Funeral coming for an Elrosa Hall of Fame member

Two of the three men shown above have passed away. Herman Kampsen (far left) passed away on Monday this week. Joe Duevel (center) passed away in April of this year. Vince Haider is on the right. These three men are members of the Elrosa Baseball Hall of Fame. Kampsen was inducted into Minnesota Baseball's Hall of Fame in 1982 and to the Elrosa Baseball Hall of Fame on June 1, 2007. Haider was inducted on July 3, 2009. Duevel was inducted on July 3, 2014. This photo was taken the night of Duevel's induction standing outside the Elrosa baseball stadium.

Mass of Christian Burial for Herman Kampsen will be Saturday, January 4 at 1 p.m. at Ss. Peter and Paul Catholic church in Elrosa.

Visitation for Kampsen will be from 10 a.m. until leading up to Mass time.

He and his beloved wife, Delores, shared an amazing marriage that lasted 73 years until his passing.

Rest in peace, to a truly great, unforgettable and one-of-a-kind man!

Here's the link to his obituary, posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website (short link): https://bit.ly/2u0KgFB.


In basketball news...

Today at Southwest Minnesota State University in Marshall, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team lost 45-44 to No. 1-ranked Minneota (10-0). In a report that I read on the game, the Vikings, who led 24-16 at halftime, had their worst shooting performance of the season but squeaked one out the door of the R/A Center at SMSU.

Girls' basketball score on December 31:
Springfield 63, Russel-Tyler-Ruthton 56
Jordan 73, Pine Island 40
Lac qui Parle Valley 55, Edgerton 35

(VIDEO) Barbershop quartet at Magic Kingdom

Some very Merry Christmas music from the streets of Magic Kingdom at Disneyworld last Saturday afternoon:


Time to get back to shoveling ice and snow. Quite a change of scenery in a little over a week.

Today's girls' basketball game in Marshall was cancelled due to poor road conditions. Nothing has been decided yet on Tuesday's game in Marshall against Minneota.

Saturday action: wrestling and basketball

Blaine has opened up a sizable lead on Day Two of the Rogers Holiday Madness tournament. Early in the afternoon, Blaine has 183.5 team points. Princeton has a small lead over our B-B-E Jaguars wresting team with 157 points. The Jaguars have 152 points, with a huge lead over fourth-place Dover-Eyota (111.5 points).

Later tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team tips off at 6:15 p.m. in the Big Red Gym of Willmar senior high school against MACCRAY. The game will be aired on 106.5 FM The Train.

Another fresh batch of video/web articles have been posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website: https://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com. Share and enjoy!

Update from Rogers:  after briefly pulling into second place, the Jaguars now trail second-place Princeton by a 179 to 170-point margin. Way out in front is Blaine with 211.5 points.

*Another update:  Canon Swanson claimed the 145-pound title at Rogers with a 10-2 major decision win in the championship over fellow senior Solomon Lankow (17-3) of Park high school of Cottage Grove. Swanson is now 23-0 on the season.

As a team, the Jaguars settled for third place at Rogers with 175 points. In second was Princeton with 185 points. Blaine won the team title with 224.5 points. In fourth place was Dover-Eyota with 149.5 points. Cambridge-Isanti took fifth with 122 points.

**Basketball update: the Jaguars trail 64-53 to MACCRAY with 6:30 left in the game. The Wolverines led 35-31 at halftime.

With 2:30 left in the game, MACCRAY has a 74-63 lead.

*Final score: MACCRAY 81, B-B-E 72. The Jaguars are 2-6 overall but have really ramped things up in these past few games.

 
Area boys' basketball scores on December 28:
Redwood Valley 76, Parkers Prairie 55 (Cardinals, 7-3, hold the Panthers to 20 points below their scoring average and hand them their first loss of the season)
BOLD 77, Henning 70 (BOLD hands Henning their first loss of the year and is now 7-0)
Cromwell-Wright 60, Proctor 57
Perham 86, Sauk Centre 53

Holiday Matness

**Updated with area scoreboard and other information below**

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team is getting into the heat of action today at the Rogers Holiday Matness tournament. Out of 28 teams, Class 3A Blaine has the early advantage after very preliminary action has gotten underway at Rogers high school.

Blaine, 4-2 in duals, was the champion at the Maple Grove Crimson Classic on December 14.

Top five scores:
1. Blaine 45 points
2. B-B-E 36 points
3. Princeton 29.5
Dover-Eyota 27.5
Zimmerman 24.5

**Update: by 5 p.m., the Jaguars are still in second place and trail Blaine by a 94.5 to 91 point margin. This tournament continues tomorrow. Six of B-B-E's wrestlers will compete in semifinal-round matches on Saturday: Walker Bents at 113, Ryan Jensen at 120, Tyler Jensen at 132, Blaine Fischer at 138, Canon Swanson at 145 and Michael Doubek at 195.

