Sunburg Community Players perform at Norway Lake (VIDEO)

The Sunburg Community Players performed a special Sing-Along concert at East Norway Lake Lutheran church this afternoon. It was part of a fundraiser for ENL's grand piano project.

Here's a video featuring some of the first songs performed:


Another cold night ahead in the Bonanza Valley! I hope you can consider taking a trip to Belgrade for dining at the Mexico Querido restaurant this weekend. They are open today (Saturday) until 9 p.m. Their hours on Sunday are 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. They are closed on Mondays.

Girls' basketball nabs ugly win at Melrose (VIDEOS*, Updates)

It was not pretty, but the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team survived a late comeback attempt by Melrose Area after building a 17-point lead in the second half. A buzzer-beating three-pointer by the Dutchmen made the final score 59-56. After falling back by a wide margin, the Dutchmen turned up fullcourt pressure in an attempt to thwart B-B-E's speed. They also became more effective at forcing long shots with better interior defense.

With about 8 minutes to go in the first half, the Jaguars had a 17-6 lead.

Here's a video from the middle of the first half:


The Dutchmen played even with the Jaguars for the next 3 minutes, but a baseline shot by Macey Roering, a shot in the paint by Mya Worms and a free throw by Teagan Dingmann made it 26-14 with 3:44 left.

Here's a video from later in the first half:


The Dutchmen closed out the first half with an 8-2 run in the last 3 minutes before halftime.

In the second half...
A three-pointer by Makenna Roelike extended B-B-E's lead to 35-22 with 11:11 left. Back-to-back shots by Teagan Dingmann and Kamie Fischer brought the score to 39-24 with 9:40 left, and additional field goals by Jacinta Jackson and Worms made it 46-29 with 6:30 left.

Credit to Melrose, the chips were down after they fell back by 17 points, and it appeared that B-B-E was on its way to blowing the Dutchmen off the court. Across the next minute of play, however, the Dutchmen went 4-for-4 on two trips to the line and also got a three-point play from junior Aubrey Funk. Funk's three-point play with 5:27 left made the score 46-36, as the home team found new life.

After the Jaguars had an empty trip to the free throw line for a bonus opportunity, Avery Braegelmann went 3-for-3 at the line to cut B-B-E's lead to 46-39.

With 5 minutes to go, Teagan Dingmann scored on a fastbreak layup for a badly needed bucket. From that point on, however, the Jaguars got just one field goal on Macey Roering's shot in the paint with 2:50 left. That shot put the lead at 53-43, and the last 6 points they scored were all on double bonus free throw tries.

Here's a 4-minute video clip featuring the last 18 seconds of the game:


The final field goal attempt from near half court was launched by Melrose senior guard Kaitlyn Klasen.

Some light game statistics...
The Jaguars shot a cold 30 percent from the floor, made just 2 of 14 three-point attempts and were 17-of-34 at the free throw line. Teagan Dingmann was the leading scorer with 15 points.

Next: the Jaguars (5-1 overall) now travel the opposite direction on Monday for a second straight border battle. This time, the Jaguars head to Swift County to Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg. The Fighting Saints were 4-1 overall heading into tonight's game at Minnewaska Area. It is a huge game for K-M-S, as both teams are in Sub-Section 3AA-North. Update: the Lakers beat K-M-S 77-44.

With their third straight loss, the Dutchmen fell to 1-4 overall. Their lone win was by a 61-46 score at Paynesville Area on December 2.

That's all I can post for now...I just spent the last hour delivering B-B-E Blaze JO volleyball pizzas, and I'm also in the midst of 2025 tax preparation.

Coming on Saturday! Don't forget! The Norway Lake Lutheran community is hosting a Christmas Jubilee sing-along at East Norway Lake Lutheran Church. Their soup meal starts at noon, and the singing gets going at 1 p.m. Read all the details, including the cost, by clicking over to the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website: NorwayLakeChristmasJubilee.

