Very, very important message

After Sunday, Nov. 30, the B-B-E community will no longer see outgoing Chief Derrick Bjork patrolling Belgrade or Brooten in the Belgrade Police Department Chevy Tahoe (shown)...but with a lot of hard work we are hoping to see him back in uniform in a different local police department. It's all in the air right now.

*Note: on Monday afternoon, December 1, this was updated with more information. For the past 10 days or so I have been having health problems but am coming out of it and am currently operating at about 80 percent. It has greatly hampered my ability to properly disseminate information. It will improve day by day.

This is very, very important for anyone in the B-B-E Jaguar Country area and surrounding communities to read and share. Since November 18, the area has been wondering what will happen with local police coverage. While Chief Bjork will no longer work in Belgrade, other options exist to keep him local if certain goals are achieved.

The first official "SUPPORTING CHIEF DERRICK BJORK" informational event is on at KA-DE-SHACK Brooten on 

Friday, DEC 12TH 7 TO 11 PM
LIVE MUSIC by WILDFIRE
All are welcome from B-B-E area and surrounding towns!

*This is just the first of many, many steps to achieve our goal! The point of the event is not to raise funds but to give people information and gather more input from the public.

From the KaDe Shack, feel free to head east to the Brothers Bar in Belgrade, where they're having an (entertainment) event that night as well! The event I heard about at the Brother's Bar is on Saturday, December 13, which won't interfere with the December 12 event in Brooten. I also want to share that the Brother's Bar will be collecting donations for needy families in the area during this Christmas/Holiday season.

Back to my message...
No one is suggesting that having Police Chief Bjork working in Brooten will solve all our problems. It won't prevent all crimes. It won't heal all heartaches. It won't magically make B-B-E schools perfect. But you can be certain it will help.

Please read this story below: (Power structure, are you reading this?)

Immediately after the news broke that Chief Bjork was under siege, I asked a current B-B-E student in the senior high grades what Chief Bjork means to the B-B-E student body.

"I'll tell you what it means. Right now I am really worried about a couple classmates. Having him around could mean the difference between these two doing something really, really stupid that can hurt them and a lot of others or figuring out that they need to change their ways."

This student told me this before Chief Bjork turned in his two-week notice. (Power structure, are you reading this, do you understand what all this means for our school??????)

Or how about this, which is a generalization of what a few students have said. I can't reprint exactly what they said as it included foul language.

"I admit that I can be a little punk and cause trouble, but Chief Bjork knows how to straighten me out. He knows how to talk to me. I respect him, and I know even if he's giving me a hard time or trying to knock my head on straight, he respects me too."

Note: compare that to what is happening in Ferguson, Missouri. That community has wild animals who pass themselves off as humans running around and literally making wild hyenas looking tame. It is pure pandemic, madness, unabated mayhem...
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/12/02/protests-sparse-after-pack-hammer-wielding-teens-beats-man-to-death-in-shadow

Right now our local police presence is in limbo. We are truly blessed to still have Officer Kluver on the force, but I have heard nothing about who will be filling the police chief position. I will be shocked to the point where I could have a heart attack if I learn that the police chief position was filled with someone with half the character, work ethic and dedication of Chief Bjork.

The power structure in Belgrade has completely disrespected their duties. They've let us all down. Chief Bjork was very clear about his request for help, and they ignored him. When a police officer asks for help, the right thing to do is help him or her! Anyone with a brain who asks any amount of questions will quickly find out how Chief Bjork has been a "buffer" against kids making stupid decisions or doing stupid things that can hurt themselves or others. We were all once kids...we all know how fast that can happen, especially in today's age.

These are our towns. B-B-E is our school. We will fight for what's right every day to make our towns and our school better. The young adults in the B-B-E community have invested their heart and soul into their businesses and the school district. They deserve to have leadership in the community that is worth their salt.

Now that you're done reading this, I hope you understand why I am so burnt up over this issue.

Also, if hear, read or see any evidence suggesting that I or anyone I am associated with am being targeted for posting this information, the reaction will be swift and severe. I do not work seven days a week to put up with any type of BS, and I will not allow the terror that unfortunately exists out there in our world to push me around.

(Video) Girls' basketball drills

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team begins the 2014-15 season with a road game at Upsala on Tuesday night.