Also today, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is at the Willmar tournament. They face Lac qui Parle Valley at approximately 1:45 p.m. from the Big Red Gym.

**Update: the Jaguars lost after putting up a valiant effort against LQPV. The final score was 73-67. The Jaguars (2-5) are in action again tomorrow at 6:15 p.m. in Willmar against MACCRAY (6-3). On Friday night, MACCRAY lost a crazy shoot out to New London-Spicer by a 93-92 score.

Area girls' basketball scores on December 27:
Holdingford 63, Kimball Area 27
Renville County West 58, Ortonville 39
Pillager 60, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 30
Frazee 65, Battle Lake 48
Holy Family Catholic 72, Henning 56
Barnesville 50, Menahga 44
Sauk Centre 85, Roseau 79
Melrose Area 55, Concordia Academy 43
Hancock 57, Upsala 38 (Owls are 9-0)
Underwood 74, West Central Area 66
Fairmont 69, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 62
Alexandria 62, Perham 50
New London-Spicer 41, Willmar 36

Area boys' basketball scores on December 27:
Melrose Area 50, Litchfield 37
Paynesville Area 71, Watertown-Mayer 62
Parkers Prairie 98, Benson 67 (Panthers are 6-0)
New London-Spicer 93, MACCRAY 92
Pillager 67, LP-GE 48
Milaca 53, Royalton 47
BOLD 90, Cass Lake-Bena 70
Princeton 82, Rockford 62
West Central Area 68, Warroad 54
Windom Area 91, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 71
Henning 79, Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 73 (3 OT! Wow, incredible - both teams were state-ranked and undefeated going into the game, which was in the opening round of the Granite City Classic in St. Cloud...Henning, the 2019 Class 1A state champion, has lost only one game since March 10, 2018)
Minnewaska Area 71, Canby 36
Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 74, Chisago Lakes Area 63
Sauk Centre 78, Ashby 72
Eden Valley-Watkins 65, Hill-Murray 35
Osakis 48, Rocori 41
Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 68, East Central 49
Springfield 85, Minneota 68

Ice

Hopefully you don't have to travel tonight, but if you do, please be aware that the roads and sidewalks are icing up. Just walking from the house to the garage could be treacherous.

Highway 55 in Brooten, for example, was extremely icy this evening. Basically complete black ice.

Tread carefully.

5 ways you can show others Jesus this Holiday season

First, before diving into the long column posted below, you can take in the full video that I took on December 2 at the B-B-E high school Christmas concert...posted with a December 5 web article at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website (short link): https://bit.ly/398F7vk. Also included in that web article is a link to the newspaper's online photo gallery from that night.

And here's a link to the Bonanza Valley Voice website where you can watch a short video clip shot on main street Brooten yesterday morning (short link): https://bit.ly/37b2rXk.

"Five ways you can show others Jesus this Holiday season"

written by Kayli Thompson, http://www.crosswalk.com

If you’ve ever worked in retail, you know that the holiday season isn’t always “the most wonderful time of the year.” That’s because people get mean, and cranky. We get caught up in all that “has” to be done, rush through the holidays, and leave others feeling miserable. The other half of people don’t get mean, they just get grumpy because they’re tired of being treated terribly and feel like the whole season has become about stuff. So what can be done? 

We’ve put together 5 ways you can show others Jesus this holiday season. 

1. Volunteer

The most obvious way is to volunteer. Shelters, soup kitchens, rescue organizations all can use help during the holidays. They can use it year-round too, but the holidays are especially busy. Many places need people to come and either help serve food, clean, ring a bell, etc. 

But if you can’t get there to volunteer in person, you can offer to provide items or a financial donation. You can give to a food pantry, donate to your local shelter, or pick out a few tags from the trees you see in stores to buy Christmas presents for a child in need. 

This is one of the simplest ways to show others Jesus, volunteering your time to others. And there are so many different ways to volunteer now, it’s so easy you’ll wonder why you hadn’t started volunteering sooner. I volunteer for Jesus’ Economy from the comfort of my own home. And it’s incredible because I can visibly see the impact we’re making by extending love to those who need it. We’re always looking to welcome more people on board. You can also visit VolunteerMatch, GiveGab, or literally google “places to volunteer near me.” When you find something that strikes you, check their website and social media or call to figure out how to best get involved. 

2. Deliver Holiday "dinner" baskets to those in need

So many families can’t have a holiday meal because they can’t afford it or they don’t have a car to actually get the supplies for it. Food pantries and churches fill the gap where they can with offering free food and meals near the holidays but most food pantries don’t have the funds to give out 20-30 turkeys or hams. 

