A reminder that the 2021 Crookston Hockey Alumni games/scrimmages will be held Thursday, December 23 at the Crookston Sports Center. A highlight this year will be after the games at the Crookston Eagles Club as Johnny Holmes will be performing until 1:00 a.m.
Alumni from Crookston Central High School, Crookston High School, Cathedral, and the Mount will be back/are invited back to participate in this year’s games. The schedule and info are listed below –
GAME 1……..4:00-5:15………… ODD vs EVEN
GAME 2……….5:30-6:45………PIRATE GIRLS vs GIRLS ALUMNI
GAME 3……..7:00-8:15……….PIRATE BOYS vs PIRATE ALUMNI
Cost – $10.00 (Make checks out to Pirate Hockey)
Social at the Crookston Eagles Club from 9PM to 1AM
Mail registration forms to
Steve Biermaier
PO Box 496
Crookston, MN 56716
or email steve.biermaierchiro@midconetwork.com
For the registration form click here.
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Former Crookston Pirate teacher, football and girls basketball Coach Eric Schmidt has taken a job as the Defensive Ends Coach and Special Teams Coordinator for the Washington Huskies in the PAC 10 Conference. Schmidt has known about the move for several weeks, but had to wait until it was finalized and after Fresno State played in their bowl game.
Schmidt was a captain and linebacker for UND where they won a National Championship in 2001. He graduated in 2002 and started his teaching and coaching career at Crookston High School where he led the Pirate Girls Basketball team to a state runner-up finish and the Football team to a Section 8AAA championship. He coached for three years before going to his alma mater to coach linebackers at UND from 2006-2007.
Schmidt followed Dale Lennon to Southern Illinois from 2008 to 2013 where he coached outside linebackers, defensive line, inside linebackers and was the special teams coordinator. In 2014 he followed Bubba Schweigert back to UND to be the defensive coordinator until 2019.
In 2020 and 2021 he was hired by good friend Kalen DeBoer to be the defensive line/special teams coordinator at Fresno State. He will now follow DeBoer to a power five school, Washington, in the PAC 10 with the likes of Oregon, USC, UCLA, Stanford, and others.
Schmidt married Crookston High School and UMC graduate Tiffany Hasbrouck and they have three children, Harrison, Kennedy, and Truman.
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Now it is time for the 2021 A to Z New Years list. I have used a few suggestions that I received over the past week. It is a tough list to make and we miss several people that should. We try to highlight people that have had important impacts on KROX, Crookston, and area athletics. Here is this years list –
A – Alex Gullingsrud – Alex is the eight-year-old son of Nicki (Philion) and Mike Gullingsrud. Nicki is the head Red Lake Falls volleyball coach and Mike is a longtime official for area high school and college athletics. Alex found out this fall that he has Osteosarcoma on a tumor on his pelvic bone. Doctors also found two small nodules on his left lung. Alex had to have one of his legs amputated and he has made several trips to Rochester at the Mayo Clinic to get treatment. Alex has had chemotherapy and continues to get treatment as he learns to navigate life with one leg. He made it home for Thanksgiving and came home again earlier this month. As a parent, I can’t fathom what the Gullingsrud family has dealt with over the past few months. They are great people and it shows by the overwhelming community and region support of Alex and his family. If anybody deserved a Merry Christmas, it is Alex. I hope you had a great one and keep on marching down that long road to recovery big guy!
Aleah Bienek – Aleah is one of my favorite student-athletes. She is always smiling, she is a great person, and always works hard no matter what. She had a great soccer season and is now having her best hockey season. She recently signed a National Letter of intent to play college hockey at Trine University in Angola, Indiana. Trine is getting a first-class kid that is a great addition to any program. We will definitely miss her in the Pirate uniform next year, but we are excited to see what she has left in store for the rest of her senior year!
Advertisers – The lifeblood of all media. We thank all the advertisers on KROX Radio and KROXAM.com. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do. We thank all the advertisers and the best way for you to thank them is to patronize their businesses, or tell them thank you for sponsoring KROX programming!
