Welcome to the first Sports Feever column of 2022!! I hope 2021 was a good year for you (as good as it could be with COVID, the delta and omicron variants)! Here is looking forward to the year 2022! I hope you and your family have the best year ever and stay healthy and safe all year long!!
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This week I will take a look at Section 8A Boys Basketball. I will wait another week or two before taking a look at 8AA because DGF has only played FOUR games so far!
Here is my top five in the section –
- Cass Lake-Bena (They are 9-0 and are the top team until somebody beats them)
- Sacred Heart (They have played a decent schedule and have been beating teams handily. Tompkin and Gapp are studs and they have opened some eyes early on)
- Fertile-Beltrami (The only loss so far is a 10 point loss at Cass Lake-Bena. They have one of the best coaches in the state and these guys know how to win. Most of them, especially the key players were on the state runner-up football team)
- Warren-Alvarado-Oslo (The Ponies have a great mixture of size, athleticism, and a bunch of coaches kids. The best part for Pony fans is that they have been without one of their top players as Gavin Gullickson has been out with a knee injury. By the end of February to early March, this could be the team to beat.
- Tie with Mahnomen-Waubun (they love to run and guy, but have shown that sometimes that won’t work this year. They have two losses, but still, have one of the top teams in the section.
Fosston (They are a scrappy bunch and only have one loss so far. They are one of the top teams in the ridiculously good East subsection.
On the outside and looking in –
Goodridge-Grygla is off to a great start and they are definitely in the conversation so far this season.
Blackduck and Ada-Borup-West are teams to keep an eye on. Ada-Borup was young last year and they are a little bit older and have a ton of athleticism. Can they put it together consistently. Their two losses have come to Hawley (one of the top teams in Section 8AA) and Mahnomen-Waubun. The problem with Ada-Borup is the Pine To Prairie conference play has hurt them in the QRF so far.
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Section 8A Boys Hockey has struggled in the non-section games so far with only three schools with a winning record. It comes as no surprise to anybody that follows Section 8A that the Warroad Warriors are head and shoulders above everybody else right now. They are coming off a huge 5-0 win over Roseau at Roseau this week and already beat East Grand Forks.
Everybody else is fighting for a chance to play the Warriors in the championship game, just like on the girls side. Almost halfway through the season, who has the best chance to play the Warriors in the title game?
1 East Grand Forks is the team I am picking right now. They are 2-1 in the section and 4-6 overall. They are on a four-game losing skid with losses to Warroad, Alexandria, Bemidji, and Grand Forks Red River. The other two losses were to Mahtomedi and Delano. Nobody has played a schedule like that so far in 8A. Warroad is a close second, but EGF has the toughest schedule so far.
2, Detroit Lakes is having one of its best years since moving into Section 8A. They are 9-3 and have a 5-4 overtime loss to EGF. They have a big stretch coming up with Warroad on Saturday in Detroit Lakes, and Thief River Falls in DL on Thursday, January 13. We will see where they stand after those two games.
Never count a Tim Bergland coached team out and Thief River Falls is always in the conversation, even if they don’t have the talent, they always play tough defense in March and usually get solid goaltending.
Red Lake Falls would be the other team in the conversation. They have come out with a 5-0 section record and 8-5 overall. But they are winning the only games that matter at seeding time.
The rest is a toss-up. Kittson County Central and Crookston are the only teams without a section victory. The two teams tied earlier this year and it might be tough for both teams to find many section victories this season.
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Minnesota Wild General Manager Bill Guerin announced the National Hockey League (NHL) club has signed goaltender Zane McIntyre (a Thief River Falls graduate)to a two-way contract for the remainder of the 2021-22 season.
McIntyre, 29 (8/20/92), went 2-1-0 with a 2.73 goals-against average (GAA) and a .904 save percentage (SV%) in three games with the Tucson Roadrunners in the American Hockey League (AHL) this season. The 6-foot-2, 206-pound native of Thief River Falls, owns a record of 114-57-25 with a 2.51 GAA, a .910 SV% and 14 shutouts in 205 career AHL contests in seven seasons with Providence, Binghamton, Utica, Lehigh Valley and Tucson (2015-22). He is 8-11 with a 2.79 GAA and a .895 SV% in 21 career Calder Cup Playoff contests.
