extended sports coverage for the B-B-E community brought to you by the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper in Brooten, MN. (Address: P.O. Box 250, Brooten) http://www.bonanzavalleyvoice.com. ALL VIEWS posted are strictly and without exception the opinions of the newspaper owner and no one else; they're written in first hand format. Please submit feedback in writing to the address posted above. **This is Minnesota's oldest varsity high school sports blog. We hope to keep it going into the future!
Saturday, December 31, 2022
Granite City Classic and Winter Sports Show No. 9! (VIDEOS**)
I've got four videos posted here on Saturday afternoon. I hope to get more up later tonight...**three videos are being added tonight. One is posted right away on the front end of this blog post, and the other two are at the end (boys' basketball clips).
**Here is my final sports show of 2022:
And switching back to the basketball games we took in over the past two days...
To open the second half of their Thursday game with Mountain Iron-Buhl, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team came out tough as nails defensively and collected two early steals and one blocked shot against the Rangers. This is what they needed after falling behind 44-30 at halftime.
*Here's a video featuring Tiyana Schwinghammer earning a blocked shot and steal:
*Here's Brooklyn Fischer earning a rebound shot in her own miss with about 15:50 left in the game:
*Here's Allie Dingmann scoring from point blank in the paint early in the second half:
In that last clip, the Jaguars displayed terrific ball movement...the type of passing that wins games! The Jaguars continually cut down the deficit from what got to a 19-point spread at one point early in the second half (53-34 deficit). They had it down to 55-44 and later 59-48, but the Rangers kept knocking down three-pointers to protect their double-digit lead.
**Here's a video with about 12 minutes left in the game against MI-B...Abby Berge has a nice play on the left block:
By the midway point of the second half, the Jaguars were still trying to break the deficit down to single digits. Down 66-49 with 8:58 to go after Jordan Zubich hit two free throws, the Jaguars improved their presence on the boards with back-to-back defensive stops. With 8:35 left, Schwinghammer knocked down a "stop and pop" shot from eight feet on a baseline move from the right corner. Just 25 seconds later, she hit again while driving down from the top of the key for a layup to cut it to 66-53. The Rangers responded by Zubich scoring on a three-pointer released at least 6 feet beyond the arc with 7:45 left. I reviewed the tape multiple times and could not believer where she was standing when the shot went up. Crazy. This put them up 69-53. The Jaguars did not let up, though, and Schwinghammer scored on another right baseline move with a shot off the glass at 7:14 to go. Then with 6:28 to go, Berge had a steal and layup with an and-one free throw to cut it to 69-58. Plenty of time left! However, playing to the game's script, MI-B's Hali Savela scored on the arc. Savela later had a layup with 5:10 left to stretch MI-B's lead to 74-58.
More to come. Back to work at the office. Then it's open gym time tonight (5 to 7 p.m.) at the high school! This weekend's open gym nights are sponsored by Dion Birch and his son, Brady.
**Here's a short video where you can watch the end of regulation play yesterday between our boys' basketball team and Cass Lake-Bena:
Watching that basketball dance around on the rim, hoping it would not go in, is something I'll never forget.
**And here's the start of the game! Starter introductions and the first 5 minutes of the game against MI-B:
This blog post is a wrap.
HAPPY NEW YEAR, JAGUAR COUNTRY!! Signing off now on the crazy year that was 2022.
Basketball teams settle for splits at Granite City Classic (VIDEOS**)
With two games each played at the Granite City Classic this week, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' and girls' basketball teams both went 1-1 against very good competition. For the girls' team, they suffered an 85-62 loss to No. 2-ranked Mountain Iron-Buhl yesterday before rebounding with a convincing 85-52 win against South Ridge today. The boys' varsity team won 79-60 yesterday against Mountain Iron-Buhl before suffering a very hard-to-swallow 67-64 overtime loss to No. 5-ranked Cass Lake-Bena.
Girls' basketball recap: B-B-E 85, South Ridge 52:
The No. 10-ranked B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team led 43-26 at halftime. After building a 30-16 lead with 5:29 left, the Jaguars led 43-24 with 1:23 to go after Anna Jaeger scored on a fastbreak on a terrific feed from Tiyana Schwinghammer out on the left wing.
The girls were led by Abby Berge's season-high 25 point, 10-rebound effort as the first of four players in double figures. Harley Roering had a terrific comeback today after a tough outing with MI-B as she poured in 16 points fueled by red-hot 4-of-5 three-point shooting; this is her second 16-point night as she also had 16 points at Litchfield. Tiyana Schwinghammer scored in double figures for the fifth straight time this season with a 14-point effort. Allison Dingmann also had a very solid game with 12 points. As a team, the Jaguars shot 37 percent from the floor on a crazy high 74 attempts. Also helping the cause was B-B-E's huge 42-29 advantage in rebounds.
**Here's a video from the final minutes of the first half today against South Ridge:
The clip begins with 2:33 on the clock and the Panthers at the free throw line shooting bonus.
*And here's video from the first half yesterday against Mountain Iron-Buhl:
The video begins with Harley Roering getting a steal and then layup plus an and-one free throw with 14:11 on the clock.
NEXT: the girls' basketball team gets home cooking! Finally! They have not played at home since Tuesday, November 29. Next is a home conference game next Tuesday, January 3 with Atwater-Cosmos-Grove City. Also, an extended interview with Coach Anderson after today's win is posted in the previous blog post. You can find it by clicking here (short link): https://bit.ly/3VvnBsh.
Boys' basketball recap: No. 5 Cass Lake-Bena 67, No. 3 B-B-E 64 OVERTIME:
The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team suffered an overtime loss to a Cass Lake-Bena squad that runs on high-octane jet fuel after both teams battled to a 60-60 tie in regulation play. The Jaguars were staring at a defeat in the final minute of regulation before Kaden Pieper knocked down a runner with 28 seconds to go. After one minute of play in overtime, CL-B junior guard Dominic Staples-Fairbanks drained a three-pointer. Pieper then slashed to the basket with 2:38 left to make it a one-point game. Staples-Fairbanks hit a floater in the lane with 2:20 left to put the Panthers up 65-62. They hit again in the lane to make it 67-62 with 68 seconds to go. Pieper hit from outside with 38 seconds left, but the three-point deficit stood to the overtime buzzer.
As a team, the Jaguars shot 42 percent from the floor.
NEXT: the boys' basketball team makes the trip north to Ashby on Tuesday, January 3 for a Section 6A makeup game with the Arrows.
This is some fun news to share! The JV girls' team won today by a 39-37 score in overtime against Orono!
Here's a short halftime video I recorded just as B-B-E and Cass Lake-Bena's teams were retaking the court:
*Here's the tip-off of yesterday's girls' basketball game, plus the first couple of minutes of action:
The Jaguars struck early in that video with a Brooklyn Fischer putback shot, but the Rangers then fired away an 11-0 run before Coach Anderson called a timeout with 15:31 on the clock. Whatever was said in that huddle worked out, as the Jaguars then reeled off 10 straight points to gain a 12-11 lead on Harley Roering's three-point play with 14:11 to go.
