field. Coach Kindall was the honorary first recipient of the award at the 2006 FCA Baseball Breakfast.

SMSU outlasts UMC in Women's BB

2012-01-02T20:32:00.002-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- The University of Minnesota, Crookston Women's
Basketball team returned to the court this evening after a two week
semester break layoff. Both teams shot just 30% from the field in the
first half but it was Southwest Minnesota State University who shot 45%
in the second half to help in the 69-56 Mustang victory.

The Golden Eagles were led this evening by *Brittani* *Wiese (G, 5-7,
Jr., Albertville, Minn.)*, *Ashley Martel (G, 5-8, Fr., Somerset,
Wis.)*, and *Cienna Walker (G, 5-10, Fr., Ajax, Ontario)* who all scored
double-digits in points. Wiese tallied a team-high 16 points. She was
6-14 from the field, 2-6 from long range and 2-4 from the free-throw
line. Walker finished with a career-high 11 points and six rebounds
while Martel finished with 10 points. *Lauren Kessler (C, 6-1, Jr.,
Albertville, Minn.)* earned a game-high two blocks in the contest. UMC
as a team combined for 17 points off of SMSU turnovers in the contest.

Southwest Minnesota State was led by Hannah Beeler who tallied a
game-high 17 points. She was 6-10 from the field, 1-2 from beyond the
arc and 4-4 from the line. She also played strong defensively grabbing a
game-high nine rebounds. Abby Kenealy followed Beeler with 16 points
while Bree Holleman dished a game-high four assists.

Minnesota, Crookston falls to 6-4 on the season and 3-3 in conference
play.Southwest Minnesota State advances to 4-7 on the season and 3-4 in
the NSIC.The Golden Eagles return to the court on Tuesday, January 3 to
resume conference play.UMC hosts Minnesota State University, Mankato at
6 p.m.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at:
http://www.goldeneaglesports.com .

D-I men's hockey poll

2012-01-02T15:16:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. - North Dakota is ranked No. 19 in this week's USCHO.com Division I men's poll released earlier today.

UND is coming off of a win and a tie against non-conference foe Harvard last weekend, winning 7-3 on Saturday after a 4-4 overtime tie on Friday. UND had been ranked No. 18 in the previous USCHO poll, which was released prior to the Christmas break.

Defending NCAA champion Minnesota Duluth maintained its grip on the poll's top spot by garnering 47 of 50 first-place votes. No. 2 Ohio State, No. 3 Minnesota, No. 4 Boston College and No. 5 Notre Dame rounded out the top five.

UND returns to action on Saturday when it hosts Clarkson in Winnipeg at the MTS Centre, in a game dubbed the U.S. College Hockey Classic.

USCHO.com Division I Men's Poll

Rk. School (1st place) Record Pts. PR
1. Minnesota Duluth (47) 12-3-3 997 1
2. Ohio State (2) 14-4-1 930 4
3. Minnesota (1) 15-6-1 862 2
4. Boston College 13-7-0 839 3
5. Notre Dame 12-6-3 833 5
6. Colorado College 12-6-0 675 6
7. Merrimack 11-3-3 648 7
8. Western Michigan 10-5-5 618 8
9. Colgate 12-4-2 573 12
10. Boston University 10-6-1 523 9
11. Denver 10-7-3 435 15
12. Massachusetts-Lowell 12-5-0 375 17
13. Cornell 8-4-1 350 13
14. Union 9-5-5 349 10
15. Michigan State 11-7-2 337 14
16. Michigan 11-8-3 264 20
17. Ferris State 11-8-1 223 11
18. Lake Superior State 12-8-2 198 16
19. North Dakota 10-8-2 157 18
20. Yale 7-5-1 111 19

Others Receiving Votes: Northeastern 75, Northern Michigan 61, Air Force 34, RIT 12, Miami 9, Nebraska Omaha 8, Harvard

Kujava, Peterson and Arneson Earn PTP Player of the Week Honors

2011-12-29T14:33:00.000-06:00

(December 29, 2011)

Taylor Kujava (Ada-Borup), Kyle Arneson (Fosston) and Troy Peterson
(Ulen-Hitterdal) have been selected as the Pine to Prairie Girls and Boys
Basketball Players of the Week for their efforts last week.

Taylor led the Cougars to a 72-50 victory over the previously unbeaten
Waubun Bombers. The senior forward scored 26 points, grabbed 8 rebounds
and played solid defense to help secure the win. Taylor also is a strong
leader for the 5-1 team.

Kyle (senior) scored 30 points on 14 of 19 shooting from the field in a 76-49 win at Climax-Fisher. Arneson also contributed 7 rebounds, 4 assists and
had no turnovers for the game from his guard position. The Greyhounds are
off to a 5-0 start to the season.

Troy shot an amazing 13 of 16 from the field on his way to scoring 26
points. Peterson also added 9 rebounds and 3 assists during a win over
Norman County West. The senior center has help the Ulen-Hitterdal boys
basketball team get off to a 6-1 start this season.

Several other notable efforts were turned in by student-athletes in the Pine to Prairie conference last week. Sean Benson (Bagley) scored 40 points in two games as the Flyers went 1-1, Angela Vanderplaats (Norman County West)had a 17 point game with 5 three pointers and added 7 rebounds in a win over Ulen-Hitterdal, DeMarcus Brown (Win-E-Mac) had 13 points and 15 rebounds in a win over Mahnomen and Kaine Lundmark (Bagley) scored 14
points and grabbed 7 boards in a loss at Fertile-Beltrami.

Skersick and Rufsvold Earn PTP Players of the Week Honors

2011-12-20T18:04:00.000-06:00

(December 19, 2011)
Kari Skersick (So, Forward0 from Bagley and Payton Rufsvold (Sr., Guard)
from Norman County West have been honored as the Pine to Prairie Girls
and Boys Basketball Players of the Week.

