THERE IS A "MAJOR CHANGE" COMING UP IN THE SPORTS FEEVER COLUMN.   I AM MOVING THE UPDATE DATE EACH WEEK TO WEDNESDAY EVENING.  

I will start updating the Feever on Wednesday night, the first Wednesday of July.

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Things are slowing down a bit and I am looking forward to a couple months of down time before we start all over again!   Another Fathers Day has come and gone and my wife, Tiffany, and I celebrated our anniversary on Tuesday.   I am a lucky guy and thankful for the 14 years of marriage and four kids.

The summer is always a challenging one for the Feever, so if you have any news or information, make sure to send it my way at chrisjfee@yahoo.com.

Thanks for reading and enjoy the summer!!!!

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The Minnesota CCM HP summer camp is being held this week and several kids from the area are participating.

The 14U HP Camp has a lot of area players, including Crookston’s Jack Doda participating in the camp.  Others from section 8 are –
Tyric Kennett of Red Lake Falls
Carson Reed of Warroad
Caleb Schmiedeberg of East Grand Forks
Brett Holmer, Justin Funk and Izaak Keefe of Thief River Falls
Caleb Anderson, Thomas Schroeder, Carson Triggs and Kasyn Storbakken of Moorhead
Kellen Murphy and Nate Furuseth of Roseau

The Boys 15U team has several players from the Section 8 area. 
Thor Byfuglien, Damon Furuseth, Gavin Gunderson, Paul Huglen and Carson Strand of Roseau
Logan Spencer and Tanner Lubinski of East Grand Forks
Maxwell Dronen of Moorhead
Blake Norris of Warroad

The 2018 USA Hockey Boys Select 16 and 17’s National Development Camp will be July 7-13 in Amherst, New York and some Section 8 players have been selected.
Luke Gramer of Moorhead will play on the 16’s and Aaron Huglen of Roseau will play on the 17’s.

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We have had a few more coaches give us their thought on the shot clock and restricted arc decisions by the MSHSL. 

I am very much in favor of implementing both the shot clock and the arc. Each  would make the game better. The shot clock would add an element to the game that would be favorable to both players and fans. The arc would make that charge/block call a little more straight forward. I think it will still be a tough call that coaches and fans will debate (as to if the primary or secondary defender was set or sill moving) because it such a quick play. It should however make it a little better defined and will improve safety. I have seen a handful of offensive fouls called the past couple of seasons in which the defender was positioned right underneath or very close to the hoop. That isn't safe for either player. Each of those rule changes will require some adjustments, but are ones I am looking forward to making.

Darrin Zimmerman
Crookston Girls Basketball Coach



VERY disappointed that the shot clock didn't go through!   It adds to a more exciting game and players enjoy playing the up & down style.  We think it would have helped the game overall.  It would have encouraged more teams to build depth and would have created more fan excitement.
Not a big fan of the restriction arc as officials tend to call more blocks now.  We saw a lot of this when we played in ND as they will point that the players were in the restriction area even though the film shows they weren't.  It will be difficult to sell kids to stand in and take a charge.

Arly Ohm
Breckenridge Boys Basketball Coach

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The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Men's Basketball program is hosting a team camp this week and they have several area schools attending.

Crookston, Red Lake County, Grand Forks Red River, Climax-Fisher, Fosston, Grand Forks Central, Sacred Heart and Win-E-Mac. 

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The 2018 Northwest Diamond Conference All-Conference Baseball team has been released.  It is below.

Conference MVP - Brett Fetting (ABNCW)
Offensive Player of the Year - Tyler Isane (BGMR)
Pitcher of the year - Brenden Bethke (Sacred Heart)
Coach of the Year - Mike Erickson (ABNCW)

All Conference team -
Ada-Borup/NCW - Brett Fetting, Miguel Garcia III, Robert Whiting, and Braiden Fetting
BGMR - Tyler Isane, Kamrin Weets, and Bryce Bergeron
Sacred Heart - Brenden Bethke, Will Rohrich, and Gage Wavra
Fosston - Hunter Kroening, Treydon Boushee, and Brett Sundquist
KCC - Jadyn Swenson, Sawyer Billings
NCE/UH - Sunny Resnick, Isaac Resnick
West Marshall - Stoene Spilde, Hunter Yutrzenka
Win-E-Mac - Gavin Walker, Dustin Osland
Fertile-Beltrami - Michael Stuhaug
Red Lake County - Nate Hofstad
Northern Freeze - Zach Undeberg

All Conference Honorable Mention-
ABNCW - Colby Stevenson
BGMR - Logan Anderson
Sacred Heart - Evan Sczepanski, Oscar Ortiz
Fosston - Kyle Jacobson, Zach Vig
KCC - Reese Steen, Brad Stewart, Zach Johnson
NCE/UH - Riley Resnick
West Marshall - Dawson Feuillerat
Win-E-Mac - Blake Glass, Emelian Hanson
Fertile-Beltrami - Athan McCollum
Red Lake County - Adrien Verbout
Northern Freeze - Walker Dembiczac, Houston Blankenship, Jackson Spilde, Jaacks Spilde

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The Minnesota High School Baseball coaches association recently announced their All-State teams and a couple area kids made the team.