And today I confirmed with a Cass Lake-Bena coach that the Panthers defeated Northwoods 89-59 yesterday in their first game of the Granite City Classic. I saw scores posted online last night suggesting that CL-B lost that game. With today's overtime win, the Cass Lake-Bena Panthers are now 6-0.
Area girls' basketball scores on December 30:
Crosby-Ironton 76, Mountain Iron-Buhl 69 (I am not sure that is accurate!)
Pequot Lakes 51, Montevideo 46
Litchfield 68, Concordia Academy 33 (Second win in two days for Litchfield)
MACCRAY 56, Yellow Medicine East 39
More to come on Saturday afternoon. I have a mountain of newspaper administrative work to accomplish this weekend!!!
I just noticed that I still have 32 video clips to comb through from the past two days. THIRTY-TWO! Crazy. It was fun. It is always fun, and this work is always worth it! It's also exciting to be back on Twitter! (Thank you, Elon!) @bonanzavalley
JUST FOR FUN! Check out this video (short link): https://bit.ly/3VClhzI. That takes you back to March of 2020! Remember that?
After 6 p.m. and I've finally settled back into the home office to get blogging updated and return to combing over game footage and game notes. It has been a wild two days with four varsity games under our belt! As of 6:30 p.m. I've got this blog post updated as much as I want to, and I will be posting in a new blog post with more video from today and yesterday. The new blog post goes up after 7 p.m...*TWO videos have been added below!
This is DAY TWO of the Granite City Classic! We are playing at St. Cloud Apollo high school now on a mild December day with full sunshine!
With 7 minutes left in the first half, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team is ahead 26 to 16 over South Ridge. South Ridge is a talented team that won over 20 games last year. I don't have a read on their personnel this year, but they held a 4-1 record coming into today.
The Panthers led 4-2 in the first two minutes as the Jaguars started to heat up. Harley Roering's three-pointer with 15:30 left put the Jaguars in front for good at 5-4. She hit a second three-pointer with 13:40 on the clock for a 9-4 lead. Abby Berge stole the ball on the press and scored with 13:13 left to make it 11-4. South Ridge got a layup to make it 12-6, but that was the closest they would get from there to the final buzzer.
B-B-E's scoring rampage continued with Roering's third three-pointer and then her paint shot. Berge scored on a layup, and Anna Jaeger canned a three on the left wing. Berge's three-point play then made the score 25-9 by the 10-minute mark.
South Ridge scored 7 straight points before Tiyana Schwinghammer scored on the left block. Roering's two free throws with 5:29 left the made it a 30-16 lead. The Jaguars later got back-to-back triples from Allie Dingmann and Schwinghammer for a 41-23 lead.
HALFTIME:B-B-E 43, South Ridge 26. The Panthers have been fairly effective on the three-point line, but the Jaguars have held strong at defending the paint with great interior defense.
Second half: B-B-E is ahead 73 to 41 with just over 8 minutes left.
Final:B-B-E 85, South Ridge 52. The Jaguars move back above .500 with a 3-2 record.
After a second look, South Ridge has four seniors on the roster. One of their big guns is senior 5'6" guard Adella Olesiak, who knocked down a handful of threes in the game.
**And this is finally posted! Here's Coach Anderson talking about today's win and reflecting on what was a crazy December:
The boys' basketball team should be tipping off around 2:15 p.m. Stay tuned! I'm still trying to confirm if Cass Lake-Bena actually lost yesterday to unranked Northwoods...the score I saw was 89-59.
**In the first half, the boys' basketball team initially trailed 2-0, but after the Panthers cut down an 8-4 deficit to two points, the Jaguars went on an incredible 17-0 onslaught across a seven-minute span. With 7 minutes to go, they led 25-6.
*Here's a short video during a timeout around the niddle of the first half:
**Halftime in the boys' game: B-B-E 32, CL-B 25. The first half has been played at a frantic pace by both teams.
*With 8:58 left in the second half, the Panthers have cut the lead down to 47 to 45. B-B-E is in a full timeout. They need to regroup.
With 1:22 left the game is tied 56 all.
In overtime, the Panthers are ahead 67-62 with 55 seconds left.
The B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team ended a nine-day layoff from action with a tough, tall task facing the No. 2-ranked Mountain Iron-Buhl Rangers. The game was part of the Granite City Classic in St. Cloud, this one played at the new St. Cloud Tech high school south of town just off of Highway 15.
B-B-E came ready to play, and they led 2-0 just 12 seconds in on a put back shot by Brooklyn Fischer on her own miss.
The Rangers then heated up the court and led 11-2 with just over two minutes played. The Jaguars, ranked No. 10 in the latest Minnesota Basketball News poll, suddenly came to life with a close-range rebound shot by Brooklyn Fischer, a paint rebound shot by Abby Berge, a three-point play by Berge and then a steal and three-point play by Harley Roering. When Roering canned her and-one with 14:11 on the clock, the Jaguars held a 12-11 lead.
MI-B responded to that by hitting a three-pointer and then a fastbreak layup over the next minute to regain their footing. They continued the surge with a long two-pointer, another fastbreak shot and a three-pointer to forge a 23-12 lead with 11:45 left. By this point, MI-B scored 15 of their 23 points from beyond the arc.
B-B-E kept pace with MI-B, and Roering fed the ball to a speeding Tiyana Schwinghammer, who slashed to the basket to cut it to 23-14. Berge made two free throws with 10:22 left for a 23-16 score, but MI-B then connected for the sixth time of the half from the arc with 10:03 left. Jordan Zubin's fastbreak shot on a three-on-one break made it 28-16 with 9:45 to go. Fischer scored on a rebound shot in the paint to make it a 10-point game, but MI-B proceeded to score 8 unanswered points to go up 36-18. (Ouch)
Allie Dingmann connected on the arc with 6:41 to go, and Fischer later hit two free throws with 6:01 left to make it 37-23. The Jaguars matched MI-B's output over those final 6 minutes and went into halftime down 44-30.
After falling behind 53-34 in the second half with 14:49 on the clock, the Jaguars fought like mad and cut the deficit to 55-44 on a three-pointer by Tiyana Schwinghammer with 13 minutes to go. The 10-2 run started with Abby Berge's 2-for-2 trip at the line with 14:28 left, and Berge then canned a three-pointer just 10 seconds later. Schwinghammer drained a layup just 20 seconds after that to cut the deficit to 12 points at 53-41. After falling behind 59-44, Berge scored in the paint, and Fischer canned a five-footer to narrow it to 59-48.
MI-B's hot shooting then expanded their lead to 66-49 with 8:58 left, and the Rangers kept raining down three-pointers on their way to an 84-62 win. For the game, the Rangers hit six three-pointers in the first half and eight threes in the second half.