Below is a glimpse of early-morning practice today:


Turnout for the C, JV and varsity squads hovers around 25, including five seniors and three sophomores with a large class of freshmen.

Small Business Saturday!!!

Let's face it: our small towns that make up the community I commonly refer to as B-B-E Jaguar Country would not exist without the hundreds of small businesses we have across our school district. We're in this together. In my opinion, every day is "Small Business Day", and we all need to make a concerted effort to promote and support what we have in our small towns.

Today is Small Business Saturday across the U.S.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Small_Business_Saturday

You can't miss the sight and feel of Christmas when you walk into the Belgrade Hardware Store.

After taking in part of today's early morning basketball practice at the high school, I stopped at the Belgrade Hardware Store, where they are kicking off their Christmas season sale. Later this morning I'll be stopping by Jana Mae's in Brooten, where they're also celebrating Small Business Saturday. There's also an event this morning at the Brooten Lanes featuring a local Pampered Chef dealer.

Local proprietor Jana Zenner and company were excited about promoting Small Business Saturday at Jana Mae's and Mudslingers Cafe this morning in downtown Brooten.

In downtown Belgrade this morning, reindeer rides and photos with Santa were held at Greater Visions Photography.

So much to do, so little time! Glad the sun is shining.

B-B-E alumni tournament!

It's all about supporting the program and the players who have put in their dues while preparing for the upcoming season on the hardwood.

The B-B-E Jaguar men's alumni tournament is today at the elementary school. The event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. We have a terrific day ahead of us with sunshine, good roads for travel and now a wonderful event to take in.

Please spread the word and get a crowd to come support the program!

Thankful times

Wrestling!

Due to unforseen circumstances I was unable to get to any of the wrestling meet. Bummer!

I am thrilled to report that the Jaguars wrestling team took second! Three individual champions! They finished just 12 points out of first place behind Class 3A Maple Grove. They placed five wrestlers in championship matches, and 11 wrestlers earned medals.

Tyler Bents won a thriller in the 106-pound championship by a 3-2 decision. Josey Tensen won by fall (3:02) in the 120-pound division. Ben Thompson won by fall (1:47) in the semifinals at 182 pounds and then took the title by default.

These guys mean BUSINESS this season!

Team standings:
1st Maple Grove - 179
2nd B-B-E - 167
3rd Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta/Hancock - 155
4th Long Prairie/Grey Eagle-Browerville - 142
5th New London-Spicer - 74
6th Ortonville - 32

The Jaguars will host neighboring rival Paynesville Area this coming Thursday (Dec. 4) in a dual meet. I'm not sure when JV action will start, but the varsity meet should get going around 7 p.m. Come out and get a good seat!

Fun fact: first-year head coach Jack Mueller is a Paynesville graduate and was a former Bulldogs wrestler.

Wow!!!!! I agree!

This hits it on the head:

(Musical video) Clue presented by B-B-E theater company

Enjoy! I know that the theater company is selling DVDs of the entire musical.

Season opener! (Winter sports opener)

Photo courtesy of Greater Visions Photography, Belgrade.

B-B-E's Jaguars wrestling team hosts their 2014-2015 season opener on Wednesday, Nov. 26 with an Early Bird tournament at the high school starting at 2:30 p.m. Teams coming for the six-team field include Long Prairie-Grey Eagle, Maple Grove, Morris Area/Hancock/Chokio-Alberta, New London-Spicer and Ortonville.

Please pass the word and come out to support your Jaguars!

The students

Our B-B-E students are extremely upset right now. Every day I am learning that I have barely grazed the surface of it. As I have time (which I don't, but still...) I am going to gather stories from students on what the police liaison services have meant to them during their experiences in school. That's all about to go through big, huge changes as we turn the calendars to December.

This won't be easy, but it is important.

And by the way, I am absolutely furious about it. And as I get older I've learned it's best to not speak while angry. I've also learned from visits with clergy that seeking a heart of forgiveness should always be your goal. Speaking frankly, that will be a difficult goal to achieve any time soon.

Hope is on the horizon, though. It's just too soon to talk about it publicly. I had a very productive night on my end gathering important information, but the down side was missing the band concert which was a huge bummer. The logistics of driving to the high school tonight didn't work out.