You can give a family a special holiday meal by filling a box with basics like a ham, some veggies, instant potatoes, and a dessert. You can include a little note letting them know someone cares, whether you do that anonymously or not. You might already know of a few families in need, but if you don’t, you can reach out to your local food pantry, church, or school to identify who could benefit from a holiday dinner basket. 

Providing a family or two with a holiday dinner basket shows them they aren’t alone in this world and that someone cares about them and their family. After all, Jesus tells us in Matthew that whatever we do to those in need, we do to Him. “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, … ‘Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me’” (Matthew 25:35a, 40b, ESV). When we take care of others, when we help those in need, we’re doing the work Jesus wants us to do. 

3. Give your time

The holiday season gets busy and depending on your ability to say no, it can get chaotic busy. Our calendars are filled with school, church, and work then we pack on events that those schools, churches, and workplaces hold along with sprinkling in fun, seasonal activities. It creates a few months of constant running and never pausing, never enjoying. 

So imagine how you could make someone feel if you gave them your time. Even if it’s a couple of hours carved out of your day. We all know we’re busy this time of year so if you take the time to take a friend out for lunch or show up at their doorstep and say, “What do you need help with?” it’ll show them how much you care. Maybe it’ll look like offering your time to someone you’ve just met or that friend you keep saying you need to get together with. 

Jesus spent time with so many people while He was here on Earth -- disciples, women, the unclean, the impoverished, Samaritans, centurions, tax collectors, you name it. He didn’t just give them ten minutes either. He sat down with them, ate with them, listened, and healed them when they believed He could. He showed how much He loved them because He gave them His time even when He knew that He didn’t have much. Don’t you think we could give even a fraction of the time that Jesus gave people? 

4. Invite someone over for the holidays (and remember: Christmas continues even after December 25!)

There’s always people who could use a place to go for the holidays, whether it’s the college student who can’t get home, the couple who can’t afford it, or the single person who doesn’t have family. Holidays can be rough when you don’t have somewhere to go or someone to spend it with. And I can guarantee you they’re hoping someone will invite them over for the holidays. 

I know it might be hard to invite someone into your family’s celebration and it might seem awkward, but it’ll be worth it. Bringing someone into your home, including them in your family, and showing them the love of Jesus by loving them is one of the greatest gifts you could give someone this season. You’ll never fully realize the impact it’ll have on them. 

Peter wrote in his letter to believers that they should be hospitable without complaining and to use the gifts they’re given to serve others (1 Peter 4:9-10, ESV). If God has bestowed upon us a home with loving family, we should extend that gift to others who could benefit from it. God wants us to share His love with others (John 13:34-35, ESV) and opening your home and family to someone who could use it is a wonderful way to do that. 

5. Be kind. 

I guess we started and ended this list with obvious ones. It seems so simple, and yet, the world seems so void of kindness, especially around the holidays. It doesn’t have to be that way; we can extend kindness and watch it grow. You can be kind in even the smallest of situations, especially because you know deep down, those situations are temporary and not worth your anger or frustration.

Practicing kindness in big or small situations every day can make a big difference in not only your own life but of those around you. You can choose to be kind to the rude cashier or when your coworker makes a mistake or when your kids break something on accident. When you choose kindness over anger, you make the person you’re extending it to feel loved. And they might just turn around and pass it on. 

God’s commandments to us were to love Him and love others as ourselves. When we’re extending kindness to others, we’re both loving God and loving others. What a beautiful picture that creates this holiday season. 

Another batch of videos

Another fresh batch of videos and web articles have been posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website. They are dated December 19.

https://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com.

After Christmas, another batch will be posted that will be dated December 26.

If you have a little time on your hand, I encourage you to check out this video clip. It illustrates how the Internet can be both very powerful and also very destructive. It can be powerful because it allows a person to bring an unending amount of information within their fingertips. However, the Internet can be a destructive force when someone reads or hears something on the Internet that is not true but accepts it as being true. Then they promote it on social media, and suddenly we have a wide swath of the American public being misled and lied to on something as innocuous as what African-American inventors, scientists or researchers did or did not do.


Buzzfeed is notorious for spreading lies and misinformation. They are very, very bad at what they try to do, which is disseminate news. They are an example of how easy it is to dumb people down.

In the newspaper world, some of us work very hard to combat "the dumbing down of America"...and fighting what the Internet does is part of that battle.

"Wheels up"

Wheels in the air at 11:25 a.m. Eastern Standard Time from Orlando International airport.

Once back, if the schedule holds, there's only about 14 hours to publish the December 26 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. It will be a fast and ugly process, but with a great deal of luck it will work out on time. The newspapers should be enroute to subscribers in the mail on Monday afternoon.

*Update: we safely touched down in Minneapolis at 13:42 CST.

