SPORTS FEEVER by Chris Fee of KROX Radio – chrisjfee@yahoo.com
Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! For those involved in sports, it isn’t much of a Holiday as we all get back to work either Thursday night or Friday morning. But, what else would we be doing anyway?
I hope you have a Happy Thanksgiving and we wish good luck to all student-athletes and coaches in the winter sports season.
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Since it is Thanksgiving, I want to say a few things I am thankful for.
1. My wife Tiffany. She has put up with a lot of crap over the years, with me being gone, me being stressed out, and anxious, to name a few. She is awesome and the rock of our family.
2. My kids and son-in-law. I have four great kids and a great son-in-law. Alyssa, Blake, Macy, Carter and now Paul. We are lucky to have such great kids on our family.
3. Other family. Between the Fee and Wallin family, I am beyond blessed to have the amazing family.
4. KROX staff. We at KROX are beyond lucky to have the employees we have. Without our employees we are nothing.
5. KROX sponsors, listeners, and website viewers. We wouldn’t be able to do what we do without all three. We will never be able to express our gratitude to all of you!
6. Area coaches and activity directors. We work with so many great coaches and activity directors in northwest Minnesota. I am a little partial, but we have some of the best people serving as coaches and administrators and we are thankful for the friendships and time they give us.
7. There is so much I am thankful for, like my health, friends, doctors, nurses, teachers, and more.
Thank you to all of you and especially if you are reading this column. Have a Happy Thanksgiving!
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People wonder what it is like to be me. Seriously, people wonder, and yes, they are all in mental institutions.
Well, here is a recap of the last two weeks .
We broadcast the Fertile-Beltrami Falcon Football game in the state semi-finals at 4:00 p.m. on a Thursday. By the time we get off the air with interviews and everything else, It is a little after 7:30 p.m. I sent Zach and Gabe back to Crookston because Zach had to work at 5:30 the next morning.
I stayed behind to do the story, post the pictures, add the stats and comments, and everything else. By the time I was done, it was after 10:00 p.m., and the 7:00 p.m. game was done. So I leave U.S. Bank Stadium in downtown Minneapolis. I leave Minneapolis and stop to fill up with gas, grab a pop, and hit the road. I get by St. Cloud around 1:00 a.m., and it is foggy. I see something in the road (on the interstate) and try to miss it, but I hit whatever it was with the inside of my front left tire. The tire pops, and it is instantly flat. In the process, there was a semi tire that blew and was lying flat across the road. I clipped that, and it hit my running board and sheared one of the running board metal pieces off. So now I am changing my tire after 12:30 a.m. on the side of I94, just past St. Cloud. I get it all changed and head back on the highway at about 1:00 a.m. I get home around 4:00 a.m. in one piece.
So we get through the week, and I broadcast a Stephen-Argyle at Warren-Alvarado-Oslo game the next Friday. Of course, the game starts around 8 p.m… and goes by pretty quickly, and I get home around 10:30. I get a bunch of work done and make sure everything for Saturday’s state championship is ready and leave work around midnight. I use my Delta rewards points to fly from Grand Forks to Minneapolis at 5:00 a.m. Saturday morning and get to the cities a little after 6:00 a.m. I take the train to U.S. Bank Stadium and meet Zach and Gabe, who drove down Friday. We start the pre-game show at 9:00 a.m. and broadcast a state championship win for Fertile-Beltrami. I was obviously a little tired, but all that went away when I went down to the field to get interviews with Coach Brian Nelson and got to give him a hug and congratulate him. That was all worth it. People ask what. I love about my job frequently, or what is the best part of the job. It is an easy answer. The people we get to meet and know. The coaches, players, parents, and fans are all that make the job so fun. Watching communities rally around their team and seeing Coach Nelson get a hug from his daughter on the sidelines with a few seconds left in the game brought a little tear in my eye. I know how special Brian’s daughters and wife Dani are to him, and to see that was something I won’t forget.
And seeing the pure joy and excitement of the Falcon players and community was so much fun. It is a playoff trip I will never forget, partially because it is the first-ever state championship for a local team I have broadcast in my 28 years of play-by-play. I have done a bunch of state runner-ups, but that is the first state championship win I have called for any area team, which was pretty cool, too.
Enough about me. Congratulations to the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons on the state championship! You represented NW Minnesota with class, outstanding play, and great sportsmanship, and you made a lot of great memories for so many people!