Class A -
Hunter Kroening of Fosston

Class AA -
Jake Dykhoff of Wadena-Deer Creek

The All-State Academic teams were also recently announced and the area kids are listed below-

Class A -
Blake Glass of Win-E-Mac
Stoene Spilde of West Marshall

Class AA -
Cameron Dahlin of Thief River Falls
Dave Reaves of Roseau
 

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I have had a couple people ask me about state trap shooting wondering how it work.  I had one person who is an avid outdoorsman say the state tournament was held last week, but I told him, technically it was NOT.  The Minnesota State High School League is holding the official state tournament this week.   Here is the deal.....
The "State" Tournament in Alexandria isn't a "state" tournament like football, hockey, basketball, etc would call it.   In comparison to football, hockey, basketball etc, the Alexandria nine day shoot would be a Section tournament.  The event in Alexandria isn't technically sponsored by the MSHSL, but the top 40 teams from the shoot qualify for the MSHSL state tournament this weekend.  So there you go.  I think I have all of it right and if I don't, I hope somebody will let me know.  

The Minnesota State High School League will hold their final state tournament of the school year on  Friday, June 22 when the Clay Target State Tournament is held at Minneapolis Gun Club in Prior Lake. Here is a look at the tournament:

When: Friday, June 22, 2018
Where: Minneapolis Gun Club, 20006 Judicial Road, Prior Lake, MN 55372

Schedule:
7:30-8 a.m. --- Team competition check-in
8:30 a.m. --- Opening ceremony
9 a.m. --- Team competition begins
12:15 p.m. (approximate) --- Team awards ceremony
12:30-1 p.m. --- Individual competition check-in
1 p.m. --- Individual competition begins
3:30 p.m. (approx.) --- Individual awards ceremony
Tournament results: www.claytargetleaderboard.com
Admission, parking: Admission and parking are free to this event.

Competing teams: St. Michael-Albertville, Wayzata, Park Rapids, Lakeview, Badger/Greenbush-Middle River, Alexandria Area, Bemidji, New Prague, Alden-Conger, Marshall, Hibbing, Roseau, United South Central, Lakeville South, Fairmont, Mahtomedi, Champlin Park, Buffalo, Delano, Perham, East Grand Forks, Austin, Tri-City United, Prior Lake, Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg, Hutchinson, Farmington, Cambridge-Isanti, Monticello, Northfield, St. Peter, Spring Grove, Rogers, Zimmerman, Owatonna, Belle Plaine, Maple Grove, Ada-Borup/Norman County West, Big Lake, Willmar.

Individual champions return: Kimball Area’s Jack Knaus, the 2016 state champion, and New Prague’s Woodrow Glazer, the defending champion, have qualified for this week’s state tournament.

Qualifying: There are 115 participants and 40 teams that have qualified for the state tournament. 

2017 top teams, order of finish: 1. St. Michael-Albertville. 2. Hibbing. 3. Blaine.

2017 top individuals, order of finish: 1. Woodrow Glazer, New Prague. 2. Jeremy Knight, Alexandria Area. 3. Lane Berning, St. Michael-Albertville. 4. Cody Schoen, St. Michael-Albertville. 5. Jesse Groen, Blaine. 6. Jake Nohre, Brandon-Evansville. 7. Zac Olson, Lakeville South. 8. Jake Johnson, Lakeville South.

Top Gun All-State Team: At the conclusion of the state tournament, eight participants will be selected to the Mills Fleet Farm Top Gun All-State Team. Mills Fleet Farm is a premier sponsor of the Clay Target state tournament.

History: In 2012, the Minnesota State High School League became the first high school activities association in the nation to provide support and recognition for Clay Target. The first tournament was held in 2014. In 2018, there were more than 12,000 participants representing 349 high school teams. They are coached and supported by more than 4,000 volunteers.

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University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Baseball's Zach Seipel, is leaving UMC early for a chance to play professional baseball for the Atlanta Braves organization.  He officially signed last week and started with his new team on Tuesday.  Below is a story by the University of Minnesota Crookston Sports Information department.