GAME STATS:
Abby Berge led the Jaguars with 19 points plus 10 rebounds. Next was Brooklyn Fischer's 15 points and 8 rebounds, and Tiyana Schwinghammer poured in 14 points plus 4 blocked shots, 4 rebounds and 4 steals. Shooting woes hurt the Jaguars, as they were just 36 percent from the floor (22-60) and 23 percent from the three-point line (4-17) with 14-of-25 shooting at the free throw line. Meanwhile, the Rangers knocked down 14 of 26 three-point attempts and made 50 percent of their field goals.
Next: the Jaguars (2-2) face the South Ridge Panthers tomorrow at St. Cloud Apollo at 11 a.m. South Ridge is a team that competes in the Polar Conference and in Section 7A. They were 3-1 going into today's game with Cass Lake-Bena. Last season, South Ridge went 24-4 overall but just 1-1 in the playoffs after suffering an upset 69-63 loss to Ely. Ely had lost to South Ridge 69-38 and then 61-39 in two regular season games.
UPDATE: South Ridge defeated Cass Lake-Bena 50-47 today to improve to 4-1 overall. I also learned that South Ridge high school is located in Culver, Minnesota, which is located due north of Cloquet, or 27 miles northwest of Duluth. Culver's population in 2020 was 252.
MI-B's girls' basketball team picked up their seventh straight win today, and they are now 8-1 overall. They entered today's game averaging just under 80 points per game. The Rangers had three games in November, and between December 3 and December 19, they played six games compared to just one for our girls' basketball team in that same span.
More to come. The boys' basketball team will tip off at 4:15 p.m. today.
BOYS' BASKETBALL UPDATES: *Update: in the first half, the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team holds a 24-12 lead with 10 minutes to go.
**Halftime: B-B-E 51, MI-B 23.
This was an incredible way to shake off what has been a crazy 13-day layoff from action. Their last game was on December 16 in Holdingford.
The rust showed early for the boys' basketball team, and they trailed 7-4 with 15:20 on the clock after MI-B's senior forward Josh Holmes connected on the arc. Layups from Kaden Pieper and Luke Dingmann then put the Jaguars in front 8-7 with four minutes gone. Matthew Walz drove strong to the basket with 13:47 left for a 10-7 lead. The Rangers then scored five straight, but their 12-10 lead was short-lived. B-B-E went on a tear to the tune of a 16-0 run over a span of just over three minutes. (Yes, that's correct.) Scoring in that 16-point outburst were Pieper, Dingmann, Jamison Reed and Hayden Sobiech.
*Final: B-B-E 79, MI-B 60. The Jaguars put their 3-0 record on the line with a 2:15 p.m. game tomorrow against No. 5-ranked Cass Lake-Bena (4-0). CL-B averages around 76 points per game and is loaded with 'pure shooters' who are dangerous from any spot on the floor. Graduation took five players off of last year's team. They have lost in four straight Section 8A championship games, and this season they are on a mission to punch through to the big show, where they last played in 2018.
**Here's my eighth winter sports show, which I just recorded late tonight in Bloomington:
I was "fairly accurate" in that recording, although I was off on one score I mentioned. The girls' basketball team never trailed 42-23...I have no idea where I got that from. The deficit was indeed 19 points early in the second half at 53-34.
Tomorrow's girls' and boys' varsity games will be played at St. Cloud Apollo. It's been eight years since I've been there. I have a sports show uploading, but the web speed where I'm at is super slow! It may not be posted until closer to 10 p.m. Meanwhile, I'm typing up game recaps from both games.
Area boys' basketball scores on December 29:
Battle Lake 69, New York Mills 25
Melrose Area 62, Spectrum 44
Osakis 43, Annandale 40 (Silverstreaks have won 4 straight since losing the season opener to our Jaguars)
Area boys' basketball scores on December 28:
Paynesville Area 79, Border West 71
Melrose Area 58, Concordia Academy 51
Hancock 102, Kaleidoscope Charter 71
Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg 91, St. James Area 71
Perham 67, Sauk Centre 40 (first loss of the year for Coach Kevin Kuefler's Mainstreeters after a 4-0 start)
West Central Area 67, Battle Lake 66
NOTE: the K-M-S Fighting Saints boys' basketball team is 6-1 overall after going 2-0 at the Windom Christmas tournament on Tuesday and Wednesday this week; in their first game, K-M-S beat Windom Area 91-80. It has been many years since they've had such a strong start to the season.
Area girls' basketball scores on December 29:
Minneota 66, Tracy-Milroy-Balaton 52 (Minneota won earlier this week 57-50 while surviving a scare from winless Minnewaska Area in Marshall; that game ended an almost unheard-of 18-day layoff from action, with Minneota's previous game coming on December 9 against Lakeview)
Area girls' basketball scores on December 28:
Melrose Area 43, Concordia Academy 38
Ogilvie 91, North Woods 84
Sauk Centre 57, Perham 51
New London-Spicer 57, Willmar 43
This blog post is a wrap! I am excited to announce that The Voice is back on Twitter! After a 19-month hiatus in Twitter purgatory, we are back and better than ever!
My Twitter handle is easy to find = @bonanzavalley
Today is GAME DAY in the Granite City! Yes, we are heading to St. Cloud! Actually, the JV and varsity basketball teams (boys and girls) left at 9 a.m. from the high school this morning.
It's time to make tracks to St. Cloud Tech high school! Exciting times!
Our boys' basketball teams haven't played since Friday, December 16! Crazy. Crazy! The girls' basketball teams are in a nine-day layoff after they beat Litchfield last week Tuesday.
**Here's a clip from the second half at Litchfield last week:
It's crazy, as that game seems SO long ago. It has been a wild ride pretty much this entire crazy month of December.
More to come when I get there!
Update: in the first half the Jaguars trail 20 to 12 with 12:28 left.
*With 7:40 left, the Rangers now have a 35-18 lead. They've scored the last 7 points.
Halftime: MI-B 44, B-B-E 30.
More to come in a new blog post!
The boys' basketball team tips off at 4:15 p.m. today back at Tech high school. They will also face Mountain Iron-Buhl.
In case you haven't heard, the second-ranked Class 1A team in the state of Minnesota is on deck for our B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team as they gear up for their stint in the Granite City Classic in St. Cloud this week. They play Mountain Iron-Buhl (7-1) tomorrow at 1:15 p.m. at St. Cloud Tech high school located south of town. I hope many of you can make the trip! Our boys' basketball team plays MI-B at 4:15 p.m. tomorrow in the same venue.
MI-B's girls' basketball team features one of the top scorers in the state of Minnesota: Jordan Zubich, a dynamic 5'11" guard who averaged over 25 points per game last year...as a sophomore! Her MI-B Rangers return four starters from last year's Class 1A state consolation champion team. I've got other scouting information to post later tonight.