B – Blue Line Club, the Crookston Blue Line Club – The Crookston Blue Line Club brings more people to town than any other entity from the fall to the spring and even the summertime. Not only are they great for bringing people to town for tournaments and games, but they give kids an opportunity to play the game of hockey and try to work with any kid/family that is interested.
C – Crookston Pirate Booster Club and Crookston Fine Arts Booster Club – The two clubs raise money each year to give to the Crookston Pirate athletic teams and the Crookston School District music, arts, and drama departments. The financial impact is well over $40,000 each year and that helps every activity in the Crookston School District, thanks to the many people that donate to one or both of the clubs.
Crookston Baseball Association – There hasn’t been an organization that has done more for their sport than the Crookston Baseball Association over the last five to 10 years. They have helped with facilities at the UMC Baseball field and added scholarships. They have made upgrades to Jim Karn Baseball Field, the highland complex, and at some point in the hopefully near future would like to do a grandstand at Jim Karn Field. So when you are out at Crookston establishments, make sure you play some pulltabs or electronic pulltabs because the proceeds go to the Baseball Association.
D – Doctors – Dr. Steve and Lucas Biermaier from Biermaier Chiropractic; and Dr. Collin Fennel, Dr. Erik Kanten, and a few others from RiverView Health volunteer their time and services at Crookston Pirate sporting events. How many high school football teams have an orthopedic surgeon and two chiropractors at home football games? You see Dr. Erik Kanten and Steve Biermaier on the boys and girls hockey benches is reassuring to parents. The doctors listed give their time, services, and overwhelming peace of mind to the kids, parents, and coaches.
E – Ethan Boll – The junior four-sport athlete is one of the top running backs in the area, he made it to the state track meet, he was on the baseball team and he is currently the #2 ranked wrestler at 195 pounds in Class A. He is 14-0 on the year and won the Jackhammer tournament by beating the #5 ranked 195-pounder in AA by a pin in 2:40. He is a stud and has put a lot of time into the weight room. Not only is he a great athlete, but he is also a great kid, great student, and a very good role model.
F – Fertile-Beltrami Falcon Football team – They had everybody in northwest Minnesota cheering them on all the way to a state championship game. What a run it was with two hard-fought section playoff wins over Clearbrook-Gonvick and Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal. At state, they beat Mountain Iron-Buhl, and Hills-Beaver Creek to advance to the state championship game where they lost to a very good LeRoy-Ostrander team at U.S. Bank Stadium. They had great players like Everett Balstad, Rylin Petry, Derek Sorenson, Tyler Stuhaug, Levi Qualley, Austin Bjerk, Brayden Werpy, Tucker Balstad and so many more. They had a great coaching staff, tremendous community support and it is a run that will be remembered forever.
Frank Fee – He still helps KROX once and a while. He is a member of the Minnesota Broadcasting Hall of Fame and was the one to start KROXAM.com and created the monster it has become. He covered high school sports for over 40 years and served on the Region 8A committee as a school board member, he was a long-time Section 8A Boys Hockey statistician when hockey had one class and has broadcast thousands and thousands of high school sporting events and hundreds and hundreds of state tournament games. He taught me the importance of hard work and doing things the right way.
G – Grace Espinoza – She is the Crookston Pirate Dance team coach. In three years she has built the numbers of the program and has built huge numbers in the feeder program (Just For Kix). She is a Crookston High School grad and has the youth and energy to relate with the girls, but at the same time she works the girls extremely hard and it has shown in dramatic improvement in a short period of time.
H – Hayden and Halle Winjum – The sister duo boosts the talent level of every team they compete on. They led the girl’s tennis team to the state tournament and played in the individual tourney too. They are two of the top basketball players in the area, and in track, they are pretty good too. Not only are they great athletes, but they are great students and even better people. They do things the right way and come from a great family. Definitely two young ladies you can cheer for!
