State-bound

Two members of the B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team are heading to the state meet.

Jaden Gossen and Jacqueline Gossen qualified for state after two days of competition at the Section 5A meet in Benson.

As a team, the Jaguars took second place in Section 5A with a score of 727. They barely missed out on a trip to the state meet, with Minneota winning the section title with a score of 723. Lac qui Parle Valley, the section favorite coming into the tournament, finished with a score of 729 to take third place.

The B-B-E boys' golf team finished in third place. Scores and other information will be posted on Thursday.

By the way, Thursday is section track and field day! I'll be making the trip to Fergus Falls. It will be an exciting day!

Opener success

The B-B-E Jaguars baseball team won 7-5 in their playoff opener tonight over No. 7-seeded Browerville/Eagle Valley. They led 7-0 after two innings and then hung on for a wild ride in the last two innings when the Tigers scored three times in the sixth inning and twice more in the top of the seventh.

Now 11-9 overall, the Jaguars play at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, June 1 at Minnewaska Area high school's baseball stadium. The opponent will be No. 3-seeded Brandon/Evansville, who won 2-1 in 12 innings over No. 6-seeded Upsala/Swanville Area tonight in another quarterfinal game.

Below, video from the seventh inning tonight at Elrosa:


Section 6A baseball playoff scores on May 30:
New York Mills 3, Kimball Area 1
Clinton-Graceville-Beardsley 3, Wheaton/Herman-Norcross 2
Hancock 6, Ashby 0
Hillcrest Lutheran Academy 17, West Central Area 7

Good luck in the next round, Jaguars!

Remembering the fallen (Video)

Remembering the fallen at the Belgrade V.F.W. Memorial Day program.

The Bonanza Valley Voice will have a large spread of photos throughout this week's newspapers from three separate Memorial Day programs held in Grove Lake, Brooten and Belgrade.

Below, HD video from the Belgrade V.F.W. program on Monday, starting with the B-B-E senior high choir performing.


I hope you took the time to attend a Memorial Day program or event over this past weekend!! Remembering Memorial Day should consist of more than just posting a photo on Facebook.

Two more wins

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team improved their record in the Stearns County League North division to 4-1 with two wins on Memorial Day weekend. They beat Roscoe 3-2 on Friday night, and then on Saturday they defeated Lake Henry 19-7.

Baseball playoffs

The B-B-E Jaguars baseball team (10-9) earned the No. 2 seed in Sub-Section 6A-East today. They host Browerville/Eagle Valley on Tuesday, May 30 in a quarterfinal game in Elrosa at TBD.

The playoffs continue on June 1 at Minnewaska Area high school.

Ortonville (14-4) is the top seed in Sub-Section 6A-West.

2017 Sub-Section 6A-East playoff seeding:
1. Parkers Prairie (17-1)
2. B-B-E (10-9)
3. Brandon/Evansville (12-8)
4. New York Mills (10-9)
5. Kimball Area (9-11)
6. Upsala/Swanville Area (8-9)
7. Browerville/Eagle Valley (7-12)

Graduation weekend

On Friday night, 41 B-B-E graduates received their diplomas at the school's 28th annual graduation ceremony. Below is video featuring the senior high choir as well as the valedictorian speech given by Molly Tengwall:

Photos from the night will be published in the June 1 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper.

Sub-section track and field

I was unable to make the trek west to Wheaton, which was a difficult decision to make. However, I am thrilled to report that eight members of the B-B-E Jaguars track and field teams are advancing to the Section 6A meet!

During the Sub-Section 6A-21 meet held at the Greg Deal track and field complex at Wheaton Area high school on Thursday, eight Jaguars earned fifth place or better in their respective events to qualify for the section meet. These eight Jaguars will compete across 13 different events.

Two Jaguars earned sub-section titles: Jen Boyle won the triple jump (33 feet, 5.75 inches), while Kyle Felling won titles in the 200 and 400 open races (23.35 seconds and 51.3 seconds).

I'm waiting to hear the fate of the B-B-E girls' 4x100 relay squad, who took third place. That keeps them from advancing based on placement at the sub-section meet. However, they are in the running for a wildcard berth if they are one of the two-fastest teams not advancing to sections across all three sub-sections.

The Section 6A meet is Thursday, June 1 at Fergus Falls high school.

In baseball news...the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team defeated visiting Browerville/Eagle Valley (7-12) on Thursday in Elrosa by a 6-3 score. The Jaguars take a 10-9 record into the Sub-Section 6A-East playoffs, which begin next Tuesday, May 30 with a home game. B-B-E should receive a No. 2 seed when the QRF computer runs the final rankings on Saturday. Stay tuned!

More to follow on Friday.