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We have posted the latest Crookston Pirate Varsity Winter Sport Schedules. To view the schedules, click the link – Pirate Winter Sports Schedules | KROX
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How about the Fertile-Beltrami Falcon Football team. Or should I say the STATE CHAMPION Fertile-Beltrami Football team? It was an amazing season that wasn’t a surprise by any means.
A team that was making their fourth straight state tournament appearance and coming off a close loss in the state semi-finals last year while only graduating two seniors. The expectations were as high as they could be, and rightfully so. The players worked hard all off-season and during the season. They didn’t have a close game during the regular season, and the big concern from those on the outside was whether the Falcons would be able to play a full 48 minutes. The Falcons answered that in the Section championship game when they absolutely dominated the second half. In the state semi-finals, they dominated the second half and outscored a VERY GOOD Leroy-Ostrander/Lyle-Pacelli team 36-8!!! And in the State championship game they physically and mentally wore down Hills-Beaver Creek to win the state championship 20-8.
There are so many people in Northwest Minnesota who are happy with the program, but more for Coach Brian Nelson. Coach Nelson is in his 30th year as a head coach, and he won his first and the schools first Football state championship in the programs ninth trip to state.
There isn’t a nicer guy than Coach Nelson and when KROX interviewed a bunch of the players, most of them said they were happy to get the state title for Coach Nelson. That tells you A LOT when players are so excited to win the title for their coach! That is pretty damn special.
What a final two games of Isaiah Wright’s career. He had 546 yards rushing in the state semi-final and championship game!!! He added eight touchdowns and an interception on the defensive side. Speaking of interceptions, Bryer Strem ended the year with 14 interceptions. He had three interceptions in the final two games of the year. The offensive and defensive linemen were fantastic all season long and made life miserable for every team they played.
It was a remarkable season for the Falcons and won that will go down in the history books.
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The 2024 District 9 West – North Sub-district Football awards have been announced. The teams in the District are Badger/Greenbush0-Middle River, Clearbrook-Gonvick, Fertile-Beltrami, Fosston, Goodridge/Grygla-Gatzke, Kittson County Central, Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal, Northern Freeze, Park Christian, Stephen-Argyle, Warren-Alvarado-Oslo, and Win-E-Mac. The award winners are below.
SUB-DISTRICT PLAYERS OF THE YEAR
Most Valuable Player – Isaiah Wright (Isaiah Wright)
Offensive Lineman of the Year – Caleb Stoltman (Fertile-Beltrami)
Offensive Player of the Year – Ryne Duppong (Fosston)
Defensive Co-Lineman of the Year – Ty Vig (KCC), Gavin Aune (GGG)
Defensive Player of the Year – Bergen Howard (Win-E-Mac)
Special Teams Player of the Year – Kaden Pierce (WAO)
Coach of the Year – Joe Woods (Fosston)
ALL SUB-DISTRICT TEAM –
BGMR – Breydon Foss, Danyn Janousek
Clearbrook-Gonvick – Hassan Bruton, Cooper Wishard
Fertile-Beltrami – Jonah Harstad, Preston Hanson, Jack Leiser, Caleb Stoltman, Bryer Strem, Isaiah Wright
Fosston – Will Christen, Ryne Duppong, Dylan Lomen, Jakob Manteufel, Jakob Rudie
Goodridge/Grygla – Gavin Aune, Sebastian Groven, Sawyer Jacobson, Shay Jacobson, Owen Larson
Kittson County Central – Ashton Knutson, Eli Peterson, Brody Scalese, Ty Vig
Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal – Ian Jacobson
Northern Freeze – Straet Spilde
Park Christian – Jeremiah Bekkum, Logan Giese, Gavin Schmidt
Stephen-Argyle – Caden Pagnac, Blaine Smith, Dylan Widner, Raydon Woinarowicz
Warren-Alvarado-Oslo – Owen Dvorak, Kaden Pierce, Quincy Wright
Win-E-Mac – Braylon Hamre, Bergen Howard, Jayden Haugen
SUB-DISTRICT HONORABLE MENTION –
BGMR – Masen Swenson
Clearbrook-Gonvick – Braxton Bjerke, Ryan Gerlofs
Fertile-Beltrami – Micah Iverson, Joe Sorenson
Fosston – Parker Nelson, Trystan Nyland
Goodridge/Grygla – Abe Miller, Brett Rychlock
Kittson County Central – Brock Scalese
Norman County East/Ulen-Hitterdal – Trygg Bakke, Axel Kiono
Northern Freeze – Sawyer Torgerson
Park Christian – Sam Smith, Bridger Weekley
Stephen-Argyle – Rylan Anderson
Warren-Alvarado-Oslo – Max Carlson, Chase Kalt
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Two Crookston High School seniors, Kambelle Freije and Addie Fee, signed to play college athletics next year at a ceremony held at the Crookston High School. Freije will play hockey at Wisconsin-Eau Claire and Fee will play hockey and tennis at Wisconson-Superior.