Kari led the Flyers to a 1-1 record for the week. She scored 22 points and
grabbed 11 rebounds in a hard fought 63-52 loss to Waubun on Tuesday and
then followed that effort up with 26 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 steals to help
the Flyers defeat Mahnomen on Friday. During the week, Kari also
connected on 14-17 free throws. For the season, she is shooting 84% from
the foul line.

Payton Rufsvold had a great week as he lead Norman County West to a 2-1
record for the week. In a win over Climax-Fisher, Payton scored 22 points,
added 13 rebounds and 5 steals. Against Waubun, Rufsvold had 32 points, 5
rebounds and 6 steals in the team’s win. To finish the week off, Payton
scored 26 points, grabbed 9 rebounds and had 3 steals in a 1 point loss to DG-
F. For the week, Payton had 80 points, 27 rebounds and 14 steals.

Other outstanding performances for the week in girls basketball included:
Ciara Austinson (Ulen-Hitterdal) scoring a total of 38 points for the week
and Andi Knudsvig (Lake Park-Audubon) scoring 51 points in two
conference wins.

On the boys side, Jason Hanks (Waubun) scored 56 points in three games,
Kris Skersick (Bagley) had 44 points and 32 rebounds for the week, Jake
Pavek (Mahnomen) netted 51 points and grabbed 30 rebounds, Jake Walker
(Win-E-Mac) scored 28 points in a win over Climax-Fisher in his first start,
Kyle Arneson (Fosston) scored 39 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in two
Greyhound victories and Taylor Carlson (Fosston) had 32 points and 22
rebounds in the victories highlighting the boys basketball play for the week.

BSU's Andrew Walsh named WCHA Rookie fo the Week

2011-12-13T15:35:00.000-06:00

MADISON, Wis. – Goaltender Andrew Walsh, who backstopped his Bemidji State University men’s hockey team to a 2-1 home-ice victory over nationally-ranked Denver last weekend, has been named Red Baron® WCHA Rookie of the Week for Dec. 13.

A 6-2, 190-pound freshman form Dawson Creek, B.C., Walsh turned aside a career-high 36 shots last Saturday to boost Bemidji State to it’s first win over the Pioneers in a series that dates to 1967 (1-9-0). His 36 saves on 37
shots resulted in a .973 saves percentage and he also served as the last line of defense for BSU’s league-leadingpenalty-kill unit that held the Pioneers scoreless

UND goalie Aaron Dell named WCHA Defensive Player of the Week

2011-12-13T15:32:00.000-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – North Dakota junior goalie Aaron Dell has been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA)Defensive Player of the Week for his performance in UND’s series split with Nebraska Omaha last weekend.

Dell stopped 59 of 61 shots (.967 save percentage) in the series,including a 26-save shutout that earned him the game’s No. 1 star in UND’s 1-0 win on Saturday. It was his first shutout of the season and eighth of his career, which ranks fourth all-time at UND behind only Karl Goehring (15), Jordan Parise (10), and Jean-Philippe Lamoureux (10). One night earlier, Dell stopped 33 of 35 shots and was named the No. 2 star in a 2-1 overtime loss to the Mavericks.

Over his last three starts Dell owns a 0.99 goals against average and a .963 save percentage. In 16 games this season (15 starts), the Airdrie, Alberta, native is 6-7-1 with a 2.80 goals against average and an .895 save percentage.

Alaska Anchorage junior forward Mitch Bruijsten and Minnesota sophomore defenseman Mark Alt shared WCHA Offensive Player of the Week honors, while Bemidji State freshman goalie Andrew Walsh was named WCHA Rookie of the Week.

UND (9-8-1, 7-7-0 WCHA) closes out the first half of the season on Saturday with an exhibition game against the Russian Red Stars.

The puck drops at 7:07 at Ralph Engelstad Arena.

PTP basketball players of the week

2011-12-13T14:32:00.000-06:00

(December 12, 2011)
Jenna Lundon ( Sr., Guard) from Waubun High School and Lorenzo
Pemberton (Sr., Forward) from Bagley High School have been recognized as
the first Girls and Boys Basketball Players of the Week for the 2011-12
season.

Jenna scored a total of 52 points in victories over Fosston and Red Lake
Falls last week. She had 24 points in a 60-47 win over Fosston and then
added 28 points as the Bombers defeated Red Lake Falls 64-50. With her 28
points against Red Lake Falls, Jenna became the All-Time Leading Scorer
for the Bombers. She currently has a career total of 1871 points.

Lorenzo had 2 solid well rounded games this past week. He helped the
Flyers start their season with a 2-0 record. Against Park Rapids, Pemberton
had 14 points, 7 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks. He followed that effort up
with 14 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks against Ulen-
Hitterdal. Lorenzo is also a honor roll student and serves as a captain for the Boys Basketball team.

Other outstanding performances for the week include: Kari Skersick (So.,
Bagley) as she had 52 points and 21 rebounds as the Flyers went 1-1 on the
week and Marshall McKeever (Jr., Win-E-Mac) with 42 points, 17
rebounds, 7 assists, and 7 steals as the Patriots went 0-2 on the week.

The Beaver Dam announces extended holiday hours

2011-12-12T16:28:00.000-06:00

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- The Beaver Dam is making it easy for you to give the give of Green and White this holiday season by announcing extended
store hours through Dec. 23.

Just inside Gate 2 at the Sanford Center, a wide variety of Bemidji State University and Beaver hockey merchandise and apparel has been
available on game days, but from now until Dec. 23, The Beaver Dam will be open from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m.
through the BSU men’s hockey game Saturday Dec. 17 for all of your holiday shopping needs.

This week only (Dec. 12-17), shoppers spending $100 or more at The Beaver Dam store or online at www.beaversportswear.com will get a
$10 gift Beaver Dam gift card.

Take the guesswork out of your holiday shopping. Whether you are home for the holidays, visiting Bemidji or are a long-time fan of the Beavers,
stop by The Beaver Dam.

The Beaver Dam is located in Sanford Center just off of First Street at 1111 Event Center Drive in Bemidji, Minn. or shop form the comfort of
your own home on the online store at www.beaversportswear.com.