The MI-B girls' basketball team has just one senior, and she is very good: 5'6' guard Sage Ganyo. She averaged over 5 steals and 5 assists per game last year. Another top player is junior 5'8" guard Hali Savela, who poured in 22 points in their season-opening win over Class 3A Stewartville. Zubich matched her scoring average from last season with 25 points in that game. In their second game, Savela drained four three-pointers in the first half against St. Croix Lutheran, who handed the Rangers their only loss by a 61-59 score way back on November 26. In that game, MI-B led 22-12 in the first half and 31-30 at halftime.
MI-B applies what I'll call "relentless" pressure at every area on the court. They are a highly motivated group who is hell bent on getting back to state and making noise after they were knocked into the consolation bracket in the quarterfinals last year by unseeded Minneota.
For the B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team, they are pumped up to face the No. 5-ranked team in Class 1A when they see Cass Lake-Bena as opposition on Friday this week at 2:15 p.m. at St. Cloud Apollo high school. The Panthers went 26-4 last season, and one of their four losses were at the hands of our Jaguars in a neutral-site game at Pequot Lakes high school on Friday, February 4. CL-B was upset in the Section 8A finals by Sacred Heart, who beat them 69-67 in double overtime! Crazy.
How did your Tuesday go? The day I had today was terrific! I wrapped up "Part I" of what I'll call a good deed we did for a good friend of the family. That felt great. Such things are what gives purpose and meaning to life! I carried on a bit about that in my newspaper column that you can read once you get the newspaper.
More to come. Big days ahead this week! It's far from over, and there's many more good things on the horizon!!!
So much fun! So so SO much fun at B-B-E high school last week!
The students of Jaguar Country just lived through a wild two-week ride of crazy weather as they counted down the days until the Christmas vacation started. Then an oncoming blizzard-like storm ultimately chopped a full day off of that count. The vacation started at 1 p.m. sharp on Wednesday, December 21 instead of Thursday night last week.
Click over to the Bonanza Valley Voice website to watch a video we shot last Wednesday at lunch time featuring The Grinch making his rounds through the cafeteria (short link) and how that all ended! https://bit.ly/3Vra2dl.
And here's when The Grinch arrived at the cafeteria!
**Here's a video featuring the full rage of the storm that bored own on the area last Friday:
That video was recorded on the north end of main street in Belgrade. More to come on Monday night.
SPECIAL announcement from RJ's Mini Mart in Brooten...this is exciting! Starting January 1 in the new year, RJ’s Mini-Mart in Brooten will begin their Jaguar Pride Pump on two of their pumps; RJ’s will be donating 2 cents of every gallon sold on those pumps to the Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa school district at the end of each month for the entire year of 2023! This will be advertised in this week's Voice and in future issues.
I want to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas! We have had quite the month of December so far. It appears that winter's tight grip on humanity is loosening up today and tomorrow. Thank, God!
**Here's another clip from the band caroling on Monday:
I have more blogging to do this afternoon, but there's Christmas-related activities to come first.
**Here's a short clip from Tuesday at Litchfield...this was awesome! Abby Berge's squad is returning to form!
That's all for now. Time to head off to another family Christmas gathering...this time at my mom's house.
*Forgot to mention: Bucky's Bar in Elrosa opens at 3 p.m. today. If you want to get out of the house, they're a great place to stop by and enjoy a great atmosphere with great people!
I've got a good portion of my December sports photos uploaded to the Bonanza Valley Voice winter sports folder. The only game missing is the Litchfield girls' basketball game...you can see all the folders by clicking here: https://bonanzavalley.smugmug.com/B-B-E-Winter-Sports-22-23.
**And please spread the word that B-B-E high school will hold two Open Gym nights next weekend! They will have open gym on Saturday, December 31 from 5 to 7 p.m., and then on New Year's Day also from 5 to 7 p.m.!
Wrestling team starts conference schedule 2-0 (VIDEOS)
IN this blog post I'm working up wrestling recaps from their wins on Tuesday night...that was three nights ago, and oh, boy, have we had a lot happen in the last three days.
The No. 4-ranked B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team soundly defeated the Kimball Area Cubs 48-27 in the first of two Central Minnesota Conference duals on Tuesday at the high school. The teams were in a 12-12 tie before the Jaguars pulled away to built a 30-18 lead on the way to the big win.
To finish the night, a terrific border battle was on deck with a rejuvenated Paynesville Area Bulldogs team. The path to victory started with a loss at 106 pounds, and I say this because varsity newcomer Noah Welte did not get pinned or tech'd in what ended as an 11-5 decision loss. Aiden Mueller then picked up a 12-7 decision at 113 to even the team score at 3-3. After falling behind 20-3 through the next three weights, the Jaguars began their comeback starting with Ryan Jensen's win by fall over Brandon Hess at 138. Next came a win by fall from Wyatt Engen at 145 over Mitchell Blonigan.
At 152, Tanner Viessman picked up B-B-E's third straight pin to put them in front 21-20. A sudden victory overtime loss at 160 put the Jaguars down 23-21, but Maximus Hanson recorded a tech fall at 170 against Aaron Mages to regain the lead at 26-23. Carson Gilbert won a thrilling 3-2 decision over Peyton Hemmesch to make it 29-23. Paynesville won a decision at 195 to narrow it to 29-26.
Ethan Spanier won by fall at 220 over Sam Brick to clinch the team win and make the scored 35-26. The Bulldogs won by fall at 285 for the final score of 35-32.
**Here's a video from the Kimball dual on Tuesday:
Next for the wrestling team: the Jaguars (2-2, 2-0 Central Minnesota Conference) travel to Albany on Thursday, January 5 for a triangular that also includes a very tough Holdingford team.
**Here's a video clip from in the first half of the Litchfield game on Tuesday:
The Jaguars displayed outstanding defense early in that clip, and that led to a spark of offense!
**Here's a nifty layup by Harley Roering in the second half:
**Here's a neat play from Abby Berge!
Next for the girls' basketball team: the No. 10-ranked Jaguars (2-1) play at St. Cloud Tech high school on Thursday, December 29 at 1:15 p.m. at St. Cloud Tech high school against No. 2-ranked Mountain Iron-Buhl. B-B-E had five of their first eight games postponed due to factors outside of their control. Crazy. I have never seen anything like that in my life. The Jaguars had moved up to No. 10 from No. 11 in the latest Minnesota Basketball News state rankings that were released today. Their next game is BIG! They are very, very excited to take on the second-ranked team in Minnesota.
I'll blog again on Saturday. I hope you will have a wonderful Christmas weekend!
Another Box Score Sports installment! (And Wrestling and more)
It's Thursday night now and I'm doing a little catch up in the blogging world. We have had a 1-2-3 punch of Minnesota winter this week, and it continued today with bitter cold and blowing snow all across Jaguar Country. Below is what I'll call a very "busy" blog post that hits multiple topics.
Here's the latest installment of Box Score Sports from B-B-E's broadcasting studio in the high school:
I have to give a huge shout out to Mr. Goodwin! He was a terrific teacher, coach and mentor for my oldest stepson, who graduated in 2019. B-B-E is so fortunate to have him on staff and in our community!