KAMBELLE FREIJE
Kambelle Freije signed to play hockey at Wisconsin Eau Claire, an NCAA Division III school. According to Official Pirate Girls Hockey statistician Greg Boetcher, Kambelle played in 42.26 games before this year and has a 26-13-3 record. She had faced 973 shots and made 891 saves for a .915 save percentage (second all-time). She has faced 23.02 shots per game and has made 21.08 saves per game while giving up 1.94 goals per game while posting 12 shutouts, which is second all-time and one behind the Pirate career mark of 13 set by Amy Burke. “Kambelle is a leader, and she is also a stud between the pipes. She has made my life, and the other coaches’ lives a lot easier as she has taken the reigns and made life a lot easier, and I can’t say enough good things about her,” said Pirate Girls Hockey Coach Reed Olson, who explained what makes Freije so good. “Her attention to detail. She knows everything about the players she is facing. Her attention to detail is what separates her from other goalies in the section.”
Kambelle also plays softball for the Pirates, playing multiple positions in the infield and being one of the team’s top players.
“It was my second visit for hockey, and I just loved it there,” said Freije. “I love the coach. I did some research, and they have a competitive program. The campus is unreal, and I saw some of the girls work; they were all jacked so that they have a good weight program, the coaches are great, and the town is great. It is so exciting and glad to make it official.”
ADDIE FEE
Addie Fee has signed a letter of intent to play hockey and tennis at the NCAA Division III University of Wisconsin-Superior next year.
HOCKEY –
According to official Pirate Girls Hockey statistician Greg Boetcher, Fee had 98 career points coming into the season with 46 goals and 52 assists in 88 career games, which is ninth all-time scoring in program history. “Her leadership qualities are amazing. She is the first on the ice and the last to leave,” said Pirate Girls Hockey Coach Reed Olson. “She takes criticism from the coaches well, she is always lifting up her teammates and you can tell on the ice how good of a leader she is and how good her work ethic is.”
TENNIS – Fee had a 95-22 career record with a mix of doubles and singles and played doubles with Kaylie Clauson at the 2024 state doubles tennis tournament, where they finished sixth place, and she was a member of the 2023 and 2024 Pirate Tennis teams that made it to state and finished sixth place and fourth place respectively. “Addie is a competitor, a hard worker, and has a lot of great qualities,” said Pirate Girls Tennis Coach Gina Gunderson. “She is going to do a lot of great things in college, and she wasn’t ready to be done yet, and this is a good opportunity for her. I am really excited for her.”
Fee said she fell in love with Superior when she made the visit. “I met with the coaches and really like them. It was a small campus, and that is what I was looking for. It is right on Lake Superior, which is really pretty. When I made the visit, I just fell in love with it,” said Fee. “It will be different, but it will be a lot of fun and playing both sports played a huge part.”
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The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle volleyball program has announced the signing of Adrienne Venditto of Grand Rapids.
The Golden Eagles lost just one senior in Bailey Schaefer from the 2024 roster.
The Grand Rapids High School standout was named to the Lake Superior All-Conference first-team as a senior. She was also named to the 2024 Big Dog All-Star team. Led the Thunderhawks to the 2022 and 2023 Minnesota State tournament and was a captain as a senior in 2024.
She is also a standout on the diamond. Venditto was named to the All-Section team as a junior and a second team All-Conference performer and was named the 2024 Offensive Player of the Year. All accolades came in her junior year.
Her mom, Alicia, was a setter at Minnesota North College (formerly Itasca Community College).