I – Iowa Hawkeyes – The nomination came from Jeff Butler of Crookston. A big Iowa Hawkeye fan!
J – Jack Garmen – A kid that wasn’t blessed with the athletic ability that his oldest brother had, as far as speed, but he makes the best of his god-given athletic ability. Jack works his butt off, takes a couple of charges a game, and hits three-pointers left and right. He is a good teammate, a great kid, and doesn’t have it easy with being the coach’s kid, but handles it all with class. He will do whatever it takes for his team to win and hopefully the Pirate Boys hoops team will pick up a few more.
K – KROX Staff – The KROX staff keeps things moving. It is a typical small business where we all do more than one job, partially because of the website. I have the best staff working at KROX. I am lucky to have dependable, hard-working employees that truly care about KROX, our listeners and doing the best we can do each day. I thank them and without them, we have nothing.
Kenny Geiser – The head wrestling coach for the Thief River Falls Prowlers. It is his 20th year as head coach and they have the most wrestlers they have ever had in the program with 49 he announced on parents night. He has built a very good program and Thief River Falls will be in the thick of things in the ultra-competitive Section 8AA. He makes the kids work hard, he is intense, but at the same time, the kids know that he genuinely cares about them. He is a great coach and expect to see more good things from the Prowler Wrestlers this winter.
L – Listeners and Website visitors – Without the listeners and website visitors, we wouldn’t be able to continue to do what we do. Your continued support of all of KROX’s coverage is appreciated and we’re looking forward to providing another full year of Crookston and Northwest Minnesota sports coverage in 2020.
M – Meyer, Emily Meyer – She has taken over the Crookston Pirate Girls Hockey program, a program that she played for several years ago. She has come in with high expectations and demands a lot from the girls. At the same time she is fair and wants the best for each kid. Although, they have run into some tough competition this year (#1 and #2 ranked teams) and are coming off a tough loss to East Grand Forks. I am certain she will have the girls playing their best at playoff time. She has done a great job and I am excited to see what will happen over the next few years.
N – Nelson – Brian Nelson – The head football coach of the Fertile-Beltrami Football team has been the coach for almost 30 years now and he led his program to the state championship for the first time in school history this year. They made it to the state semi-finals 15 years ago, so it isn’t something that comes along very often. Brian is a guy that everybody in northwest Minnesota cheers for because he is a class-act, a down-to-earth guy that makes it about the kids and not about him or his coaches. I don’t know who gets more nervous during games, his wife Dani or Brian……Actually, it is pretty easy because Dani gets more nervous!!! The best part of the school year so far was getting a big hug from Brian after they won the state semi-final game to advance to state. I was so excited for him and the program. He and the Falcons deserved it because they are a first-class program. Congratulations Brian, coaches, and the team!
O – Officials – No matter how good, or bad, they might be, they are an important part of high school, college, and pro athletics. Without them, we have call your own….which we all know would get ugly. We thank them for their commitment to athletics and the willingness to take the yelling and screaming of fans and coaches to make sure we can watch our favorite sports!. Thank all officials for their hard work and dedication to keeping sports going!
P – Parents – Two things. 1. It takes a big commitment to be a parent of an athlete. A lot of weekends out of town at tournaments, driving the kids to and from practice and sometimes early in the morning. It takes a lot to be a parent of an athlete and kudos to all of you. 2. Be quiet, cheer positive, enjoy the ride. Don’t be an idiot that yells at the refs, or cuts down the coaches (especially in front of the kids). Sports are supposed to be fun so enjoy the ride and there is a 99.999999999999999 percent chance your kids isn’t going pro, so relax and let them have fun!
