SO PROUD!

So immensely proud of the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team!

Their backs were to the wall. They could have folded. As a team, they could have fallen apart. But like all good teams, they stuck with it!

Trailing 7-4 going into their final at bat, the Jaguars rallied with four runs scored to earn a walk-off 8-7 playoff win in the opening round of the Sub-Section 6A-South tournament. On one out with the score tied 7-7 in the bottom of the seventh, Ally Gruber hit an RBI-single for the game's eighth run to end the action and advance her team. Dacia Herickhoff, also the winning pitcher, scored the game-winning run.

The Jaguars take a 4-16 record into the semifinal round, which is also the first portion of the double-elimination format of subsections. They play top-seeded Upsala on Thursday this week at 4 p.m. at Minnewaska Area high school.

The Upsala Cardinals won their playoff opener tonight against No. 8-seeded Wheaton/Herman-Norcross by a 12-2 score in six innings. Other sub-section quarterfinal results: No. 2 West Central Area won 13-3 in five innings over No. 7-seeded Ortonville; and No. 3-seeded Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley beat No. 6-seeded Swanville 8-7 to advance.

More to come. Video to come as well! Stay tuned.


**Update: here's the video! Shown is almost the entire bottom of the seventh inning tonight:


And THANK YOU to the Belgrade Hardware store for sponsoring tonight's playoff coverage by the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper's sports department. We hope that Jaguar fans make sure to keep Belgrade Hardware in mind for all their household, business and recreational needs.

Playoffs begin

The postseason begins today for B-B-E varsity-level spring sports! The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team hosts Hancock in the Sub-Section 6A-South quarterfinals. Action begins at 5 p.m. on the home diamond, with the Jaguars earning the No. 4 seed in the eight-team subsection.

In other news...
a real estate open house has been scheduled in Brooten for this coming Sunday. Read more details at the Bonanza Valley Voice website: https://bit.ly/2JVj29e. The advertisement for this open house will appear (probably) on page 13 this week.


*Update: after one inning in the playoff opener, the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team and the Hancock Owls are tied 0-0.

Sub-Section Track and Field

The B-B-E Jaguars track and field teams will compete on Thursday this week in the Sub-Section 6A-21 meet. The field events begin at 3:30 p.m. at the University of Minnesota-Morris track and field athletic complex. Running events begin at 4:30 p.m.

Also, the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team will compete in a CMC double-header starting at 3 p.m. at Pierz on Tuesday (tomorrow).

Time for a quick trip to Sunburg for a community meeting and then the B-B-E school board meeting!

• In baseball news, Upsala/Swanville Area defeated Browerville's baseball team in eight innings by a 4-3 score tonight. The Patriots improve to 11-5 overall. In Central Minnesota Conference action, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted's baseball team defeated Kimball Area by a 12-7 score tonight. Also...Paynesville's baseball team defeated Holdingford 4-0 tonight.

Paynesville Area finishes the CMC schedule with a 12-2 record. They sit in second place right now behind conference-leading Pierz.

Wet, rainy day

The weather for our Sunday isn't instilling confidence for outdoor activities...a high of 43 degrees, 100 percent chance of rain and 20 mile an hour winds.

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team host postponed a home game set for today with Richmond has been postponed to July 21. It will now be played in Richmond at 1:30 p.m. that day.

Other events today:

In Sunburg, a full day of activities has been curtailed to some extent due to the rain. I will post more after church.

From 1 to 4 p.m., Integrity Home Investments of Brooten is a real estate open house is in rural Brooten...details on page 10 of this week's Voice. You can also check out additional photos and information at the Voice website (short link): https://bit.ly/2HGtFKz.

What else? Oh, there's more!
The B-B-E Just For Kix chapter is hosting their spring dance show at 4 p.m. today at the elementary school. They have 106 student dancers in their program this season!

Remember to visit the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website every day at this community calendar page...even visiting a couple times a week will help you stay up-to-date on local events!  (Short link)  https://bit.ly/2EvexOA.

*Update: the Syttende Mai parade in Sunburg was canceled due to the cold wind and rain. However, the Sunburg fire department hamburger feed is still on. They are serving until 7 p.m.

Fastpitch playoffs seeding

The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team earned the No. 4 seed in Sub-Section 6A-South. They will host a quarterfinal-round game on Tuesday, May 21 at 5 p.m. against Hancock.

If the Jaguars win, they would likely play top-seeded Upsala in the semifinals on Thursday, May 23 at Minnewaska Area high school at 4 p.m. Win or lose in that semifinal game, the Jaguars would play a second game that night at 5:30 p.m. at Minnewaska. Once a team wins in the quarterfinals, a double-elimination format goes into effect.

2019 Sub-Section 6A-South fastpitch seedings: 1st Upsala (11-8)
2nd West Central Area (15-3)
3rd Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley (10-7)
4th B-B-E (3-16)
5th Hancock (7-9)
6th Swanville (3-13)
7th Ortonville (4-10)
8th Wheaton/Herman-Norcross (2-16)

New York Mills (18-2) is the defending section champion and also the top seed in Sub-Section 6A-North.

Tournament's day two cancelled

Due to a fair amount of rain in the area received last night plus an unfavorable forecast, day two of the Max Bats Classic baseball Invitational has been cancelled.

Max Bats tournament

The B-B-E Jaguars baseball team lost 12-8 to Willmar tonight in the Max Bats tournament in Elrosa. Earlier in the evening, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg defeated Browerville by a 6-2 score.

Saturday's games in Elrosa are in doubt, with the forecast calling for thunderstorms and rain all weekend.

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team is supposed to host Richmond on Sunday for their home opener, but that's definitely in doubt right now too.

Syttende Mai weekend

Three Syttende Mai events happening this weekend in the Bonanza Valley! Today is the official Norwegian Independence Day anniversary.

Tonight is the night to swing by the Padua Pub! from 4 to 8 p.m...more information on page 3 this week.

On Sunday, May 19, both Sunburg and Terrace have Syttende Mai events taking place.

At Chippewa Falls Lutheran church in Terrace, they are serving a hearty Norwegian Smorgasbord from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in their church basement.

And Sunburg has a full day of activities going on lasting over 12 hours! You can find that on the Bonanza Valley Voice website: http://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com.


*In other news...
The Brooten Commercial Club is meeting with the Minnesota Gambling and Control Board on Monday, May 20. There are a number of issues that need to be hashed out as the Commercial Club goes through the process of dissolving their state charitable gambling license. It's a meeting that they have been waiting for months to take place.

Hopefully you will be able to read more news on this in next week's Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. Stay tuned!

A close loss

The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team lost 8-6 to the top-ranked team in Sub-Section 6A-South...the Upsala Cardinals. The Jaguars led 6-4 after six innings, but the Cardinals (11-8) plated four runs to take the lead in the top of the seventh.

At Kimball tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team picked up a huge 16-3 conference win over the Cubs. The Jaguars (7-6) led 9-3 after six innings.

More to come later. I have to find the schedule for this weekend's Max Bats Classic baseball tournament in Elrosa. B-B-E hosts Willmar, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg and Browerville on Friday and Saturday.

**Update: the Jaguars play at 7 p.m. on Friday night in their first game of the baseball tournament in Elrosa.

Hectic day

It was a hectic Wednesday.

Just as I was looking forward to taking a small break from work this afternoon, I got a reminder that the elementary band and choir spring concert was coming at 2:30 p.m.

I made it and it was all good...but of course, the break from work never happened until well after the sun went down.

And tonight it was very exciting to look at preliminary floor plan ideas for school building improvements. I have more to write about that tomorrow.