Big Bear tournament final results

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team earned their best-ever finish at the annual Big Bear tournament this weekend. The Jaguars finished fourth place out of 41 teams with 154 points. They were barely edged out of third place by Big Lake, who tallied 154.5 points.

In second place was Minnewaska Area with 163.5 points.

The 2019 Big Bear tournament champion was Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Browerville, who had 216 points. They are also the defending Class 1A state champions.

For the Jaguars, Canon Swanson repeated as an individual champion, Also earning top-eight finishes were Walker Bents (second), Michael Doubek (fourth), Tyler Jensen (fourth), Maximus Hanson (fifth), Blaine Fischer (fifth) and Mark Jenniges (eight).

How's this for a tale of two paired wrestling programs? I admit that I only know the overall record when it comes to the Sauk Centre-Melrose wrestling program. Beyond that, all I could tell you is the coaching staff names listed at the MSHSL website. They have a current dual meet record of 1-5 this year. One of their five losses was to LPGE/Browerville by a 75-3 score. That match was held last Tuesday, December 17 in Grove City at the ACGC triangular.

On the same night, LPGE/Browerville smacked A-C-GC by a 41-15 score. The ACGC Falcons are no slouch by any means. In fact, they are the No. 2-ranked team in the latest Guillotine Class 1A state rankings. Their overall dual meet record is 12-1, and they are a favorite to win the Section 4A team title next February and advance to state for the third straight season.

For the record, ACGC defeated Sauk Centre-Melrose 74-3 at their home triangular on Tuesday.

Area boys' basketball scores on December 21:
Hancock 76, Benson 73 (two neighboring rivals meet in the championship of the Benson tournament; Benson defeated conference rival Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 83-81 on Friday in the semifinals)
Little Falls 66, Upsala 41
Mora 65, Brandon-Evansville 53
Kimball Area 72, PACT Charter 51
Mound Westonka 81, New London-Spicer 53
Minneota 76, Westbrook-Walnut Grove 62

Area boys' basketball scores on December 20:Minnewaska Area 50, Montevideo 37 (Lakers improve to 5-1 overall)
BOLD 75, Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 62 (BOLD is 5-0)
Hancock 49, MACCRAY 48
(Late Thursday result) Paynesville Area 58, Holdingford 48

Down south

This is what I saw not too long after waking up on Friday morning:


And I even heard Christmas music playing in many locations, which was a great touch

And here's a glimpse of a terrific dolphin show that we took in:


Today it's Magic Kingdom ahead of us.

Have a magical day, Jaguar Country!

**Here's the latest from the Big Bear wrestling tournament...the Jaguars sit in fifth place with 135 points. Minnewaska Area is in second place with 146.5 points. LPGE/Browerville is running away with first place with 194 points.

*Update: late in the afternoon, the Jaguars have moved back up in the standings and now sit in third place with 154 points. In second is Minnewaska Area with 163.5 points.

Big Bear, Day One

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team climbed as high as second place out of the 41 teams at the Big Bear tournament today on the first day of action. A total of 45 teams were invited, but 41 are on the official list of teams competing.

Currently, at mid-evening on Friday, the Jaguars are in third place with 78 points. Big Lake (83 points) is in third place. In first is Long Prairie-Grey Eagle/Browerville.

Further back was Minnewaska Area, around seventh place.

**Update: shortly after 7 o'clock tonight, the Jaguars are back in second place with 99 points. Big Lake is in third with 86 points. Minnewaska is in a tie for seventh place with Hutchinson (72 points each).

*Update: with all the points tallied from day one, the Jaguars hold a slim lead on second place with 99 points. Hutchinson has pulled into third place with 98 points. LP-GE/Browerville is in first with 119 points. Minnewaska Area is in seventh place alone with 90 points.

Way back in 39th place is Sauk Centre-Melrose with 10 team points.

Basketball updates...
At Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team made it two in a row with a 48-41 win over the Fighting Saints (0-5). They take a 2-4 record into the Christmas break.

At Litchfield tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team lost 45-38 to the Dragons. They've lost three of their last four games and take a 3-5 overall record into Christmas. On the horizon is the Southwest Minnesota State University Invitational on December 30-31. The Jaguars open with Russel-Tyler-Ruthton at 11:45 a.m. on Monday, December 30. The R-T-R Knights are 1-7 overall and 0-5 in the Camden South Conference. Tonight they lost 66-64 to a very good Lakeview team that's 5-1 overall and 4-1 in the Camden South.

Tonight's games

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team travels to Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg for a border battle game. The Fighting Saints are 0-4 after losing last night 63-43 to Camden Conference rival Dawson-Boyd in Kerkhoven.

Also on the road, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team is in Litchfield for a non-conference game. They are looking to right the ship after a disappointing loss last night to undefeated Holdingford.