McIntyre played three seasons at the University of North Dakota posting a record of 58-24-9 with a 2.10 GAA, a .926 SV% and four shutouts in 92 contests (2012-15). He went 29-10-3 with a 2.05 GAA, a .929 SV% and one shutout during his junior season in 2014-15 and received the Mike Richter Award as the most outstanding goaltender in Division I men’s hockey and was one of three “Hobey Hat Trick” finalists for the Hobey Baker Memorial Award. McIntyre was also named a CCM Second-Team West All-American by the American Hockey Coaches Association (AHCA) and the National Collegiate Hockey Conference Goaltender of the Year.
He made his NHL debut in relief on Oct. 25, 2016 at Xcel Energy Center against the Wild and appeared in eight games (three starts) with the Boston Bruins in 2016-17, posting a record of 0-4-1 with a 3.97 GAA and a .858 SV%. McIntyre was selected by the Boston Bruins in the sixth round (165th overall) of the 2010 NHL Draft.
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Warroad’s Dylan Fox scored the 1,000th point of his career last week.
Warroad’s Evan Grover scored the 1,00th point of his career last week.
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The Crookston Knights of Columbus Council 1216 is having their 2022 Free Throw Contest on January 9 with January 16 as a storm day alternative. The contest is for boys and girls ages 9 to 14 years of age. There is no cost for participating. The contest will be held at the Crookston High School gym. Registration will be from noon to 1:00 p.m. with shooting starting at 1:00 p.m.
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The annual Knights of Columbus Free Throw Contest will be held in Red Lake Falls at the high school on Sunday, January 23rd at 1:00. This is the local contest with winners advancing to the District contest in February. The contest is open to any girls or boys with age groups from 9-14 years. For registration forms, ask at the school office at the RLF high school, RLF elementary school, Plummer school, or the Oklee school or contact Steve Philion at 218-686-3608. The high school gym will be open in RLF at 12:30 on the 23rd for practice.
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Save the date as the UMC Teambackers will host the Mark Olsonawski Endowed Scholarship Golf Tournament, June 9 at Two Rivers Golf Course in Hallock and the UMC Teambacker Golf Classic presented by Altru on Friday, June 17.
Proceeds from the tournaments will benefit scholarships at the University of Minnesota Crookston. The events are 18 holes of four-man Texas Scramble Tournament in Hallock and a five-player scramble in Crookston at Minakwa Country Club.
The Mark Olsonawski Scholarship is awarded to a UMC student participating in ACHA hockey from the northwest Minnesota or northeast North Dakota region. To date, more than $24,000 has been awarded from the endowment. Mark Olsonawski is a 1999 graduate of UMN Crookston in plant industries management. He was named All-American in football in 1998 and held career records for rushing yards, career receptions, and touchdowns. Olsonawski was also a standout on the UMC Hockey team from 1995-1999. He currently works and lives in Moorhead.
To sign up for both or either tournament, click on the following links: Olsonawski Tournament or the UMC Teambacker Golf Classic, or contact Michelle Christopherson, Director of Outreach & Engagement for more information regarding either golf tournament mchristo@umn.edu or 218.281.8369.
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JOKES
Everyone was seated around the table as the food was being served. When little Logan received his plate, he started eating right away.
“Logan, wait until we say our prayer,” his mother reminded him.
“I don’t have to,” the little boy replied.
“Of course you do,” his mother insisted, “we say a prayer before eating at our house.”
“That’s at our house,” Logan explained, “but this is Grandma’s house and she knows how to cook.”
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Two young boys walked into a pharmacy one day, picked out a box of tampons and proceeded to the checkout counter.
The man at the counter asked the older boy, “Son, how old are you?”
“Eight,” the boy replied.
The man continued, “Do you know what these are used for?”
The boy replied, “Not exactly, but they aren’t for me. They’re for him. He’s my brother. He’s four. We saw on TV that if you use these you would be able to swim and ride a bike. Right now, he can’t do either one.”
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A woman, completely fed up with her husband’s online obsession, finally takes matters into her own hands.
One night, as he is sitting at the computer, she goes into the bedroom, takes off all her clothes, puts on a full-length coat, and posts herself between her husband and the monitor.
She pulls open the coat and yells, “Time for Super Sex!!!”
He ignores her.
So, she repeatedly yells, “Super Sex”, “Super Sex”, “Super Sex”.
Finally, he replies, “Ok, Ok, I’ll take the soup”.
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Why isn’t there democracy in North Korea?
Because every time they try to pronounce “election” everyone starts to giggle.
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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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