Band concert

The 6th-12th grade fall band concert is tonight at 7:30 p.m.

Buried

Buried under a mountain of loose ends I'm tying up...I won't get on any "Clue" musical coverage until Tuesday. My apologies.

On a side note, today is a great day!!!! The future is bright.

Winter coat distribution

Please spread the word!

A winter coat distribution on behalf of the B-B-E Area Clothes Closet will be held on Wednesday, November 26 starting at 1 p.m. at the Brooten City Hall.

The B-B-E Area Clothes Closet is open to any area family in need from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. every Wednesday.

Donations are always welcome and accepted and may be dropped off at the Brooten City Hall any day of the week during business hours. Currently needed are winter clothing for all sexes and ages. Please make sure clothing is clean and in good condition.

Fabulous musical

Clue was outstanding!! I will try to get photos and video posted tonight.

...and here's a video clip from Act II:

Coaches roundup

A quick note from DMac in Glenwood...on Saturday morning around 7:20 a.m. Coach Kevin Weller will be interviewed in a season recap on 107.1 FM.

After listening to his interview, one thing stood out that I want to share. On this year's Jaguar volleyball team, seven team members earned All-Central Minnesota Conference Academic Awards. That requires a GPA of 3.76 or higher. That's pretty incredible!!

Holdingford wins state title!

Click to read a short web article about the achievement:
http://albanyenterprise.com/articles/2014/11/21/champions

If you didn't get to watch the last few minutes of regulation or the overtime periods, you missed out on something special!!

Calmer waters

I've had a follower on this website who has had issue with some of the things I've written. I actually removed every last single thing this person didn't like once it was brought to my attention in an act of appeasement and basically "waving the white flag". In a nutshell, I gave in. I am not proud of that, but it's what I did. And by waving the white flag, I also did not post a comment about you on a Facebook group which I am not an administrator of. Please know that was not me.

I think the situation has calmed down. I judged this person and felt personally threatened by their actions, especially when I was physically being looked for. I do not apologize for that overt act of judgement. I am close to many, many people who I have to think of first and foremost. I have to think about the many, many people who I interact with on a daily basis and consider their safety as well. In today's world, I will react swiftly if I feel my safety or the safety of those around me is in jeopardy. I've taken steps to protect myself and those who I love.

In all truthfulness, this person and I want the same things: we want government to be good. To behave. We just have very different tactics about how we try to make that happen. And that's okay in a free country like the one we live in.

Anyway, to this person. I admire your tenacity. You make me look downright timid. And that's okay. To the single event that has you upset about that happened in July 2013, please know that the proper government agencies have taken care of that situation. The proper legal punishments were handed out. You have to understand what jurisdiction would cover an agriculture-related chemical spill and then go from there.

Carry on, sir. And remember to be nice to those who don't deserve nice. I have to remind myself that every day.

lifeinpopecounty@gmail.com

Sunshine

The sun is shining today for a reason. Today is a very, very good day.

I hope you can get outside and soak it in!

Musical!

"Clue" will be performed Friday and Saturday nights this week at the B-B-E theater stage. A matinee is Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock.

The Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa Theater Company's fall musical this year is "Clue," a production that will include audience participation for all three nights, according to director Lucy Lloyd. It will be held on Friday, Nov. 21, at 7:30, Saturday, Nov. 22, at 7:30 and on Sunday, Nov. 23, at 2:00 at the high school theater stage. 

"Clue" is based on the board game with a plot including a murder in a mansion occupied by several suspects and solved by a detective. During the musical, crew members will collect cards from audience members that select the murderer out of the cast members as well as the murder weapon and location of the murder. The cast includes eight students with three students working as crew members.

Please spread the word! Let's support the Fine Arts like we support our athletic programs! It's all good  :)

All-Area football

In the West Central Tribune, two B-B-E Jaguar football players were selected to the Tribune All-Area team:
Ben Thompson (Junior OL): 89 tackles; All-Central Minnesota Conference Second Team.

Tommy Cebulla (Senior FS/FB): 117-539 rushing; 88 tackles; All-Central Minnesota Conference First Team; Central Minnesota Conference Defensive Back of the Year.