The B-B-E/Paynesville Pirouettes dance team is at the ACGC Comp tonight.

Also, last, but not least, the No. 5-ranked B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team is at the 45-team Big Bear tournament at Cass Lake-Bena high school. Action runs today at Big Bear and finishes up tomorrow. In the latest Guillotine state rankings, the Jaguars held at the No. 5 position. They continue to have five team members ranked individually in the Top 10: Walker Bents, Tyler Jensen, Blaine Fischer, Canon Swanson at Michael Doubek.

Have a great day, Jaguar Country!

Central Minnesota Conference battle

The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team hosted Holdingford tonight in a Central Minnesota Conference game. The Huskers entered the contest with a 6-0 record. They won their CMC opener on Tuesday this week by a 77-28 score over Paynesville Area.

Halftime: the score is deadlocked at 25-all. The Jaguars have made just two of 10 free throw attempts over the game's first 18 minutes.

Final score: Holdingford 55, B-B-E 49. The Huskers are now 7-0 overall and 2-0 in the CMC. The Jaguars ended up making a total of seven of 23 free-throw attempts for the game. They were 5-for-13 at the line in the second half.

On field goals, the Jaguars shot 20-for-39 (51 percent) in the game.

With this loss, the Jaguars fall to 3-4 overall and 2-2 in the CMC. Next: a road trip to Litchfield tomorrow night (December 20) in a non-conference game that will be aired on 106.5 FM The Train.

Tuesday night action

Three of B-B-E's four varsity teams are in action tonight.

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team is at the Albany Quadrangular that also includes Holdingford and Mora. Their match against Holdingford will count in the Central Minnesota Conference dual meet standings.

At Kimball, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is seeking their first win of the season.

On the home court, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team is hosting Kimball Area. They are aiming to get back to the .500 mark and get on a winning streak as they head into the Christmas break.

**Update: the wrestling team defeated Albany by a 61-9 final score. That makes them 6-0 in dual meets so far this season. The Huskies fall to 6-1 overall.

In the other two duals, here's the results!
B-B-E 60, Holdingford 12 (B-B-E is 3-0 in the CMC)
B-B-E 57, No. 12 ranked (Class 2A) Mora 10

The Jaguars are 7-0 in dual meets at this juncture of the season. They now gear up for the prestigious 45-team Big Bear tournament this Friday and Saturday.

**Update: the girls' basketball team defeated Kimball Area 81-47. They led 45-21 at halftime and were led by Allisa Knight's 27 points.

**Update: the boys' basketball team picked up their first win of the season with a 43-29 win at Kimball (2-2, 0-1). Solid 8-for-12 free throw shooting in the second half helped the Jaguars earn a solid 30-19 scoring advantage in the second half. They led 13-10 at halftime. Now 1-4 overall, the Jaguars look to make it two in a row with a non-conference border battle at Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg on Friday.

More to come.

(VIDEO) Ventriloquist show

Lately the spare time has been tied up by many non-sports related events. Here's a video clip from one recent such event, a ventriloquist show at Grace Lutheran church last Wednesday:


And here's a short video clip featuring the Disney friends of Santa Claus waving their good-byes to the citizens of Sunburg on Saturday night:

Tomorrow night is a school board meeting. The following night, the only home varsity action on the schedule is a girls' basketball game against Kimball Area.

Fresh batch

A fresh batch of web articles with video have been posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper website. Click to check them out: https://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com.

Time to pack up the camera gear for Santa Claus's visit to Sunburg!

Game night vs. Owls

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is hosting Hancock tonight. The game is on 106.5 FM the Train. Last night in their season opener, the Owls lost 53-43 to West Central Area in a Pheasant Conference game.

*Update: with seven minutes left in the first half, Hancock has a 25-15 lead.

*Halftime: Hancock 32, B-B-E 24.

*Final: Hancock 60, B-B-E 49. The Jaguars trailed between eight and 12 points for almost the entire second half. The Owls had an 8-0 run to start the second half that made for tough sledding for the Jaguars. B-B-E scored for the first time in the second half with 13:32 on the clock.

For the game, the Jaguars made five of 12 free throw attempts. They shot an ice-cold two-for-eight at the line in the first half. Overall, B-B-E shot 18-for-51 on field goals in the game. Had a few more shots dropped, and had the free throw-shooting improved - this game was a win.

The Jaguars had three players in double figures: Kaden Pieper and Will VanBeck with 11 points each and Jackson Peter with 10 points. Ryan Schwinghammer scored nine points.

Hancock shot 23-for-53 (43 percent) on field goals in the game.

The Jaguars are right there, they just need to stick with it and keep battling.

Next: the Jaguars (0-3) travel to Kimball Area for a Central Minnesota Conference game next Tuesday night. The Cubs are 2-1 after suffering their first loss of the season tonight; visting Foley beat them 52-44 in overtime.