Q – Quotes –
“Success isn’t owned, it’s leased. And rent is due every day.” — J.J. Watt
“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” — Bo Jackson
“Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.” — Jerry Rice
“I’ve learned two things. Never, ever believe in ‘can’t.’ And be good to people and people will be good to you.”— Dick Vitale
“Winners never quit and quitters never win.” — Vince Lombardi
“Passion first and everything will fall into place.” — Holly Holm
“Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” — Lou Holtz
“Self-praise is for losers. Be a winner. Stand for something. Always have class, and be humble.” — John Madden
“Excellence is not a singular act but a habit. You are what you do repeatedly.” — Shaquille O’Neal
“The most we can hope for is to create the best possible conditions for success, then let go of the outcome. The ride is a lot more fun that way.” — Phil Jackson
“A good hockey player plays where the puck is. A great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be.” — Wayne Gretsky
A winner is someone who recognizes his God-given talents, works his tail off to develop them into skills, and uses these skills to accomplish his goals.” — Larry Bird
“I always laugh when people ask me about rebounding techniques. I’ve got a technique. It’s called just go get the damn ball.” — Charles Barkley
“When my time on earth is gone, and my activities here are passed, I want them to bury me upside down and my critics can kiss my ass!” — Bob Knight
“The key to winning baseball games is pitching, fundamentals, and three-run homers.” — Earl Weaver
“I always tell kids, you have two eyes and one mouth. Keep two open and one closed. You never learn anything if you’re the one talking.” — Gordie Howe
R – Rick Niemela – The Crookston School District Transportation Director has been a magician according to Activities Director Greg Garmen. The Pirate sports teams have been able to get busses for every trip without any problems and they have started all the games on time this year.
Radio – Radio is one technology that keeps evolving and continues to have more and more listeners each year. Unlike, newspapers and cable TV, radio has been able to keep up with the ever-changing world of technology. A Neilson report said radio listenership is at an all-time high and the future is bright. We like to think that KROX does radio the right way and we strive to be local and take pride in our local and regional sports coverage and now with online streaming and smart speakers like Alexa, you can listen to KROX anywhere in the world with the internet.
S – Steve Gust – The UMC Baseball coach has done more with less than any Division II baseball coach in the nation. He is a tireless recruiter, finds kids that love the game as much as he does. The baseball program has been the most competitive program at UMC since he has taken over the helm. He has built the program starting with two scholarships and now they have around 7 to 8 scholarships and expect that to show up on the field over the next couple of years. The future continues to be bright for UMC baseball.
T – Tiffany Fee – My wife, the better half. She is like a fine wine. She keeps getting better with age. She really is the best!! Tiff has done a great job raising our kids and making meals, keeping the house clean, and everything else she does all while working 40 to 60 hours a week. She is so busy, I can’t get a haircut! She is basically the opposite of me……she is nice, friendly, everybody likes her. Most importantly, she puts up with me!! She is the best wife a guy could ask for and I thank her for everything.
U – Underwear – Is there anything better than a new pair of underwear, undershirt, or socks?
V – Vaccine – Get the darn vaccine to help save your own life and get this COVID mess done with.
W – Wes Hanson – The Crookston Pirate Wrestling Coach. He is one of the best coaches around, but also one of the best science teachers around, one of the best musky fisherman around….oh and he is a pretty great guy too. Crookston is lucky to have somebody like Wes in the district because his love for wrestling and science really comes out in how he teaches both of them. The Pirate wrestling team is coming off one of the best years last season and should have close to a full line up. It will be another exciting season and will they be able to knock off a BGMR, Frazee, and UNC? We will see!
X – X-Factor – Crookston Pirate Winter athletic teams X-factors –
Boys Hockey – Jaren Bailey (He has been a busy man and has done a great job in net, but will have to keep it up if the Pirates want to pick up some wins)
Girls Hockey – The second line will have to pick up the scoring (actually the first line too) if the Pirates want a chance to take on Warroad in the championship.
Boys Basketball – Jacob Hesby needs to be more consistent and they need at least 10 points from him each night.
Girls Basketball – Abby Borowicz and Ally Perreault. The two starters need to consistently be around 8 to 10 points per game for the Pirates to be able to beat the good teams.
Wrestling – Anybody that can wrestle at 113 and 126 pounds. If they can fill those two weights, it could be another exciting run for Pirate wrestling.
