We were saddened to hear Jim Sims passed away on Tuesday morning while under the care of hospice in Thief River Falls. Before we talk about Jim, it was a pretty special night on Tuesday evening when Jim’s granddaughter, Catherine Tiedemann, scored the winning goal in overtime to help the Crookston Pirate Girls hockey team beat Park Rapids 3-2. There is no doubt that Jim would have wanted her to play the game and you have to believe that grandpa Jim was upstairs looking down with a huge smile!
This weekend, I told all four of my kids that Jim was in hospice and he didn’t have much longer. All my kids were saddened by the news and my three oldest kids have had Bobby, Ally and Catherine as tennis teammates and Jim didn’t miss many tennis matches or tournaments and he sure didn’t miss the Pirates at the section or state tournaments. Jims presence at the events was noticed by the Pirate players, parents and fans.
He was a joy to be around and he was always quick to talk sports, talk UMC football, Pirate or Prowler athletics, and other sports-related topics. I know he also enjoyed KROX and the website.
I have known Jim since I was little, but I asked Frank Fee, somebody, that has known him for a much longer time to talk about Jim and here is what he had to say-
First of all, our condolences to Sharon, Sue, Steve, Mike and the grandkids on the loss of their husband, dad, father-in-law and grandpa!!
I’ve been fortunate enough to ‘work with’ Jim Sims for over 40 years I think. I first met Jim when I was asked to take over and broadcast the University of Minnesota football games for KROX RADIO where I had been working for the last couple years and I finally got my chance to do what I got into radio for was broadcast sporting events.
Let’s just say that Jim was an intense football coach. He was the first to bring all the players on campus for two weeks, putting them up in the dorms and it was pretty much football 24/7 for the coaches and players! You really couldn’t talk to Jim very much if at all during this time as he more or less locked themselves in when they weren’t on the practice field. He didn’t talk to us much during this time, but after the two weeks of pre-season practice was done, Jim would come down to the radio station and apologize he didn’t give us the time we had wanted, but for the rest of the season he was always available! Back in the day I usually had the UMC football statistician, Sam Moscatelli in my early years and then Professor Bob Johnson would ride along to the games for the company and taking stats (by hand) at the games. Jim loved his players, his coaches and everyone affiliated with his football team. He loved the college and had great life lasting relationships with many of the staff at UMC when he was there and that included me, I also broadcasted the Pirates boy’s hockey games and Jim’s son, Steve, was a goaltender and we probably talked more during the hockey season than we did during the football season! Steve had some great games as a goalie and I think it was Moorhead when he had 50 some saves and a Pirate win. I know Jim was proud of his son and his daughter, Sue in all the sports she played and excelled at.
I was disappointed when Jim and Sharon left and headed back to Thief River Falls to become Athletic Director as Crookston lost a good man, good coach and a strong Crookston supporter, whether UMC, the Crookston Schools and the community as a whole. Our loss was Thief River Falls gain as he ran the athletic department for the Prowlers and we’d still get to see and talk four/five times a year and probably more on the phone.
After retirement, it was like Jim and Sharon never left Crookston as they were back in C-Town A LOT watching their Tiedemann grandkids starting with Bobby in youth hockey and then for the Pirates in hockey and tennis. Then came Aly in her sports and outstanding tennis career and now Catherine doing the same thing. On Tuesday, it was as Coach Tim Moe said, ‘Divine Intervention’ when Catherine scored the winning goal in overtime to beat Park Rapids, the day that her grandpa passed away. They make movies with stories like that!!! As proud as Jim was of his two children, take that ten-fold for his grandchildren. Not only proud of their accomplishments in sports and in the classroom but the way they have turned out as human beings!!!
I was so sad to hear about Jim’s illness and then being cared for by hospice and I didn’t get over to see him before Monday. I’ll always regret that as I will have to miss Jim’s visitation and funeral as I’m at a Minnesota School Board Convention, but I’m comforted to know that Jim and I had some great conversations last couple springs during the tennis seasons.
