Welcome to another edition of the Sports Feever Column. The American Legion Baseball district tournaments are being played this weekend across the state, a little over two weeks from the first day of high school practice. Minnesota Vikings training camp is underway, the Minnesota Twins are having exciting and meaningful games this month and so much more. I believe 100%, if Byron Buxton was playing centerfield for all three games of the Yankees series, the Twins would have swept the series!
I received an email last week that KROX Radio was one of five finalists for a Marconi Award for the Best Small Market Radio Station in the country by the National Broadcasters Association. I almost fell over to be considered one of the top small market radio stations. “Small” market includes Fargo and KFGO is one of the other five finalists. The old saying, it is an honor to be one of the finalists and I will be going to the Radio Show in Dallas in September to see if we win. I had somebody ask how big of an award the Marconi is. I told him it is the equivalent to an Oscar, Grammy, Pulitzer or Emmy. So it is a big deal.
I will be on vacation next week, but we will still have a full column. I am hoping to have the football district questions in two weeks. I have received a couple of questions to send the head of district football scheduling and if you want to send in a question I will forward it on and post the answers in a future column.
Thanks for reading and enjoy another Feever Column and enjoy the rest of the summer.
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We received some bad news (for Crookston High School) last weekend when hall of Famer, Mike Geffre announced he was leaving Crookston.
I have been fortunate enough to have Mike as a coach in freshman basketball (I still credit him for my rebounding ability.) He was a great coach in basketball and tennis. While he was a great coach and teacher, he was even better at making sure the kids became better people under his guidance. I have been fortunate to have all three of my tennis playing kids coached by Gef. Gef could get the best out of his players, and he made sure they were playing tennis the right way. He also made sure the kids represented Crookston the right way and became better people.
There is a reason why Gef is one of the most respected coaches in the state of Minnesota, and it all comes down to doing things the right way and caring more about the kids than winning and losing!
His retirement from Crookston didn’t shock anybody that knew him, but leaving to Michigan was the part that shocked most of us, especially those of us with daughters currently on the tennis team. The Pirates will be one of the top girl’s tennis teams in the section and possibly the state over the next five years.
I wish Mike the best of luck in Paw Paw, Michigan, and I am happy for him and his family. Paw Paw is about 30 minutes from Geffre’s daughter Amanda and as Mike said, hopefully, future grandchildren. He is one of a kind and left Crookston High School as a LEGEND! He will be missed…there is no doubt about that!
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We are less than a month away from the first Minnesota State High School League fall sports practice! August 12 is the first day of practice and with that,
The Crookston High School Fall sports PAC (Parent-Athlete-Coach) meeting will be Monday, August 5 at 6:00 pm in the Crookston High School Auditorium.
This meeting is for all participants/parents who plan on being involved in the following sports this fall: for girls, they offer tennis, soccer, volleyball, and swimming. For boys, they offer football and soccer.
Athletes and parents will meet with Mr. Garmen and then with the coach of their sport.
There will also be information on how to register for your sport.
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The Crookston Pirate Football program will have equipment hand out for 9-12th grade on Monday, August 5 from 3:00 pm to 5:30 pm at the shed behind the high school.
The Crookston Girls Soccer team will have senior-led (Captain) practices July 29-August 1 and August 5-8 (M-Th) from 6:30-7:30 a.m. at the Crookston High School Soccer Fields. The first official day of practice will be August 12.
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The Crookston School Board approved the fall sports coaches at their meeting earlier this week. The coaches are listed below –
Football
Head: Scott Butt
Assistant – Darin Zimmerman
Assistant – Brody Davidson
9th Grade – Enrique Julien and Gary Stegman
8th Grade – Jeremy Lubinski and Dan Halland
7th Grade – Don Edlund and TBD
Volleyball
Head – Ashley Stopa
Assistant – Tayler Christenson
9th Grade – Amy Boll
8th Grade – Brandi Nesseth
7th Grade – Katie Englestad
Girl’s Tennis
Head-?
Assistant – Cody Brekken
Girl’s Swimming
Head – Marley Melbye
Volunteer – Aly Bergstrom
Girl’s Soccer
Head – Sarah Reese
Assistant – Anna Brekken
Boy’s Soccer
Head – Lon Boike
Assistant – TBD
Trainer – Luke Biermaier
Weight Room – TBD
Treasurrettes – Adrianne Winger
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Crookston Park and Rec Babe Ruth baseball will have two teams competing in the Minnesota Sports Federation state baseball tournament this weekend.