Police chief resigns

Earlier this afternoon, Police Chief Derrick Bjork resigned from his position with the Belgrade police department. His resignation was accepted in writing by Belgrade mayor Rick Tschida. This comes on the heels of the Belgrade city council meeting held last night.

Because of threats to my safety, I cannot comment on what is happening or share further details. I can do nothing else but report what I know.

Wisdom for the day

It's been a rough few days lately, mostly related to the weather. Seeing some sunshine yesterday helped me out a lot late in the afternoon on my way back to Glenwood.

Here's my wisdom for today:

3rd annual Rich Vos Memorial Tournament

Sign up today! You do not have to be a graduate of B-B-E to participate, but simply a graduate of a high school. The event is Saturday, December 27, 10:30 a.m. This is a wonderful fundraiser to help future B-B-E students while also carrying on the wonderful memory of the late Coach Rich Vos (RIP).

Weigh-ins are from 9:15 to 10
Wrestling starts at 10:30

You must be one year removed from organized wrestling. Cost is $25 per Wrestler.
Go online to www.wrestlereg.com or call Beth Vos by December 10th to guarantee yourself a T-shirt. (I cannot post her phone number here.)

Hunkering down

Looks like the wind will pick up some time on Sunday evening to the 20-25 mph range across central Minnesota. Roads in my area aren't the greatest after the light snowfall from Saturday. My hopes are up that Pope County plows will help me out on Monday morning!

Holdingford football

The Huskers won 35-18 today against a very good Pipestone-Jasper team.. They are Prep Bowl-bound! Holdingford faces BOLD in the Prep Bowl for the Class 2A state championship next weekend.

P-J plays in a very strong football conference in southern Minnesota.

Dams!

As in ice dams!

This morning I noticed the biggest ice dam I've ever seen on our house. It had to be six inches thick.
Then I realized I had to start attacking the 10 to 12 inches of snow that was blanketing the lower portion of our southern roof line. I have to admit, it was a nice workout pulling that snow off of the roof.

And on a somewhat related note, although I had nothing good to say about MN-DOT's efforts at working the roads on Monday, Pope County was on top of the ball. On my road in the area of the Pezehkee National Golf Course, Pope County did wonders getting out on Monday and then Tuesday to open up paths for me to get in and out. 

Bravo!

I was raised in the country and now am living my dream of living in the country. Most of the year it's spectacular to live out here. Not like weeks like this when traveling is dangerous to life and limb!

A wonderful banquet

I made the trip east to the Padua Pub tonight and enjoyed a wonderful evening at the B-B-E Jaguars volleyball team banquet. Awards were given for C, JV and varsity teams from the three coaches. Fall sports are now in the books!

I have ample video to post on Friday. Have a good night, and travel safely! The roads are still a little touchy.

Update: due to technical difficulties on Friday I am unable to get any more posted.

Sad news from Sunburg

An accidental fire completely destroyed the Sondrol Service Station, formerly known as Tollefson Oil Station, in the small northern Kandiyohi County town of Sunburg. The fire took place in the early afternoon hours of Wednesday, November 12. The owner was unharmed.

A very sad day for the town. Let's hope a rebuild is in the cards for the owner, who is a native of the Sunburg area.

January

It's just another typical January day in Minnesota.

(Video) Preseason basketball drills

Here's a glimpse of head coach Chris Anderson's boys' basketball players doing workout drills at practice tonight:


Their season opener is December 2 at home against state-ranked Upsala.

How bad was it?

So just how bad was it on Monday? Well, I made a brief stop in Brooten while passing through on my way to work and learned that their regular city council meeting scheduled for Monday was cancelled due to road conditions. Whew! I rarely hear about city council meetings being nixed because of the weather.

Closed

No school or any other activities today. No Veterans Day programs! Please pass the word especially to senior citizens.

Two hours late

Kids and their devices...sorry kids!! Your devices won't clear the snow.

B-B-E is two hours late on Tuesday, November 11. I haven't checked how this affects the Veterans Day programs. The elementary program is scheduled for 10:00 a.m. and high school's at 1:00 p.m.

What a mess outside!

