UMC Releases 2017 Football Schedule

CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston football program officially released their 2017 schedule Wed., May 31. The Golden Eagles will play 11 games against Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) foes, including six home games. The schedule includes two Thursday evening games including the Midco Sports Network “NSIC Thursday Night Game of the Week” Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. at Ed Widseth Field against Wayne State College (Neb.).

“The NSIC is a great conference and we will face a quality opponent every week," said Head Coach Mark Dufner. "Currently, the team is working hard to get better as we prepare for fall camp and our season opener against Upper Iowa University on Aug. 31."

The Golden Eagles are in their first season under Head Coach Mark Dufner, who moves into the lead role after serving as an assistant coach at U of M Crookston for the last 15 seasons. Minnesota Crookston will look to improve upon a 0-11 mark last season. The Golden Eagles return a pair of All-NSIC Honorable Mention selections from 2016 in Adam Connette (Sr., WR, Corona, Calif.) and Will Cross (R-So., LB, Turtle Lake, Wis.). Connette, the school’s all-time leading receiver, had 72 catches for 760 yards last season. Cross broke onto the scene in a big way last season with a team-leading 90 tackles. The Golden Eagles return five starters on the offensive side of the ball and six on the defensive side of the ball.

Game 1 – Upper Iowa University, Thurs., Aug. 31, 4 p.m., Crookston, Minn.

Minnesota Crookston opens up the 2017 season on Thurs., Aug. 31 at 4 p.m. against Upper Iowa University. The game will be a part of a doubleheader at Ed Widseth Field with Crookston High School. The Peacocks went 3-8 last season.

Game 2 – Minnesota State University-Mankato, Sat., Sept. 9, 2 p.m., Mankato, Minn.

The Golden Eagles will take on Minnesota State University-Mankato Sat., Sept. 9 at 2 p.m. in their first road test of the season. The Mavericks posted an 8-3 mark on the 2017 season.

Game 3 – Wayne State College, Thurs., Sept. 14, 7 p.m. Crookston, Minn.

Minnesota Crookston will host their second Thursday evening game of the season Thurs., Sept. 14 at 7 p.m. versus Wayne State. The game will be part of Midco Sports Network’s expanded NSIC live coverage as the “NSIC Thursday Night Game of the Week.” The Wildcats went 3-8 on the 2016 season.

Game 4 – University of Sioux Falls, Sat., Sept. 23, 6 p.m., Sioux Falls, S.D.

The Golden Eagles will hit the road to face University of Sioux Falls Sat., Sept. 23 at 6 p.m. in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Cougars posted a 12-1 mark last season and went on to the NCAA Tournament where they lost in overtime in the second round to Harding University. Sioux Falls is now under the leadership of Jon Anderson, who was most recently the head coach at West Virginia State University. 

Game 5 – Bemidji State University, Sat., Sept. 30, 1 p.m., Crookston, Minn.

The U of M Crookston will host rival Bemidji State University Sat., Sept. 30 at 1 p.m. at Ed Widseth Field for their homecoming game. The meeting will also mark the 14^th edition of the “Hubcap Game”. The Beavers posted a 9-3 mark, winning the Mineral Water Bowl over Washburn University to conclude the season.

Game 6 – St. Cloud State University, Sat., Oct 7, 1 p.m., St. Cloud, Minn.

Minnesota Crookston will hit the road after their Homecoming game to take on NSIC North foe St. Cloud State University Oct. 7 at 1 p.m. in St. Cloud, Minn. The Huskies are coming off a 5-6 mark on the 2016 season.

Game 7 – University of Mary, Sat., Oct. 14, 1 p.m., Bismarck, N.D.

The Golden Eagles will remain on the road the following week as they take on University of Mary Sat., Oct. 14 at 1 p.m. in Bismarck, N.D. The Marauders went 1-10 on the 2016 season. 

Game 8 – Minnesota State University Moorhead, Sat., Oct. 21, 1 p.m., Crookston, Minn.

Minnesota Crookson will return home to the friendly confines of Ed Widseth Field after a two-week road trip to take on rival Minnesota State University Moorhead. The game will take place Sat., Oct. 21 at 1 p.m. The game will mark the sixth meeting in the “Red River Valley Showdown” as the two schools battle for the State Farm Traveling Trophy. The Dragons posted a 7-4 mark on the 2016 season.

Game 9 – Minot State University, Sat., Oct. 28, 1 p.m., Crookston, Minn.

Minnesota Crookston will remain at home the following weekend as they battle Minot State University Sat., Oct. 28 at 1 p.m. at Ed Widseth Field. The Beavers went 3-8 last season. They are under new leadership with former Augustana University Head Coach Mike Aldrich taking over the ship.

Game 10 – University of Minnesota Duluth, Sat., Nov. 4, 1 p.m., Duluth, Minn.

The Golden Eagles will head down Highway 2 for their final road tilt of the season Sat., Nov. 4 at 1 p.m. versus University of Minnesota Duluth in Duluth, Minn. UMD posted a 10-2 mark on the 2016 season, advancing to the NCAA Tournament where they lost in the first round to Emporia State University.