*Just for fun...here's a clip from halftime of the girls' basketball team's season opener:
You just can't beat any song from the late, great John Denver!!!
*Here's Brady Schwinghammer in his second interview of the boys' basketball season:
The boys' basketball team's season opener seems SO long ago by now...it was back on December 6. Brady's team has just two games on their record to this point. We have had a tough December in terms of getting games in.
*Here's a wrestling clip from Tuesday with Hunter Laage at 160:
The video begins with junior Maximus Hanson wrestling against Kimball Area at 170 pounds. Then by the 7-minute mark or so, sophomore Carson Gilbert takes the mat to compete at 182 pounds. I posted the wrong clip there. The correct one is uploading and will be added here on Friday morning. It's about 15 minutes long.
I want to point out again that I forgot to add my boys' basketball story to the newspaper this week. I had it written up, too! Dang it! What ended up happening is that the "Ramblings I" column went very, very long and ended up on page 13. It was on that part of page 13 where I likely could have added the basketball story. That's how it goes when I have 48 different projects all going at the same time. (No lie.) Tonight I will FINALLY get a video interview of Brady Schwinghammer posted here (after 9 p.m.)...he was briefly mentioned in one of my two publisher's columns...I honestly forgot which one he is in!
Revelation: how about this fun fact! B-B-E's Class of 2023 students were in fourth grade when I bought the Bonanza Valley Voice newspaper. I've had a very front row seat to their families raising them since they were in fourth grade. This fact blew my mind tonight when I stumbled onto some very special videos that I recorded just a little over 8 years ago...back on December 17, 2014. Click over to The Voice website at the following link to see what I am talking about: https://bit.ly/3vcuT9r.
And let's just blow your mind right out of the water here!! It didn't take too long to uncover this video from the Global Play Day at B-B-E elementary on February 3, 2016. Absolutely crazy! It was uploaded the next day, but it has never been posted until now...so it's got zero views as I type this. The video begins with a glimpse at what a large number of the fifth graders were doing at the elementary school...YES, they are the Class of 2023.
GLOBAL PLAY DAY 2016 at B-B-E elementary:
THat's all for tonight. Friday is not that far away.
The Voice Winter Sports Show No. 7! and basketball and wrestling...(VIDEOS!)
Thursday morning note: I have added a few basketball clips plus one wrestling clip to the bottom of this post...
If you haven't heard already, the Christmas break started early in Jaguar Country...today school was dismissed at 1 p.m....and the kids won't be back until January 3! Tomorrow's school day was effectively "erased" from the calendar and will not be made up. Also, no games tomorrow night either...both basketball teams lose one game each, and it is unclear if either will be made up (both are non-conference). This is unfortunate, but it cannot be helped.
*Recorded last night...finally posting it on this crazy, wild Wednesday afternoon:
In the video, I allude to one of my newspaper columns this week that highlights the life of a 100-year old resident of Jaguar Country. She has a special connection to one of our local varsity student athletes. I hope you get a chance to read it all in the newspaper.
I finally dug out more accurate information on wrestling last night...Carson Gilbert won a 3-2 decision against Paynesville's Hemmesch. Unofficially, it has been a "long time" since Gilbert defeated him, so that was a satisfying win! The team won that dual 35-32 to even their record at 2-2 overall. Against Kimball Area, the Jaguars won 48-27 and not 48-21 as I had previously stated.
More to come later this afternoon. I will add full recaps of the wrestling wins last night and hopefully get some video clips added. Stay tuned! And stay warm!!!
*Here's an exciting moment from the opening seconds of the game last night in Litchfield...check it out!
*Here's another exciting play where the Jaguars got a steal by Harley Roering in the opening minutes:
**Here's a play from early in the second half at Litchfield:
I'm switching over to wrestling and will get video posted on Thursday morning. Also! I have found three unfortunate errors and/or omissions in this week's newspaper. AHHHHHHHHH. One was minor and got really glossed over while I was proofreading the 16 pages. Another was a HUGE mistake when I forgot to add in my varsity boys' basketball story based on their Holdingford win last Friday.
**The Upsala girls' basketball game and the Minnewaska boys' basketball game are postponed to January 17! Spread the word!!
**Here's a wrestling clip finally!!! Finally...it's got Ryan Jensen in the corner of the video. I did not pan over correctly as he was pinning the Kimball wrestler:
More video is coming...probably in a new blog post on Thursday afternoon.
I just love success by our student athletes in Jaguar Country!
Tonight in a home triangular to start the Central Minnesota Conference schedule, the B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team put a nine-day layoff to rest by soundly defeating Kimball Area 48-27. Later the No. 5-ranked Jaguars defeated Paynesville Area, although I don't have the final score of that dual. This evens their record at 2-2 overall.
For the second time this season, the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team put to bed a 10-day layoff from action. Their last game was back on December 9 in Holdingford. Tonight at Litchfield, the Jaguars shook off the rust in the opening minutes and outscored the Dragons 19-9 over the final 10 minutes of the first half. The game had an exciting start when Tiyana Schwinghammer drilled a three-pointer with just 20 seconds gone on B-B-E's first offensive set.
With 4:39 left, Bree Thieschafer's three-pointer broke an 18-18 tie. The Dragons (2-3) were held scoreless in the final five minutes. Halftime: B-B-E 28, Litchfield 18.
The Jaguars took charge right out of the locker room with buckets from Abby Berge and Tiyana Schwinghammer in the first 70 seconds for a 32-18 lead. A three-pointer by Harley Roering with 15:25 left made it a 35-20 score. Schwinghammer's three-pointer with 7:50 remaining put the Jaguars ahead 49-35. The Dragons got no closer than 11 points the rest of the game. Final score: B-B-E 64, Litchfield 46.
As a team, the Jaguars shot a solid 40 percent from the floor and 70 percent at the free throw line. Schwinghammer led all scorers with 17 points on 44 percent shooting to go with two rebounds and three steals. Harley Roering added 16 points with a team-high five steals and four rebounds. Also in double figures was Abby Berge with 13 points, four rebounds and three steals.
**Here's the first clip from tonight at Litchfield:
Next: the No. 11-ranked Jaguars (2-1) host Upsala in a non-conference game at 5:30 p.m. this Thursday at the high school. (YES, that is correct.)
This is the day we get back into the swing of it! I am PUMPED UP! Are you?
The B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team puts a nine-day layoff from action to bed tonight when they host competition for the first time of the season. The Central Minnesota Conference opener(s) are on deck with Kimball Area first at 5 p.m. and then Paynesville Area in the third dual of the home triangular.
Another team is putting to bed their second 10-day layoff of the season to rest when they travel to Litchfield. It is unheard of, but the B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team will be playing just their third game of the young season all the way into the calendar on December 20. It is mind blowing. They will have to shake the rust off quickly, as the Dragons are tall and experienced and hold a 2-2 record to date.