Area boys' basketball scores on December 13:
Benson 68, Minnewaska Area 61 (both teams were undefeated in the West Central Conference going into the game)
Pierz 64, Royalton 41
Osakis 73, Browerville 36
Long Prairie-Grey Eagle 59, Swanville 39
Rockford Area 68, Maple Lake 40
Melrose 66, A-C-GC 60
Sauk Centre 59, Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 54

Area girls' basketball scores on December 13:
Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 65, Maple Lake 48
Litchfield 65, Paynesville Area 40
New London-Spicer 62, Montevideo 27
Parkers Prairie 51, Underwood 40
Eden Valley-Watkins 54, Kimball Area 44
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 61, Lac qui Parle Valley 51
Hancock 79, Ortonville 25 (Owls are 5-0)
Sauk Centre 45, Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 38
Pine River-Backus 51, Menahga 47

Wrestling at YME

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team is at Yellow Medicine East high school in Granite Falls tonight for the Quad County triangular.

They just blasted the host Quad County team by a 60-9 score.

"The haves and have-nots" - wow. So thrilled that we are on the correct side of that equation!

Quad County is comprised of student-athletes from YME high school as well as Renville County West and MACCRAY.

Later tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team faces Minnewaska Area out in Pope County's MAHS high school. That game will be aired on Smooth Magic 107 FM.

*Final: Minnewaska 60, B-B-E 55.

**Final in wrestling: B-B-E 45, Minneota 29. A huge win for the Jaguars!!!

(HD VIDEO) Brooten Holidazzle lighted parade

Here's video from our Christmas parade, held last Saturday night! Finally got this posted...


We've really fallen behind on "getting caught up" here at the Voice, currently working on digging out!

Varsity sports Thursday night updates will follow in a new blog post.

Radio coverage

Tonight's boys' basketball game in Benson will be carried by Smooth Magic 107 FM of Glenwood.

Final scores for the varsity basketball games will be posted here later tonight.

Final score at Benson: Benson 73, B-B-E 56. Next for the boys' basketball team is a home game on Friday against Hancock.

Final score on our home court: B-B-E girls' basketball 43, Parkers Prairie 33. Next for the girls' basketball team is a road trip to Minnewaska Area on Thursday this week. Tonight in Barrett, the Lakers were defeated by West Central Area 59-55 to suffer their fourth loss in a row.

I saw this as noteworthy...the Minnewaska Area boys' basketball team defeated a very good Melrose squad tonight by a 56-44 score.

That's it for updates for the evening. Time to finish up this week's issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice.

Border battle on the home court

The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is hosting Paynesville Area tonight in a border battle between neighboring Central Minnesota Conference teams.

The game is being aired on both Smooth Magic 107 FM and The Train 106.5 FM. I've got a heavy-duty double duty night, with the Brooten city council hosting an important meeting where they'll set the 2020 budget...plus the game on the west end of town at the elementary. "Two places at one time!" Thank goodness for the TuneIn app!!!

The Jaguars got an early three-pointer in the opening minute from Kaden Pieper for a 3-0 lead. The score was a 5-5 dead lock through four minutes.

With 12 minutes to play, the Bulldogs had a slim 7-5 lead.

Later in the first half, the Bulldogs have built a 26-10 lead with just over three minutes to go.

Halftime score: Paynesville Area 28, B-B-E 12. The Jaguars were outscored by a 17 to 2 margin in the final nine minutes of the half.

Final score: Paynesville Area 62, B-B-E 43. The Jaguars (0-2) shot just 26 percent from the floor. Also hurting the cause was getting to the free throw line zero times in the first half and just six times in the second half.

Next: a trip to Benson tomorrow night!

Area girls' basketball scores on December 9:
Eden Valley-Watkins 42, Minnewaska Area 37

Next couple of days

Looking at the next two days for varsity sports in Jaguar Country...

On Monday, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team hosts Paynesville Area for the Central Minnesota Conference opener. That game will also be aired on 106.5 FM The Train as well as Smooth Magic 107 FM. The Jaguars have a border battle trip to Benson the following night. That game will be aired on Smooth Magic 107 FM as well.

On Tuesday, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team hosts Parkers Prairie for their third straight home game.

First at Grant County

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team took first place at the Grant County Invitational today. B-B-E earned 220 points as a team, defeating runner-up and host West Central Area/Ashby/Brandon-Evansville's 191.5 points. Morris Area/Hancock/Chokio-Alberta took third with 187 points.