Y – YOU! – If you are reading this thank you!
Z – Darin Zimmerman – Coach Z will have a firm strong-hold on this spot for years to come. Not just because of the Z in his name, but what he has done with the girls basketball program. I know Darin would be the first to admit that he has some pretty good athletes to work with, he has molded the program into a defensive juggernaut and one o the top programs in the state. They will stay towards the top of the section for many years to come.
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JOKES
Meet Walter Barnes
All golfers should live so long as to become this kind of old man!
Toward the end of the Sunday service, the Minister asked, “How many of you have forgiven your enemies?”
80% held up their hands. The Minister then repeated his question. All responded this time, except one man, Walter Barnes.
“Mr. Barnes, are you not willing to forgive your enemies?”
“I don’t have any,” he replied gruffly.
“Mr. Barnes, that is very unusual. How old are you?”
“Ninety-eight,” he replied. The congregation stood up and clapped their hands.
“Oh, Mr. Barnes, would you please come down in front and tell us all how a person can live ninety-eight years and not have an enemy in the world?”
The old golfer tottered down the aisle, stopped in front of the pulpit, turned around, faced the congregation, and said simply, “I outlived all them assholes.”
Then he calmly returned to his seat.
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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 email me at chrisjfee@yahoo.com
Ben Trostad is a senior playing Men’s Golf at UMC.
Kaleb Thingelstad is a freshman playing golf at Kansas Wesleyan University. KWU is done for the fall season.
Joslynn Leach is a freshman playing golf at Concordia College in Moorhead. The Cobbers wrapped up the Fall season.
Brady Butt is a sophomore playing football at the University of Jamestown.
Rachel Hefta, is a junior playing volleyball at Hastings College in Nebraska.
Ty Hamre is playing football at Bemidji State University.
Paul Bittner is playing professional hockey in Sweden. He is the only American playing for Mora IK of the Allsvenskan league.
Gretchen Theis is a sophomore at NDSU on the Equestrian team.
Kate MacGregor is a senior swimming at Minnesota State Moorhead.
Aleece Durbin, is a Junior on the University of North Dakota Women’s Track and Field team.
Nick Garmen is a junior playing tennis at the University of Minnesota Morris.
Crookston School District Coaches –
Emily Meyer is the Pirate head girls hockey coach and softball assistant coach.
Lacia Hanson is the Junior High softball coach.
Jeremy Lubinski is a Pirate 8th Grade Football coach.
Amy Boll is the head Pirate Girls Track head coach
Sarah Reese is the Pirate Head Girls Soccer coach
Cody Brekken is the Crookston Community Pool Supervisor
Marley Melbye is the Head Girls Swimming coach
Brock Hanson is a Pirate Baseball volunteer assistant coach.
Ben Halos is a Pirate Baseball assistant coach.
Alex LaFrance is a Pirate Baseball volunteer assistant coach.
Jeff Perreault is the Pirate Girls Golf head coach
Wes Hanson is the Pirate Wrestling Head Coach and assistant boys golf 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 a youth wrestling Coach
Colton Weiland is an assistant wrestling coach
Non-Crookston High School coaching –
Collin Reynolds is the head baseball coach for the University of Colorado Buffalo Club Baseball team.
Trent Stahlecker is a School Security Specialist & he works for the Brevard Public Schools, Florida
Cody Weiland is an assistant wrestling coach at Proctor/Hermantown
Kaylee Desrosier is a softball coach for Fargo Davies Middle School.
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 Head Baseball coach at Delano.
Jake Olson is an Assistant Football Coach and Head Boys Tennis coach at Delano.
Katy Westrom, is Head Girls Tennis Coach and Head Boys Tennis coach at Monticello High School.
Matt Harris, is an Assistant Principal/Athletic Director at Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Arizona.
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
Ben Andringa is serving our country with the Army in New York.
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.
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 at Minot.
Philip Kujawa class of 2004 from Crookston High School. He is an Army recruiter in Rochester.
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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