*Here's a video clip from the opening minutes of the season opener that was a full 22 days ago. CRAZY.
More to come. Make sure you are either in Belgrade with wrestling or in Litchfield with basketball! Our kids have earned your support! I'll actually be at both events!
Wrestling update: the Jaguars throttled the Kimball Cubs 48 to 27 in the first dual of the home triangular.
Winter Sports Show No. 6: Character, Sportsmanship, Community (VIDEO)
Here is my sixth winter sports show of the 2022-2023 sports season. If I recall correctly, the first one was recorded on December 2. So I've been on a pretty good run so far.
VIDEO:
I had a great rhythm going in that video, but at the very end I rambled just a bit too much. Oh well. I had a punch line and hope that it got delivered at the end. I will always continue sharing good things that I hear happening in Jaguar Country. It is a distinct honor and a privilege to live and work here and be inspired by really great kids who are being raised by really great families!
COMING UP THIS WEEK in Jaguar Sports: Monday: the seventh-grade girls' basketball team hosts a game at the high school, while the junior high wrestlers travel to A-C-GC; also, there is a 7 p.m. school board meeting at the high school media center.
Tuesday: the varsity wrestlers host Kimball and Paynesville in an important Central Minnesota Conference triangular starting at 5 p.m.; the varsity girls' basketball team travels to Litchfield for what will be just their third game of the season. Crazy. They will put a 10-day layoff to bed for the second time this season. CRAZY.
Thursday: the girls' basketball team is in action again on Thursday when they host Upsala in a rescheduled game; the JV team tips off at the high school at 4:15 p.m., while the varsity team will start their game at 5:30 p.m. Meanwhile, the boys' basketball team hosts Minnewaska Area in a Coaches-vs-Cancer game. The JV and C-squad games start at 5:45 p.m. at the elementary, and the varsity game follows at 7 p.m.
**GAME CANCELED! The roads to the southwest are just not good, and they have 20 to 30 mile an hour winds forecast for Lyon County. This is breaking news, so please spread the word!!! NO GAME at Minneota today. The team bus turned around at Maynard as the windy conditions got worse on Highway 23. The thought was they could make a run for Minneota, but by the time the game is over this afternoon they could not predict how bad the conditions would be. The call was made to go back home.
Today is GAME DAY for our No. 11-ranked B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team! They are currently on the road to Lyon County and Minneota high school, home of the Vikings. The host team is currently ranked No. 4 in the state.
...BLAST from the PAST! Posted here on Saturday night:
Last night I uncovered a video that I had not even uploaded to YouTube...the video is from March of 2021! So long ago...it was a special night when the girls' basketball team won their second straight Section 5A championship to advance to state. I am fortunate to have not deleted it! The video is worth the watch. It has a very special ending too as a young girl came up to join the team for a final photo!
VIDEO from Thursday, March 25, 2021 at Minnewaska Area high school:
Perhaps that short video will cheer us up tonight! That was a very special time for our girls' basketball program. The team won two additional games after beating Swanville that night to advance to the state finals in April.
Here's a brief highlight reel from one year ago this weekend:
I don't know why, but I'm missing at least 2 large videos from that Minneota game in December 2021. The archive set of videos is definitely incomplete. GRR!!! This is frustrating. I did splice out some highlights from the 3 videos I could find. That's what I worked with here. I'm super upset because the late comeback in the second half was very exciting that day. I know there were multiple defensive stops and some great scoring plays that would have been fun to watch.
Here's a video from the first half of that game one year ago:
More to come. I am now switching up my entire day with no need to drive to Minneota. Eventually I will post information on the girls' basketball team's next opponent, which is Litchfield. The Litchfield Dragons are 1-2 overall but are a very good team. They have close losses to Class 3A Hutchinson and Class 2A Kimball Area. They soundly defeated Paynesville Area. The Jaguars-vs-Dragons game is next Tuesday, December 20 in Litchfield.
**This is just a hiccup and cannot be anything that gets a team down. Four of their first six scheduled games have been postponed or erased (right now I think 3 of the 4 will still get played this season)...but MOVING ON and channeling the Coach Brad Goodwin mentality. The GOOD teams and GOOD student-athletes straighten their back and face challenges wherever they are. Feeling bad about what has happened - or in this case, games that have not happened - does NOT help for any of the upcoming 30 or so games left for our girls' basketball Jaguars. YES, there are approximately 30 games left to play by the middle of March 2023!!!
**AND here's the Litchfield vs. EVW live stream player...girls' basketball! They tipped off at about 12:05 p.m...
More to come later this afternoon.
**In that Litchfield game, the Dragons held a 13-6 halftime lead. No kidding. And later during the second half, the Dragons are ahead 22-10 with 9:30 left in the game. Both teams were stone cold from the outside, but Litchfield got two three-pointers to go up 22-7. **Much later with 1:30 left, Litchfield has a 35-16 lead. They will even their record at 2-2 overall heading into next Tuesday's game with our Jaguars. **Final: Litchfield 36, EVW 18.
And in junior high girls' basketball news!...
B-B-E's junior high teams are playing in the Central Minnesota Conference tournament now in Royalton. The 8th grade team will play at 3 p.m. for the third-place medals. The 7th grade team tips off at 1 p.m. today for the championship!! Exciting!!!
*Seventh grade update...at halftime in the CMC championship game, the Jaguars have a 19-4 lead!!
Final: 36-17 win over Paynesville. Champs!!!
**Update: in the 8th grade CMC third-place game, the Jaguars have a 17-12 lead over ACGC. *And the Jaguars won the game! (I didn't catch the score).) B-B-E's junior high teams took first place (seventh grade) and third place (eighth grade)! Great job!
The B-B-E Jaguars boys' basketball team is playing at Holdingford tonight. The Huskers entered the game with a 1-2 record. With 6:30 left in the first half, the Jaguars have a 25-10 lead.
With 4:05 left, the Jaguars now have a 31-10 lead.
The lead swelled to 35-10 before the Huskers had a flurry of scoring. Ahead 39-20, the Jaguars got two late buckets from Sam Mastey in the paint and a driving layup by Jamison Reed to build a commanding 43-20 halftime lead.
In the second half...a putback shot by Caden DeRoo gave the Jaguars a 69-36 lead with 7:17 left. Jordan Herickhoff then scored on a fast break shot for a 71-38 lead. Hayden Sobiech scored in the paint for a 73-43 lead with 5 minutes left.
Final score:B-B-E 80, Holdingford 45. The Jaguars are 2-0! The bummer is that they have to now wait 6 days until their next game. Next: the home opener that's also a border battle coming next Thursday, December 22 against Minnewaska Area.
I forgot to upload this video, and I finally got around to it...this was TEN days ago! The last time our boys' basketball team was in action. I was proud and honored to be able to take in their season opener in person at Osakis.