When I remember Jim, I’ll remember an astute sportsman, an outstanding family man who lived a good life!!!
Well done Jim, well done!
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This winter sports season we have heard of several basketball games being moved because they don’t have officials for their game. We haven’t heard a lot of it around Northwest Minnesota, but there was a football game moved this fall because they didn’t have enough officials.
Over the past couple of years, I have talked to more and more coaches that think basketball should go back to 22 games (instead of 26) during the regular season.
Each coach has a different philosophy on the games played, but one area over the past couple of years the coaches agree is the need for a shot clock, especially after a team slows the game down at tournament time. The Minnesota State High School League has said they don’t want to add the shot clock because schools can’t afford it, especially smaller schools. Well, they didn’t care about finanicals when they added eight more basketball games (4 boys and 4 girls) to the schedule several years ago. With the talk recently about shot clocks and a lack of officials I decided to take a look at how much money school districts would save by going to two officials and adding a shot clock.
I called Daktronics, based out of South Dakota and the representative for Northwest Minnesota and Eastern North Dakota said that most scoreboards are pretty current in the valley and he said two shot clocks can be as little as $2,500 to $3,500. You are looking at an initial cost in that ballpark, possibly more if you have an old scoreboard (which a school will probably look to upgrade soon anyway).
I reached out to several area schools and asked what they pay officials and what they would pay their shot clock operator.
Crookston-
Varsity/JV ranges from $115 to $125/official. Usually three officials
Clock, book, PA get $40
Crookston would save up to $85 per game and with an estimated 13 home girls and 13 home boys games (26 total), Crookston School district could save up to $2,210.
Win-E-Mac
They will pay anywhere from $110 to $125 for a three-man crew for Varsity/JV. Each association sets their own rate, and the further north you go the higher the rate can be set based on the number of officials. A two-man crew would probably run about $140 per person, once again set by the association.
Win-E-Mac would probably pay a shot clock operator the same as the regular clock operator. $40 for the night, $22 varsity and $18 JV
Thief River Falls-
Varsity/JV – ranges from $115 to $125/official. We always have three officials.
Clock and book get $21/job/game…JV and Varsity so $42/night. So that is what a shot clock operator would be.
Thief River Falls would save $83 per game and with an estimated 13 home girls and 13 home boys games (26 total), the TRF school district could save up to $2,158 (with 26 home basketball games).
Stephen-Argyle Central–
Varsity/JV game: ranges from $115-$125
Book Keeper $50 Clock $50
We would do $50 for shot clock as well (JV/V)
Stephen-Argyle would save $75 per game and with an estimated 13 home girls and 13 home boys games (26 total) the Stephen-Argyle School District could save up to $1,950 (with 26 home basketball games).
Ada-Borup –
The standard rate for JV/V three-man crew is about $110.
They pay $40 for JV/V shot clock ($25- varsity / $15- JV).
Ada-Borup would save around $1820 (with 26 home basketball games)
Red Lake Falls –
They pay $110 for JV/Varsity three man crew. C game official is $30.
Clock worker/Book/PA workers (Varsity, JV, C) – $50
So Red Lake Falls/Red Lake County would save around $1,560 a year.
East Grand Forks –
They pay officials $40.50 for a JV game (but they only use two officials) and $73.50 for a varsity game where they have three officials.
They pay $45 for clock, PA, book for the Varsity games. And they pay a student (nice idea) hourly to work the clock for C/JV games.
Shot clock would get $45/game for varsity if we went to that.
East Grand Forks would save around $741 (with 26 home basketball games)
If you drop down to 22 games instead of 26 a savings of several thousands of dollars more would be saved.
Now the official’s side of things. I asked Win-E-Mac Activities Director Aaron Cook his thoughts on two-man vs three-man crews. By the way, Aaron is also a basketball official.
