SPORTS FEEVER by Chris Fee of KROX Radio – chrisjfee@yahoo.com
We are officially into December, and these first three weeks are going to be action-packed with games. Best of luck to all area teams!!
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The Bemidji State Beavers Football team will take on Minnesota State Mankato for the NCAA Division II Central Region championship and the rights to advance to the national semi-finals. It is the first time in the history of the NSIC that they have two teams battling for the region championship! They will play in Mankato at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday. It should be a great game. Mankato beat BSU 31-29 in their first meeting this season.
Bemidji State has lost five games in a row to Mankato and will look to have their biggest win in program history snap the streak.
Area players from NW Minnesota are below –
Ty Hamre of Crookston
Caden Bolte of Bemidji
Colton Hinrichs of Bemidji
Eli Pfeiffer of Walker
Ridge Flatness of Blackduck
Lucas Caron of Bemidji
Ethan Biehn of Bemidji
Ryan Kangas of Erskine
Crookston High School grad, Ty Hamre has 7 tackles on the year as a Defensive End. 1.5 tackles for a loss. A half sack, one quartback hurry and two blocked kicks.
On the kick return, he has one return for 23 yards.
Hamre’s best game was in the last playoff game as he had two tackles and a half a sack!
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Hawley had two football players sign to play football at the Division 1 level.
Noah Nelson, a 6-5, 220 tight end signed to play at NDSU. Three-year starter and four-year letterwinner for Hawley High School coached by Peder Naatz…Played quarterback, linebacker and safety for the Nuggets…Two-time all-section performer…All-district his senior year…Passed for 1,683 yards and 16 touchdowns while rushing for 651 yards and 15 TDs…Finished his prep career with more than 4,900 yards of total offense and 55 touchdowns…All-conference basketball player…Two-time state track participant in the 4×400 relay.
Jack Ames (6-1, 222 pounds) has singed to play football at UND. Named All-Section as a senior … Three-time Defensive Player of the Year and won the Leadership Award as a Nugget … Put down 93 tackles and 13 tackles-for-loss as a senior … Helped the Nuggets make the second round of the Class AA MSHSL state playoffs in 2024 … Also ran track for Hawley HS.
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UND also signed several area football players.
Ty Vig | DL | 6-5 | 210 | Hallock, Minn. | Kittson County Central HS
Played defensive end and outside linebacker for three years at Kittson County Central HS … Three-time All-Conference player for the Bearcats … Helped the Bearcats reach the 9 Man MSHSL state playoffs each of his three seasons … Also played basketball for KCC.
Owen Thielges | DB | 6-2 | 190 | Moorhead, Minn. | Moorhead HS
Earned three varsity letters while playing safety for Moorhead HS … Earned the title of Section 8AAAAA Defensive Player of the Year as a senior … Named First Team-All State as a senior … Was a three-time All-Conference player for the Spuds … Picked off 11 passes and scored 20 touchdowns while playing on the varsity team … Helped the Spuds make the Class 5A MSHSL state playoffs each of his three seasons.
Karter Peterson | TE | 6-5 | 220 | Thompson, N.D. | Thompson HS
Played tight end for Thompson HS for four years … Received All-Region honorable mention accolades in 2023 … Caught 61 passes for 626 yards and scored 10 touchdowns … Helped the Tommies make the Division B NDHSAA state playoffs in 2021 and 2022 … Was also a standout on the THS basketball and track & field teams.
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We have the latest Minnesota WINTER SPORTS Polls updated. To check them out, CLICK HERE.
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Congratulations to Matt Cullen on being named to the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. The Moorhead Spud turned St. Cloud State Husky played 1,516 NHL regular-season games, 3 Stanley Cups and unmatched leadership on and off the ice. He is a legend and deservedly earns a spot in the HOF.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston had 26 student-athletes named to the NSIC Fall All-Academic Teams announced earlier this week by the conference office. The Golden Eagles had 16 student-athletes named to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence, and 10 named to the NSIC All-Academic Team.
To be eligible for the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence, a student-athlete must have a 3.60 cumulative GPA or higher, while NSIC All-Academic Team members must have a 3.20 cumulative GPA or higher. Additionally, the student-athlete must be a member of the varsity traveling team, have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing at her/his institution (true freshmen, red-shirt freshmen and ineligible athletic transfers are not eligible) and must have completed at least one full academic year at that institution.
The Golden Eagles had 12 women’s soccer student-athletes named to All-Academic teams. Emmah Burnes (So., Tulare, Calif.), Alina Ivashchenko (Boryspil, Ukraine), Madison Lein (Bismarck, N.D.), Tessa VanOverbeke (Hartford, S.D.), Abby Fettinger (White Bear Lake), Greta Saylor (New Brighton), Marsia Green (Waconia), and Jada VanOverbeke (Hartford, S.D.) were selected to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence. Julia Finch (Woodbury), Emma Stempien (Plymouth, Mich.), Jacqueline Calderon (Indio, Calif.), and Lanie Padelford (Mahtomedi) were named to the NSIC All-Academic Team.