Seipel's Improbable Journey Leads Him From Minnesota Crookston to the Minor Leagues
A 21-year-old has his eyes focused on the screen of his phone. Will he, or won’t he? The nerves are getting to him as the time passes and he hasn’t seen or heard his name. He tries to calm himself and get away from his thoughts by watching the occasional comedic YouTube video. Then in an instant, his life changes. On the screen, next to the Atlanta Braves logo he spots his name. It reads Zach Seipel, right-handed reliever from the University of Minnesota Crookston. What was unthinkable three years prior has happened! The 6-3 Eagan, Minn., native has been selected in the Major League Baseball draft by the storied Braves franchise. The same organization that developed pitchers that generations of kids would try to emulate; Tom Glavine, John Smoltz, Warren Spahn, Phil Niekro. The Minnesota Crookston baseball program had their first MLB draft pick, another inconceivable notion just four years prior when Head Coach Steve Gust took over a program that had gone 2-89 in the previous two seasons.
We flashback to a fall day in Northwest Minnesota, a freshman catcher is trying to prove himself behind the dish and find time behind two already established catchers in senior Colton Haight and redshirt sophomore Zach Frazier. On this day, Seipel was catching a bullpen when Head Baseball Coach Steve Gust asked if anyone else wanted to throw a bullpen session.  “We needed a guy to finish a bullpen session for us, and we were low on pitchers that year, so we said if someone wants to throw, here you go,” Gust said. “He was one of those guys who threw a few innings in legion and high school. The ball just jumped out of his hands. We didn’t have a gun at that time, but it jumped out of his hands better than anyone we had at that time. Once we saw that, he was our third catcher at that time, and he was way more valuable on the mound than being our third catcher, so we told him to sell his catcher’s glove, and go to pitchers practice the next day.”
Haight, who was a senior catcher when Seipel was a freshman also observed the velocity and arm strength of Seipel. Haight had noticed these attributes in the freshman catcher, but was surprised to see the power and skill with which he was able to throw the ball from the mound. “You could tell, the ball just jumped out of his hand,” Haight said. “Zach always had the arm strength. When he was behind the plate he always had it, and he was a pretty big kid, and his feet were slow, and his pop times weren’t great. You put him on the mound, and he threw a pretty heavy ball, and I knew he could be pretty good for us.”
Seipel made an instant impact for the Golden Eagles as a freshman as he went 2-1 with a 4.24 ERA in 17.0 innings pitched and a school-record 11 saves. Seipel owes the manner in which he was able to make the quick transition to Coach Gust and his pitching coach at the time, Ryan Paasch. The newly-minted closer for Minnesota Crookston ended the 2016 season as an All-NSIC Second Team selection.
“Coach Gust was huge in helping me make the transition,” Seipel said. “He started me from scratch, and I went from a thrower to a pitcher. At that time, it was him and Coach Paasch, and they would compare videos from different pitchers. I had not really known the mechanical pieces, and they helped me develop my mechanics as a pitcher. The body development was coming with age, and the mechanics were something that I had to learn.”

“One thing Zach really did work on was his lower half, and now were talking about a kid who is bigger in size, and we knew he was going to get bigger, and stronger,” Gust said. “He really bought into the lower half stuff that we preach, and he started tinkering with other pitches, and pretty soon he had good bite on his breaking stuff. He was always in the zone, and back then we had Wally (Nolan Wahlberg) and Jarad Nelson, and those guys who were strike throwers, not great stuff,  but strike throwers. That helped him as far as understanding the value of being in the zone, and being out of the zone when you can be out of the zone. He’s gotten bigger, stronger and more explosive, and every year he has shown improvement.”

Seipel had come a long way in his one year with Minnesota Crookston as a pitcher. It wasn’t exactly the road he thought he would be on when he first started to be recruited by Coach Gust and the Golden Eagles. Gust shed some light on how it was that Seipel, a 5-9 catcher at the time, ended up in Northwest Minnesota.  “It would have been American Legion going into his senior year,” Gust said. “It was one of those things where I was at the tournament for three days. It was a Sunday, and I decided to go home rather than go to the game, but I ran into Bloomington stadium on my way home, so I decided to stop, and it was 110 degrees out. I usually sat off to the side, but because it was so hot, I sat under a shelter in the stands. I happened to sit right next to Zach’s grandma. She pointed her grandson out. I noticed him, and he played the game the right way. One thing I noticed about him was he was smaller than he is now, but he had great arm strength.”

Needless to say, not many people expected exactly what was to come from Zach Seipel in his three years at Minnesota Crookston, Zach included. “No, not really,” Seipel laughed as he was asked if he ever dreamed that he would be drafted as a pitcher.

Two people who did believe a career in baseball could be possible were Gust and Haight.  “He always had it in him,” Haight said. “He is one of the hardest workers I have ever been around. Zach is a good worker, high character kid, and you always knew what you were going to get from him, I knew that the sky was the limit for him. I just didn’t think he could get where he is as fast as he did. But I knew it was a possibility.”

“I think as he started to develop on the mound,” Gust said. “Even his freshman year, we said, this kid could be pretty good. We knew he hadn’t reached his potential even though he had a lot of saves his freshman year. How good can he be? We will see. During his freshman year, we thought this kid could be pretty special. That only works if the kid works hard, has the desire, and is coachable, and he has all those and more.”