The 15 Babe Ruth team is 12-1 on the season and will compete in Austin. Team members are Ashton Larson, Gunnar Gunderson, Cade Coauette, Jacob Miller, Cade DeLeon, Jack Doda, Jacob Hesby, Justin Lindgren, Lucas Miller, Carter Coauette, and Blake Melsa. Coaches are Brady Butt and Joe Doda. Teams in Crookston’s pool play are East Ridge and Minnetonka. Other teams in the tournament are Farmington, Granite Falls, Plainview, Apple Valley, St. Paul Highland Park, and Robbinsdale.
The 14U Babe Ruth team will be competing in Ham Lake. Team members are Cayden Ames, Jaren Bailey, Ethan Boll, Ethan Bowman, Jackson Demarais, Dokken Erdman, Layton Fuentes, Martino Garcia, Hunter Knutson, Hunter Kresl, Tatum Lubinski, Zachary Tahran, Braxton Volker, and George Widman V. Coaches are Ysidro Longoria and Tanner Reinhart. Teams in Crookston’s pool are Owatonna and Shakopee. Other teams in the tournament include, East Grand Forks, Austin, Pierz, Jackson, Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted, Anoka, Marshall, St. Paul Merriam Park, New London-Spicer, Alexandria, Hutchinson, Hopkins, Royalton, Forest Lake, Le Sueur-Henderson, Champlin, Waite Park, Goodview, Annandale, Rochester, Mankato, Westonka, and Princeton.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston Athletics Department has seen several changes over the past few months. They have hired three football coaches (the story is later in the column), they have hired an assistant trainer, and Jason Tangquist has left his job as the head of NCAA compliance to take a job as Registrar. Jason will be doing double duty in the fall to make sure all fall sports teams are compliant (Football is the toughest sport to get in order).
We have also heard that head trainer, Steve Krouse, will be the head Golden Eagle Cross Country coach. Steve is a great guy and ran track and cross country at St. Olaf and has volunteered his training talents at the state cross country meet and Grandma’s Marathon.
UMC Soccer Coach Joe Alianiello has resigned after accepting a job in Pennsylvania. “The search is open and we are planning to do phone calls this week, followed by on-campus interviews next week,” said UMC Sports Information Director Shawn Smith. “We have a solid pool of about 25 candidates currently.”
The news isn’t a surprise because his new job is close to his hometown and he will be closer to family. The program had a good year under Alienello in 2015, but they have gotten worse each year since then.
2015 – 7-10-1
2016 – 3-12-2
2017 – 0-14-3
2018 – 1-15-2
UMC will have to fast track the hiring process because practice starts in a couple of weeks and the first game is September 13.
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The 2019 Northwest Sub-State (District) American Legion baseball tournament will be held in Red Lake Falls this weekend starting on Thursday, July 25.
The tournament should have some pretty good games with a lot of good teams. Stephen-Argyle is the two-time defending champion and comes in as the top seed from the north, while Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton will come in as the top seed in the south. KROX will have all the Stephen-Argyle games on the radio throughout the tournament.
The tournament has an interesting format. If you lose your first-round game, you are eliminated. Once you get to the semi-finals, the tournament turns into a double-elimination tournament.
I am thinking you have to give Stephen-Argyle the tag as the favorite coming into the tournament. They are the two-time defending champion and come in as the top seed from the north and had three outstanding pitching performances in the tournament. You would have to say Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton, Roseau, and Hawley are also teams that have an excellent chance to advance to state.
This would be a good year to advance to state because the northwest district champ will play the host team (Ely) in the first round of the state tournament.
The tournament schedule is below –
THURSDAY-JULY 25
GAME 1 – 11:00 AM – N4 Win-E-Mac vs. S1 Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton
GAME 2 – 1:30 PM – S3 Ada vs. N2 Roseau
GAME 3 – 4:00 PM – N3 Warroad vs. S2 Hawley
GAME 4 – 6:30 PM – S4 New York Mills vs. N1 Stephen-Argyle (ON KROX)
FRIDAY-JULY 26
GAME 5 – 11:00 AM – WEM/DGF winner vs. Ada/Roseau winner
Game 6 – 1:30 PM – Warroad/Hawley winner vs. NYM/Stephen-Argyle winner
Game 7 – 4:00 PM – Loser of game 5 vs. Loser of game 6
Game 8 – 6:30 PM – Winner of game 5 vs. Winner game 6
SATURDAY-JULY 27
Game 9 – NOON – Winner of game 7 vs Loser of game 8
Game 10 – 2:30 PM – Winner of game 8 vs Winner of game 9 (Championship)
SUNDAY-JULY 28
Game 11 (if necessary) – True Championship
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The University of Minnesota Crookston football program announced the addition of three assistant coaches to their staff for the 2019 season. The Golden Eagles have announced Cory McNeil as an assistant coach for wide receivers and tight ends. In addition, Michael Day will be the linebackers coach, while Derek Bakken will be the defensive line coach. All three have strong ties to the Midwest and will continue to help move the vision of Head Coach Mark Dufner forward for the Golden Eagle football program.
