NDSU’s Carlson Named Summit League Co-Player of the Week

ELMHURST, Ill. - North Dakota State forward Eric Carlson was named Summit League men's basketball co-Player of the Week by the league office on Monday, Jan. 31.

Carlson, a 6-foot-6 junior from Shakopee, Minn., averaged 25.5 points and 7.0 rebounds in a pair of home wins as the Bison improved to 11-10 overall and 5-6 in the league. He scored 19 points in the 87-75 win over Southern Utah had career highs of 32 points and 12 rebounds in the 89-88 double-overtime win against UMKC.

Carlson had 17 points in the first half against UMKC to lead the Bison to a four-point halftime lead. He grabbed a season-high five offensive rebounds in the game, including a key putback with seven seconds left in the second OT that broke an 85-85 tie.

Carlson assisted Michael Tveidt's game-winning layup with 1.7 seconds left with a lob pass of a sideline inbounds play. He had three assists and two steals in the game.

Carlson is the first NDSU player to score 30 points in a single game since Ben Woodside scored a tournament-high 37 points against Kansas in the first round of the 2009 NCAA tournament. He has scored in double figures three straight games after being limited to single digits in six of the previous seven contests.

He shared the award with IPFW guard Frank Gaines, who came off the bench to get 19 points and seven rebounds in a win over Centenary and followed with 19 points and four blocks in a win over Oral Roberts. Gaines shot 70.6 percent from the floor and was 11-for-11 from the foul line.

North Dakota State is scheduled to play four of its next six games on the road beginning at Centenary on Thursday, Feb. 3, and Oral Roberts on Saturday, Feb. 5.

Region 8A AAA winners

the 2011 "Triple A'" winners from the Sub-Sections in Region 8A have been announced.

Sub-section 29 Girl winner Autumn Brunelle Cass Lake Bena

Sub-section 29 Boy winner Brandon Beck Blackduck

Sub-section 30 Girl Suzanne Dufault Fosston

Sub-section 30 Boy Alexander LaVoy Mahnomen

Sub-section 31 Girl Lauren Graham Crookston

Sub-section 31 Boy Samuel Wagner Fisher

Sub-section 32 Girl Mikaela Janicke Greenbush/Middle River School

Sub-section 32 Boy Jeremy Benson Stephen Argyle Central

These students have excelled in Academics, Athletics and Fine Arts. They will attend a banquet at the REA in Thief River Falls on February 9th, 2011 where the overall Region 8A winner will be announced.

LAQUA ANNOUNCED AS DRAGONS HEAD FOOTBALL COACH

Former Fargo Shanley Head Coach Takes the Reigns of Dragon Football Program
MOORHEAD, Minn. –Steve Laqua was announced Friday afternoon as the Minnesota State University Moorhead Dragons Head Football Coach. Athletics Director, Doug Peters in a press conference in front of the media, public, student-athletes and alumni, made the announcement.

“I want Dragon football to be one of the premier Division II football programs in our region,” Laqua said. “I am elated to take the position and can’t wait to make that happen.”

Laqua becomes the 17th head coach in the 92-year history of the program. He comes to MSUM after serving as a four-year head coach at Fargo Shanley High School.

“I am excited to have Coach Laqua as part of our team,” Peters said. “He fits the mold of the other great coaches on our staff.”

This past year, Laqua led the Deacon’s to their second consecutive North Dakota State Championship, capping a 20-game win streak. Along with his coaching duties, he has played a role in fundraising for the High School.
“Coach Laqua’s core values align with MSUM, Dragon Athletics and the NCAA DII Philosophy of Life in the Balance,” Peters said. “At the end of the day Coach Laqua knows how to build winning football programs.”

Prior to his time at Shanley, Laqua was a college assistant coach for five seasons. He spent three years (two separate stints) at North Dakota State University as well as one season at each St. Olaf College and Minnesota Crookston.

While at UMC and NDSU, he was responsible for recruitment within the region that aided his relationships with coaches in the area.

“My connections over the past decade with the regional coaches are a huge asset in creating confidence in the new vision and direction of our program,” Laqua said.