Over the next two years on the mound, Seipel continued to put in the work and improve on the bump. He posted a 2.41 ERA as a sophomore and bested his saves total as a freshman with 12 saves as a sophomore in 41.0 innings pitched. Last season, as a junior, Seipel finished 4-2 with a 2.70 ERA in 36.2 innings pitched. Seipel struck out a staggering 63 batters with just 17 walks for a strikeout/walk ratio of 3.71:1. He averaged an amazing 1.7 strikeouts per inning for the Golden Eagles in his junior campaign. Seipel earned All-NSIC Second Team again as a sophomore, coming just votes away from a first team nod. He would earn the All-NSIC First Team recognition as a junior. Seipel’s work paid dividends as he continued to get stronger and improve his arsenal as a pitcher. More importantly though, Seipel grew as a leader for the team.  “From a physical standpoint, he has gotten bigger and stronger,” Haight said. “Physical and athletically speaking, he has grown a ton. What has impressed me the most is his ability to lead. Our staff from his first year to his third year is completely different, and it’s because of him. Guys look up to him, and he leads by example.”

Gust expanded on what Haight had to say, but also talked about Seipel’s strengths as a pitcher that helped him to earn the accolades and become one of the most decorated players in Minnesota Crookston baseball history.  “He generates a lot from his lower half,” Gust siad. “Zach has great arm speed. Those two things are tough to teach. His secondary pitches are good, and his spin rate on his pitches are really good. You can’t teach explosiveness, and arm strength, and he is one of the best as far as those two things go, and he is only going to get better.”