Jeff Cheek Named Offensive Coordinator at the UM-Crookston

2011-12-08T17:56:00.002-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- The University of Minnesota, Crookston and the Golden Eagle Athletic Department announced today that Jeff Cheek has been hired as the new offensive coordinator with the Golden Eagle Football program.

Cheek comes to the University of Minnesota, Crookston from Fresno State University where he was the offensive quality control assistant. At Fresno State, he assisted in game planning for third downs, assisted in weekly offensive scouting reports, broke down opponent game film and charted plays and defensive coverages on game days. Prior to Fresno State, Cheek was an offensive graduate assistant at his alma mater Boise State University. Cheek gained coaching experience at Golden West College as the offensive coordinator and offensive line coach, Humboldt State University, and Eastern Oregon University. He began his coaching career at Nampa Senior High School as the offensive line coach.

“Coach Cheek is a tremendous addition to the Golden Eagle Football program,” says Head Coach Paul Miller. “His playing and coaching experience will be an asset to both the coaching staff and our student-athletes,” Miller adds.

Cheek played left guard for Boise State University. He started in 13 games for the Broncos and was a member of two Big West Championship teams and two Humanitarian Bowl Championship teams. Prior to Boise State, he was a First Team All-Coast Conference player at De Anza College. In the classroom he earned a BS in social science and a MA in education pedagogy from Boise State University.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

Basketball mementos, memorabilia solicited

2011-12-08T15:38:00.002-06:00

The 2011-12 boys’ basketball season is under way with the first games of the season played within the last week. The girls have been playing for a week longer. The 2012 state tournaments are a little more than three months away. At both tournaments, the Minnesota State High School League will be celebrating the 100th state basketball tournament, marking the first boys’ event in 1913.

The centennial milestone will be commemorated many ways. There will be recognition of players, coaches, games, shots, tournaments and teams throughout the first 100 years. History will be paramount and the public is invited to assist with contributions of mementos and memorabilia that will be displayed at both state tournaments.

An earlier appeal resulted in a few contributions already. An extensive scrapbook has been shared. A championship trophy and photograph of a girls’ team from the ‘20s is in League possession. Ticket stubs and uniform patches have also been contributed.

Anything and everything is being solicited. Items such as tournament programs, books about the tournament, newspaper clippings, balls and uniforms, trophies, photographs — anything related to either state tournament is needed to fill display cases for fans to enjoy while at Target Center for the 2012 state tournaments.

League staff will take great care in securing any contributed item and will make sure it is returned in the same condition in which it was received. The League can arrange for pickup or delivery of items if required.

Potential contributors may inquire by sending an e-mail to hoops100@mshsl.org or by leaving a message in the general mailbox at 763-560-2262.

NDSU's Lopez Named Summit League Female Athlete of the Month

2011-12-08T14:12:00.000-06:00

ELMHURST, Ill. - North Dakota State women's volleyball player Jennifer Lopez was named the November Summit League Female Athlete of the Month by the league office Thursday, Dec. 8.

Lopez, a 5-foot-10 senior setter from Glyndon, Minn., was the first player in Summit League history to be voted both Player and Setter of the Year.

She was also named Summit League tournament MVP after posting 46 assists and 18 digs in the semifinal win over Oakland, and 34 assists plus 10 digs in a sweep over Oral Roberts in the championship.

Lopez averaged 10.91 assists, 4.09 digs and 1.18 kills per set while hitting .244 during the month and posted double-doubles in all six matches as the Bison went 6-0.

North Dakota State won its fourth straight regular-season championship with a 16-2 league record and finished 26-9 overall with a loss to Minnesota in the NCAA first round.

Oakland men's basketball player Reggie Hamilton was named Male Athlete of the Month after averaging 20.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 2.2 steals per game for the Golden Grizzlies, who went 4-2 in November. Hamilton scored a career-high 35 points in an 89-81 win over Tennessee.

UMC's Brittani Wiese Named NSIC Player of the Week

2011-12-05T15:27:00.000-06:00

(Burnsville, Minn.)- The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC)
announced today that *Brittani Wiese (G, 5-7, Jr., Albertville, Minn.) from UM-Crookston has been named NSIC Player of the Week for women's basketball.

Wiese had game-high performances of 21 and 19 points respectively as the
Golden Eagles split over the weekend. Wiese's 20 ppg was the third
highest average in the league this past week. She also led the NSIC with
a seven assists per game average. Wiese shot 50% (16-32) from the field
and 77.8% (7-9) from the charity stripe. She also grabbed two steals and
six rebounds on the defensive end of the court. UMC fell in overtime on
a last second shot to Minnesota Duluth (72-73) before rebounding on
Saturday to defeat Bemidji State (82-66).

The Golden Eagles return to the court on Saturday, December 10 when the
team travels to MSU Moorhead for a single NSIC weekend game. Tip-off is
scheduled for 4 p.m.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at:
http://www.goldeneaglesports.com .

Paul Miller Named Head Football Coach at UMC

2011-12-05T15:24:00.002-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- The University of Minnesota, Crookston and the Golden Eagle Athletic Department announced today that the "interim" tag has been removed and offensive coordinator Paul Miller has been named the head coach of the Golden Eagle Football program effective immediately.

Coach Miller has been coaching football for over 35 years. He began his career as a graduate assistant at the University of Minnesota, Morris. He has worked with the Gophers (intern on Jim Wacker's staff), was an assistant coach at the University of St. Thomas and head coach at St. Olaf College and Hamline University. Football coaching honors he has attained include, Minnesota State Football Coaches Association Coach of the Year, University of Minnesota, Morris Alumni Coach of the Year, KARE TV "Metro Coach of the Year" and Section Football Coach of the Year (7 times). Miller earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Minnesota, Morris. He was a triple major in physical education/health (K-12), political science and social sciences. He received his Masters of Arts in physical education (athletic administration emphasis) from Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Coach Miller and his wife Judy, also a U of M graduate, have three daughters and five grandchildren.