Rounding out the field were:
4. Montevideo/Lac qui Parle Valley/Dawson-Boyd United 140
5. Alexandria Area 102
6. Benson 101
7. Fergus Falls 86.5
8. Pelican Rapids 66


*Here's video from middle weights of the Paynesville match on Thursday night:


Earning first place finishes at Grant County...
At 106 pounds, Wyatt Engen went 3-0 with three wins by fall to claim first place. Also taking first place in their respective weight classes were Walker Bents (113), Tyler Jensen (132), Canon Swanson (145) and Mark Jenniges (220).

Next: the Jaguars compete at the Quad County triangular on Thursday, December 12 at Yellow Medicine East high school in Granite Falls.

Last night...the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team defeated Paynesville by a 74-48 score. Next: a home game next Tuesday against Parkers Prairie. The Panthers are 3-1 and on a three-game winning streak after dropping their season opener at Sebeka.

I saw that Eden Valley-Watkins defeated Royalton 57-51 on Friday night. They have two close wins over their top rivals in the Central Minnesota Conference. We need to run the table in the CMC and come up with a series split with the Eagles! The B-B-E girls' basketball vs. EV-W Eagles re-match is on Thursday, January 2 at Eden Valley. It is already circled on my 2020 calendar!!!


Here's video from earlier today with Santa Claus's arrival in Brooten!


Over 100 kids enjoyed time with Santa today at the Brooten Lanes. It was a marvelous day for Brooten!

Santa Claus making two local stops

Santa Claus, or one of his helpers, will be in Sedan and Brooten today.

At Sedan, area children can visit with Santa Claus from 2 to 5 p.m. at Rooney's Bar. That event is sponsored by the Pope County A.B.A.T.E. group.

In Brooten, Santa Claus will visit local children at the Brooten Lanes bowling alley from 3 to 5 p.m. There's also activities from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the KaDe Shack. Everything concludes with a lighted Christmas parade in downtown Brooten at 6 p.m. Read more about all the events in Brooten on the back page of this week's and last week's Bonanza Valley Voice.

Dance season begins

The B-B-E/Paynesville Pirouettes dance team is headed to Minnewaska Area high school for their first competition of the season tonight. The dance comp begins at 6:30 p.m. Varsity Jazz goes first, and B-B-E/Paynesville is fourth in the lineup. The Varsity Kick division begins at 7:45 p.m., and B-B-E/Paynesville is also fourth in that lineup of  those seven squads.

The awards ceremony is set for 8:45 p.m.

*Update: the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper's sports department has arrived! We got here with about six minutes to spare before the B-B-E/Paynesville jazz squad performed.

They were terrific!! A short video clip is being uploaded...

**Below, here's video clip from the varsity jazz performance tonight at MAHS.


**And here's a short video clip of varsity kick action:


More to come!

CMC triangular

The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team has defeated Kimball Area tonight . The match is still underway with three weights left to go. The Jaguars have a 38-17 lead.

*Final score at 195 pounds: Michael Doubek lost a hard-fought 6-5 decision. He trailed 5-2 in the third period before earning an escape and takedown. With about two seconds left, the Kimball wrestler earned an escape to get the win.

At 220 pounds, Mark Jenniges earned a win by a 7-1 decision.

At 285, Bryce Feuerhake lost a battle with an outcome of a 4-2 decision. **Final score: B-B-E 41, Kimball Area 23.

*Here's video from the 195-pound match:


*At Osakis tonight, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is trailing 38-25 at halftime. Final score: Osakis 67, B-B-E 45.

In the Paynesville match, the Jaguars have a 48-0 lead through 160 pounds, clinching the team win.

**Final score: B-B-E 66, Paynesville 9.

*Here's video from the 145-pound match against Paynesville...featuring Maximus Hanson earning a win by pin!


Tomorrow night: the girls' basketball team hosts Paynesville Area...and the dance team is at the Minnewaska Area dance comp.

Area boys' basketball scores on December 5:
Minnewaka Area 57, Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 43
Melrose Area 69, St. Cloud Cathedral 52
Kimball Area 59, Upsala 39
Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 61, Lester Prairie/Holy Trinity 53

Opening a new season

The 2019-2020 season begins tonight for the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team. The Jaguars travel to Osakis for a non-conference game. Tip-off for the B- and C-squad games is at 5:45 p.m. The varsity game should begin between 7:15 and 7:30 p.m.

Below is a video put together by the Bonanza Valley Voice sports department, with footage from their practice on Tuesday this week.


Don't miss out on this week's Bonanza Valley Voice, which has a season preview story in it for the boys' basketball team including comments from head coach Chris Anderson.

Good luck Jaguars!!!

PSA! B-B-E Boy Scouts and Redhead Creamery and Pope County Museum

In this week's Bonanza Valley Voice...and at our online website community calendar...we are excited to announce an upcoming fundraiser event for the B-B-E Boy Scouts Troop 667.