Though everyone familiar with Seipel and the Golden Eagles knew he was special. It wasn’t until mid-way through the 2018 season that fans and supporters of the program, along with the players and coaches, realized Seipel’s future as a professional might come sooner than once thought. During a Spring Break trip to Kissimmee, Fla., Atlanta Braves scout Randy Briesacher, also a chiropractic physician and pitching coach for Century College in the Twin Cities, saw the progress Seipel had put in and was impressed how far the fireballer had come. Briesacher watched Seipel during games at the Florida Fire Frogs complex. The Fire Frogs are the Class A-Advanced team for the Atlanta Braves organization.  “We kind of knew he was a prospect, and we knew he was draft eligible this year,” Gust said. “We started in the fall promoting him to the people we knew at the professional level. As the season went on and people started to hear about him, the word spread like wildfire. Especially later in the year, we had a couple scouts look at him, and we had a couple scouts look at him last year, and wanting to keep tabs on him. A lot of the scouts understood not only what he is now, but what he could be in two, three, or five years. The last few weeks of the season were a constant flurry in terms of guys wanting to see him, inquiring more about him. Phone calls, emails, text messages, guys showing up at games. It was a circus the last few weeks of the season, and then with the draft being a week earlier, scouts were behind the eight ball a bit this year.”
It was also during the Florida trip that everything started to become a reality for Seipel that he could be a MLB draft prospect for 2018.  “We figured that the scouts were there in Florida, as Randy from the Braves was there,” Seipel said. “I think that (Reed) Hjelle’s parents sent my parents a picture of the radar gun. Once we saw there were other teams interested, we figured it could be a reality. I thought that it wasn’t going to happen, but leading up to it, there were questionnaires and materials scouts wanted me to fill out. It set in when they started talking potential money if I were to be drafted.”  The craziness for Seipel continued as he worked out after the season for several scouts including in front of his hometown Minnesota Twins and in front of former Twins General Manager Terry Ryan, now a scout for the Philadelphia Phillies. On both occasions, Haight caught for Seipel as he tried to prove that he was a strong prospect for both teams. Along with the Phillies, and Twins, Seipel also received interest from the Texas Rangers and Cincinnati Reds, among others. However, it was the Atlanta Braves that exhibited the most interest throughout the process.  “Randy (Briesacher) had talked to my family before me, so my parents had an idea that they had interest before I did,” Seipel said. “He reached out to me on the questionnaire. I don’t think we talked until after the season was over. The relationship took off a week or two before the draft.”
The story and the winding road of this intense and crazy process for Seipel brings us back to June 6, 2018. He had previously been told that he could possibly be selected as high as the 25th round. June 6 was the third day of the draft with rounds 10-40 broadcast on MLB.com. Seipel had hoped he would be drafted, but nothing was for certain. So he sat and he waited and he focused on his phone, joined by his mom Kim and his girlfriend Kristina, trying to be patient and trying to avoid the negative thoughts pulsating through his brain trying to convince him that he wouldn’t be drafted.
“It was very nerve wracking,” Seipel said. “I had the draft on and I had to switch over to Youtube and watch something else and keep my mind off of it. I had my girlfriend and mom there to calm me down.”
It was at 2:42 p.m. C.T. when Seipel’s heart began to race as he gazed upon his name on the screen. He had expected a call from the team that would draft him before he was picked, thus was surprised that he had been selected with the 802nd pick in the 27th round by the Atlanta Braves. It was soon after that he received a call from Briesacher congratulating him on being drafted. “I saw my name pop-up, and I expected a call beforehand,” Seipel said. “The Braves scout called me, and I accidentally hung up on him not knowing the number. We then played a little phone tag and that was pretty nerve wracking.”
The day was one of the most exciting experiences in the young life of Seipel. Though it was a whirlwind, it didn’t quite hit him that this was reality until later in the day.
Coach Gust was excited about Seipel’s selection to the Atlanta Braves. He believes it is the perfect landing spot for Seipel and though he will miss having Seipel anchoring the back-end of his bullpen, he can’t wait to see what he is able to do as a professional pitcher.
“I think its an ideal situation,” Gust said. “The Braves were number one on the list as far as showing interest in him. They gave him an offer that showed me, that showed Zach that they’re committed to him for the long haul. He is not gonna show up to rookie ball and be cut after the first year. The dollar amount really isn’t significant other than it shows that they are committed to him. That is number one. They develop pitchers in the Braves organization, and he is in the right place, and the right team.”
Now that Seipel has signed a contract with the Atlanta Braves organization, he will take the next step in his career. He spent time last week at the Braves extended Spring Training facility next to Walt Disney World in Kissimmee, Fla. He then boarded a bus and headed for Danville, Va., where he is set to begin his career as a member of the Braves Advanced-Rookie team, the Danville Braves. Seipel discussed what his future in the organization currently looks like.
“The Braves have looked over all the pitching stuff and have talked to me about what I do and what I want to do,” Seipel said. “They have me as a reliever, but they have asked me to maybe start, but it hasn’t been set in stone. The last week-and-a-half has been hectic. I will heading to Danville and we open up our season June 19.”
Though Seipel is excited about his future, it will be tough leaving behind his brothers on the Minnesota Crookston baseball team.
“It was certainly difficult,” Seipel said. “I had built great relationships with a lot of people and I was great friends with everybody. This is the dream, and it was an offer I couldn’t refuse. I will still see all my former teammates in the offseason. Being able to do school afterwards is something I couldn’t turn down and they have helped set me up to where I will be able to do finish out my degree in health management at Minnesota Crookston.”
Seipel also discussed his parent’s reaction and how they are handling their 21-year-old son going out on his own and starting his career 1,154 miles away from home in Danville, Va.
“They’re excited, but nervous,” Seipel said. “They are very happy for me, and very supportive of me. As long as I am happy and comfortable where I am at, they are happy for me.”
Golden Eagle fans and Seipel’s teammates are excited to watch where his professional career takes him. June 6 was a big day in the history of a program that has come a long way in four seasons under Coach Gust. When Gust first arrived in June of 2014, the program was at the bottom of the NSIC standings having won just two games in two years and 12 games in three years. Since then, the Golden Eagles have won 87 games and have made two NSIC Tournament appearances. Now, the program can claim their first-ever MLB draft pick.
“We always believed that it is a great school to go to, and a great program, and I think that this only justifies it,” Gust said. “The publicity is huge, not only the program, but our university. It shows that it doesn’t matter where you are at, they will find you. He is just one example of a kid believing in a program and a school, and doing what he can do to help the school, and the program.”
“It is huge for the program, but it is not just me.” Seipel said. “They have great athletes coming through with Hjelle, and all of his accolades. When I was first looking at it, it was a smaller school, they weren’t having the most success, but Gust has turned the program around, and it is a big reason as to why I am here today.
“A lot of big time recruits want to go to the big colleges,” Haight said. “Coach Gust prides himself on local talent. Seeing a guy like Zach get drafted is pretty cool, and people are going to want to come to the University of Minnesota Crookston and play baseball, so it is huge deal for the program.”
Zach Seipel has gone from a kid going to the cages with his father, to a 5-9 catcher at Eagan High School earning a baseball scholarship to Minnesota Crookston. Now he is a 6-3 pitcher chasing the ultimate dream of one day playing in the MLB for the Atlanta Braves. Coach Gust believes Seipel has it in him to one day toe the rubber at SunTrust Park in Atlanta, Ga.
“He can absolutely make it to the Majors,” Gust said.” It will not be an easy road but his stuff is only going to get better, and he will see the success carry over from the collegiate level due to his great work ethic.”
It is amazing how a chance encounter of a recruit, and a life-changing bullpen outing in the fall has led to this point. Now the 21-year-old suburban Twin Cities product sits in Southern Virginia awaiting his first call to the pen by the Danville Braves. What will the next step be for Seipel? Only time will tell, but because of his work ethic and determination and his mid 90’s fastball and developing offspeed pitches, the sky's the limit. One day, maybe next to names like Glavine, Spahn, Niekro and Smoltz baseball pundits might utter the name Seipel. Yes it is a dream, it might not come true. But life has already led Seipel to this unpredictable point, it isn’t far-fetched to ponder this future. If it does come to fruition, this writer, his teammates, coaches, and the community at Minnesota Crookston will look on with pride for the 6-3 fireballer from Eagan who saw his dreams come true on day three of the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft.