"Paul has the experience as a coordinator and as a head coach to continue to move the Golden Eagle Football program forward," says Athletic Director Stephanie Helgeson. "Paul is a proven recruiter. He and his staff will continue to recruit and bring quality student-athletes to the University of Minnesota, Crookston."

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at http://www.goldeneaglesports.com .

Follow the Golden Eagles on Facebook at /Golden Eagle Sports /and on Twitter at /#UMCAthletics./

Bemidji State Teddy Bear Toss to be held Dec. 10

2011-12-01T15:56:00.002-06:00

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- The Bemidji State University Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) will host its annual Teddy Bear Toss in conjunction with its hat and mitten drive at BSU men’s and women’s hockey games Dec. 9-10.

Fans are encouraged to bring teddy bears or other stuffed animals, preferably new but used in good condition will also be accepted, wrapped in a clear plastic bag, to the men’s and women’s hockey games Dec. 10. When the Beavers score their first goal of each game, those in attendance will have an opportunity to toss their teddy bear donation(s) onto the Sanford Center ice.

Bemidji State athletics faithful are also encouraged to bring winter hats, mittens, gloves and/or other cold weather gear to contribute to at the main gate as they enter men’s or women’s hockey games at the Sanford Center Both Dec. 9 and Dec. 10.

All items collected will go directly to local charities and will be distributed to children and Bemidji area residents in need this holiday season.

SAAC is comprised of student-athlete leaders from each of BSU’s 15 varsity athletic programs. In addition to the Teddy Bear Toss and Hat and Mitten Drive, the organization plans several other civic-minded projects throughout the year as well as being a student-athlete voice within the structure of the NCAA and Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

UND's Brock Nelson earns WCHA weekly honors

2011-11-29T15:53:00.002-06:00

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – University of North Dakota sophomore forward Brock Nelson has been named Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) co-Offensive Player of the Week for his performance in UND’s sweep of fourth-ranked Colorado College last weekend.

Nelson, a 6-4, 192-pound sophomore forward from Warroad, Minn., produced six scoring points and factored in on both game-winning goals to propel the Fighting Sioux to their first series sweep of the season.

Nelson recorded three points in each game, a 7-6 victory last Friday (Nov. 25) and a 4-3 win on Saturday (Nov. 26). In Friday’s win, Nelson scored a pair of power-play goals, including the game-winner at 11:54 of the third period, and also added an assist. The following night, he scored another power-play goal and added a pair of assists, helping setting up teammate Danny Kristo’s shorthanded game-winner in the third period to earn first star honors.

In addition, Nelson fired eight shots on goal on the weekend and earned a +2 plus/minus rating. The New York Islanders’ (NHL) draftee shares the scoring lead for North Dakota this season with 17 points (10g, 7a) in 14 games, and is tied for the national lead with six power-play goals.

Nelson shared offensive player of the week honors with CC’s Rylan Schwartz, who netted a hat trick in each game of the series at UND.

Wisconsin junior defenseman Justin Schultz was named defensive player of the week, while Denver freshman goalie Juho Olkinuora earned rookie of the week honors.

UND (6-7-1, 4-6-0 WCHA) travels to Alaska Anchorage (5-7-2, 2-7-1 WCHA) on Friday and Saturday

Section 8AA Football All-Tourney selections

2011-11-23T17:19:00.000-06:00

Name School Grade Height Weight Position
Ross Merriman Warroad 12 5' 9" 160 QB/S
Aaron Haataja Warroad 11 5' 8" 165 RB/CB
Alex Sandahl Warroad 12 6' 176 WR/CB
Tyler James Fish Warroad11 6' 2" 301 OL/DL
Andy Foster Warroad 12 5'10" 200 MLB
Hunter Lawson Hawley 11 5'10" 150 QB/S
Riley Burns Hawley 12 5'11" 180 RB/LB
Alex Ames Hawley 11 5'10" 180 FB
Alex Schwendeman Hawley12 6' 180 LB/TE
Kris Skersick Bagley 12 6' 1" 235 FB/LB
Tyler George Bagley 12 6' 1" 170 TB/S
Nick Neeland Bagley 12 5'11" 190 QB/LB
Colby Braton Barnesville12 5' 9" 165 FB/LB
Kyle Johnson Barnesville11 6' 220 G/DE
Austin Martz Barnesville11 6' 1" 165 RB/SS
Tanner Dufault Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton 12 5'10" 163 QB
Jake Hanson Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton 12 5' 9" 219 DL
Cody Piper Frazee 12 5'11" 163 RB/DB
Daniel Janu Frazee 12 6' 5" 202 TE/DE
Bryson Vasey United North Central 12 5'11" 275 OL/DL
Tanner Burgau United North Central 12 5' 9" 160 WR/DB
Luke Halbakken Pelican Rapids 12 6' 6" 200 SE/LB
Tucker Forsgren Pelican Rapids 11 6' 5" 205 SP/LB
Christopher Zimmer Walker-H-A/Laporte 11 5'10" 205 LB

NDSU’s Lopez Player & Setter of the Year

2011-11-17T18:16:00.002-06:00

FORT WAYNE, Ind. - Five North Dakota State women's volleyball players earned spots on the All-Summit League teams and two Bison earned individual awards selected by a vote of the league's 10 coaches announced Thursday, Nov. 17, at the league championship banquet.

Senior Jennifer Lopez became the first player in league history be named both Player of the Year and Setter of the Year, and Kari Thompson was named Coach of the Year in her first full season at the helm of the Bison.

Junior middle hitter Megan Lambertson joined Lopez on the All-Summit League first team, and senior middle hitter Chrissy Knuth and junior outside hitter Brynn Joki were named to the second team. Outside hitter Lauren Cammack was named to the All-Freshman Team.

Oral Roberts sophomore libero Bruna Silva was named Defensive Player of the Year and IPFW outside hitter Emily Spencer was named Freshman of the Year.

Lopez guided the league's top offense in hitting percentage, kills and assists. She ranks in the league's top-four in hitting percentage (.299) and assists (10.75 per set) overall and was among the top 10 in league play.