Adrienne is the daughter of Alicia Venditto of Bovey, Minn. She plans on majoring in Marketing while being a student-athlete at the University of Minnesota Crookston.
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The University of Minnesota Crookston women’s basketball program announced the signings of Emma Pierson (G, 5-9, Cherry Valley, Ill./Belvidere H.S.), and Anna Westby (F, 5-11, Eveleth, Minn./Rock Ridge H.S.).
Pierson and Westby show a focus on signing top players from the region. The Golden Eagles currently have 10 players on their roster from Minnesota, one from Wisconsin, one from Illinois, and one from Idaho.
Emma Pierson (G, 5-9, Cherry Valley, Ill./Belvidere H.S.)
Pierson will be a two-sport athlete at Minnesota Crookston, also competing in women’s golf. She averaged 22.4 points per game, 7.4 rebounds, and 4.2 steals per tilt. Pierson has 1,614 career points. Pierson is an All-State Honorable Mention selection in Illinois from the Associated Press, and the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association. Pierson is a 1,000 point scorer, and a four-time All-Conference and All-Scholar. She is a four-year varsity starter, and has been her team’s Most Valuable Player. Pierson has two school records for single-season scoring, and single-game scoring with 40 points. She has played club basketball for the Wisconsin Lakers, competing in the Select 40 Power 24 League. Pierson also played golf and ran track, helping the golf team to conference and regional titles. Pierson has been a state participant in golf three times, and she has advanced to state twice in track in the 4×100 relay and 400-meter race.
She is the daughter of Ryan and Brenda Pierson. Pierson plans to major in sports and rec management, and communication . Her father Ryan Pierson played basketball at Highland College, while her mother Brenda Pierson played volleyball at Highland College.
Anna Westby (F, 5-11, Eveleth, Minn./Rock Ridge H.S.)
Westby was named to the All-Lake Superior Conference team, and the All-Area Team. Westby was named to the Class AAA All-State Honorable Mention team. She has a 3.93 GPA, and is a National Honor Society member. Westby led Rock Ridge with 18.1 points per game as a junior on their way to the Section 7AAA Championship. She scored her 1,000th career point last season against Hibbing High School in February.
She is the daughter of Kelly Torel of Aurora, Minn., and Jody Westby of Eveleth, Minn. She plans to major in business at Minnesota Crookston. Westby’s uncle Matt Niskanen played college hockey for the University of Minnesota Duluth. He went on to play in the NHL with the Dallas Stars, Pittsburgh Penguins, Washington Capitals, and Philadelphia Flyers. Niskanen won the Stanley Cup with the Washington Capitals in 2018.
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Congratulations to Northern Lakes Coach Mike Randolph on winning game number 708 and becoming the winningest coach in MN High School Hockey! Randolph started at Duluth East in 1987 and won two state titles, and has also coached at St. Thomas Academy for three years and is now coaching at Northern Lakes.
He has won 19 section titles, he has coached over 50 Division I players and 7 that have played in the NHL.
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JOKES
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Two hunters are out in the woods when one of them collapses. He doesn’t seem to be breathing and his eyes are glazed. The other guy whips out his phone and calls the emergency services. .
He gasps, “My friend is dead! What can I do?”. .
The operator says “Calm down. I can help. First, let’s make sure he’s dead.” .
There is a silence, then a shot is heard. .
Back on the phone, the guy says “OK, now what?” .
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An old cowboy sat down at the Starbucks and ordered a cup of coffee. As he sat sipping his coffee, a young woman sat down next to him.
She turned to the cowboy and asked, ‘Are you a real cowboy?’ He replied, ‘Well, I’ve spent my whole life breaking colts, working cows, going to rodeos, fixing fences, pulling calves, bailing hay, doctoring calves, cleaning my barn, fixing flats, working on tractors, and feeding my dogs, so I guess I am a cowboy..’
She said, ‘I’m a lesbian. I spend my whole day thinking about naked women. As soon as I get up in the morning, I think about naked women. When I shower, I think about naked women. When I watch TV, I think about naked women. It seems everything makes me think of naked women.’
The two sat sipping in silence.
A little while later, a man sat down on the other side of the old cowboy and asked, ‘Are you a real cowboy?’
He replied, ‘I always thought I was, but I just found out I’m a lesbian.’
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I don’t run from my problems. I sit on my couch, play on my phone, and ignore them like all the other adults.
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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.
