Fall 2016

Photo courtesy of SPX Sports

FALL 2016

Page 2

Fall

St. Peter volleyball leans on depth Saints are hoping to make further strides after rebuilding season. chemistry and accept one another regardless of age and skill. We have a lot of talented players who can step in at any time.”

Turning things around and improving on a losing season sounds great, but it won’t

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer Coming off of a rebuilding season last year, the St. Peter volleyball team will hope to make strides and improve on a some-what disappointing 2015 season.

When asked about the season ahead and the outlook on the preseason expectations, Head Coach Carmen Hanson had a lot to say about the connection from last season to the expectations of this season.

“Last year was a big rebuilding year, but I was happy for the girls to end the season with a 12-17 record,” Hanson said. “This year’s group of girls have been working hard during the off season to continue to improve. They took 2nd in their summer league playoffs, and placed third during our team camp tournament at SMSU.” Hanson continued on, saying “They have great team

on the East Side Division of the BSC, and challenge the West side for the BSC title,” Hanson said.

The challenge and expectations set up by the coaches are important, but it’s up to the key players on

their goals this season. The returning starters will play important roles for the team this season.

“We do have a good amount of experience coming back. They are a hard working group and very coach-

“I know this group of girls will give it their all throughout the season,” Hanson said. “The girls know that there will be good competition between our teammates for positions; and who plays at what positions could change throughout the season based on performances of the players. Having that versatility of how to play many positions will be huge for our team.”

happen without a lot of hard work from the players and coaches. However, it does help when you have clear-cut goals set forth by players and coaches.

“Our team goal is to regain our first place position

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the Saints’ roster to make it happen. Players like senior Mallorie Chabot, who has captained the team both this season and last, along with Shyanne Rodning and junior Kayla Oeltjenbruns. They will all need to lead the team to

able,” Hanson said. “I know this group of girls will give it their all throughout the season. The girls know that there will be good competition between our teammates for positions; and who plays at what positions could change

throughout the season based on performances of the players. Having that versatility of how to play many positions will be huge for our team.”

Along with Hanson’s returning players are a talented group of underclassmen.

“We also have a great group of underclassmen that will be given the opportunity to earn a position on varsity,” Hanson said. “Our numbers are really high, which is a great problem to have. There is a lot of talented players so to have the girls compete for positions and most importantly push one another to continue to improve is exciting for a coach to have for the upcoming season.”

Depth, and strong depth at that, will prove to be extremely helpful over the course of the season.

The St. Peter Saints are 6-3 overall with a 3-0 conference record as of September 26th.

2016

Page 3

Maple River football looks for more success

COREY YUMAN Staff Writer Getting so close to being successful but coming up short can end up being more of a burden than a blessing, but it’s the best teams that are able to develop a short memory. A short memory is exactly what the Maple River Eagles are going to need as they head into their 2016 campaign.

The Eagles are coming off of a year that saw them lose only one regular season game while advancing to the finals of the Class AA Section 2 tournament. While success of last year can breed confidence, Head Coach Brian Schoneck knows that he can’t let his team get caught up in the past.

“We did have a nice season last year,” Schoneck said.

Even with that being that case, he added, “We try not to look backwards-we try to look forward.”

Looking forward, the Eagles are going to look to repeat their success while being a top contender in their conference. Maple River will have 11 seniors helping them

Photo by SPX Sports towards this after losing 11 seniors from last year.

Among those 11 seniors will be returning offensive lineman Noah Decker. Decker is a three year starter that began his time with the Eagles as a running back until he was switched to the offensive line.

“We like to look at kids and put them in places that make them better. And the kids make those sacrifices and he took it in stride,” Schoneck said.

Decker took it in stride to say the least as he was very

anxious to serve whatever role he could that would help the team.

“I just knew that there was a younger running back that was a little faster and team needed me on offensive line so I just said yeah that’s great, I’ll do what the team needed me to do,” explained Decker.