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The Crookston High School 16th Annual Pirate Pride Golf Scramble will be held Friday, July 13 at Minakwa.
9:00 Registration
10:00 Shotgun Start
Lunch will be served starting at 11:00

$60 per person includes, T-Shirt, 18 holes of golf, sandwich, salad, chips,
4 member teams

Call Clubhouse to reserve a cart (not included)

Must be 18 years of age or have graduated High School
All proceeds will help support Crookston High School Pirate Athletics.  We are doing a raffle again this year.  Talk to any coach or the staff at Minakwa about buying tickets.

PRE-REGISTRATION APPRECIATED
Please contact Steve Kofoed @ (c) 320-290-9904 or stevenkofoed@isd593.org leaving a message with your team members is fine.

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Warroad will be hosting the Warwick Workouts Advanced Offensive Player Development Camp for basketball players on July 23-25.
Location: Warroad High School Gym

Offensive Skills Camp 3rd-8th Grade Boys/Girls
Register according to the grade you will be in fall of 2018

Camp Overview
This camp is an offensive skill-development camp designed to challenge athletes. Athletes will learn the foundation of basketball, starting with the fundamentals of ball handling, including stationary, two-ball dribble series and full-court ball handling. The camp also will focus on shooting technique through drills and progression-based teaching.
Camp Features
· Shooting instruction and development
· Footwork and shot preparation
· Finishing Drills
· Stationary ball handling
· 2 Ball Dribble Series
· Advanced ball handling concepts

Advanced Offensive Skills Camp
9th-12th Grade Boys/Girls Register according to the grade you will be in fall of 2018
Camp Overview
The Warwick Workout Advanced Offensive Skills Camp is designed for players looking to enhance and expand their skill set. Warwick Workout trainers will work with players to excel in their respective positions through progression-based teaching and repetition.
Camp Features
· Perimeter moves currently used in college & NBA
· Shooting instruction and development
· Footwork and shot preparation
· Creating space to score
· Finishing at the rim
· Advanced ball handling concepts

For more camp information, cost, and registration form, click here

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The University of Minnesota Crookston football program will  host a high school camp on July 22. In addition, Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA) will host a 7-on-7 camp on the Minnesota Crookston campus June 20. The FCA camp is not sponsored by Minnesota Crookston.
If you are interested in participating, contact assistant coach Sam Gooding at sgooding@umn.edu or you can register in person on the day of the camps from 5:30-6 p.m.
 

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The University of Minnesota Crookston volleyball program is excited to announce that they will host Summer Camps for the second-consecutive season. The Golden Eagles will host three camps over three days from July 11-13 at the UMC Sports Center.
The camp offerings commence July 11 with a Positional Day Camp beginning with check-in at 8 a.m. It is available to players entering grade 7 to players entering college. The cost of the camp is $25 per session and $80 for all sessions. The sessions will run from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The first session will focus on attacking and blocking and will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. The second session will focus on passing and defense and will run from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Lunch will be served in Brown Dining Center from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The serving session will then commence at 12:30 p.m. and run until 2 p.m. The final session will focus on setting and will take place from 2 p.m. until 3:30 p.m.

UMC will host a Junior Eagles Skills Camp July 12-13 at the Minnesota Crookston Sports Center. The camp is available to players entering grades six and under. Registration is $60 and includes a gift for all participants. Check-in for the camp will be at 8:30 a.m., with the camp taking place from 9-11:30 a.m. The camp will feature instruction from Minnesota Crookston Head Coach Sarah Rauen, Assistant Coach Anna Morgan and current Golden Eagle volleyball players.

The final camp offering is a Golden Eagles Skill Camp from July 12-13 at the Minnesota Crookston Sports Center. The camp is available to players entering grades seven to players entering college. The camp runs from July 12 at 1 p.m. to July 13 at 3 p.m. Campers have the option to commute to the camp or stay on-campus during the duration of the camp. The cost for a commuter is $150 and the cost for a resident is $200. Participants also have the option to request a roommate. Campers will receive instruction from the Minnesota Crookston volleyball coaches and current players. Participants will also receive a camp gift.

Those interested in participating in the camp can contact Anna Morgan at amorgan@umn.edu or 218-281-8410 or mail-in registration forms to the address below.  Click here for the registration form.