Aaron Cook of Win-E-Mac (He has a unique view because he is an AD and official)
The problem with two-man crews is they are not used for playoffs and the officials don’t want to do a two-man crew. The mechanics are much different between 2 and 3 and a better game gets called with a three-man crew
From a business management perspective, I need to watch our budgets and make sure we don’t pay too much for officials. But, being on the AD side I know there are not a lot of people out there willing to be officials so they can kind of set whatever rate they want. All associations are fairly close in their rates, so I don’t let determine who I hire. I like to hire a broad range of associations and give the ones I feel do the best job more games.
Looking at things from an officials standpoint, I don’t do it for the pay. I enjoy the experience and seeing different coaches and officials. Sure it is nice to get the check along with it, but in the end, the amount I get doesn’t really affect me. I think most officials are that way and this is why rates are fairly similar between associations. If a couple larger associations decided they want to raise their rates around here, there really isn’t much anyone could do except not play.
I also asked long-time official Wayne Folkers the pros and cons of 3 vs 2 officials –
Thats a tough question. I will give you what I think is the pro’s and con’s to it. However, if you ask someone else they might have a different take on it. I am very pro-3-man.
Pro’s to using 3 man vs. 2 man
1) It allows the opportunity to catch the fouls that make the game rough.
2) You don’t have as much space to cover. (However, calling out of your zone is ok to make sure of safety)
3) It allows for officials to officiate longer and it saves on wear and tear on the body.
4) It allows for an official to communicate better with the coach during dead ball times.
5) It allows officials better coverage on dead ball situations after a foul as one is reporting the foul and the other two are watching the floor.
Con’s to using 3 man vs. 2 man
1) It does a cost a little more money but as an association, we charge a lot more to only use 2 officials.
2) In 2 man, I think we miss a lot more off-ball calls than 3 man.
3) Communication is tougher with coaches as we need to keep the floor safe. If you talk with coaches, it can make the game choppy since you are waiting for your partner. (Important in both 3 and 2 man but very in 2 man since you have 1 less set of eyes)
Personally, I am not a fan of the three officials for one reason and one reason only…….because the third official always wants to stand in my view when trying to broadcast a game when we sit courtside.
In all seriousness, this has nothing to do with the quality of officials. We are lucky in Northwest Minnesota to have some pretty good ones, we have some that struggle, but if they weren’t out there the games wouldn’t go on. It isn’t easy with whacko parents that don’t know anything about the game telling the officials what to do.
We will see what happens with the shot clock, but I think most can agree…..it is time to implement the shot clock in Minnesota!
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Thief River Falls graduate, Meleah Biermaier, a sophomore member of the Univesity of Minnesota Golden Gopher Women’s Track team won two events last weekend in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Meleah won the 600 meter race with a time of 1:35.38 and she was a member of the first place 4×400 Gopher relay team with a time of 3:49.96.
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Hockey day in Minnesota is the closest it will be in a few years with Bemidji hosting this weekend. Unfortunately, it will be the coldest temps of the winter so far. The schedule of games is below –
Thursday, January 17
Bemidji vs Woodbury at 7 PM (Girls)
Friday, January 18
Bemidji State hosting Michigan Tech at 7:00 PM (Men)
Saturday, January 19
9:30 a.m. – Minnetonka vs Andover (boys)
1:00 p.m. – Bemidji State vs MSU-Mankato (women)
4:30 p.m. – Bemidji vs Greenway (boys)
7:30 p.m. – Bemidji State vs Michigan Tech (men)
8:00 p.m. – Wild vs Columbus (at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul)
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The Thief River Falls Prowler Invitational Wrestling tournament will be held on Saturday, January 19 at the Ralph Englestad Arena.
***THERE WILL BE AN ADDITIONAL 2-POUND ALLOWANCE BEYOND THE 2 POUNDS AFTER THE FIRST OF THE YEAR. (for both varsity & JV). Example: 106 will be 110 and 113 will be 117. In JV the weights will be the same as varsity due to the addition of a junior high tournament.
Start Time: 10:00 am for all three levels.