Section golf update

Jake Steinhofer, Jayden Miller, Tyler Baker, Riley Weller, Ethan Schwinghammer and Parker Schwinghammer - the varsity boys' golf team - who qualified as a team for the Section 5A finals.

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' golf team had an impressive day at the first round of the Section 5A meet. After 18 holes, the Jaguars found themselves in second place while earning a trip as a team to the section finals. B-B-E, led by Tyler Baker's 84, shot a 351 compared to front-runner Lac qui Parle Valley's 328. In third is Lakeview with a 354, and in fourth is MACCRAY with a 361.

B-B-E boys' scores (top four): Tyler Baker 84, Jayden Miller 85, Ethan Schwinghammer & Jacob Steinhofer 91 each.

No word yet on the girls' scores. *Update: the B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team sits in third place after the first round of sections. They shot a 367 and trail runner-up Minneota, who shot a 356. Lac qui Parle Valley scorched the Benson golf course with a 347 to take a firm grasp on first place. Anything can happen for the section finals!

B-B-E girls' scores: Jaden Gossen 89, Jacqueline Gossen 90, Emily Wosmek 92, Maddie Baker 98.

The Section 5A state-qualifying finals will be on Wednesday, May 31 at the Benson golf course.

Also, on Tuesday the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team lost in the opener of the playoffs by a 14-3 score in six innings to Royalton. Read more in this week's Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper.

(Video) Baccalaureate service

Here's a clip from the end of the B-B-E Senior Baccalaureate service last night in Belgrade:


The Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper's live stream of the church service worked without a hitch. I will post the full archive video later today.

**Here's the link to the full video: http://citylinktv.com/archive/bbe-baccalaureate-05-21-17.
Time to get the May 25 issue off to the presses!

(HD video) Bottom of the 7th vs. Minnewaska

Here's video from the bottom of the seventh inning against Minnewaska Area on Friday night in Elrosa:


Next for the Jaguars (9-8 overall) is a road game at Upsala on Monday (4:30 p.m.) to face the sub-section rival Upsala/Swanville Area Patriots (6-8). B-B-E has to win this game in order to hold onto the No. 2 seed in Sub-Section 6A-East. Currently four teams are all in the running for the No. 2 spot, including New York Mills (9-7), Kimball Area (8-9) and Brandon/Evansville (11-6).

Fastpitch playoffs

The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team just earned the No. 6 seed for the upcoming Sub-Section 6A-East playoffs. They travel to No. 3-seeded Royalton on Tuesday, May 23 for a quarterfinal-round contest. The time is TBD, although I hope to post that later today.

B-B-E has a 4-16 record, while the Royals are 11-7 after losing five of their last six outings.

If the Jaguars win on Tuesday, they would likely play No. 2-seeded Parkers Prairie (11-5) in the semifinals. A win in that contest would send them into the double-elimination portion of the Section 6A tournament.

New York Mills is the top seed and receives a first-round bye. The Eagles are the defending Section 6A champion, and in 2016 they took the consolation (fifth place) championship at the Class 1A state tournament. In fact, their only loss in 2016 was in the state quarterfinals as they finished 26-1 overall.

Sub-Section 6A-East fastpitch seedings: 
1. New York Mills (18-2)  
2. Parkers Prairie (11-5)    
3. Royalton (11-7)  
4. Browerville/Eagle Valley (8-8)
5. Upsala (7-12)
6. B-B-E (4-16)
7. Swanville (2-16)

More to follow later.

Another win

The B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team won their second game in a row by defeating Upsala today by a 9-6 score. The game marked the end of the regular season. Upsala takes a 7-12 record into the playoffs.

Here's video from the seventh inning and the post-game huddle:

On Tuesday this week, the Jaguars beat Swanville on the road by a 13-4 score. They are now 4-16 overall heading into the Sub-Section 6A-East playoffs, which begin next week Tuesday. B-B-E will likely be either a No. 5 seed or a No. 6 seed. The rankings will be posted late tonight.

*Update on Friday night: the seeding has not been finalized for Sub-Section 6A-East fastpitch. On Saturday when I find out, I will post it right away.

On Thursday this week, the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team lost 5-2 to Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg. They host Minnewaska Area tonight in a 7 o'clock game that will also be aired on Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood.

**Update late Friday night: B-B-E defeated Minnewaska at the Max Bats Classic on Friday night in a non-conference baseball game at Elrosa by a 2-1 score in 10 innings. Jackson Peter hit an RBI-single to end the game in the bottom of the 10th. B-B-E's next contest is on Monday at Upsala against the Upsala/Swanville Area Patriots, a fellow sub-section team. It's a huge game with seeding implications. Video from Elrosa will be posted late on Saturday night.

Champions!

Today I will be posting a website article link talking about a very special achievement by one of our spring varsity teams.

Check it out! http://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com/story/2017/05/04/sports/champs/451.html

We are very proud of you, Jaguars!