The Golden Eagle men’s cross country team had four student-athletes named to the NSIC All-Academic team: Connor Thoennes (Coleraine), Lane Hoefs (Wadena), Taylor Johnson (Lake Park, Minn.), and Noah Revels (Farmington).
The Minnesota Crookston women’s cross country squad had three student-athletes selected to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence: Catie Neumann (Alexandria), Evelyn Dupont (Las Vegas, Nev.), and Madison Hilliard (Jacksonville, N.C.). Anna Grabowski (Waterdown, Ontario), and Emma Williams (Nashwauk) were selected to the NSIC All-Academic team.
Madison Carsten (Wadena), Bailey Schaefer (Brandon), Kailee Waasdorp (West Fargo, N.D.), and Emma Malek (Plainfield, Ill.) were all named to the NSIC All-Academic Team of Excellence from the Golden Eagle volleyball team.
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JOKES
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A prisoner in jail receives a letter from his wife: “Dear Husband, I have decided to plant some lettuce in the back garden. When is the best time to plant them?”
The prisoner, knowing that the prison guards read all mail, replied in a letter: “Dear Wife, whatever you do, do not touch the back garden. That is where I hid all the money.”
A week or so later, he received another letter from his wife: “Dear Husband, You wouldn’t believe what happened, some men came with shovels to the house, and dug up all the back garden.”
The prisoner wrote another letter back: “Dear wife, now is the best time to plant the lettuce.”
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‘I finally have the body I want. It’s easy, actually, you just have to want a really sh-tty body.’
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Bill pulled up a stool at his favorite bar and announced: “My wife Suzie must love me more than any woman has ever loved any man!”
“What makes you say that?” the bartender inquired.
“Last week,” Bill explained, “I had to take a couple of sick days from work. Suzie was so thrilled to have me around that every time the milkman and the post office guy came by, she’d run down the driveway, waving her arms and hollering, ‘My husband’s home! My husband’s 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. Email me at chrisjfee@yahoo.com
Reese Swanson is a freshman playing hockey at St. Olaf.
Carter Coauette is a freshman playing football at Minot State.
Isabelle Smith is a freshman playing Tennis at Concordia College.
Isaac Thomforde is a freshman playing Tennis at Northwestern College in St. Paul.
Emilee Tate is a Sophomore playing Softball at Northland Community and Technical College.
Halle Bruggeman is a Sophomore on the University of Wisconsin-Stout Women’s Rugby team.
Ethan Boll is a Red-shirt Freshman on the University of North Dakota Football team.
Breanna Kressin is a Junior on the Hockey Cheer Team for THE University of Minnesota Golden Gopher Hockey team.
Jacey Larson is a Sophomore playing hockey at Dakota College at Bottineau.
Aleah Bienek is a Junior playing hockey at Trine University in Indiana.
Joslynn Leach is a Senior playing golf at Concordia College in Moorhead. The Cobbers wrapped up the Fall season.
Brady Butt is a Senior playing football at the University of Jamestown.
Brooks Butt is a Junior playing football at the University of Jamestown.
Ty Hamre is redshirt Junior playing football at Bemidji State University.
Elizabeth Erdman is a coach for the Moorhead Red Dragon swim team.
Crookston School District Coaches
Ben Parkin is the head Pirate Baseball Coach.
Amy Boll is the head Pirate Girls Track head coach
Sarah Reese is the Pirate Head Girls Soccer coach
Marley Melbye is an assistant girls golf coach
Jeff Perreault is the Pirate Girls Golf head 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
Non-Crookston High School coaching/Admin/etc
Elise Tangquist is the Head Girls Golf Coach at Horace High School in Fargo, ND.
Carmen (Kreibich) Johnson is the head Little Falls Volleyball coach.
Tim Desrosier is an Assistant Coach for Warren-Alvarado-Oslo Pony Boys Basketball
Pat Wolfe is the head wrestling coach for Fosston/Bagley.
Austin Sommerfeld is an Assistant Athletic Director for Strategic Communication at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth.
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.
Josh Edlund is the head football coach and phy ed teacher at Flandreau, South Dakota.
Allison Lindsey Axness is Assistant Varsity Volleyball Coach at Champlin Park
Jeff Olson is the Head Wrestling Coach and Head Baseball coach at Delano.
Jake Olson is an Assistant Football Coach and Head Boys Tennis coach at Delano.
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 Wisconsin Badgers Men’s head Hockey coach.
Mike Biermaier is the Athletic Director at Grand Forks Schools.
Stephanie (Lindsay) Perreault works with the North Dakota State stats crew for Bison football, volleyball, and basketball in the winter. Stephanie’s husband, Ryan, is the assistant director for Bison media relations.
Jason Bushie is the hockey athletic trainer at Colorado College.
Chris Myrold is the Director and Fitness at Mission Ranch and Fitness in Camel, California.
Kyle Buchmeier is a Tennis Pro at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis
Ben Andringa is serving our country in the Army and is now a Ranger.
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 a grad of West Point and currently serving in the U.S. Army.
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.