Thompson led NDSU to its fourth straight regular-season crown and fifth straight tournament berth with a league record of 16-2. NDSU posted its fifth consecutive 20-win season and tied its Division I program record for wins with a 24-8 record.

2011 All-Summit League Volleyball Teams
First Team
Meghan Bray, Oakland, Jr., OH
Kelli Fiegen, South Dakota State, Jr., MH
Megan Lambertson, North Dakota State, Jr., MH
Jennifer Lopez, North Dakota State, Sr., S
Analaine Pelaez-Mailoto, Southern Utah, Jr., OH
Bruna Silva, Oral Roberts, So., L
Emily Spencer, IPFW, Fr., OH

Second Team
Shari Bernhardt, IUPUI, Sr., L
Brynn Joki, North Dakota State, Jr., OH
Chrissy Knuth, North Dakota State, Sr., RS
Kendall Kritenbrink, South Dakota, Fr., OH
Tessa McGill, IPFW, Jr., L
Elizabeth McVicker, Oral Roberts, Jr., MH
Megan Steenhuysen, IPFW, Jr., S

All-Freshmen Team
Lauren Cammack, North Dakota State, OH
Taylor Humm, Oakland, OH
Kendall Kritenbrink, South Dakota, OH
Ann Miller, Western Illinois, OH
Gabi Mirand, Southern Utah, S
Emily Spencer, IPFW, OH
Kendall Wienkes, IPFW, OH

Player of the Year
Jennifer Lopez, North Dakota State

Defensive Player of the Year
Bruna Silva, Oral Roberts

Setter of the Year
Jennifer Lopez, North Dakota State

Freshman of the Year
Emily Spencer, IPFW

Coach of the Year
Kari Thompson, North Dakota State

Moller Resigns Head Football Coach Position at UMC

2011-11-16T17:22:00.001-06:00

CROOKSTON, Minn. (November 16, 2011) – The University of Minnesota, Crookston announced this afternoon that Charles “Chuck” Moller has resigned as head football coach for the Golden Eagles.

“Coach Moller has chosen to pursue other opportunities,” said U of M, Crookston Chancellor Charles Casey. Moller was named head football coach for the Golden Eagles in December of 2010. He had been hired on a one-year contract.

Effective immediately, Assistant Football Coach Paul Miller, who served the Golden Eagles this season as offensive coordinator, will step in as interim head football coach.

“We appreciate Coach Moller’s contributions to our program over this past year,” said Athletic Director Steph Helgeson, “and we wish him and his family the best in the future.”

Dragons Men's Basketball Signs Four Recruits for 2012-13 Season

2011-11-15T14:23:00.000-06:00

Collin Boyles, Sports Information Coordinator

MOORHEAD, Minn. - On the opening day of regular season basketball games for Minnesota State University Moorhead, the men's club announced the signing of four recruits to add depth for seven exiting seniors.

The Dragons announced Tuesday the signing of Tyler Vaughan from Braham High School (Braham, Minn.), Damien Reinke from Becker High School (Becker, Minn.), Matt Nelson from Rosemount High School (Rosemount, Minn.) and Ryan Benoy from Baldwin-Woodville High School (Baldwin, Wisc.).

Vaughan, a 6'0" guard, earned MVP honors in the Great River Conference while recording 24.6 points, 7.7 rebounds, 7.5 assists and three steals per game in his junior season for the Braham Bombers. Vaughan took his talents into spring and summer circuits while playing with the Minnesota Comets. A two-sport athlete, Vaughan led the school's football team to the Minnesota State Tournament.

Reinke, a 6'6" forward, put up 19.3 points and 7.7 rebounds per game with the Becker Bulldogs as a junior. Reinke, a distinguished three-point shooter, played alongside Vaughan on the Comets' spring and summer circuit travel-team. Also a two-sport athlete, Reinke's play at wideout for the Bulldogs' football team has led to college recruitment in both sports.

Nelson, a 6'9" forward, has been called a team-first player while scoring 11.7 points per game in his junior season for the Rosemount Irish. The tall presence will add shot blocking ability, strong defense, scoring opportunities from the post and perimeter and intelligence while running the floor. Nelson competed with the Minnesota Select on the travel-team circuit.

Benoy, a 6'0" guard, leads the Baldwin-Woodville Blackhawks from the point after averaging 2.5 assists and 18.2 points off a .500 field goal percent as a junior. A .390 three-point percent shows the potential of his perimeter game. As MVP of the Middle Border Conference, Benoy will take on a distributor role with the Dragons while defending opponents from end-line to end-line. Benoy played on a travel-team circuit with the Wisconsin Playground Warriors.

The recruits will join the team for the 2012-13 season that will lose seven seniors from this year's squad. The Dragons women's and men's teams tip-off regular season play Tuesday night at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., respectively. The Dragons will take on the Vikings of Valley City State University in Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse.

Ness Trusty Safety Net for the Dragons

2011-11-15T14:17:00.000-06:00

Larry Scott, SID Emeritus

MOORHEAD, Minn. - Forgive Katy Ness for being downright defensive about her volleyball career at Minnesota State Moorhead. It's just part of the job description.

A three-year fixture in the Dragon lineup, Ness fills the defensive specialist role of libero. It's an essential and often thankless assignment, but one Ness readily accepts.

“Technically, all I can do is receive serves and play defense,” said Ness. “I was an outside (hitter) in high school, but I knew coming here I wouldn't play outside because I didn't have the height.”

Ness had a simple solution. “You just come to learn to play your role and love that part of the sport.”

Ness is well aware of the importance of the libero in today's game, and she's willing to shoulder a bigger part of the load. “I'm looked at as a leader, and if our passing is not going well I'm going to take most of the blame for it, but I like to handle the heat. I'm fine with that.”

Ness appeared in all 27 matches this year and was credited with 567 digs, an average of 6.03 per game. She finished second in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with 6.38 digs a game and earned honorable mention all-conference honors. She was also saluted as NSIC Player of the Week five times in 2011.