On another note, winter sports openers:
Jaguar wreslers - JV wrestlers on Tues., Nov. 25 at home with a 15-team invitational; varsity wrestlers on Wed., Nov. 26 at home with a six-team invitational at 2:30 p.m.
Dazzlers dance team - Sat., December 13 at noon at Albany
Jaguar boys' basketball - Tues., December 2 at home against Upsala
Jaguar girls' basketball -  Tues., December 2 at Upsala

The emperor has no clothes

The view of Highway 55 at 08:07, after I parked in one of the WASP driveways at.

MN-DOT was caught with their pants down this morning. At least in the close area of Glenwood, MN-DOT's plows were missing in action in the early morning hours of today. It's as if they had no idea that it was going to snow today, November 10, 2014.

Before leaving Glenwood this morning and heading to work, I noticed a Pope County snow plow was clearing the exit/entrance ramps on the Highway 28/Highway 55 interchange. My Dodge Stratus was a joke trying to get down Highway 55. Of course it's my fault for having a crappy car, but that's besides the point. By 8:30 a.m. you would think MN-DOT would have plows out, right?

Lo-and-behold, as I approached Stearns County I saw a MN-DOT plow working on the Brooten-to-Belgrade route. But west of Brooten: nothing.

And then another big whopper: Minnewaska Area schools didn't let the two-hour late calls go out until approximately 7:30 a.m.!!!! Numerous teachers were at school when the call went out. (They were pissed.)

Not cool at all.

Conferences

No conferences today or any school activities of any sort.

Glenwood is an absolute mess this morning!

Football awards

So while attending the preliminary races for the Section 6A swimming and diving meet last night, I completely missed attending the B-B-E Jaguars football year-end banquet. (It was last night.)

Bummer!

Here's a few awards I heard:
Defensive Player of the year--Ben Thompson
Offensive Player of the year--Tommy Cebulla
2nd team all conference--Ben Thompson & Tanner Heisius
All Conference--Tommy Cebulla, who was also named co-defensive player of the year in the CMC conference.

**Football banquet coming

Here's a quick note from the B-B-E football coaching staff:
What: 2014 BBE Jaguar Football Banquet
When: Thursday, November 6, 2014 at 6:30 P.M.
Where: BBE Elementary Cafeteria in Brooten
Who: All players in grades 9-12 and their parents

As in the past, it will be a potluck dinner. Here's what you should bring.
Coaches: Family Size Main Dish and Dessert
Seniors: Family Size Main Dish
Juniors: Family Size Salad/Chips and Dip
Sophomores: Family Size Desserts
Freshman: Family Size Main Dish

Election night: school board results!

So many races to watch! Holy moly!

It will be a while before we learn results in B-B-E's school board race.

Governor Dayton's reelection chances are still teetering on the edge. That will be interesting to follow throughout the night.

10:30 pm...results are coming in. Stay tuned!

23:41 hours:
With 15 of 21 voting precincts reporting, front-runners for the four spots on the B-B-E school board are Scott Voss, Pat Thieschafer, Paul Gregory and Brian Knight. In fifth and sixth places are Nicole Szczesniak and Ginny Borgerding.

Senator Al Franken, Congressman Collin Peterson and Governor Mark Dayton have all won reelection. In other races, the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party is in really bad shape in numerous rural districts.

00:03 hours:
The results are in! All 21 precincts have reported. Here's what I can report:
1st - Scott Voss 1,046
2nd - Pat Thieschafer 880
3rd - Paul Gregory 862
4th - Brian Knight 697
5th - Nicole Szczesniak 667
6th - Ginny Borgerding 632

Voss, Thieschafer, Gregory and Knight all won seats on the school board.

In neighboring news, I learned that Minnewaska Area passed two voting questions to raise taxes for fixing infrastructure in the school buildings and campuses while also adding an extra $200,000 a year in new taxes to pay for technology-related improvements.

In Sauk Centre, a technology-related levy question failed by a very slim margin (159 votes). They were asking for $100,000 a year to go towards technology-related improvements.

At B-B-E, it's terribly exciting that we are moving to a one-to-one E-device initiative that will go into affect for the 2015-2016 school year in grades 5-12. And better yet, we're doing it without asking on bended knee for more taxpayer support than what we already give.

*Wednesday morning update:
I saw that the NL-S referendum on facility improvements failed by about 2,400 to 1,800 votes. That really surprises me!! It will be interesting to see where that topic goes. Right now they have only four gymnasiums...the same number we have at much-smaller and financially well-off B-B-E.