Game 11 – Northern State University, Sat., Nov. 11, 1 p.m., Crookston, Minn.

The U of M Crookston will conclude the 2017 season at Ed Widseth Field against Northern State University Sat., Nov. 11 at 1 p.m. The Wolves went 6-5 on the 2016 season.

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.

The University of Minnesota Crookston is a NCAA Division II university located in the Red River Valley of Northwest Minnesota. UMC sponsors 11 intercollegiate athletic teams with membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate conference (NSIC) and the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA). The NSIC is a 16-team conference with schools situated in Minnesota, Iowa, North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska.
 

Awards Announced For MN State HS Clay Target League

Minneapolis, MN – Athletes from 40 schools led their teams to first place for their respective conferences in the Minnesota State High School Clay Target League's (MNSHSCTL) 2017 Spring Trap Shooting League, which wrapped up competition on May 27th. An additional four teams will take home top conference honors for the Skeet Shooting League.

Kory Miller of Apple Valley High School took home top individual honors for trap shooting. The Senior led the field to take home the trophy for the highest overall average in the League. He'll also bring home the awards for top male average overall for both his class and conference.

Kelsey Bartges, a Junior from Anoka High School, earned top female average honors for trapshooting.  She'll also bring home the award for top female average overall for both her class and conference.

In skeet, Max Bunning of Wayzata High School and Kate Wohlberg of St. Thomas Academy took home the top male and female awards respectively. Bunning was also the top skeet shooter overall for the League.

Overall, 87 high school teams and 264 athletes will take home class and conference-level awards.

“We are proud to congratulate all of the award winners for their success this year.” said Jim Sable, Executive Director of the MNSHSCTL, “They have really worked hard to get where they are, and we look forward to seeing them at the State Tournament in a few days.”

All student athletes are invited to participate in individual and team competitions at the 2017 Championships. The Trap Shooting Championships are scheduled for June 12th-20th at the Alexandria Shooting Park in Alexandria, MN. The Skeet Shooting Championships will be held June 25th at the Minneapolis Gun Club in Prior Lake, MN.

The Minnesota State High School Clay Target League is an affiliate of the USA High School Clay Target League, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The League is an independent provider of shooting sports as an extracurricular co-ed and adaptive activity for high schools and students in grades 6 through 12. The organization’s priorities are safety, fun, and marksmanship – in that order.

Nationwide, over 20,000 students representing over 600 school-approved teams participated in the League during the 2016-17 school year.

Please find the complete list of awards and final standings at:

TRAP:  http://mnclaytarget.com/2017/05/27/2017-spring-trap-league-awards/

SKEET: http://mnclaytarget.com/2017/05/27/2017-spring-skeet-league-awards/

Lynx' Fowles Named Western Conference Player of the Week

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The WNBA today named Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles the Western Conference Player of the Week for games played May 22 through May 28. The Player of the Week award is Fowles’ ninth of her career and second as a member of the Lynx. She becomes the first player from the Western Conference and third overall since the award’s inception to win in the first two weeks of the season (Angel McCoughtry, 2010 and Elena Delle Donne, 2015).

After winning all three games for the week, the Lynx remained the only undefeated team in the WNBA at 6-0, opening a 1.5-game lead on Seattle for the WNBA's top seed. The Lynx have now won 23 consecutive games in May and picked up a pair of victories at Xcel Energy Center to extend their home winning streak to 13 games, the second-longest run in franchise history.

Over the three games played in the week, Fowles averaged 18.3 ppg, 11.3 rpg, 2.00 spg and 2.67 bpg while logging 26.0 mpg. She shot 65.6% from the floor (21-for-32) and 81.3% from the line (13-for-16) while ringing up two more double-doubles to increase her career total to 111 (third in league history).

The 10-year pro from Louisiana State University tallied 21 points, 13 rebounds and a season-high five blocks in the May 23 win vs. Connecticut, becoming just the second player in franchise history (joining Nicole Ohlde) to collect 20+ pts/10+ reb/5+ blks in a game. She added a season-high four assists and three steals, making it the first 5x3 effort of her career (pts/reb/ast/stl/blk). Later in the week, she led all scorers with 20 points in the May 26 rematch at Connecticut, tacking on nine rebounds and two steals, her fourth 20+ scoring night of the season and the 64th of her career. Fowles rounded out the week by notching her league-leading fourth double-double in six starts (14 points and a game-high 12 rebounds) while blocking three shots in the May 28 triumph vs. San Antonio. After the first week of the season, Fowles ranks sixth in scoring (20.0 ppg), second in rebounding (10.7 rpg), second in steals (2.00 spg), second in blocks (2.33 bpg) and second in FG accuracy (61.1%); she's the only player among the WNBA's top 10 in all five categories.

New York’s Epiphanny Prince was named Eastern Conference Player of the Week.

The Lynx play next on Saturday, June 3 against the Seattle Storm at KeyArena. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. CT and the game can be seen on WNBA League Pass and heard on BOB 106.1 FM.