Having an experienced anchor on an offensive line can go a long way in helping with the productivity of the quarterback and running back, so the Eagles are hoping for another great outing from the senior.

“He had a great year on the offensive line last year and we look forward to seeing what he can do this year,” said Schoneck.

Last year is when Decker said that he began to feel most comfortable at his new position. What made the transition toughest for Decker was just having to re-learn a new position from scratch, and the physicality of being in the trenches of the offensive line was an adjustment.

It didn’t take long for him to feel at home with the position though, and the com-

radery of the position quickly became one of his favorite aspects.

“There’s really a brotherhood, you get to know the guys and they have your back and you have their back,” said Decker.

The brotherhood isn’t limited to the offensive line though, and Decker is using his seniority to play a helping role to the guys that will eventually be in his position.

“As a Senior, I try my hardest to be a leader and set a good example for the younger kids that maybe aren’t playing,” explained Decker.

Decker won’t be alone playing the role of experienced senior for Maple River. Holding things down on the defensive end of the ball is another senior with three years of starting experience in Jeff Lewis. Schoneck said that he will be looking to Decker and Lewis for leadership on their respective sides of the ball.

For a team that that was so close last year, the aim for the team and Decker in particular is pretty obvious.

“State tournament. Maple River has made one before and I want to be on the team that did, so state tournament.”

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Page 4

Fall

Fairmont soccer, volleyball ready to compete JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer The Fairmont High School volleyball team is a part of section 2AA in the state.

The Cardinals belong to the Big South conference in the East Division. They are led

by Head Coach Haley Loerts.

They finished the 2015 season at 7-12. Coach Loerts is hoping to improve from last year and be on the other side of a .500-win percentage.

The Cardinals consist of three seniors Madison Hennager, Emma Ward, and Sara Schellpeper. Loerts will look to them leading the way this season with experience. This is a junior-heavy team this year with eight of them. One of the impact players from the junior class is Libero Ericka Kim. Defensive specialists, and siblings, Mariah Gochanour and Mallory Gochanour are also junior impact players for the Cardinals. There are two sophomores on the varsity team and their contribution will be vital for the Cardinals. Right-side hitters Bailee Swanson and Taylor Crissinger are the youthful

players that will have an important role this season.

The theme for this year is to hopefully consistently improve and make the conference tournament. This will give the Cardinals the chance to make the state tournament, something they have not done in quite a while.

Fairmont is a part of the Big South conference. The teams to beat in the conference seem to be Jackson County Central High School, Windom Area High School, Blue Earth Area High School, and St. Peter High School.

The Cardinals faired decently with these teams last and they look forward to competing with these teams this year.

The Fairmont High School girls’ soccer team is a part of section 2AA in the state.

The Cardinals compete in the Big South conference. They are led by Head Coach Matt Nielsen. In the 2015 season, they posted a 2-12-2 overall and 2-7-1 conference record.

Coach Nielsen hopes to improve that this season.

The Cardinals have seven seniors on their varsity roster and Coach Nielsen will be

relying on their experience and leadership to help carry this team this season. Goalie Haley Burmeister is the Cardinals’ anchor between the posts. On defense, seniors Cori Emler, Brytni Drevlow, and Sadie Sandersfeld will be playing a major role in stopping opponents from opportunities to scoring. One of the senior midfielders, and returning leading scorer, Myah Lytle will look to play a major role on the field. Senior Forward Lindsey Miles was a key impact player last year and she will lead the attack this season.

There are many key underclassmen that will be contributors as well. Junior Brooke Hunwardsen led the team in goals (8) and points scored (17). The Cardinals will rely on her to once again lead the way this season. Sophomore Grace Higgins had a wonderful season last year, as she was second on the team in goals (3) and points scored (7). Sophomore Abby DeWitt was fourth on the team last year in goals and points scored.