'Clue' coming to the B-B-E theater stage

The B-B-E theater company is bringing the musical "Clue" to our local audience on November 21-23.

Production dates are:
Friday, Nov. 21 at 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 22 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 23 at 2 p.m.

Mark your calendars!

Pierz!!

Good grief! This is crazy!

The Pierz Pioneers have a 34-0 halftime lead over St. Cloud Cathedral in the Section 5AAA championship game in St. Cloud. You can listen to the game at http://www.youaretheresports.com. This link also works: http://www.sfmsports.net/#!sfmsports-channel-three/can2. The second half just started five minutes before 10.

Pierz senior running back Robby Skiba has 233 rushing yards as the third quarter is underway. At halftime, as a team the Pioneers had 300 rushing yards. They haven't given up a single point since October 10 when they beat Rockford Area 27-12.

Holy moly! Way to represent the Central Minnesota Conference! That is an incredible whooping. Pierz has just eight seniors on the roster, while the Crusaders have 17 seniors.

Craig Luberts has the all-time rushing record at Pierz with 298 rushing yards earned in the Class 2A state tournament in 2003 when the Pioneers played Esko in Duluth in a 48-32 shoot out win. Pierz lost in the state semifinals to Breck that year. In 2004, they went all the way to the Prep Bowl and beat Eden Valley-Watkins 39-14 for a state title after starting the season 0-2. Luberts ran for 2,103 yards in the 2003 season to forge the single-season rushing record at Pierz.

Looking back at the 2014 season, the B-B-E Jaguars football team faced no less than five section-finals bound teams. And everyone in Jaguar Country, repeat after me: "Uuf Da!"

**Update: Skiba, now with 271 rushing yards in the game, scored with 7:15 left in the third quarter from 23 yards out on a run play. The PAT kick was good to make it 41-0. They started the third quarter with a 60-yard touchdown drive.

Looking to bust up the shut out, Cathedral has first-and-goal at the Pierz five-yard line with 4:10 to play in the third quarter.

On first down, Johnny Kasper knocked down the ball for an incomplete pass. On second down, Pierz blitzed to force an early throw and an incomplete pass. On third down on a pass play, Casper tipped the ball away with another stellar defensive move to force another incomplete pass. On fourth down, Cathedral blew a timeout. Out of the timeout, on shot gun, another incomplete pass was thrown by Cathedral's quarterback!  Turnover on downs! With about three minutes left in the third quarter, Pierz started over on their own five-yard line.

Skiba had 273 yards...on third and six, the Pioneers Skiba cuts and runs to the 20, 30, 40, 50, and tripped up at the Crusaders 41-yard line! He has the new record! 325 rushing yards. He was pulled from the game and now has 1,901 rushing yards this season.

To get to 298 yards in the Esko win in 2003, Luberts ran the ball 32 times for 298 yards. Skiba ran the ball 23 times tonight to get to 325 yards.

Back to tonight's game, Noah Boser then cut down field on a 30-yard run and was taken down at the five-yard line.

On first and goal from the Crusaders five-yard line with a full house back field, Brett Capsner ran for four yards to the one-yard line. With time ticking down in the third quarter, Capsner scored one a one-yard run for a 47-0 lead and 11 seconds left on the clock. The PAT kick was good for a 48-0 lead.

Early in the fourth quarter, Cathedral's quarterback was 8-for-35 in passing with four interceptions. Wow! That is a rough night at the office! Cathedral, trying to earn a shred of dignity and find the end zone, has kept their first-stringers in the game against Pierz JV team and second-string players.

On an incredible goal-line stand, the Pierz JV defense faced the Cathedral first-team players who had first down and goal-to-go at the five-yard line. Here's what happened:
2nd and goal from one yard out. 6:37 left, running time...three yard run.
3rd and goal on the two yard line - pass play, almost intercepted, deflected at the line by a Pierz JV player.
4th and goal from the two yard line - 5:05 to go - fade pattern to the end zone, incomplete pass!!!! wow! Hunter Bednar made a play on it to protect the shut out. The final score was 48-0 after the Crusaders JV team had no luck moving the ball on the game's final series. Pierz now has three straight shut outs to their credit as they head to the state tournament.