Participating Teams for Varsity: Thief River Falls, Bemidji, Badger-Greenbush-Middle River, Blackduck-CLB, Crookston, Detroit Lakes, Fertile/Beltrami, Bertha-Hewitt VPP, Minnewaska, Ottertail Central, Park Rapids, Pelican Rapids, Red Lake County Central, Roseau, Walker-Hackensack-Akeley-Nevis, Nashwauk-Keewatin, and Grand Forks Red River.
Additional Teams for JV: Fergus Falls
Varsity Tournament: They will be wrestling on 4 mats with minimal breaks and run straight through the day, finals starting around 5:00 pm and finishing up around 7:00 pm. They will wrestle through 8th place.
JV Tournament: Will be run on 2 mats and continuous with only minimal breaks throughout the day. Weight classes will be the same as varsity, with the addition of a 95 lb. weight class.
JH Tournament: Will be run on 2 mats and continuous with only minimal breaks. There will not be specific weight classes, but they will bracket the wrestlers that day. All JH Wrestlers will weigh-in individually and need to fill out a weigh-in form. Coaches should help direct this process.
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The Girls Basketball game schedule for games on February 2 at the Fargo Civic Center has been released.
10:00 EGF VS. Breckenridge
11:45 Wadena VS. DGF
1:30 Roseau VS. Barnesville
3:15 Staples VS. Perham
5:00 Mahnomen/Waubun VS. Hawley
6:45 Crookston VS. Pelican Rapids
The first team listed will be the guest and the second team the home team. Home team will wear dark uniforms and provide the official book for the games.
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The Minnesota State Moorhead Dragon Women’s Basketball team continue to get some of the top area girls basketball players to commit to play basketball at the school. Karla Nelson (an Erskine native) has built a very good program and it has been pretty cool how she has done it with players from Northwest Minnesota. She has an eye for players that make differences at the next level and the latest two area players she has added the verbal commitment list are –
Mariah McKeever of Ada-Borup and Paige Thompson of Hawley.
Thompson, The 6’2 guard/forward, Thompson had an offer from NDSU and several other schools, but I think she wisely chose MSU-Moorhead where she can be on a winning program and a team that is going to fight for a conference title every year especially with Augustana leaving for D-1 soon.
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MILESTONES –
Coaching –
Neil Steffes of Fertile-Beltrami Boys Basketball won his 400th game of his career earlier this week.
It was milestone week in Northwest Minnesota Wrestling (100 wins or more) –
Ty Moser of Perham won his 175th match on Friday. The senior wrestles at 195 pounds.
Cody Dravis of Park Rapids won his 150th match on Saturday.
Leighton Rach of Perham won his 150th match January 5. He wrestles at 132 pounds.
Carter Sorenson of Fosston-Bagley recorded his 100th win on the mat last week. A pretty impressive feat for the sophomore.
Dominik Vacura of BGMR won the 100th match of his career at 220 pounds. Again, not bad for a sophomore. He is one of the top-ranked wrestlers at 220 pounds.
Luke Tweeton of Frazee won the 100th match of his career. The junior 220 pounder is one of the top-ranked wrestlers in the state at 220.
Ben Olson of Roseau won the 100th match of his career. The junior wrestles at 160 pounds.
Gabe Bellefeuille of Perham won the 100th match of his career. The junior wrestles at 126 pounds.
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The Minnesota State High School League, in partnership with the Xcel Energy Center, announced today that the consolation series of the girls’ hockey state tournament will be played at TRIA Rink at Treasure Island Center in downtown Saint Paul beginning next month. With the quarterfinals and championship rounds already being played at the Xcel Energy Center, it brings the tournament to one centralized area for the first time since 2005.
“This is incredible news,” said Tim Morris, executive director of the Minnesota Girls Hockey Coaches Association. “This move will keep the girls’ hockey state tournament in the same community, and it will bring a level of excitement that these teams, these participants and these communities deserve.”
