Lynx Fowles and Moore Named to All-WNBA First Team

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The WNBA today announced that Lynx center Sylvia Fowles and forward Maya Moore have been named to the All-WNBA First Team. For Fowles, the 2017 WNBA MVP, this is her third All-WNBA First Team selection (2010, 2013) while Moore earns her fifth career – and fifth consecutive - All-WNBA First Team honor (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016). This marks the second time in franchise history that two Lynx teammates have been selected to the All-WNBA First Team (2013: Moore and Lindsay Whalen).

Fowles, who earned 39 of 40 First Team votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, finished the regular season with averages of 18.9 points and a franchise-record 10.4 rebounds while adding a career-best 1.5 assists, 1.29 steals and 1.97 blocks in 30.8 minutes per game. Fowles finished second in the WNBA in blocks and 12th in steals. She led the WNBA in field goal percentage, shooting a career-best 65.5% from the field, the fourth-highest field goal percentage in league history and the second-highest by a Lynx player behind Tamika Williams’ WNBA-record 66.8% in 2003. Fowles also finished fifth in scoring, fifth in rebounding and 15th in minutes. She was named Western Conference Player of the Month three times (May, June, July) and earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors on five occasions (May 22, May 30, June 12, July 24, Aug. 14).

Moore earns her fifth straight All-WNBA First Team honor after finishing the 2017 campaign ranking second in the WNBA in steals with a career-best 1.88 steals per game. In 34 contests Moore averaged 17.3 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 31.3 minutes per game. She shot 44.2% from the floor, 41.2% from three-point range – the second-best percentage of her career – and 85.8% from the free throw line. 

The Lynx return to action in Game 3 of the 2017 WNBA Finals tonight in Los Angeles against the Sparks at Staples Center. Tip is set for 8:00 p.m. CT on ESPN2 and BOB 106 FM.

MN State High School Clay Target League Fall Season

Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN – 3,099 student athletes representing 130 high school shooting sport teams are competing for six weeks this fall in the Minnesota State High School Clay Target League. The organization’s fall season began on September 17th and will conclude on October 28th.

“Fall League participation continues to grow,” Jim Sable, Executive Director of the MNSHSCTL, said. “This year's increase in participation is a reflection of the tremendous success of our spring offering, in which over 11,000 student athletes representing 343 teams participated.”

According to MNSHSCTL Vice President John Nelson, the growth of the league is continuing. “We’ve already had a number of new teams form over the summer for the 2018 spring season and that will continue until March 1. Along with the expansion of existing teams, we expect to see over 13,000 student athletes participating this spring in Minnesota’s fastest-growing and safest high school sport.” Since its founding in 2001, the MNSHSCTL has no reported injuries.

The MNSHSCTL Fall League offering is open to high school teams that competed in the 2017 Spring League. The fall competition is 3 weeks shorter than the in the spring, and there is no final tournament to end the season. “The Fall League is a way for high schools to continue offering clay target shooting as an activity for those students that don't participate in other fall sports.” Nelson said. “Providing a safe and fun outdoor activity for students keeps them involved in school, and can help improve overall classroom engagement.”

The Minnesota State High School Clay Target League attracts student athletes to participate in shooting sports while creating a “virtual” competition among high school teams throughout Minnesota. Family travel is minimal because practices and competitions are conducted at a shooting range near the school’s location. Conferences are determined by team size rather than geographic location for fair competition. Athletes earn True Team® scoring points as determined by their performance and ranking against all athlete scores within their team's conference. The team score and overall standing are calculated by adding the earned points from qualifying athletes and posted on the MNSHSCTL’s website. Athletes and their families track their individual and team performance on their phone, tablet or computer via the Shooter Performance Tracker®.

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. Each student is required to pass a comprehensive firearm safety education course prior to participation.  Nationwide, over 20,000 students representing over 600 school-approved teams participate in the League.

For more information visit http://mnclaytarget.com.

NDSU Bison Hoops Tip-Off Public Event October 19

FARGO, N.D. – The North Dakota State University men's and women's basketball teams will host the inaugural Bison Hoops Tip-Off presented by Midco Sports Network on Thursday, Oct. 19.

The event is free and open to the public and will run from 6 to 8:30 p.m. inside the Scheels Center at the Sanford Health Athletic Complex. The first 500 fans will receive free popcorn and soda courtesy of MidcoSN.

Inflatable games from Games Galore, and concessions will be available from 6 to 7 p.m. before the 2017-18 Bison men's and women's basketball teams are introduced at 7 p.m.

Various student promotions will begin at 7:10 p.m., prior to a three-point contest featuring both basketball teams at 7:20 p.m.

The men's team will compete in a dunk contest at 7:35 p.m. before the women's team faces off in a skills contest at 7:45 p.m.

The event will conclude with team autographs from 8 to 8:30 p.m.

The Bison men are scheduled to open the 2017-18 season on Nov. 1 with an exhibition contest against Concordia-Moorhead, while the Bison women are slated to host Minnesota Morris Nov. 2 in an exhibition tilt to tip-off the season. Both games will be at the Scheels Center inside the Sanford Health Athletic Complex.

UMC Baseball to Hold Alumni Game Saturday

CROOKSTON, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston baseball program will hold the third annual Baseball Alumni Game Sat., Sept. 30 at 5 p.m. at Karn Field in Crookston, Minn. The game will be one of many athletic events in Crookston during Homecoming weekend including the football game at 1 p.m. against Bemidji State University and the Hunt Seat Equestrian Show Saturday at 1 p.m. and Sunday at 9 a.m.