The Boy Scouts are hosting a Dad’s Belgian Waffles event. Come join them on Sunday, December 22 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the VFW Club in Belgrade. Advanced tickets are available from your local BSA Scout. Contact Chris Jensen at Chris Jensen's Auto Repair with any questions.

Also! Before that...don't miss out on this event this coming Saturday...details below (and on page 2 of this week's Voice)

Stop by Redhead Creamery of rural Brooten on Saturday, December 7 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. for holiday shopping and live music by The Cropdusters! The Cropdusters are a rotating cast of Fargo-Moorhead musicians known for their folk/bluegrass/Americana style. We'll help you put together your Christmas gifts while you enjoy an order of pan-fried curds with a glass of wine, listening to some of the Fargo-Moorhead area's finest. Holiday sweaters are encouraged. GPS address: 31535 463rd Avenue, Brooten MN 56316. For farm tours and their regular hours, click here: https://www.redheadcreamery.com/farm-tours.

And another group asked for a special mention of their event...the Pope County Museum is having their Christmas open house on Saturday, December 7 from 1 to 5 p.m. at their location in Glenwood.

Christmas choral concert (VIDEO)

Time to get more video posted from Monday night!! I'll work on that.

*Below, here's a duet by Alex Hofmann and Kiara Quade:


*Here's part of the Christmas caroling sing-a-long held during the concert:


We are in a very busy stretch. Home wrestling tomorrow night, a dance comp at Minnewaska on Friday and then multiple local events on Saturday and Sunday.

Conference opener battle

A defensive battle played out tonight between the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team and visiting Eden Valley-Watkins.

At halftime, the score was tied 20-20. B-B-E's Grace Illies hit a three-pointer on the right wing in the final 30 seconds to erase a 20-17 deficit. Watch video of that below:



With 3:43 left in the game, Allisa Knight scored in the paint to pull the Jaguars within one point, down 32-31.

Final score: EV-W 34, B-B-E 33.

The last time B-B-E defeated EV-W's girls' basketball team was on February 19, 2010. The final score that night was 34-30. Earlier that season in the first meeting, the Jaguars won 53-34 at Eden Valley after an 0-6 start to the season. B-B-E went on to go 0-1 in the Sub-Section 6A-South playoffs with a final record of 11-16. EV-W found their groove and blazed their way to the Section 5AA finals where they lost to Watertown-Mayer by a 49-43 score.

I'll never forget that night (EV-W vs. Watertown-Mayer) at SCSU. As the Sauk Centre Herald's sports reporter, I had just watched Sauk Centre win in the Section 6AA finals to advance to state for the second year in a row. I remember EV-W's team taking the court for pre-game drills and thinking, "Holy cow! EV-W is in the section finals!!! That is amazing, because I remember B-B-E going 2-0 against them in the regular season."

EV-W went 8-6 in the CMC that year to take third place alone. Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted was cream of the crop that year and ran the table in the CMC with a 14-0 mark. The Jaguars and Holdingford both finished with 7-7 records for a fourth-place tie.

Up next: the Jaguars (0-2) host Paynesville Area (0-1) on Friday, December 6 in the second CMC game of the season.

Also, I learned tonight that the dance comp at Minnewaska Area this Friday night (Dec. 6) begins at 6:30 p.m. The awards are set to follow two hours later.

Area girls' basketball scores on December 3:
Kimball Area 51, Swanville 47
Alexandria 57, Willmar 50
BOLD 50, Minnewaska Area 39
Royalton 72, Osakis 45 (Royalton is 3-0 after nailing 12 three-pointers against the Silverstreaks)
Annandale 64, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted 49
Marshall 61, Hutchinson 51
Holdingford 66, Pierz 55
Sauk Centre 68, Melrose Area 46
Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 71, Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City 33

(VIDEO) Junior high choir

*Here's a video clip of the junior high choir singing at tonight's Christmas concert:


Folks leaving the concert tonight quickly learned about a new coat of ice that Mother Nature delivered! Yikes!

*This week in sports...tomorrow night (Tuesday), the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team hosts Eden Valley-Watkins. On Thursday, the boys' basketball team opens their season at Osakis.

The wrestling team hosts a triangular on Thursday starting at 5 p.m.

On Friday this week, the B-B-E/Paynesville Pirouttes dance team begins their season at Minnewaska Area.

Christmas concert

B-B-E's high school Christmas concert is tonight!

Starting at 7 o'clock. Coverage to follow in this week's Bonanza Valley Voice.

Santa Claus is coming!

Santa Claus is coming to...
Elrosa
Sedan
Brooten
Belgrade
Sunburg!

I believe that's the correct order...starting with Elrosa on Saturday morning, December 7.

Here's a web article highlighting the Santa Claus visit to Sunburg scheduled for December 14 (short link): https://bit.ly/33GcTnQ.

This week's December 5 issue of the Bonanza Valley Voice will have more information.