Ness was installed in the MSUM starting lineup early in her freshman season and finished with 456 digs. As a sophomore she reached double figures in digs in 22 matches, and finished with 447 digs, and hiked her career total to 1,470. She needs 338 to replace Emily Hegg as the Dragons' all-time leader.

A three-time all-conference selection at Ada-Borup High School, Ness was named to the Minnesota All-State Volleyball team as a senior. She was also honored as team and conference MVP.

Ness helped the Cougars advance to a third place finish at the 2008 Minnesota State High School Volleyball Championships. She was named to the Minnesota All-State Tournament team and earned All-State Academic honors as well. Ness also served as basketball and track captain of the Cougars.

Despite her classy prep pedigree, Ness knew she would face some adjustments in adapting to college volleyball. It could all be a blur at times.

“The speed of the game, and rotating from base to defense, that was the biggest change,” Ness said. “Getting to your spot is so important. If you're not to your spot when the ball is being hit, there's no way you're going to get it.”

Ness also understands the need for more lineup adjustments. “In college if you're having an off night you can be taken out, but it doesn't mean you're going to lose your spot for good. In high school you weren't likely to be taken out even if you were having a bad game.”

An Elementary Education major with a Math minor, Ness has been named to the Dean's List as a freshman and sophomore, and admits reaching a balance between academics and athletics is taxing at times. “You learn to get used to is, when you have a day off you take advantage of it,” said Ness.

When she graduated from Ada-Borup High, Ness wasn't about to put athletics on the backburner. Sorting out the options was another matter.

“I was looking at here (MSU Moorhead) or Valley City State, because my parents are both Valley City alumni,” she said. “If I went there I was going to play two sports, basketball and volleyball.”

Ness ultimately settled on MSUM. “It came down to if I really wanted to play two sports, and the distance. Plus, I'm such a homebody, and my sisters both live up here. That was part of it, too.”

Playing in the strongest volleyball conference in NCAA Division II presents a lot of challenges for Ness and her Dragon volleyball pals, but she also insists it also affords some special opportunities.

“You're playing against national champions and some of the best players in the country. That's always fun. I came from a high school where we didn't lose much, so it is challenge, but that's what motivates me. We're the underdog, so we have to prove them wrong.”

MSUM head coach Tammy Blake-Kath has been delighted with the contributions of Ness.

“Katy is one of our captains, and a great leader for us,” said Blake-Kath. “She's the glue who holds us together, a great role model for our younger players, especially with her defensive work ethic. Katie is very competitive and has improved a lot with her defense and passing game. That's become one of our real strengths.”

MSU Moorhead, stocked entirely with underclassmen, finished 13-14 overall and 11-9 in the NSIC this fall. The young Dragons suffered through some growing pains in 2011, but Ness is confident the experience will pay major dividends next season.

“We're young and inexperienced, and you can't coach experience,” said Ness. “You just have to play it day-by-day and put the time in.”

Ness will certainly be there again next year to help mentor the younger Dragons. “We want the freshmen to feel comfortable coming in. They're our teammates and we look at everyone the same. Overall, it's just getting the confidence and getting used to the pace of the game.”

Ness plans to explore a career in teaching and coaching in the future and she confident his athletic career, especially volleyball, has taught her some valuable lessons.

“You learn a number of things, including responsibility.”

Consider Katy Ness a fast learner.

Top of the State Conference Honors

2011-11-11T14:47:00.002-06:00

2011 Top of State Conference Champions - Kittson County Central Bearcats
Coach of Year - Cory Waling and Staff, Kittson County Central Bearcats

Conference MVP's
Co-Lineman: Alex Yeager, Badger/Greenbush-Middle River & Kyle Braun, Kittson County Central
Back: Alex Aguilar, Climax/Fisher
Co-Special Teams: Corey Roach, Sacred Heart & Daniel Polansky, Goodridge/Grygla

All-Conference
Alex Rhen - BGMR
Timm Ingle - BGMR
Preston Swenson – Grygla-Goodridge
Drew Monson - Grygla-Goodridge
Jake Saurdiff - Grygla-Goodridge
Devin Drangsveit - Grygla-Goodridge
Daniel Ewens - EGFSH
Blake Labine – Stephen-Argyle
Davis Mills – Stephen-Argyle
Nick Olson – Northern Freeze
Tyler Rogstad – Clearbrook-Gonvick
Weston Bakke – Clearbrook-Gonvick
Dillon Fenno – Climax-Fisher
Alex Wentzel – Climax-Fisher
Mason Grimes – Climax-Fisher
Zach Rynning - KCC
Derek Coffield - KCC
Kyle Petersburg - KCC
Tyler Lyberg - KCC
Tanner Lyberg - KCC

Honorable Mention
Nick Dostal - BGMR
John Melin - EGFSH
Daniel Haugen – Stephen-Argyle
Seth Hoglo – Northern Freeze
Tyler Johnson – Clearbrook-Gonvick
Michael Beiswenger – Climax-Fisher
Tucker Cosley - KCC
Keith Sparby – Grygla-Goodridge

Area Women's BB signings

2011-11-09T16:49:00.000-06:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- University of Minnesota, Crookston head women’s basketball coach Mike Roysland announced today the signings of Avery Jackson and Katrina Moenkedick to a National Letter of Intent to play for the Golden Eagles during the 2012-13 season.

Jackson is a 5-8, guard from Wadena Deer Creek High School in the Mid State Conference. She is an all-conference player and was twice named the Best Defensive Player. She earned the Hustle Award and was named to the North Central All-Star team. Her AAU team was named Gopher State Champions four times and she earned two silver medals at the National State Games of America.

Jackson plans to major in early childhood education at the University of Minnesota, Crookston. She is the daughter of Junelle and Jay Jackson.

Moenkedick is a 5-10, forward/center from Perham High School in the Heart O’ Lakes Conference. She is a three-time all-conference selection, a two-time conference MVP, and a two-time all-state honorable mention player. Moenkedick is a two-year team captain and earned the team’s best field-goal percentage and most steals in tenth grade and best field-goal percentage in eleventh grade.