A day for golf

Today (Friday, May 19) is a special day for our B-B-E Jaguars golf teams. It marks the last day of competition in the Central Minnesota Conference. Our girls' squad has a slim lead in their respective CMC standings and will compete in Osakis in the morning before returning home to Prairie View Community golf course in Brooten to try and clinch the championship.

Meanwhile, the boys' squad sits in second place by a fair margin behind Kimball/Eden Valley-Watkins in the overall standings. The Jaguars took second place yesterday in a CMC meet with a 183, trailing first-place K/E-VW's top score of 176.

I look forward to getting out on our local course to finally get action photos of our golf student-athletes. It's been a long spring for the Bonanza Valley Voice sports department.

Newspaper merger

Tough news out of western Minnesota...the Hancock Record has essentially bit the dust. It is being molded into the Morris Sun Tribune newspaper to form a new, merged newspaper called (it's a mouthful) the Stevens County Times, Morris Sun Tribune/Hancock Record.

You can read more about the merger and read about the problems facing their respective Hancock and Morris newspapers here: http://www.morrissuntribune.com/opinion/local-commentary/4268815-change-never-easy-it-necessary.

We are very lucky in the Bonanza Valley to have terrific business and community support that has helped the Bonanza Valley Voice basically double in size in a little over two years. While many area newspapers are suffering, the Voice has grown from around 650 subscribers to 1,242 as of today. Along the way, print advertising has grown by leaps and bounds at our newspaper. It is perplexing to hear how print ads are down at other newspapers such as the Hancock Record. Anyone who has any familiarity of Hancock knows that it is a town that offers near-unequaled school and community support.

If those two western Minnesota newspapers would have asked for my advice, and listened to my advice, I doubt this merger would be necessary. However, they are owned by the Fargo Forum corporation, and I doubt they would give me the time of day. Local ownership is a must in today's small-town newspaper world.

R.I.P., Hancock Record!

Compared to what is happening at some rural Minnesota newspapers, we have an opposite problem here at the Bonanza Valley Voice. Take this week, for example. We printed 14 pages, but we had enough content and advertising to easily go to 16 pages. The only thing holding us back from going to 16 pages was a lack of time. The last four to five issues have been bursting at the seams with local news, and each week a long, long list of local content did not get printed. That is extremely frustrating to me, but we are not currently staffed to "do everything we want to do" each week. We simply have to get by on what we have for man power, and lately it has been working out fairly well - with a few bumps and bruises along the way. *This week a section giving coverage for the varsity fastpitch team was omitted in order to print a full list of "We Love Our Moms" letters from the current B-B-E kindergarten class. Those "We Love Our Moms" letters were supposed to publish in the May 11 issue, but lack of space did not allow it. Those were not easy decisions, but just a couple examples of the "hard choices" we make each week that doesn't involve the phrase "shuttering the newspaper office."

From the bigger picture, this spring's sports coverage has not lived up to the standards I've set as the publisher. My goal is to make up for it with top-notch playoff coverage for our B-B-E varsity teams in the coming weeks.

Truth be told, behind the scenes, the Voice has had a very rocky, unstable 2017. If you have been regularly reading my publisher's column in the print edition each week, I've dropped hints at the difficult time we've had in the last two-and-a-half months. I have been hamstrung, mostly by the lack of time in each day, to implement numerous ideas to improve on our local news coverage and feature article writing.

The upside: for the foreseeable future, there will be no name changes going on at our locally-owned B-B-E newspaper, nor will there be any merging going on in the Bonanza Valley! Hooray!! We are fully on track to get to 1,300 subscribers before this fall - which was an ambitious goal we set at the start of 2017. In fact, I have every expectation that we'll get to 1,300 subscribers before Bonanza Valley Days weekend (July 7, 8, 9)!!! This is at a newspaper being published in a town with a population of about 750.

We won't slow down and catch our breath until subscribers number at least 1,500 at the Bonanza Valley Voice.

Lest anyone think that because of the size of our newspaper or the size of the towns we operate in, that we will take a back seat to larger media outlets in the realm of technology...here's a link to watch the live stream video archive of the elementary band and choir concert held on May 3: http://citylinktv.com/archive/bbe-element-concert-05-03. We don't shy away from running with the big dogs and taking on new projects and implementing new strategies to deliver you the news in the Bonanza Valley.

...and if you want, you can tune in to this Sunday's B-B-E senior baccalaureate service at the Bonanza Valley Voice streaming website. Thanks to the support of our local business community, this is another service provided by our newspaper. Here's the link to watch the video player at 7 p.m. on Sunday, May 21 from St. Francis de Sales Catholic church in Belgrade: http://citylinktv.com/channel/brooten-bonanza-valley-voice.

Thanks for stopping by!