Pierz (10-0) will play Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton in the Class 3A state quarterfinals next Saturday in Brainerd at 6 p.m.

The Crusaders got 82 rushing yards and just 102 passing yards. Their quarterbacks were a combined 10-for-39 in passing with four interceptions (all in the first half).

Here's other section championship football scores from today:
Maple Lake 42, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 0
New London-Spicer 30, Melrose Area 15
Blooming Prairie 36, Rushford-Peterson 21

In other news...
While hanging out at the high school tonight during open gym to give our eighth grader time to shake loose some rust as the junior high boys' basketball Front Court season starts this week...I ventured over to the auditorium to take in a little of the musical rehearsal. The musical dates of "Clue" are November 21, November 22, November 23. The Friday and Saturday times are 7:30 p.m., while Sunday's performance is at 2 p.m. Be sure to spread the word and write the dates down on your family's calendar!

That's all folks. Signing out now for the weekend.

Browerville

The Browerville Tigers are heading to the Class 1A state volleyball tournament after ending Sebeka's season in a 3-1 match tonight while claiming the Section 5A championship. Sebeka won game one 25-23, but the Tigers then won 26-24, 25-12 and 25-21 to head to state in volleyball for the first time since 2005 when they took sixth place. In school history, this is Browerville's second trip to state in volleyball. One fun little nugget that I dug up from the 2005 season was from the Section 5A championship match, when Browerville beat Verndale 3-1. That night the Tigers served 91-for-93 while having sterling serve-receive of 95 percent (80-for-84).

This year's Tigers volleyball team has a number of athletes who played on last year's section champion girls' basketball team. They take a 24-5 record into the state tournament and will probably be unseeded.

Volleyball playoffs

In the Section 6AA championship, Rocori has a 2-0 lead in games over Melrose Area in action played at St. Ben's University. In game three, the Dutchmen had multiple leads but are down 22-20 in a do-or-die situation.

Earlier in game three, Melrose trailed 2-4 before pulling ahead 8-5. After an 8-8 tie, Melrose again went up by three at 12-9. After ties at 12-12, 14-14 and 16-16, Melrose earned their last lead of game three at 17-16. The Spartans went on a run of five straight points to take control. Down 17-21, the Dutchmen got a kill from Mattie Meyer. Down 17-22, the Dutchmen got help from Rocori after the Spartans hit out of bounds and then hit into the net.

Down 20-22, Emily Goerdt had a kill, but the Spartans got two straight points to bring game and match point. Down 21-24, Justine Revermann had a kill, and the Spartans had an error on the next serve to make it a 24-23 score.

Out of a Rocori timeout, the Spartans ended the match when 6'2" middle hitter Emily Waletzko knocked down a kill to make the game three score 25-23.

Rocori won the first two games 25-15, 25-17. They take a 25-5 record into the state tournament. Melrose Area finishes one of their best seasons ever in volleyball with a 27-6 final record and a regular season co-championship in the West Central North Conference. The Dutchmen ended Sauk Centre's season in the sub-section championship in a crazy 3-2 match.

Delano, no longer alive in the playoffs, was the defending Section 6AA champions. Sauk Centre had won the three previous section titles from 2010 to 2012. Before that was New London-Spicer going to state from this section in 2009, and St. Cloud Cathedral won this section's titles in 2007 and 2008. Montevideo won Section 6AA in 2006, and our beloved B-B-E Jaguars were Section 6AA champions and first-time state entrants in 2005. My, how time flies...I still vividly remember beating Benson in the Section 6AA championship match in front of over 1,400 B-B-E fans at Melrose high school on Nov. 5, 2005.

Back to present-day...Maple Lake faces Park Center tonight at 7 p.m. at St. Michael-Albertville high school in the Section 5AA championship.

Here's a terrific, pick-me-up story about a Tracy-Milroy-Balaton girl rebounding from a terrible summer accident:
http://www.marshallindependent.com/page/content.detail/id/561229/

**Updates: Tracy-Milroy-Balaton is headed to the Class 1A state tournament for the first time since 1997 after beating a powerhouse Central MN Christian team 3-1 in the Section 3A championship in Marshall.

At Pierz, Browerville has a 2-1 lead in games over Sebeka.

Maple Lake swept Park Center to punch their ticket to state for the fourth year in a row.