All former Minnesota Crookston baseball players from all eras of the program are invited to come back to campus to participate in the alumni game. The alumni team will take on the current Minnesota Crookston baseball players.

Last year, the U of M Crookston had over 20 alumni compete in the game, a record for the school. If you are interested in taking part in the Baseball Alumni Game please contact Head Coach Steve Gust at sjgust@umn.edu or by phone at 218-281-8445.

The Golden Eagle baseball program is in their fourth season under Head Coach Steve Gust, who has ushered one of the biggest turnarounds in all of NCAA Division II baseball. In four seasons, Gust has taken a program that run a combined two games the previous two seasons to a program-record 63 wins in there seasons. Minnesota Crookston has also made it to back-to-back NSIC Tournaments after not making it since 2001, previously. The Golden Eagles have a lot of returnees back for the 2018 season as they look poised to build off of their success in recent seasons.

Gust and his staff are excited to welcome back all alumni of the program as they wouldn’t be able to be here without the hard work everyone who has donned the Maroon and Gold has put into building the program. His current staff includes three alumni of the program in Colton Haight, David Olson and Brandon Kresl.

NDSU’s Dunn, Cox Named MVFC Players of the Week

ST. LOUIS - North Dakota State running back Lance Dunn and linebacker Jabril Cox were named Missouri Valley Football Conference players of the week by the league office on Sunday, Sept. 24, for the first time in each of their careers.

Dunn, a junior from Waterloo, Iowa, was named co-Offensive Player of the Week along with Western Illinois quarterback Sean McGuire.  Cox, a redshirt freshman from Kansas City, Mo., was named Newcomer of the Week.

Dunn scored four touchdowns on four plays in North Dakota State’s 56-0 win over Robert Morris.  He had scoring runs of 61, 5 and 45 yards and a 10-yard touchdown reception to total 121 all-purpose yards.  Dunn is the first NDSU player to score four touchdowns in a game since the 2010 playoffs.  He leads the FCS with nine TDs through three games.

Cox made a team-high eight tackles, had a fumble recovery that led to a touchdown, was in on one tackle for loss, and made four stops on kickoff coverage (three solos) as NDSU’s defense held RMU to 57 total yards and only one trip past midfield in 14 possessions.  Cox leads the Bison with 15 total tackles and eight special teams tackles through three games.

No. 2-ranked North Dakota State (3-0, 0-0 MVFC) opens conference play against Missouri State (1-3, 0-1 MVFC) in the annual homecoming game at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 30, at Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome.

Lynx' Fowles Named 2017 WNBA MVP

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL – The WNBA today announced that Minnesota Lynx center Sylvia Fowles was voted as the 2017 WNBA Most Valuable Player. Fowles received 35 votes from a national panel of 40 sportswriters and broadcasters. Her previous highest finish in MVP voting was third in 2011.

“Since Sylvia arrived in Minnesota in 2015, one of her main goals was to grow her game to become a better player in this league,” said Lynx Executive Vice President Roger Griffith. “Her play this season shows the tireless work Sylvia put in that has culminated in her winning this award. We are all proud of the player she has become and know that her strong play will continue throughout the postseason.”

Fowles, the second WNBA Most Valuable Player in Lynx history (Maya Moore 2014), wrapped up her 10th WNBA season, third with Minnesota, by starting all 34 games, averaging a double-double for the fifth time in her career, collecting 18.9 ppg and a club-record 10.4 rpg while adding a career-best 1.5 apg, 1.29 spg and 1.97 bpg in 30.8 mpg. She shot a career-high 65.5%, the fourth-best FG percentage in league history and second-highest by a Lynx player behind Tamika Williams' WNBA-record 66.8% in 2003. Fowles finished the season leading the league in FG accuracy while ranking fifth in scoring, second in rebounding, second in blocks and 12th in steals.

The 6-6 center posted a league-best 12 20/10 efforts in 2017, raising her career total to 52, including 19 double-doubles. Fowles was named Western Conference Player of the Month three times (May, June, July) and earned Player of the Week honors on five occasions. 

“I'm so thrilled that Sylvia was named the 2017 WNBA MVP,” said Head Coach Cheryl Reeve. “She is a special individual who achieved special things on the basketball court this season. It is so fulfilling as a coach to be around a player who is incredibly unselfish and driven to improve for the good of her team. I am proud of the way Syl met the many challenges thrown at her throughout the 2017 season.”

Highlights from Fowles’ 2017 season include pulling down her 2500th career rebound in an 81-72 victory over Atlanta on August 8 as she finished with 27 points and 13 rebounds. She scored the 4000th point of her WNBA career in an 81-66 win against Phoenix on July 16. Fowles totaled 21 points, a season-high 15 rebounds and five blocks vs. Washington on June 23, her second 20+ pts/10+ reb/5+ blk game this year (sixth career) and the third in Lynx history. She registered 21 points, 13 rebounds and five blocks in the May 23 victory vs. Connecticut.

Originally drafted second overall in the 2008 WNBA Draft by the Chicago Sky, Fowles has averaged 15.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.0 blocks in 272 career regular season games (263 starts). She was named a WNBA All-Star in 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2017 as well as bring named a three-time WNBA Defensive Player of the year (2011, 2013, 2016). Fowles is a three-time All-WNBA First Team selection (2010, 2013, 2017), as well as a five-time All-WNBA Defensive First Team selection (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017).