Central MN Conference girls' basketball scores on December 19:
Eden Valley-Watkins 52, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 47
Paynesville Area 67, Maple Lake 43

Central MN Conference boys' basketball scores on December 19:
Holdingford 87, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 55

Area girls' basketball scores on December 19:
Henning 59, Battle Lake 53
Foley 70, Upsala 26
New London-Spicer 80, Annandale 32
Yellow Medicine East 80, Montevideo 49
Willmar 79, St. Cloud Crush 12
West Central Area 55, Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 49
Ogilvie 69, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 57
Osakis 58, Browerville 21
Underwood 48, Parkers Prairie 35
Ashby 40, Hancock 37
Minnewaska Area 77, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 44
Swanville 63, Sebeka 36

Area boys' basketball scores on December 19:
Willmar 86, St. Cloud Tech 76
Brandon-Evansville 83, Kimball Area 79
Annandale 81, New London-Spicer 54
Benson 85, Lac qui Parle Valley 52
CMCS 97, Paynesville 54
Melrose 58, Minnewaska 50 (Dutchmen improve to 2-3 overall and break a 3-game skid)

GAME NIGHT! In Dutchman country

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team is in a makeup game tonight with a Stearns County border battle at Melrose Area.

In the C-squad game, the Jaguars overcame a 17-16 halftime deficit to pull away in the closing minutes. Final: B-B-E 42, Melrose 32.

Due to technical difficulties, I am unable to add an advertisement here. I want to give a huge shout out to our two community banks, who both held Christmas customer appreciation events today. Kudos to the staff of Bonanza Valley State Bank of Brooten and Kensington Bank of Belgrade! They advertised these events in the December 11 and 18 issues of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. That advertising keeps this sports department going!

Varsity halftime score: B-B-E 28, Melrose 20. Macey Roering and Mya Worms are both leading the Jaguars with 8 points each. The second half will start at about 6:33 p.m.

Final: BBE 59, Melrose 56.

Hard to describe today's weather

When I left Belgrade this morning for an errand to Elrosa, the temperature on the minivan said 30 degrees. It was also raining. Less than 15 minutes later, the van's thermometer said 24 degrees...but it was still raining. The van's defroster had to remain on high to keep the windshield from icing over.

About 1 hour after that, the word went out at 10:19 a.m. saying that B-B-E schools is dismissing at noon today. No after school activities.

Gosh, dang it!

Odd and strange is the best way I can say how the day's weather is shaping up! Multiple evening activities for tonight have been scrubbed and/or postponed. It wreaks havoc on the activities office. The home dance competition will likely be sometime in January.

Now, I can get caught up on multiple other tasks such as office cleaning and photo/video editing.

In case you weren't there, the Elrosa Santa Day event brought over 100 kids to town. The organizers there should be proud of the response by families in and around Elrosa!

Here's Amy Zenzen of Elrosa reading to children that morning...click on the following link to see more: ElrosaSantaDay2025.

Looking ahead briefly to tomorrow...the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball game at Melrose has a unique schedule. The C-squad Jaguars face the Dutchmen at 4:15 p.m., and the varsity game is set to begin at about 5:45 p.m. Please spread the word! I am seeing a "ticket link" at the school website, which makes me wonder if Melrose accepts cash at the door when paying for your ticket to watch the game.

ALSO tomorrow! The Bonanza Valley State Bank and Kensington Bank will both hold Christmas-season customer appreciation events. They advertised in the December 11 and 18 issues of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. The support of these two banks is vital to the survival of the newspaper and its sports department. I can't repeat that enough.

And back to coverage of Tuesday's concert...
Click over to the newspaper's website to watch the senior high choir singing at Olson Auditorium: SeniorHighChoirCarolBells.

In other news...
In the Clara City Herald newspaper this week, they reported on the MACCRAY's school budget. I noticed their property tax levy was set at $5.283 million for the 2026-2027 school year. For comparison, B-B-E recently set their tax levy for the same period at $2.861 million. That's a massive difference. It should also be noted that B-B-E and MACCRAY have very similar K-12 enrollment figures.

At Renville County West school, their 2026-27 levy was set at $2.591 million. Their school is a bit smaller than B-B-E, so that levy amount seems more in line from my perspective.

Padua Pub hosting Customer Appreciation today

The Padua Pub Customer Appreciation is being held today until 8 p.m. This was advertised in the December 11 issue on page 3.

THANK YOU, Dave and Clara! My family will be there later this evening!

Also! Don't forget about Bonanza Valley State Bank and Kensington Bank...they are both loyal and regular supporters of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper and our sports department! Click to read about their events coming on Friday: BanksCustomerAppreciation2025.

The Padua Pub was hopping tonight! I enjoyed visiting with Mr. and Mrs. Julius Evenson of Crow Lake Township. Always a treat to see good friends out and about in our communities!

Let's go back almost 2 weeks to the Brooten Santa Day evening:


When the dust settles, I'll have Brooten Santa Day coverage in the December 11, 18 and 25 newspaper issues.