Moenkedick is undeclared on a major at the University of Minnesota, Crookston. She is the daughter of Katy and Andy Moenkedick.

MOORHEAD, Minn. - The Minnesota State University Moorhead women's basketball team announced Wednesday, Nov. 9 the signing of four recruits, including Jessy Noreen of Hawley High School.

Noreen, a 5'7" guard, is currently a three-time selection to the All-Heart O' Lakes Conference team. Hawley High School, with a record of 28-1, made an appearance in the 2010 Minnesota High School State Tournament. Noreen averaged 11.6 points, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game as a junior. Noreen has totaled 1,018 points in three seasons at HHS. Basketball is one of three sports Noreen participates in as she has lettered in softball and volleyball as well. She earned five letters in softball following five All-Conference team selections. She also is a two-time All-Conference volleyball athlete.

Other signees include Leah Miller from Lawton-Bronson High School (Hornick, Iowa), Savanna Handevidt from Stillwater High School (Stillwater, Minn.) and Rachel Boegeman from Shakopee High School (Shakopee, Minn.).

The Dragon recruits will join the team for the 2012-13 season that will graduate only two seniors by that time. The 2011-12 season starts Nov. 15 as the men's and women's teams look to take on Valley City State University at Alex Nemzek Fieldhouse

UMC's Brittany Looker Named NSIC Volleyball All-Conference Honorable Mention

2011-11-08T16:47:00.002-06:00

(Burnsville, Minn.)- The Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) announced today the 2011 Volleyball All-Conference team, as voted on by the league coaches. University of Minnesota, Crookston freshman, outside hitter, Brittany Looker (OH, 5-10, Fr., Rochester, Minn.) earned recognition for her play as a member of the NSIC All-Conference Honorable Mention team.

To date, Looker has played in 104 sets and started all 28 matches. She leads the Golden Eagles with 351 kills (3.38 K/Set). She is second on the team with 28 service aces and 234 defensive digs. At the net, Looker amassed six solo blocks and 34 assisted blocks. She is tied for fifth in the NSIC in total kills and in eighth in kills per set. She was named KROX Athlete of the Week for the week of October 3, 2011

Looker is majoring in biology at the University of Minnesota, Crookston. She is the daughter of Jim and Sherry Looker.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at: www.goldeneaglesports.com.

NorthStar Football Players of the Week

2011-11-01T21:21:00.000-05:00

(October 31, 2011)
The North Star Football Conference has announced the final Players of the Week for the 2011 football season.

Tyler George (Bagley) earned the East Division’s Offensive Player of the Week while teammate Chance Halverson garnered the Defensive Player of the Week award.

For the West Division, Justin Haugvedt (Warren-Alvarado-Oslo) and Nick Otto (Mahnomen) earned Co-Defensive Players of the Week and Luke Littlewolf (Mahnomen) was named the Offensive Player of the Week.

Tyler George (Sr., Tailback) led the Flyers to a 26-14 victory over Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton in the first round of the Section 8AA playoffs. Tyler had over 100 rushing while scoring a touchdown. Tyler also has big contributions on defense and special teams.

Chance Halverson (Jr., Lineman) has been one of the unsung heroes for the Flyer defense all season long. His efforts in practice and during games have been an inspiration to his teammates as season long. He may not stuff the stat sheet, but his contributions are immeasurable.

Justin Haugvedt (Sr., Defensive End) had 5 solo tackles and 3 assists. He also had 1sack, caused a fumble and added a fumble recovery in Warren-Alvarado-Oslo’s win over Cass Lake-Bena. The Ponies also defeated Fosston and will now play Fertile-Beltrami for the Section 8A Championship.

Luke Littlewolf (Sr., Tight End) had three touchdown catches in two games this past week. He also blocked extremely well from his Tight End position. Luke was a big part of the Mahnomen offense as the team won their first two playoff games and will be playing for the Section 6A Championship against Browerville.

Nick Otto (Jr., Linebacker) had 12 tackles in two games despite not playing the entire time. When Nick was making the play, he certainly was disrupting the play for his teammates. Nick will help lead the defense for Mahnomen as they battle for the Section 6A Championship.

North Star Football Conference Honors Players of the Week

2011-10-25T15:03:00.000-05:00

The North Star Football Conference has announced the East and West
Division Football Players of the Week.

East Division honorees include:
Nathan Holm (Pine River-Backus) and Kris Skersick (Bagley) as Co- Offensive Players of the Week, Torrey Swenson (Bagley) as Defensive Player of the Week and Trevor Willberg (Bagley) as the Special Teams Player of the Week.

For the West Division, Zach Riopelle (Warren- Alvarado-Oslo) was named the Offensive Player of the Week and Mitch Kochmann (Mahnomen) was selected as the Defensive Player of the Week.

Nathan Holm led Pine River-Backus to a 56-6 win over Lake of the Woods. Holm was 5 for 11 passing for 184 yards and 3 touchdowns. He also had 7 rushes for 32 yards and 3 rushing touchdowns.

Kris Skersick had 5 carries for 53 yards and 3 touchdowns for the Flyers in their 55-6 win over Blackduck.

Torrey Swenson led the Flyer defense as they held Blackduck to six points. Swenson was all over the field preventing passes and was in on 14 tackles.

Trevor Willberg had 3 returns for 107 yards and 1 touchdown in the Flyers game agains Blackduck.

Zach Riopelle had 198 yards on 19 carries and scored 4 touchdowns. His performance put him over 1000 yards on the season and he broke the all time Pony career rushing record previously set at 3910 yards. Zach currently had 4070 career yards. W-A-O defeated Fosston 34-0.

Mitch Kochmann returned 2 kicks for touchdowns in a win over Red Lake County. He ran the opening kick back for 83 yards and had another 80 yard return, both for touchdowns. Mahnomen defeated RLC 47-8.

North Start Football Players of the Week

2011-10-18T17:16:00.001-05:00

The North Star Football Conference has announced the Players of the Week Award winners for the 7th week of the season’s games.