Laqua will join the Dragons staff effective immediately. He will be making the following appearances within the area within the next two weeks:
Saturday, Jan. 29
7:30 p.m. – Meet the Fans event at Dragon Basketball; north end of fieldhouse
Wednesday, Feb. 2
7 p.m. – Join Head Basketball Coach Chad Walthall for ‘Wings with Walthall’
Tuesday, Feb. 8
9:30 a.m. – Join Head Basketball Coach Karla Nelson for ‘Coffee with Karla’

5th Annual Cops and Kids Hockey Game

On Sunday January 30th, at the Moorhead Sports Center, the Moorhead Police Department will proudly host the 5th annual Cops and Kids hockey game. The evening will consist of a 5:30 pm game against boys and girls from the Peewee, Bantam, U-14 and U-12 teams. The “Kids” team will be coached by Fargo Force GM/Head Coach Jason Herder and several Fargo Force players.

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 and a raffle for prizes donated by area businesses. 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@ci.moorhead.mn.us if you have any questions about this event

Golden Eagle Football Program to Hold Meet & Greet

(Crookston, Minn.)- University of Minnesota, Crookston Head Football Coach Chuck Moller announced today that Golden Eagle Football will hold a meet & greet at the Crookston Eagles Club on Wednesday, February 2. The event begins at 5:30 p.m.

The meet & greet will be held in conjunction with the 2011 National Signing Day which is also on February 2. The coaches will answer questions, talk about the 2011 signing class and have a video presentation featuring the signees. Appetizers will be served and the event is open to all Golden Eagle fans.

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

North Dakota State Names Kari Thompson Head Women’s Volleyball Coach

FARGO, N.D. - North Dakota State University women's athletic director Lynn Dorn today announced the hiring of Kari Thompson as head women's volleyball coach.

Thompson has been the interim head coach since the Oct. 19 resignation of Erich Hinterstocker. She had a 9-2 record and led the Bison to their third straight Summit League championship and second NCAA tournament in three years. NDSU was 20-11 overall and 14-4 in the league.

"Kari's attributes of maturity and stability, and ethical and professional behavior, coupled with an orientation for a high level of achievement are behaviors we sought," Dorn said. "We look forward to Coach Thompson continuing the high expectations of the volleyball program at North Dakota State University and are confident under her leadership that those will be met."

This is the first head coaching job for Thompson, who was hired by NDSU as an assistant coach in 2006. She is the 11th head coach in the 46-year history of the program.

The 29-year-old Thompson was a 2010 recipient of the American Volleyball Coaches Association's "Thirty Under 30" award recognizing the top young coaches in the country. She will be the head coach of a USA Athletes International team that will compete in the European Smash Tour this June in Italy and Austria.

"I'm thrilled to continue to be a part of an institution with a rich tradition of academic and athletic excellence and a strong commitment to the volleyball program," Thompson said. "This great volleyball community combined with a great volleyball facility provides an exciting environment to showcase these athletes."

Thompson was a three-year volleyball letterwinner at Green Bay and spent one year with the Phoenix as a volunteer assistant before working at Alabama for two seasons as a graduate assistant.

A native of Amherst, Wis., she began her collegiate career at Concordia-St. Paul and graduated from Green Bay with a bachelor's degree in communications and the arts in December 2003.

Golden Eagle Softball Team to Hold Chili Feed in Conjunction with Midcontinent Basketball Games

Crookston, Minn.) – The University of Minnesota, Crookston’s Women’s Softball team will hold a chili feed on Friday, February 18 at the UMC Sports Center. The event will be held in conjunction with the women’s and men’s basketball games that will be aired on Midcontinent Cable against Upper Iowa. The chili feed will run from 4:30 until 8 p.m. with the women’s and men’s games beginning at 6 and 8 p.m. Tickets are $3 and 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.

The Golden Eagles open the 2011 season on Saturday, February 26 when they travel to St. Cloud State for the Husky Dome Invitational. Minnesota, Crookston will play Southwest Minnesota State at 1 p.m. and Northern State at 3 p.m. UMC returns to the field on Sunday, February 27 to play host St. Cloud State at 3 p.m. and Valley City State at 5 p.m. The team will travel to the Cocoa Expo from March 11-17 for 10 games. The Golden Eagles open the NSIC season on April 2-3 when the team travels to Winona State and Upper Iowa. The double-headers are scheduled for 1 p.m. and noon respectively.