Preparation: Christmas concert is tonight at the high school (VIDEO)

It's been weeks in the making for the school staff and students, and tonight's the big night! The B-B-E high school will host their grades 6-12 Christmas music concert. It starts at 7 p.m. at Olson Auditorium.

THE LIVESTREAM LINK: https://www.youtube.com/live/gYrqC2B7Vo4.

Here's a video featuring tremendous talent shown by the K-3 students on December 3:


The elementary Christmas concert was called "Arctic Animal Antics" and was directed by Choir director Kathryn Freeman.

It's been a very busy Saturday (VIDEOS)

This is another busy weekend around the Bonanza Valley. The Belgrade Commercial Club and the Sedan Community Group both hosted Santa Day events. The youth Jaguars wrestlers traveled to New London-Spicer for their first competition of the 2025-2026 season. Also, the Highway 55 youth basketball teams both got their season going at Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, both boys and girls in grades 4-6.

A handful of area churches have Sunday School Christmas programs tomorrow. Hopefully you're able to watch one of them, or perhaps you got to see one last weekend.

Exciting news! The B-B-E 7th grade Class of 2030 Jaguars girls' basketball team earned third place in the Central Minnesota Conference tournament today. They defeated Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City in the quarterfinals, lost to Maple Lake in the semis and then defeated Paynesville Area in the third-place game. Their roster features 9 players, and they were coached by Class of 1996 graduate Trish Thieschafer. The win over A-C-GC was in sudden-death overtime, and the game-winning basket was a free throw by Addison Reese.

Here's a video that's a week old, from the Hoops For Hope Saturday against Brandon-Evansville:


After that tough two-point loss, the Jaguars have two wins on back-to-back nights. On offense, the Jaguars are averaging 68.6 points per game.

Here's a video from the first half of Thursday night's BOLD game:


The Jaguars trailed 20-18 at the start of that video to the Warriors. A three-pointer right around the 9-minute mark by sophomore Makenna Roelike put the Jaguars up 21-20.

Scheduling update: the girls' basketball team travels to Melrose on Friday, December 19 for a makeup game. They play at Kimball Area on Thursday, December 18.

Also tomorrow, Hopeful Hills Ranch has their final day of their Christmas sale and open house. Read more on that here: HopefulHillsRanchChristmas.

At open gym tonight, they are approaching a turnout of 60! That's wonderful! The first open gym night, which was held on November 22, had a turnout that passed 60. Tonight's open gym at the high school is sponsored by Rustic Designs Flower Farm of Burbank Township.

Reminder about the new restaurant open in Belgrade...
At the former Saucedos Restaurant location, Mexico Querido is now open on main street in Belgrade. Their business phone number is 320-633-0002. Their hours are 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Monday through Saturday. They are open on Sundays from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. I hope to get more coverage posted here online: MexicoQueridoRestaurant.

At the Grant County Invitational on Saturday, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team placed 10th out of 12 teams. The top finisher was Noah Jensen, who took 2nd at 114 pounds.

Girls' and Boys' basketball Jaguars get double-digit wins (VIDEOS, UPDATES*)

This blog post is being updated early Saturday morning and then another time later in the day. Two additional videos were added on Saturday morning.

In Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team improved to 4-1 overall with a 67-46 win over the Falcons. After clinging to a one-point halftime lead, the Jaguars exploded for 43 second-half points. A total of 7 players scored at least 7 points. The team was led by Kacey Fischer's 20 points; she was limited by rough A-C-GC play and tough foul calls in the first half and scored just 2 points in the first 18 minutes.

Excellent 19-of-25 free throw shooting was a key factor in the win. They're now 2-0 in the Central Minnesota Conference.

A-C-GC falls to 2-4 overall and 0-2 in the CMC. They have 7 seniors on the team, but the best one did not play (5'11" forward Ruby Klinger).

Next: the girls' basketball team travels to Kimball Area next Thursday for another CMC game.

Central MN Conference girls' basketball scores on December 12:
Royalton 77, Eden Valley-Watkins 34 (Royals pick up first win after an 0-3 start against tough Section 6AA rivals)
Holdingford 63, Maple Lake 34
Kimball Area 58, Paynesville Area 52

In boys' basketball action...
At home, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team defeated Upsala 52-42 after they led 28-17 at halftime.