For the East Division, Beau Howard (Pine River-Backus) was selected as the Offensive Player of the Week, Shane Fenske (Blackduck) earned the Defensive Player of the Week honors and Devin Strack (Pillager) was chosen as the Special Teams Player of the Week.

West Division honorees include Cody Piper (Frazee) and Tyler Hurst (Red Lake County) as Co-Offensive Players of the Week, Jake Galbrecht (Frazee) as the Defensive Player of the Week and Dan Janu (Frazee) earned Special Teams Player of the Week.

Beau (Jr., Wide Receiver) had 7 receptions for 89 yards during a loss to Pillager. Haward has 26 receptions for 428 yards on the season.

Shane (Jr., Defensive End) contributed 10 solo tackles and 7 assists against Red Lake County. RLC defeated Blackduck by a score of 34-8.

Devin returned the second half kickoff back for a touchdown. Strack also intercepted a pass on defense and helped lead Pillager to a 16-10 victory over Pine River-Backus.

Cody Piper and Tyler Hurst shared the Offensive Player of the Week honors for the West Division.

Piper rushed for 171 yards, 2 touchdowns and a 2 point conversion as the Hornets defeated Fosston 21-19.

Hurst had 21 rushes for 141 yards and 2 touchdowns against Blackduck. He also added a 51 yard interception return for a touchdown.

Jake was involved in 11 tackles as a defensive lineman this week against Fosston. Jake also added 2 receptions on offense.

Dan punted and kicked very solid for Frazee again this past week against Fosston. He added 5 solo tackles and caught 4 passes – including 1 for a touchdown – during the Hornets victory over the Greyhounds.

Other outstanding performances for the week include: Cooper Jedlicka (Blackduck), Nick Neeland (Bagley), and Kris Skersick (Bagley).

The final week of play for the North Star Football Conference has Bagley at Blackduck, Cass Lake-Bena at Walker-Hackensack-Akeley/Laporte, Lake of the Woods at Pine River-Backus, Pillager at Lake Park-Audubon, Frazee at Fertile-Beltrami (Fargodome), Fosston at Warren-Alvarado-Oslo, and Mahnomen at Red Lake County.

North Star Football Conference Players of the Week

2011-10-12T14:28:00.002-05:00

The North Star Football Conference has announced the Players of the Week for the East and West Divisions.

For the East Division, Zach Karst (Walker-Hakcensack-Akeley) earned Offensive Player of the Week recognition, Aaron O’Connell (Lake of the Woods) garnerd the Defensive Player of the Week award and Kris Skersick (Bagley) was named Special Teams Player of the Week.

The East Division includes: Bagley, Blackduck, CassLake-Bena, Lake of the Woods, Pillager, Pine River-Backus and Walker-Hackensack-Akeley/Laporte.

Zach Karst led the Wolves with 19 carries for 164 yards and 1 touchdown in a defensive battle against Lake of the Woods. LOW won the game by a score of 14-7.

Aaron O’Connell anchored the defensive effort for Lake of the Woods. He had 6 solo tackles, 5 assisted tackles and 1 interception during their win over the Wolves.

Kris Skersick started the scoring for the Flyers when he ran the opening kickoff back for a touchdown against Fosston. The Flyers won their Homecoming game 26-12.

Other outstanding performances for the East Division teams included: Nick Ruhl (Pillager), Victor Dahl (Lake of the Woods), Nick Neeland (Bagley), Christopher Zimmer (Walker-Hackensack-Akeley/Laporte), and Adam Obermiller (Pillager).

West Division Player of the Week honorees include: Jake Pavek (Mahnomen) as Offensive Player of the Week and Zach Riopelle (Warren-Alvarado-Oslo) earned Defensive Player of the Week.

West Division schools include: Fertile-Beltrami, Fosston, Frazee, Lake Park-Audubon, Mahnomen, Red Lake County, and Warren-Alvarado- Oslo.

Jake Pavek rushed the ball 12 times for 172 yards and 4 touchdowns. He also was 2 of 4 passing for 69 yards as Mahnomen defeated Lake Park-Audubon 52-7.

Zach Riopelle had 10 solo tackles, which included 3 tackles for a loss of yardage. He also added 2 assisted tackles and a blocked punt against Frazee. The Ponies had an excited last second win over the Hornets by a score of 27-23.

Additional outstanding efforts for the West Division were turned in by Cody Piper (Frazee) and Rick Brandt (Frazee).

Richard Haley Breaks UMC 1,000 Yard Rushing Record

2011-10-10T14:19:00.000-05:00

(Crookston, Minn.)- The University of Minnesota, Crookston Athletic Department announced today that junior, running back, Richard Haley (RB, 6-0, 205, Jr., Detroit, Mich.) broke the Golden Eagle 1,000 yard rushing record against Upper Iowa University on Saturday, October 8, 2011.

Haley, a transfer from Grand Rapids Community College, has played in just six games as a Golden Eagle. In that time, he has rushed 178 times and amassed 1,026 yards breaking the old record held by teammate Keith McBride (RB, 5-11, 195, Jr., Lodi, Wis.) who accomplished the 1,000 yard feat in 12 games for Minnesota, Crookston. Haley now has his sights set on the all-time season rushing record of 1,549 yards held by R.J. Rollins recorded in 2004. Rollins also holds the all-time UMC career rushing record of 3,073 yards (2002-2005).

“As coaches we are always very proud to see our athletes accomplish goals. Richard is a tremendous talent and we are very excited for him,” says Head Coach Chuck Moller. “We would also like to congratulate the offensive line and skill athletes who block for him to make this accomplishment possible.”

Haley currently leads the NSIC in rushing and is 409 yards ahead of his next closest competition. He is averaging 5.8 yards/rush and 171 yards/game, almost 70 yards/game above the next closest rusher. Last week he was ranked second in all of NCAA Division II just 3.4 yards behind the nation’s top rusher.

The Golden Eagle Sports Information Department is currently researching to see how many times, if at all, this mark has been reached this quickly in the NSIC.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.