The Cardinals face some tough competition in the Big

South. The teams to beat in the conference are Mankato Loyola High School and Waseca High School. Fairmont is looking for redemption this season as they went 0-3-1 to these teams. Nielsen is confident that they will compete with these teams with the grand goal of making it through the conference tournament to the state tourney.

The Fairmont High School boys’ soccer team is a part of section 2A in the state. They compete in the Big South conference. The Cardinals are led by Head Coach Brady Meyer. In the 2015 season, they posted a 1-15 overall and 0-10 conference record.

Coach Meyer believes this year’s team is improved and poised for hearty competition.

The Cardinals are an experienced team with seven seniors and five juniors on their roster. Senior Goalie Jerrod Daniel will man the goal this season. The defense will be relying on senior Dominic Armitage along with juniors Darrin Thingstad and Lucas Simpson. The middle of the pitch will be patrolled by Se-

niors Noah Becker, Leyton Becker, and Antony Joseph.

The attacking crew is led by seniors Tyler Head and Cameron Militello along with juniors Thomas Havnen, Jacob Mitchell, and Alex Alvarado.

A few notable sophomores that are looking to make a significant contribution to the team are Matthew Anderson, Malachi Anderson, Joseph Gerken, Abram Sanchez, Hugo Arvizu, and Ethan Kueker. There are three freshmen who made the varsity team this year in Kaleb Hoye, Daniel Brummond, and Stephen Quintero. Their role will be to continue to develop as players and look upon the upperclassmen for leadership this season.

Out of the Big South conference last year, the teams to beat were St. Peter, Worthington, and Waseca.

The Cardinals are looking for redemption this season amongst these teams. Their goals are to stay competitive and make a deep run into the playoffs with a hope of making it to the state tournament.

2016

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Mankato West looking to continue winning tradition

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer The Mankato West Scarlets feel like they have some unfinished business and plan to take this season to the next level.

“The theme this year is unfinished business. We want to improve on last year’s performance,” Head Coach Mark Esch said.

The goal this season is to win a state championship like they did in 2014. So far this season, the Scarlets are off to a good start and are in exactly the position they want to be in at this time of year.

When asked what returning players to look out for, Esch said to keep an eye out for quarterback Robbie Miedl, running backs Peter Haley, CJ Terry and Tom Yokiel, and wide receiver Dawson Cooper.

Incomers like wider receivers Wesley Henderson

Photo by SPX Sports and Dondre Spann will try to make a name for themselves this year as the Scarlets compete for a chance at a state championship.

Some key matchups this season will be against teams like rival Mankato East, and Rochester Mayo. So far in four games, the Scarlets have

outscored their opponents 162-89. As a team, they have averaged 259 yards on the ground through four games and have averaged 103 yards per game through the air.

Meidl leads the team in passing with 97 yards per game, totaling 388 yards through the air this season

with 4 touchdowns and 4 interceptions to match. Meidl also leads the team in just about every major rushing category. He leads the team in rushing attempts with 80 as well as yards from scrimmage with 507, and 126 per game with 11 touchdowns.

Other notable players on

the Scarlets are running back Terry and wide receivers Cooper and Spann. This season, Terry has rushed for 434 yards on 69 attempts averaging over 6 yards per carry and 108 yards each game. The balanced running attack from Meidl and Terry has been a force to be reckoned with this season.

Through the air, it’s been pretty clear who Meidl’s main targets are. Spann leads the team with 10 receptions for 138 yards and a touchdown.

On the other side Cooper has 7 receptions with 82 yards, averaging over 11 yards per reception.

The potent offensive attack could lead the Scarlets back to a state title but it’ll be up to the leaders on the team to rally the troops and make it happen. The Scarlets will be faced with taking on a fierce Red Wing team looking to end Mankato West’s streak before anyone else does.

The game will be at Mankato West High School at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, October 7th.

Page 6

Fall

LCWM Knights volleyball, football look to improve

COREY YUMAN Staff Writer The girls of the Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial Knights volleyball team have gotten back on the court and are in full swing in their season. The Knights are coming off a 2015 campaign that saw some plusses and minuses,

however they are looking to be fearless as the current season plays out.