The MGHCA, through its executive committee, asked the League almost a year ago to explore the possibility of moving the consolation series from Ridder Arena on the University of Minnesota campus to the TRIA Rink, the practice facility of the Minnesota Wild, the home site of the Minnesota Whitecaps of the professional National Women’s Hockey League, and a 10-minute walk from the Xcel Energy Center. Since 2006, the girls’ hockey state tournament has been held at two different venues in two different cities. From 2003-2005, the championships rounds were played at Ridder Arena and the consolation series was played at the adjacent 3M Arena at Mariucci.
The move also coincides with the League’s celebrating the 25th girls’ hockey state tournament. During the 1994-95 season, the Minnesota State High School League became the first state high school association in the nation to sanction girls’ hockey as an activity. This season’s four-day girls hockey state tournament is scheduled for Feb. 20-23 with the debut of the consolation series at TRIA Rink set for Feb. 21-23.
“We, at the League, are excited to bring the entire girls hockey community together in Saint Paul and celebrate the historic 25th girls state tournament!” said Erich Martens, Executive Director of the Minnesota State High School League. “The vision and excitement of the girls’ hockey coaches association and the great relationship we have with the Xcel Energy Center, and now with the staff at TRIA Rink, made this move possible.”
The TRIA Rink at Treasure Island Center also serves as the home facility for the Hamline University women’s hockey team, an emerging Division III power.
“The addition of the MSHSL girls’ hockey state tournament consolation games are a natural fit for the TRIA Rink,” said Jack Larson, Xcel Energy Center Vice President and General Manager.
The TRIA Rink at Treasure Island Center is located at 400 Wabasha Street in Saint Paul, on the site of the former Dayton’s and Macy’s department store.
“This is a win-win for everyone,” Morris said. “What a great facility that these teams will be able to experience. It just makes things more convenient. The girls’ hockey coaches association and the girls’ hockey communities are really excited that it was able to happen for this year. We really think this is going to generate a lot of excitement for the game. We are staying in downtown Saint Paul and that is awesome news.”
The first MSHSL girls’ hockey state tournament was played in 1995 as a four-team event. It has blossomed into a two-class, 16-team event that has averaged just more than 20,000 in attendance the past four seasons.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston Baseball team will host a hitting/defensive camp ain Crookston on February 10 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. for grades 9-12. The hitting camp will cover all aspects of becoming a fundamentally sound offensive player. The instructional camp will break down each individual camper from the physical to mental side of hitting. Barrel control, bat path and bat speed will be emphasized. Cost is $75 for the individual camp. The Golden Eagles are also holding a pitching/catching camp on the Minnesota Crookston campus February 10 from 1-3:30 p.m. The pitching and catching camp will include instruction from MLB Draft Pick Zach Seipel, who pitches in the Atlanta Braves organization. Seipel is a former Minnesota Crookston student-athlete. An emphasis will be placed on lower-half development and generating pitching velocity. The cost of the camp is $75 or $125 to do both the pitching and hitting camps.
Lastly, UMC Baseball is offering a kid’s camp February 18, which is President’s Day, for grades K-5 from 8 a.m.-12 p.m. on the University of Minnesota Crookston campus. The kid’s camp will center around fundamentals of baseball and fun. Skills include hitting, throwing and fielding. All activities will be broken down by age and skill level. The cost of the camp is $30. The camp
The camps will be coached by Head Coach Steve Gust, assistant coaches Taylor Steen and Colton Haight, along with Seipel, reining NSIC Player of the Year Reed Hjelle, along with other Minnesota Crookston players. To register for the camps visit https://baseball.umcsportscamps.com/index.cfm. If you have any questions contact Coach Gust at sjgust@umn.edu or Coach Steen at tsteen@umn.edu.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston volleyball program will have a jam-packed schedule with JO volleyball tournaments and camps coming up in early 2019.