*Here's Brady Schwinghammer after the Osakis win on December 6:
Brady Schwinghammer had an outstanding return from a preseason injury as the senior guard had 14 points with red-hot 4-of-6 three-point shooting. Kaden Pieper was the tpo scorer for B-B-E with 24 points, and Luke Dingmann had 21 points with 11 rebounds for a double double plus four steals. At least 12 Jaguars got in the game. As a team, the Jaguars shot 41 percent from the floor but were an ice cold 6-of-16 at the free throw line.
INTERESTING! Okay, so soon I'll be shifting gears 100 percent towards the girls' basketball team...they head south for the near 100-mile long trip to Minneota. I just read that Minneota schools were closed today. That's worth noting!
As announced last night, B-B-E schools is two hours late today.
The word just came out a little bit ago that the girls' basketball game at home tonight with Pine River-Backus has been cancelled. I don't know if it will be made up or not. That's all I've got now. Busy day ahead.
**And the dominoes continue to fall. The Jackhammer wrestling invitational in Pequot Lakes tonight and tomorrow is also washed away by what the weather has brought us in Minnesota.
We have to be very thankful right now that our roads have cleared up in Jaguar Country (for the most part) and that our kids are in school. I learned that in the Pine River/Pequot Lakes area, they are battling with downed power lines over major roads. It's possible many of those schools in that region aren't even open at all today because of a loss of power. That would not be fun, and thankfully that's not what we are dealing with here.
We focus on the positive, and we straighten our backs in the face of adversity!! That is how you win each day.
Channeling some Coach Brad Goodwin here!!! Check it out (re-posted, recorded yesterday):
**More news... tomorrow's girls' basketball opponent, Minneota, has now lost their opportunity to play a game tonight just like we did. Their conference game tonight at Canby has been postponed.
**I just saw this afternoon that our B-B-E Jaguars are ranked No. 11 in the just-released Minnesota Basketball News state rankings. Minneota held at No. 4. We are 1-1, while they are 2-0.
*The boys' basketball game at Holdingford is a go tonight!! They are absolutely chomping at it after what has now been a 10-day layoff.
School dismissing early (VIDEO - Sports Show! RISE UP!)
B-B-E schools will be closing at 10:30 a.m. today. The buildings will dismiss at separate times. No evening activities.
Here's a link where you can follow through and take in our lighted Christmas parade held in Brooten on Saturday night! https://bit.ly/3HDGCFu. It was such a magical night. I'm still basking in the glow of it all five days later.
How's the digging out going?? This is heavy, wet snow, the type we usually see in March.
AND here is my fifth winter sports show of the season!
More to come. I have a sports show recorded, but I'm now facing all sorts of technical difficulties!! Grr!
SO I overcame the tech troubles and got the sports show posted. Here's my thoughts on what I hope you can accomplish on a day where the kids are home from school and there are no activities tonight. This can go for anyone, especially if you're a student-athlete!
1.) Thrive on the extra family time; play a game of cards, a board game, watch a Christmas movie!
2.) Do something physical like build a snow castle or snowman, or if you're indoors something as simple as some jumping jacks or jogging in place! We have a small workout studio in our basement with a Pro Form treadmill and a bench press. Money well spent!
3.) If you're a student-athlete, go on YouTube and watch a game! Watch something! Anything! Get your mind in the game. Don't punch out too far, because competition is right around the corner...trust me. It will happen tomorrow!
4.) Keep your rest up, your fluid intake up and eat some greens! Let's be in peak health heading towards the Christmas break!
5.) READ! Read anything! Study something. Expand your mind! This is for anyone who is old enough to read!
I might have more ideas later tonight. I just got done building a large tower/snowman with one of my daughters. I am going to REST!
*Here's a clip I haven't posted from the girls' basketball season opener...
With action at about the 4 minute mark in the second half, the Jaguars had already started subbing down with the win well in hand over Melrose. And let's go to a week ago...I was watching some of my video from Holdingford...and the game was tied 2-2 with 13:36 left in the first half!!! That's crazy.
**AND the announcement came out around 8:30 p.m. tonight...B-B-E will start two hours late tomorrow, Friday, December 16.
High School Band winter Christmas concert! (VIDEOS)
Over two days later, I am finally getting to the band concert video...what a week it has been so far. We're just about at the midway point.
Aidan Johnson (trumpet) and Samantha Baker (clarinet) took on the difficult roles of playing solos during the concert on Monday night. This is no small feat! They performed during the song 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas' and did a phenomenal job. I am so proud of these kids.
VIDEO:
I've got a clip posted at the Bonanza Valley Voice website featuring one of the Christmas carols played by the senior high band. You can watch that by clicking here: https://bit.ly/3BxXFVJ.
It's a whirlwind right now! Activities are pounding away again and it is BUSY! This is a GOOD thing! It is going to pound and pound and pound away here for the next 8 days!! Eight days of crazy and then we all get a soft landing into B-B-E's Christmas vacation that begins on Friday, December 23.
ANNOUNCEMENT:
The home dance competition scheduled for tomorrow has been postponed until Thursday, January 19. The time and location remain the same: B-B-E elementary school at 6 p.m.
More to come. It's time to pack up for the barbershop quartet singers who are coming to Grace Lutheran church in Belgrade tonight! They begin singing at 7 p.m.
**Update...here's a short video clip I recorded tonight at Grace:
Tomorrow night I hope it will work out for a trip to Ashby! Yes, way north on I-94 for our boys' basketball team's second game of the season. This game will count in the Section 6A standings. Last year the Arrows fell in the sub-section semifinals to Hancock.
**AND another announcement that I'm a day late on...the non-conference game with Upsala for our B-B-E Jaguars girls' basketball team was postponed until Thursday, December 22 at home. The times are as follows: JV game at 4:15 p.m. in Belgrade and the varsity tip-off to follow at 5:30 p.m.!
I'm late to the party in announcing this but...today B-B-E schools dismissed at 1 p.m. and 1:15 p.m., respectively, with busing departing the buildings at those times. The weather is at best "sketchy" now with icy rain coming down. There are no activities tonight. This is harsh to lose the girls' basketball game. HARSH. But as I told a couple of our teachers, 'We are all part of something bigger that we cannot see, so today we need to enjoy extra family time and make the most of it."
As I was combing through my concert photos from last night, I had a few more thoughts. In addition to the choirs, I also ESPECIALLY enjoyed the solos by Aidan Johnson and Samantha Baker with the senior high band. The Christmas caroling and final songs performed by the band were outstanding!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU to directors Kathryn Freeman and Sean Biehn!!! We will all work together and PUT OUR BACKS INTO building up our music program! The work continues.
Speaking of work, while it's likely your son or daughter was unable or perhaps forgot to bring their band instrument home, whether they're in band or choir they could spend part of this "partial snow day" improving themselves musically. There are countless ways this can happen. I shouldn't have to be the one giving those ideas out. EVERY DAY is a good day to become better!
Here's a clip of the senior high band performing one of their final songs last night:
More to come. I am bearing down on the 16-page layout and I hope it won't put me in an early grave!