“All three coaches will be great additions to our staff,” Dufner said. “We are excited to get them on campus as we get ready for the 2019 season.”
Cory McNeil
McNeil comes to Minnesota Crookston from Ellsworth Community College in Iowa Falls, Iowa. McNeil was the special teams coordinator and a wide receivers coach for the Panthers for the 2018 season.
He was previously a graduate assistant coach at Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kan., for the 2016 and 2017 seasons.
During the 2015 season, McNeil was the offensive coordinator at Prestonwood Christian Academy in Plano, Texas.
McNeil was a collegiate kicker. He began his career at Cisco Junior College in Cisco, Texas.
He earned his Bachelor of Science degree in General Studies from East Texas Baptist University and received his Master of Business degree with an emphasis in leadership from Tabor College. McNeil played one season in the Athletic Indoor Football League for the East Texas Punch. He is a native of Carrollton, Texas.
“Cory will assist on the offensive side of the ball,” Dufner said. “In addition, he has a great deal of experience working with special teams and will be an asset there.”
Michael Day
Day served as an offensive quality control coach for Augustana University during the 2018 season. Day assisted with the tight ends for the Vikings. In addition, he assisted with breaking down opponent film, recruiting, and assisted with preparations for the defensive scout team. During his time with Augustana, he helped the Vikings to a 7-4 mark on the 2018 season.
Day came to Augustana from another NSIC program in Minnesota State University, his alma mater. While with the Mavericks, he served as director of football operations for the 2017 season.
Prior to arriving at Minnesota State, Day was a student assistant at Culver-Stockton College in Canton, Mo. At Culver-Stockton, he helped out with the offensive line and helped run the offensive scout team.
Day was also a student assistant coach at Rochester Community and Technical College in Rochester, Minn. At RCTC, Day worked under Bill Quistorff where he worked with recruiting and served as a defensive assistant under RCTC Defensive Coordinator Joe Ties over three seasons.
Day earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies in the fall of 2017. He is currently working on his master’s degree in sports administration and leadership from Augustana.
“Michael will assist on the defensive side of the ball,” Dufner said. “He is very good with social media and graphics which are important in the recruiting process; in addition, Michael is very familiar with the NSIC from his time at Augustana and Minnesota State.”
Derek Bakken
Derek Bakken comes to Minnesota Crookston after spending two years as the assistant head coach/linebackers coach for Mayville State University in Mayville, N.D.
In addition to working at Mayville State, Bakken also spent three seasons with the Fargo Invaders, a semi-pro team in the NSFL. Bakken helped the Invaders to a NSFL League Championship in 2016. In addition, he was named NSFL Coach of the Year in 2016. His Bakken spent 22 seasons coaching at the high school level. His most recent job was as the head coach at Oak Grove Lutheran School in Fargo, N.D., a post he last held in 2015. He has also served as an assistant coach at Oak Grove Lutheran School and West Fargo High School. He was a coach on the 2007 Oak Grove Lutheran School squad that captured the AA State Championship in North Dakota.
Bakken is a native of Drake, N.D., he played college football at Dickinson State University as a linebacker. He was a member of the 1986 Dickinson State football team that is in the school’s Hall of Fame.
“Derek will assist on the defensive side of the ball,” Dufner said. “He has proven himself to be an effective recruiter and is well-known throughout the region.”
The trio joins a staff led by Head Coach Mark Dufner, who is in his third season leading the program. Dufner is in his 18th season on the UMC staff. Tom Miller, returns for his second season as defensive coordinator. Miller is in his sixth season on staff for Minnesota Crookston and he will also work with the defensive backs. Jared Hottle is in his second season as offensive coordinator. He will work with the quarterbacks and running backs. Michael Hepp is in his second season with the Golden Eagles. He made the transition to offensive line coach for the 2019 season.
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Three Minnesota Junior Greco-Roman wrestlers were named All-Americans after the Greco-Roman National championships last week:
126 pounds – Cael Swenson – 2nd Place
145 pounds – Chandler Mooney (Roseau) – 3rd Place
152 pounds – Cael Carlson – 2nd Place
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Minnesota Hockey announced a modification to its age classifications, which will move the starting date of each classification from July 1 to June 1 (ex: June 1, 2009 – May 31, 2011), starting in the 2020-2021 season. The Minnesota Hockey Board of Directors approved the change at its Summer Meeting in June, following an extended period of discussion and review.