2900 University Ave.
Attn: Anna Morgan
Crookston, MN 56716
*Make checks payable to Minnesota Crookston VB

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The Crookston Pirate Booster Club is gearing up for its annual membership drive. PIRATE BOOSTERS exists to support Crookston High boys’ and girls’ athletic programs.
The PIRATE BOOSTERS provide financial assistance which allows student athletes to obtain equipment, uniforms, warm-ups and facilities enhancements. Your annual investment will help the athletic needs of the Crookston High School student athletes.

With your contribution of $100.00 or more, you will have your name placed on the PIRATE BOOSTERS sustaining membership board which is located in the CHS Commons. In addition, your name will be placed in all printed programs for CHS athletic events.
The Contribution levels are broken down as follows:
$100.00-$249.00 - Blue Club Member
$250.00-$499.00 - Gold Club Member and will receive recognition as an event sponsor during the 2018-2019 academic year.
$500.00-$999.00 - Pirate Club Member and will receive recognition as a multiple event sponsor during the academic year 2018-2019.
$1,000.00 or more - Captain’s Club Member and will receive special recognition throughout the entire 2018-2019 academic year.

Although giving levels have been established, any contribution to PIRATE BOOSTERS will be greatly appreciated.

As a part of your annual membership, you are assured CHS athletic team members will not solicit you or your business with smaller fundraisers. You will have a choice to approach a specific team if you desire to provide additional support. If you are interested in joining PIRATE BOOSTERS, please make your check payable to PIRATE BOOSTERS by April 30, 2018. You may bring your donation to Greg Garmen at Crookston High School or Charles Reynolds at Fitzgerald, Reynolds, Harbott, Knutson & Larson, PLLP.  If you would prefer to have your donation picked up, please contact Greg Garmen or Charles Reynolds. You can send a check to Crookston Pirate Boosters - 402 Fisher Avenue, Crookston MN 56716.

The Crookston High School Athletic Department student athletes and coaches and the entire PIRATE BOOSTER CLUB appreciate your generous support.

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There has been a lot of interest from people after we posted this so we will post it again.  If you have any info on Pirate sports records or want to help tracking them down read below!

Crookston High School, namely Ed Nelson, has been working on getting all the records for the Pirate Sports teams updated and it has been a process.  Ed is looking for any records, stats, state participants, etc from the following sports.

Boys Tennis
Girls Tennis
Football
Girls Soccer
Volleyball
Baseball

If you have Crookston Times articles with information, yearbooks with team and/or individual records, scrapbooks, or anything with any information that you might think would be of interest to Ed email him at ednelson12@yahoo.com. 

With that said we have links to the Crookston Pirate records pages for the following sports.  If you see something that is incomplete, or maybe an updated record let Ed know at the above email address.  I have listed the team and click on the team to see their records. 

Here is an update on the various sports covered by the website as of December 1, 2016

Sports that are done and will not change without additional information:

Boys’ Basketball
Girls’ Basketball
Boys’ Golf
Girls’ Golf
Boys’ Soccer (Poor or no records were kept over the years.)
Girls’ Soccer
Boys’ Track & Field
Girls’ Track & Field
Wrestling
Softball
Swimming
Volleyball
Girls’ Hockey will be complete by the end of 2016 and join the above.  I am currently looking for “Team:  Game” and “Player: Game” records for the first 5 years of the program.

Sports being worked on:
Baseball (Justin Johnson is doing the research and has completed the last 16 years)
Boys’ & Girls’ Tennis (Mike Geffre has the information and is scanning everything.  When he is done, the records will be posted.)

Sports not yet started:
Football (I will be starting Football this winter.)
Boys’ Hockey (Frank Fee has agreed to research the records.) 

Fall Sports -
Boys Soccer       Girls Swimming      Girls Soccer      Volleyball

Incomplete records     Girls Tennis         Football                  

Winter Sports -
Boys Basketball           Girls Basketball          Boys Hockey         Girls Hockey         Wrestling

Spring Sports-
Softball            Boys Track        Girls Track         Boys Golf         Girls Golf      -

Incomplete records  Boys Tennis         Baseball

Sports that are no longer offered-
Boys Swimming           Girls Cross Country           Boys Cross Country

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JOKES (Do you have any good jokes - email them to chrisjfee@yahoo.com and I will put them in the feever

A bit of Irish humor....

While reading an article last night about fathers and sons, memories came flooding back to the time I took me son out for his first pint.  Off we went to our local pub only two blocks from the cottage.

 I got him a Guinness.  He didn't like it, so I drank it.

 Then I got him a Kilkenny's, he didn't like that either, so I drank it. Finally, I thought he might like some Harp Lager?  He didn't.  I drank it.

 I thought maybe he'd like whisky better than beer so we tried a Jameson's; nope!  

 In desperation, I had him try that rare Redbreast, Ireland's finest whisky.  He wouldn't even smell it.  

 What could I do but drink it!

 By the time I realized he just didn't like to drink, I was so shit-faced I could hardly push his stroller back home!!! 