The Cardinals chipped away at the double-digit halftime deficit to trail 35-32 with 9 minutes to go. Taylor Pieper's three-point play with 7:42 left started a 13-2 run that put the Jaguars in control. Austin Radermacher's fastbreak shot with 35 seconds left helped seal the win with the game's final points scored.

The Cardinals fell to 2-2 overall. They shot just 23 percent on field goals and were 4-of-10 at the free throw line.

Here's a video from the middle of the second half tonight against Upsala:


Upsala brought a strong fullcourt press in the waning minutes of the game, but they shot poorly.

It's worth noting that their parents and fans rallied behind the team after their school bus was unable to start in Upsala. Supporters rallied with car pools to drive the players to Brooten. A school bus was sent eventually and was able to drive the players back home.

Here's a video during the last 2 minutes of the game:


Next: the boys' basketball team travels to Paynesville Area next Thursday for the CMC opener.

In the home wrestling triangular...
The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team suffered a heartbreaking 36-35 loss to Kimball Area in the second of two duals tonight in Belgrade. In the first dual, Paynesville Area defeated the Jaguars by a 57-11 score. The wrestlers have no time to rest as they travel west to Barrett for the West Central Area duals tomorrow.

The Jaguars trailed 18-11 through 133 pounds, but Dylan Koob's win by fall cut that to 18-17.

Here's Dylan Koob winning at 139 pounds against Kimball:


In the 127-pound match, B-B-E's Elizabeth Rademacher earned her 50th career win. She won by fall over Teagan VanNurden. In the other dual, Paynesville Area defeated Kimball Area 60-18.

I'll expand out additional wrestling coverage on Monday with another video clip, which will feature Rademacher's win.

In local business news...this is exciting!
Here's a quick shout out to the new Mexican restaurant in Belgrade! They opened today to the public for the first time in the former Saucedos location on main street. I encourage you to go down and meet their staff! They are open tomorrow, Saturday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. On Sunday, they are open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. I'll get more coverage of their restaurant at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website this weekend.

On Saturday afternoon this weekend...
On Saturday, December 13, the Sedan Community Group is excited to host Santa Day from 1 to 3 p.m. at Heidi's Bar. Children are invited to come take a picture with Santa Claus. Other activities include hayrides, and hot cocoa and cookies will be served. Kids can also receive a small toy, while supplies last. Heidi's Bar is located at 203 Marsh Street in downtown Sedan.

This blog post is a wrap.   

Area boys' basketball scores on December 12:
Renville County West 70, Maple Lake 65
Border West 67, Tri-State 42
Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 94, Alden-Conger/Glenville-Emmons 74
Foley 63, Kimball Area 44
Henning 72, Pillager 55

Area girls' basketball scores on December 12:
Minnewaska Area 56, Sauk Centre 44 (the Lakers and Mainstreeters were in a 23-23 tie at halftime in Sauk Centre)
New London-Spicer 95, Rockford 41
MACCRAY 67, Ortonville 21
BOLD 114, Montevideo 21 (BOLD led 72-13 at halftime in Bird Island)
Renville County West 71, Yellow Medicine East 62
Upsala 70, Benson 47
Hillcrest Lutheran Academy 83, Brandon-Evansville 39
Parkers Prairie 65, Battle Lake 41

Wrestling is home, boys' basketball is home (RADIO, UPDATES)

On a frigid, sub-zero evening, we have home cooking for two varsity teams.

At the high school, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team is trailing Paynesville Area 45-11 after the 189-pound match is complete. The Jaguars are hosting a Central Minnesota Conference triangular that also includes Kimball Area.

In girls' basketball action...
The Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City Falcons are hosting the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team in a CMC game. The varsity game started at 5:30 p.m. That game is being broadcast on Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood. Through 7 minutes, the Falcons are on a 10-0 run and hold an 11-4 lead in the first half.

The website for Smooth Magic 107 is https://www.kmgk1071.com.

With 9 minutes to go, the Falcons are ahead 16-10.

Halftime: with Kacey Fischer and Mya Worms playing through early foul trouble, the Jaguars hold a 24-23 lead at the break. Halftime started at 6:12 p.m. Kamie Fischer is leading the Jaguars with 7 points and 3 rebounds.

Final: B-B-E girls' basketball 67, A-C-GC 46. The Jaguars are 4-1 overall.

Also at home tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is hosting Upsala in non-conference action. The JV boys defeated the Cardinals by single digits. In the varsity game, the Jaguars led 28-17 at halftime.

MORE to come in a NEW blog post at about 9 p.m.!