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

Kaster and George Honored as PTP Basketball Players of the Week

Shelby Kaster, a freshman center from Win-E-Mac High School and Tyler George, a junior guard from Bagley High School have been chosen as the Pine to Prairie Girls and Boys Basketball Players of the Week.

Shelby led the Patriots to two big wins last week. Against Ulen-Hitterdal, Kaster scored 18 points, grabbed 12 rebounds and added 4 assists and 2 steals. Win-E-Mac then handed Waubun their first conference loss of the season on Friday. In this game, Shelby contributed 15 points and 14 rebounds.

Tyler helped the Flyers stretch their winning streak to 12 games with a 3-0 record for the week. George scored 68 points in three games last week. He chipped in with 13 points against Norman County East, and then had game high totals of 26 points against Ada-Borup and 29 versus Warroad. Tyler also contributed 9 steals, 11 assists and went 12-13 from the foul line last week. This is Tyler’s second Player of the Week award. He shared the honor with Fosston’s Garrett Carlin in December.

Several other student-athletes had outstanding performance last week as well. On the girls side, Andi Knudsvig (Junior, Guard) from Lake Park-Audubon, Bailee Bartunek (Fr., Center) from Lake Park-Audubon and Katelin Sirjord (Jr., Guard) from Norman County East all had strong efforts for their teams. For the boys teams, Scott Lampton (Sr., Center) from Norman County East, Tate Moser (Jr., Guard) from Fertile-Beltrami, Jacob Pavek (So., Forward) from Mahnomen and Alex LaVoy (Sr. forward) from Mahnomen also had great efforts.

Bemidji State to drop men’s indoor and outdoor track and field programs

BEMIDJI, Minn. -- Bemidji State University will discontinue its men’s indoor and outdoor track and field varsity intercollegiate athletic programs,effective at the end of the 2010-11 academic year.

The elimination of the programs came today as BSU President Dr. Richard Hanson unveiled the University’s plan to address an expected $5 million shortfall for the biennium (2011-2012 and 2012-13), which can directly attributed to the economic challenges the State of Minnesota is facing with its $6.25 billion budget deficit.

“Any time decisions like these have to be made, it is tough on our student-athletes and entire Athletic Department,” said BSU Director of Athletics Dr. Rick Goeb. “Especially when our student-athletes are such outstanding role models and representatives of our University. But in the light of the nation-wide financial crisis, the state’s budget deficit, the magnitude of the estimated reduction to University’s funding allocations, program cuts are unavoidable.”

“This is not an isolated case,” added Goeb. “Significant budget challenges are being felt campus-wide making dramatic changes necessary for the entire University and state-wide at other MnSCU institutions.”

In October of 2008, Goeb unveiled a proposal for reorganizing the Department of Athletics designed to meet a 2007 directive from then-BSU
President Dr. Jon Quistgaard to reduce the department’s budget by $750,000. That proposal included an option to discontinue men’s indoor
and outdoor track and field. However, in December of 2008, Quistgaard announced the programs would be allowed to continue for at least one more year on the condition that a set of established goals were met regarding roster management and fundraising.

Dr. Hanson’s new recalibration plan allows the department of athletics to reduce its scope and improve opportunities for women in athletics.

Current members of the BSU men’s track and field teams will have the opportunity to complete the 2010-11 indoor and outdoor competition
seasons. According to NCAA rules, student-athletes that choose to transfer to another institution to continue their athletic careers will be released by BSU and will be eligible to compete as early as next season, provided that they are accepted, have athletic eligibility remaining and are academically eligible to compete. Athletic scholarships will be honored for current and incoming student-athletes who choose to stay at BSU to fulfill their degree requirements.