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How are former Crookston Pirates athletes doing in college or elsewhere?
 ****LET ME KNOW OF OTHERS TO ADD TO THE LIST *****

Crookston School District Coaches -
Mitch Bakken is the head Pirate Baseball Coach.
Justin Johnson is the Pirate Junior Varsity Baseball Coach.
Brock Hanson is the Pirate Baseball volunteer assistant coach.
Cody Brekken is the Pirate Boys Tennis coach and Crookston Community Pool Supervisor
Tyler Brekken is the junior high Pirate Softball coach
Jeff Perreault is the Pirate Girls Golf head coach
Jaclyn Martin is the Pirate Girls Hockey Head Coach and assistant girls golf coach
Wes Hanson is the Pirate Wrestling Head Coach and assistant boys golf coach
Amy Boll is the Pirate Girls Track head coach and assistant volleyball coach

Wade Hanson is the 8th grade boys basketball coach
Travis Ross is the 7th grade boys basketball coach
Kevin Weber is a Pirate Boys Basketball volunteer assistant coach
Connor Morgan is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach
Sam Melbye is the Pirate Boys J.V. Hockey coach
Chris Dufault is an Assistant Wrestling Coach
Nate Merten is an Assistant Wrestling Coach

Brita Fagerlund, is a Freshman on the University of Jamestown Jimmy Women's Track team.

Aaron Hollcraft, is a junior playing basketball and baseball for the UMC Golden Eagles.

Amanda Trandem, is a Freshman on the University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Softball team.

Bobby Tiedemann, is a Sophomore on the St. Mary's University Men's Tennis team in Winona.

Cody Wardner, is playing Junior Hockey for the Oklahoma City Jr. Blazers in the C1HL league.

Paul Bittner, is playing for the Cleveland Monsters (AHL – minor league affiliate of Columbus).

Isaac Westlake, a sophomore playing golf for the Winona State Warriors.

Ryan Bittner, is a junior playing hockey for the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. 

Brady Heppner, is a sophomore playing hockey at St. Johns University in Collegeville.

Haley Roed, a sophomore on the Minnesota State Moorhead Women's Swim team.

Marietta Geist, a sophomore on the Carleton College Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field teams. Marietta suffered an injury and hopes to compete in the indoor track season.

Luke Edlund, is a junior linebacker on the Crown College football team.  Crown is done until next fall.

Elise Tangquist, is a freshman golfer for the University of Northwestern in St. Paul. Northwestern will be off until the spring.

Josh Edlund,  is an assistant football coach and phy ed teacher at Flandreau, South Dakota.

Allison Lindsey Axness is Assistant Varsity Volleyball Coach in Champlin Park

Jeff Olson is Head Wrestling coach and Assistant Baseball coach at Delano.

Jake Olson is Head Boys Tennis coach at Delano.

Todd Kreibich, is the Coach and General Manager for the Minnesota Iron Rangers Junior Hockey team our of Hoyt Lakes.

Carmen (Kreibich) Johnson, is Head Volleyball coach at Little Falls High School.

Katy Westrom, is Freshman Girls Basketball coach at Monticello High School.

Matt Harris, is a Director of Athletics at the British International School of Houston.

Marty Bratrud is the Superintendent and High School Principal at Westhope High School.
 
Gordie Haug is an assistant football coach at the University of Wyoming
 
Mike Hastings is the Minnesota State Mankato Men's head Hockey coach
 
Mike Biermaier is the Athletic Director at Thief River Falls High School
 
Stephanie (Lindsay) Perreault works with the North Dakota State stats crew for Bison football and volleyball and basketball in the winter. Stephanie’s husband, Ryan, is the assistant director for the Bison media relations 
 
Jason Bushie is the hockey athletic trainer at Colorado College
 
Chris Myrold is a Tennis Pro on Nevis Island in the West Indies
 
Kyle Buchmeier is a Tennis Pro at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis
 
Erika Wheelhouse is serving in the Peace Corp in the Philippines.
 
Jarrett Butenhoff is serving our country with the U.S. Navy
 
Joshua Butenhoff is serving our country on a Submarine with the Pacific Fleet with the US Navy.
 
Alan Mart, 2009 Crookston High School graduate, is currently serving his country for the US Army as a Cavalry Scout in Afghanistan.
 
Peter Cournia is a 2002 Crookston High School Graduate and also a grad of West Point and is currently is serving in the U.S. Army.
 
Erik Ellingson is serving our country with the U.S. Air Force Iraq
 
Philip Kujawa class of 2004 from Crookston Central is stationed at Hohnfels in Germany for the next 2 or 3 years.
 
Scott Riopelle is head of Crookston Parks and Recreation
 
Rob Sobolik is the General Manager of the Fargodome

That’s it for this week.  Thanks for the comments and if you have anything to add or share, please e-mail chrisjfee@yahoo.com or call.  Thanks for reading and listening to KROX RADIO and kroxam.com

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