The change is designed to provide players born in June with the ability to play with their classmates. Previously, players born in June, who started kindergarten at age 6, were forced to play in an age classification one year above their grade level and were forced to move up to high school as ninth-graders. The modification will align June birthdays with July and August birthdays, ensuring more players have a positive youth hockey experience and providing a smoother transition to high school hockey.
“One of the greatest attributes of our community-based model in Minnesota is the opportunity for players to play with classmates and friends throughout their youth hockey career,” said Minnesota Hockey President-elect Steve Oleheiser. “The action of changing the cutoff birthdate by the Minnesota Hockey Board of Directors reaffirms the commitment of the board to our model and allowing players to play with their classmates and friends.”
Minnesota Hockey has historically aligned its age classifications with school-age cutoffs, rather than the birth year age range (Jan. 1 – Dec. 31) utilized in other parts of the country, with the purpose of allowing kids to play hockey with their friends from school. Originally, the classification cutoff date was Sept. 1, which mirrored school-age classifications.
When USA Hockey moved its classification dates to July 1 during the 1990s, Minnesota Hockey adjusted to July 1 as well, with the purpose of aligning with the national classifications. USA Hockey later reverted to using birth years for age classifications, but Minnesota chose to stay with the July 1 cutoff as it accommodated players with birthdays in August and July who started kindergarten a year later.
Surveys of current hockey players with summer birthdays have now shown the more natural breaking point for a cutoff is June 1 as a significant percentage of June birthdays also start kindergarten at age 6, similar to August and July birthdays. Under the new classifications, June birthdays who start school at age 5 will still have the option to play up with their classmates, just as August and July birthdays currently do.
Since registration for the 2019-2020 season has already opened, the modification will be implemented starting with the 2020-2021 season. For official Minnesota Hockey age classifications for the current season, click here.
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The Crookston Blue Line Club will hold the 15th Annual Golf Scramble on Friday, August 16 at Minakwa Golf Course in Crookston.
The scramble is five-person teams with lunch, prizes, and a t-shirt.
To register yourself or a team, contact Kristy Swanson at 218-470-0423 or email crookstonhockey@gmail.com.
Team sponsorship is $350 and Individual entry is $70. All the proceeds go to Crookston youth hockey.
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JOKES –
A young woman had been taking golf lessons and just started playing her first round of golf when she suffered a bee sting.
Her pain was so intense that she decided to return to the clubhouse for help. Her golf pro saw her coming back to the clubhouse and asked, “Why are you back so soon? What’s wrong?
“I was stung by a bee,” she said.
“Where?” he asked.
“Between the first and second hole,” she replied.
The golf pro nodded and said, “Then your feet were too far apart.”
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A red neck walks into a hardware store and asks for a saw that will cut 6 trees in one hour. The salesman recommends the top of the line chain saw model. The red neck is suitably impressed and buys it.
The next day he brings it back and says, “This saw is defective. It would only cut down one tree and it took all the gosh-darned day!”
The salesman takes the chain saw, starts it up to see what’s wrong, and the red neck asks, “What’s that noise?”
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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, is playing for the Cleveland Monsters, the AHL affiliate of the Columbus Bluejacket.
Aaron Hollcraft, is a Senior playing baseball for the UMC Golden Eagles.
Aleece Durbin, is a freshman on the University of North Dakota Women’s Track and Field team.
Brita Fagerlund, is a Sophomore on the University of Jamestown Jimmy Women’s Track team.
Isaac Westlake, a Junior playing golf for the Winona State Warriors.
Ben Trostad, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
Ethan Magsam, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
Elise Tangquist, is a Sophomore golfer for the University of Northwestern in St. Paul.
Brady Heppner, is a Junior, playing hockey at St. Johns University in Collegeville.
Bailey Folkers, is a freshman on the University of Wisconsin-Superior women’s basketball team.
Cade Salentine, is a redshirt Freshman playing football at the University of North Dakota.
Kate MacGregor, a Freshman swimming at Minnesota State Moorhead.
Ally Tiedemann, a Freshman playing tennis at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Ben Trostad, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
Ethan Magsam, a Freshman playing golf at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
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
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.
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 coaching –
Kaylee Desrosier is a softball coach for Fargo Davies Middle School.
Justin Johnson is an assistant softball coach at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
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.
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
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.
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