With today’s announcement, Bemidji State University will sponsor 15 varsity intercollegiate sports. BSU will offer NCAA Division I men’s and
women’s ice hockey and 13 sports at the NCAA Division II level. BSU’s Division II sport offerings for men will include football, basketball, golf
and baseball, while its Division II women’s sports will be volleyball, basketball, soccer, cross country, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, softball, tennis and golf.

Bemidji State University, a member of the NSIC and Western Collegiate Hookey Association (WCHA), occupies a beautiful lakeside campus in northern Minnesota’s wooded lake district. Enrolling approximately 5,000 students annually, the University offers undergraduate majors and graduate programs encompassing the arts, sciences and select professional programs. The University is a member of the Minnesota State College and Universities System (MnSCU) and embraces the signature themes include environmental stewardship, civic engagement and global/multicultural understanding.
The University’s complete recalibration plan is available at BSU Today at: http://www.bemidjistate.edu/bsutoday/

For more information about Bemidji State, visit our website at: http://www.bemidjistate.edu.

NSIC to expand to 16 Teams

Burnsville, Minn. – Acting Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference and Winona State University President Dr. Judith Ramaley has announced the outcome from the NSIC Board of Directors meeting dealing with possible expansion of the league.

The Board of Directors, consisting of the 14 NSIC Presidents & Chancellors, voted to expand the NSIC to 16 institutions with the addition of the University of Sioux Falls (Sioux Falls, S.D.) and Minot State University (Minot, N.D.). These two institutions will begin participating within the NSIC in the 2012-13 academic season.

“The NSIC is pleased to welcome these two institutions into our league. We feel both of these programs are a good fit with strong academic traditions. The competitiveness of these athletic teams will enhance all 17 sports that we currently offer,” commented Ramaley.

“I am excited to add both schools to the NSIC. The balance both schools show between academics and athletics fits the basic foundation of our conference”, said NSIC Commissioner Butch Raymond. The NSIC will now consist of 16 teams over a five state area with nine institutions hailing from Minnesota, three in South Dakota, two in North Dakota and one in Iowa and Nebraska. The NSIC will form two divisions, in the sports where appropriate, when the league expands to 16 teams.

The NSIC South Division will consist of Augustana College, Concordia University-St. Paul, Minnesota State University Mankato, University of Sioux Falls, Southwest Minnesota State University, Upper Iowa University, Wayne State College and Winona State University.

The NSIC North Division will consist of Bemidji State University, University of Mary, University of Minnesota Crookston, University of Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State University Moorhead, Minot State University, Northern State University and St. Cloud State University.
The Northern Intercollegiate Conference (NIC) began in 1932 as the Northern Teacher’s Athletic Conference. Charter members included Bemidji State, Mankato State, Moorhead State, St. Cloud State and Winona State. In 1942 the conference name was changed to the State Teacher’s College Conference of Minnesota. The conference switched its name to the Northern Intercollegiate Conference in 1962. In the spring of 1992 the NSIC was formed out of the merger of the NIC, the men’s conference, and the women’s Northern Sun Conference (NSC). The NSC had existed since 1979. In the 1999-
00 academic year, the NSIC became an expanded 10-team league from a previous seven-member conference by adding Wayne State College (Wayne, Neb.) Concordia University-St. Paul (St. Paul, Minn.) and the University of Minnesota, Crookston (Crookston, Minn.). The conference featured eight members from 2004-05 until 2005-06 with the departure of Minnesota Duluth and Minnesota-Morris, but expanded back to 10 teams in 2006-07 as the University of Mary (Bismarck, N.D.) and Upper Iowa University (Fayette, Iowa) joined the league. The NSIC exploded into a 14-team league in the 2008- 09 year with the additions of Augustana College, the University of Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State University Mankato and St. Cloud State University.

The NSIC has won nine team NCAA Division II National Championships since the 2005-2006 season. Winona State Men’s Basketball won the 2005-06 & 2007-08 Championships; Concordia-St. Paul won the 2007, 2008, 2009 & 2010 Volleyball Championships; Minnesota Duluth won the 2008 & 2010 Football Championships and Minnesota State Women’s Basketball won the 2008-09 Championship. The NSIC has also crowned 24 individual National Champions since joining the NCAA in 1993.