The Golden Eagles will host a camp for all skill levels for boys and girls grades 12 and under on Sunday’s, January 20, February 3, February 10 and March 3. The camps will run 1-3:30 p.m. each day with check-in at 12:30 p.m. All camps will be held at Lysaker Gymnasium. Campers should wear athletic gear, knee pads, and bring their own water. Upon registering for the camp, you will receive a confirmation e-mail from Assistant Coach Anna Morgan. The price for the camps is $35 for one camp, $65 for two camps, $95 for three camps, and $125 for all four camps. The participants will get the opportunity to learn key volleyball skills from Head Coach Sarah Rauen, Morgan, and the Golden Eagle volleyball student-athletes. You can sign up by completing the attached form by clicking here and sending it back with payment to 2900 University Ave., Attn: Anna Morgan, Crookston, MN 56716. Checks can be made payable to Minnesota Crookston VB.
In addition, UMC is hosting four JO volleyball tournaments in 2019 on Saturday, March 30; Sunday, March 31; Sunday, April 7; and Sunday, April 14.
March 30 will be for 12-and-under teams
March 31 will be for 16-and-under squads.
April 7 will be for 14-and-under teams.
April 14 will be for 18-and-under squads.
The registration cost for a team is $105 for everyone except for 12-and-under teams, who will pay $80. Teams are responsible for all officiating duties. Following pool play, all teams will go into the playoffs. Pool play will begin at 8 a.m. More information will be provided the week of the event. All games will be played at the UMC Sports Center. The checks can be made payable to UMC Volleyball and sent to 2900 University Ave., Attn: Anna Morgan, Crookston, MN 56716. If you have any questions on either event you can contact Anna Morgan at amorgan@crk.umn.edu or by phone at 218-281-8410. For the JO Tournament registration form click here.
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JOKES –
A SHORT LOVE STORY
A man and a woman who had never met before, and who were both married to other people, found themselves assigned to the same sleeping room on a transcontinental train.
Though initially embarrassed and uneasy over sharing a room,
they were both very tired and fell asleep quickly, he in the upper berth and she in the lower.
At 1:00 AM, the man leaned down and gently woke the woman saying, ‘Ma’am, I’m sorry to bother you, but would you be willing to reach into the closet to get me a second blanket? I’m awfully cold.’
‘I have a better idea,’ she replied ‘Just for tonight, let’s pretend that we’re married.’
‘ Wow! That’s a great idea!’ he exclaimed.
‘Good,’ she replied. ‘Get your own damn blanket.’
After a moment or two of silence, he farted.
The End
— — —
God was missing for six days. Eventually, Michael, the archangel, found him, resting on the seventh day..
He inquired, “Where have you been?”
God smiled deeply and proudly pointed downwards through the clouds, “Look, Michael. Look what I’ve made.”
Archangel Michael looked puzzled, and said, “What is it?”
“It’s a planet,” replied God, and I’ve put life on it.. I’m going to call it Earth and it’s going to be a place to test Balance.”
“Balance?” inquired Michael, “I’m still confused.”
God explained, pointing to different parts of Earth. “For example, northern Europe will be a place of great opportunity and wealth, while southern Europe is going to be poor. Over here I’ve placed a continent of white people, and over there is a continent of black people. Balance in all things.”
God continued pointing to different countries. “This one will be extremely hot, while this one will be very cold and covered in ice.”
The Archangel, impressed by God’s work, then pointed to a land area and said, “What’s that one?”
“That’s the Commonwealth of Virginia, the most glorious place on earth. There are beautiful mountains, rivers and streams, lakes, forests, hills, and plains. The people from the Commonwealth of Virginia are going to be handsome, modest, intelligent, and humorous, and they are going to travel the world. They will be extremely sociable, hardworking, high achieving, carriers of peace, and producers of good things.”
Michael gasped in wonder and admiration, but then asked, “But what about balance, God? You said there would be balance…”
God smiled, “Right next to Virginia is Washington, DC. Wait till you see the idiots I put there.”
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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
Paul Bittner, will start the season with the Cleveland Monsters, the AHL affiliate of the Columbus Bluejacket. Paul suffered a knee injury and is still recouperating.
Haley Roed, a Junior swimming at Minnesota State Moorhead. The Dragons are off until they host the Dragon Invite on January 18-19, 2019.