**UPDATE at 6 p.m.: I fully expect that we could lose power tonight. There is heavy ice accumulating on the trees in town. YIKES. If there's any more weather-related announcements, I'll get that/them posted in a new blog post.
The action starts at 7:30 p.m. tonight at Olson Auditorium in the high school.
UPDATE: that was a marvelous concert!! I think the best part was when band director Sean Biehn asked his senior high band members to stand up when he called out each student's activity...as in, the robotics kids, the track and field kids, the speech kids, the musical kids, the tennis kids, etc...there were numerous kids standing up for multiple activities. We are BLESSED with amazing kids here in Jaguar Country!
I doubt I will get to look at or upload any of my concert video until Wednesday. Right now I have the weight of the world on me as I am working on a 16-page newspaper issue. I am in a marathon right now and have to keep my eyes on the prize.
**OKAY! That concert was TOO good to resist looking at video...seriously...here's a clip from the senior high choir performance:
The choir was singing Underneath The Tree which is a popular modern Christmas song most recently made popular by Kelly Clarkson.
I also ESPECIALLY enjoyed the solos by Aidan Johnson and Samantha Baker with the senior high band. The Christmas caroling and final songs performed by the band were outstanding!!! THANK YOU THANK YOU to directors Kathryn Freeman and Sean Biehn!!! We will all work together and PUT OUR BACKS INTO building up our music program! The work continues.
On a downer note...I am not feeling good about the odds that we'll have a home girls' basketball game tomorrow night. The forecast looks truly awful. We'll see how it all pans out. As much as we want to live in denial, the fact of the matter is the 3 to 5 inches of snow that we're predicted to get will not bode well for any type of rural traveling.
Wrestlers light up West Central Area Invitational field (VIDEOS*)
Today was a huge, huge day for our B-B-E Jaguars wrestling team. They entered a tough field at the West Central Area/Grant County invitational in Barrett and mopped up on the competition. First place, baby!!!! How sweet it is. I only know of two champions, but I am sure there are more: 106-pound Noah Welte and 138-pound Ryan Jensen. *Two other B-B-E champions were Maximus Hanson (170) and Ethan Spanier (220).
More to come after I see the full set of scores.
CHECK THIS OUT! The Jaguars absolutely did mop up on the field with a boost by its four champions. They tallied 207 team points compared to runner-up and host WCA/Ashby/Brandon-Evansville's 163 points. OH! And I forgot to mention: WCA/A/BE was ranked No. 2 in the state in the latest Guillotine rankings. In third place was No. 12-ranked Canby with 153 points. No. 11-ranked Border West had a tough day with a sixth-place finish with 94 team points. This was a very, VERY good day for our wrestling program.
**While I'm researching Trackwrestling, get a load of this crazy fourth installment of my Winter Sports Show; you just might not believe it, because I hardly do myself:
By the time we got towards the end of the game, the general feeling was that the game was in a tie. The 9 p.m. end time of open gym was just a couple minutes away. So Gannon and Kyle from each team agreed that it would go to the last made shot to determine the winner. Cameron Loe on my team got the final bucket on a layup. That was exciting. By then, everyone else who was at open gym had poured over into the main gymnasium to watch. I'm telling you: it was quite the spectacle.
And for the record! I recorded that just 28 minutes after I left the court at B-B-E high school at the conclusion of our 5-on-5 basketball game. I was feeling very, very good at the time of recording. Now one full hour later, my calves are burning! It is good that track and field season is still a few months away, because I'm not ready for that whatsoever. I have many nights on the treadmill ahead of me during the upcoming winter months. Currently I'm laying down and resting after hitting the shower. I am definitely an old man, but that still does not mean I can't push myself to become better, or even bigger, faster and stronger!! It is ALWAYS good to challenge yourself to become better. And EVERY DAY is a great day to give the absolute best effort that you can. As I said on Box Score Sports last Tuesday: being in peak health is something we should all strive for.
Next day update: I woke up on Sunday morning being able to walk! I consider that a win.
Back to our wrestlers...
I just saw that Talen Kampsen had an outstanding tournament today with a third-place finish at 195 pounds. He finished 3-1 overall and got to the third-place match with a win by pin in just 22 seconds against Canby's Sawyer Drietz. In the third-place match, Kampsen won an exciting 8-7 decision against Kaden Holt of Pelican Rapids.
Grant County wrestling results by weight division:
106 - Noah Welte 1st place
113 - Aiden Mueller 3rd
120 - Louie Tensen 4th
126 - open
132 - open
138 - Ryan Jensen 1st
145 - Wyatt Engen 2nd (Engen upset the No. 2 seed in the bracket with a win by fall (4:42) to get into the championship)
152 - Tanner Viessman 3rd
160 - Hunter Laage did not place
170 - Maximus Hanson 1st
182 - Carson Gilbert 2nd
195 - Talen Kampsen 3rd
220 - Ethan Spanier 1st (Spanier won the title with a win by decision in sudden victory fashion!)
285 - Harley Weber 2nd (Weber lost a heartbreaker by a 3-2 decision in his championship)
More to come, but probably not until the newspaper comes out next week. I will get more details from this tournament in print. Starting on Sunday this weekend, I have to gear up for what will likely be a 16-page newspaper. I know it will be at least 16, but I doubt there's any chance I'll be able to make it 18 pages.
*I may repost this later in a new blog post...but this was a great sequence later in the second half at Holdingford on Friday; the Jaguars went down swinging and fought the entire way:
The day of Saturday, December 10 was crazy busy from start to finish. It was similar to the Saturday we had a week ago. And that Saturday a week ago is just two weeks removed from a musical to end all musicals that we had in Olson Auditorium. Today there were visits by Santa Claus in both Belgrade and and Brooten, and The Grinch even made a stop at the Brooten Lanes for a period of time that was so remarkable I can't even begin to describe it. Our Brooten lighted Christmas parade was wonderful and included three groups of royalty from Brooten, Belgrade and Starbuck. I was so thrilled I could hardly believe it when Miss Brooten Jacey Tensen was able to make it to town before the parade. Jacey was tied up all day starting with a 5:45 a.m. bus with the wrestling team in Barrett. She and fellow senior Cali Knutson are the wrestling team student managers. Katelynn Uphus made the drive down from college in Grand Forks, and Tiyana Schwinghammer was able to be there from start to finish along with Katelynn for all the activities at the Brooten Lanes after she had family commitments earlier in the day. The town was buzzing with activity all night. The bowling alley had a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd almost the entire time! Both the KaDe Shack and Marcia's Bar and Grill were also busy all evening.
The margins were very tight for many of us, but we put it all together and made the day work. And a special thank you to Tim and Suzie Tensen for commandeering the Miss Brooten Suburban for the parade! That allowed me to get some much-needed photos of an event we hold just once a year in Brooten.
All the words in the world can't express how our community is glowing right now. Its people just glow. It's wonderful.