(HD video) Fastpitch Jaguars defeat Holdingford

Here's one-week old video from the May 8 win over Holdingford:


Stay tuned for more coverage of Tuesday night's action.

Saints win

The Elrosa Saints amateur baseball team won 12-4 at St. Martin on Saturday night for their second league win of the season. They are now 2-1 in the Stearns County League North.

Baseball Jaguars swept by Irish

The B-B-E Jaguars baseball team put in two solid games against state-ranked and conference-leading Maple Lake tonight, but they ended up losing by scores of 3-0 and 7-4. The Irish (14-2, 10-1) are running neck-and-neck with Pierz, who is also 10-1 in the Central Minnesota Conference. The Pioneers swept Kimball Area tonight in another CMC doubleheader. B-B-E is now 8-5 overall and 7-5 in the CMC and travels to Pierz on Tuesday next week for a doubleheader.

At Maple Lake, the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team lost 18-0 and 11-1 (5 innings).

At Pierz, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team tied for first place with Osakis with a 185. They remain 40 strokes ahead of Osakis overall in the CMC standings with three meets left.

Central Minnesota Conference baseball scores on May 11:
Paynesville Area 4, Eden Valley-Watkins 1  
Paynesville Area 3, EV-W 0
Pierz 10, Kimball Area 0 (5 inn.)    
Pierz 12, Kimball Area 1 (5 inn.)

CMC fastpitch scores on May 11:
EV-W 13, Paynesville Area 2 (5 inn.)
EV-W 10, Paynesville Area 0 (5 inn.)
Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 10, Holdingford 0  
HL-W-W 14, Holdingford 1  
Kimball Area 4, Pierz 2  
Kimball Area 13, Pierz 1 (6 inn.)

Area baseball scores on May 11:
Melrose Area 6, Benson 5    
Sauk Centre 6, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 0
Litchfield 4, Watertown-Mayer 2

Area fastpitch scores on May 11:
Sauk Centre 14, Minnewaska Area 13 (8 innings!)
Osakis 17, Swanville 2
Becker 8, Albany 2
Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 10, Melrose Area 2    
Melrose Area 4, MA/CA 2

On Friday, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' golf team competes at the New London-Spicer invitational.

Enrollment update

I read yesterday in the Raymond-Prinsburg News that next year's kindergarten class at MACCRAY has 72 students registered. Next year, MACCRAY's only class with fewer than 50 students is their second grade.

Meanwhile, B-B-E's projected kindergarten enrollment hovers between 35 and 40 for 2017-2018.

Golf at Benson

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team pulled off an impressive first-place finish at the Benson Invitational on Wednesday. They shot a season-best 354, while their top rival in the field, Lac qui Parle Valley, took third place with a 372.

On Thursday, the girls' golf team is at Pierz for a Central Minnesota Conference meet.

Wins over Holdingford, boys' golf impresses

On Tuesday in a Central Minnesota Conference meet hosted by Maple Lake at Whispering Pines golf course, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' golf team pulled off an impressive first-place finish with a score of 173. They are now just 20 strokes out of first place (552 to 532) with four meets remaining.

On Monday at Holdingford, the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team got back on track with a 3-0 win over the Huskers.

On Monday at home, the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team earned a series split with visiting Holdingford. They lost game one 17-7 in six innings before taking game two by a 10-6 score. It is their first win in the Central Minnesota Conference since the 2011 season.

Friday night scores

The second game of the doubleheader in Kimball was put on hold due to darkness, but prior to that, the B-B-E Jaguars baseball team lost to the host Cubs by an 11-10 score. In that second game, the Jaguars were ahead at the time the game was called. I haven't heard confirmation whether or not it will count as a win or if they have to resume play.

In the home doubleheader, the B-B-E Jaguars fastpitch team lost by scores of 3-0 and 5-2 to the Kimball Area Cubs.

At Minnewaska Area, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team finished in third place behind first-place Marshall Area and the runner-up Lakers. Jacqueline Gossen led the Jaguars with a score of 85.

Here's the latest Central Minnesota Conference girls' golf standings. They have three meets completed with four remaining.
1 B-B-E 529
2 Osakis 570
3 Pierz 620
4 Paynesville Area 656
5 Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 741
6 Kimball/Eden Valley-Watkins 838
7 Maple Lake 900

Been quiet

...but that changes today. All of B-B-E's varsity teams except fastpitch are in action. I will post results tonight.

Final score in baseball action: Paynesville Area 6, B-B-E 2.

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' golf team trounced the whole field in a Central Minnesota Conference meet with a 30-stroke win at Kimball. The Jaguars shot a 176, with Jacqueline Gossen leading the way with a 41. In second place was Pierz with a 206. Osakis was in third with a 208; their No. 3 golfer was not in action tonight.