Kate MacGregor, a Freshman swimming at Minnesota State Moorhead. The Dragons are off until they host the Dragon Invite on January 18-19, 2019.
Ryan Bittner, is a Senior playing hockey for the #1 ranked University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point. Ryan didn’t score, but had one shot on goal in a 3-1 victory over #4 ranked Augsburg on Friday and he scored one goal and had an assist and a plus-four rating in a 4-1 victory over St. Johns on Saturday. The Pointers host #3 ranked UW-Eau Claire on Friday and travel to UW-River Falls on Saturday.
Brady Heppner, is a Junior playing hockey at St. Johns University in Collegeville. Brady had a goal in a 4-2 loss to #3 ranked UW-Eau Claire and he didn’t score, but had three shots on goal in a 4-1 loss to UW-Stevens Point on Saturday. St. Johns will travel to Concordia Colleg in Moorhead on Friday and Saturday.
Aaron Hollcraft, is a Senior playing basketball and baseball for the UMC Golden Eagles. Aaron didn’t play, because of an injury, in losses at Northern State and Minnesota State Moorhead this weekend and he didn’t play in a win over Jamestown on Tuesday. UMC will host Winona State and Upper Iowa this weekend.
Colton Weiland, is a freshman wrestling for #1 ranked St. Cloud State. Colton is listed at 149 pounds. Colton was injured and had surgery and will miss the season.
Bailey Folkers, is a freshman on the University of Wisconsin-Superior women’s basketball team. Bailey played five minutes and scored five points and grabbed two rebounds in an 86-35 victory over North Central on Saturday and she didn’t play in an 83-66 victory over Finlandia on Monday. UW-Superior will host Minnesota Morris on Saturday and travel to Northland on Wednesday.
Brita Fagerlund, is a Sophomore on the University of Jamestown Jimmy Women’s Track team. Brita finished 15th in the Women’s Weight Throw with a throw of 36-01.25 at the Bison Classic in Fargo. Jamestown will travel to the Cobber duals in Moorhead on Saturday.
Ally Tiedemann, a Freshman playing tennis at the University of Minnesota Duluth. The first match of the season is February 1 against St. Scholastica.
Bobby Tiedemann, is a Junior on the St. Mary’s University Men’s Tennis team in Winona. St. Mary’s will host Martin Luther College on Friday, January 25, 2019.
Marietta Geist, a Junior on the Carleton College Women’s Cross Country and Track and Field teams. Carelton will host a triangular on Friday.
Amanda Trandem, is a Sophomore on the University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Softball team.
Ben Trostad, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston. UMC is off until the spring.
Ethan Magsam, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston. UMC is off until the spring.
Elise Tangquist, is a Sophomore golfer for the University of Northwestern in St. Paul. Northwestern is done until the spring.
Isaac Westlake, a Junior playing golf for the Winona State Warriors.
Cade Salentine, is a redshirt Freshman playing football at the University of North Dakota.
Crookston School District Coaches –
Brody Davidson is an Assistant Pirate Football coach.
Tyler Brekken is a Pirate C team football coach and junior high Pirate Softball coach
Jeremy Lubinski is a Pirate 8th Grade Football coach.
Amy Boll is the head Pirate Girls Track head coach and assistant volleyball coach
Sarah Reese is the Pirate Head Girls Soccer coach
Shelly Erdmann is the Assistant Girls Soccer coach.
Cody Brekken is the Assistant Pirate Girls Tennis coach, Pirate Boys Tennis coach and Crookston Community Pool Supervisor
Marley Melbye is the Head Girls Swimming coach
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.
Jeff Perreault is the Pirate Girls Golf head coach
Wes Hanson is the Pirate Wrestling Head Coach and assistant boys golf 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
Tori Demarais is the Pirate Girls Hockey assistant coach.
Non Crookston High 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.
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 Head Girls Tennis Coach and Head Boys Tennis 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 at Minot.
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