“The girls are striving to go out on that court and give it their all. They are aspiring to leave it all on the court each game and not fear making mistakes,” Head Coach Jess Keenan said.

Jess Keenan is coaching in her first season with Lake Crystal and the team has seven seniors on the team which both incorporate into the team’s goals for the year.

“With seven Seniors on this year’s team, we’re trying

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to give the girls a memorable experience. I am in my first year coaching for the Knights, so making this year a year to remember for both those in their final season, and me in my first, is a major goal for the whole team,” Keenan said.

With only three Seniors from the 2015 team having graduated, a lot of the previous unit is still intact. Coach Keenan felt this was an opportunity to start her tenure as head coach as a way to incorporate a blank slate in her coaching strategy.

The leader in kills has been a close one for the team with two girls very close together stat wise.

“Both outside hitters, Seniors Amanda Sickler and Leah Jones are back as our offensive powerhouses both leading the team in kills, neck-and- neck, with 44 and 46 kills respectively,” said Keenan.

The new LCWM head coach also noted that the defense is in a great position.

“Our defense is our strong point, partially in part to returning players Senior Libero Bailey Burnett and Defensive Specialists, Sophomore Kaitlin Ewy and Senior Lexi Laborde,” explained Keenan.

It’s also interesting to note that Bailey Barnett has recently recorded her 500th dig of her high school volleyball career.

Photo by SPX Sports When looking at incoming players, a few to note are Senior setter Maddie Graham and middle hitter Lakesha Carter. Maddie will be playing off the bench for the first time since her freshman year in 2013. Graham suffered an ACL injury which kept her sidelined for an extended period of time for recovery.

“Maddie was voted team captain this year, and is a major player on the team being the only person who plays

both front and back row. She is leading the team in assists this season, and even though we were only able to have her for this one season, I am very grateful to be able to work with her,” said Keenan.

Carter will be playing on the team as the youngest player on the varsity squad at 13 years old. As an eighth

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2016

Page 7

LCWM continued from 6 “Both outside hitters, Seniors Amanda Sickler and Leah Jones are back as our offensive powerhouses both leading the team in kills, neck-and- neck, with 44 and 46 kills grader, she is already leading the team in blocks, already having 25 on the year.

“The defensive ability she has is a key contributor to our team’s defensive success, along with that of her opposite, sister, junior Kierra Wilson! Once Kesha hones in on her offensive skills she will be unstoppable,” explained Keenan.

The Knights are currently 1-14-1 but still have plenty of season left to right the ship and end on a positive note.

As for the football team, the group is looking to improve after an abysmal 2015 season.

The Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial Knights high school football team is back on the gridiron this year and they are going with a theme that they are never out of the fight. After a 2015 campaign that saw them go 1-8 on the year, the boys have already improved upon their previous outing this year, having won their first two weeks of games.

“Our goal for the year is to be a very tough team to play against,” Head Coach Grant Solem said.

So far, so good for the Knights as they are sitting on a 2-2 record as of writing.

Photo by SPX Sports They opened up the year against Martin County West with a 27-0 victory and followed that with a week two victory over Waterville-Elysian-Morristown, winning a nail-biter 7-6 in overtime.

In their following games against Mayer Lutheran and Norwood-Young America the Knights faced their first two losses of 2016, losing to Mayer Lutheran by 14 points and losing to Norwood by just

two points.

It’s already an improved season no matter how the rest of the year goes, as 2015 the team didn’t see a win until the final game of the regular season against Le Sueur-Henderson which they won by a score of 27-7. The following week, the team competed in the Class AA – Section 2 football tournament against Kenyon-Wanamingo and fell to them, 42-6.

Their closest win of 2015 came in week five on September 18th where they played against Lester Prairie/Holy Trinity and lost the game by a single point, 15-14. Their biggest defeat came in two separate games against Mayer Lutheran on September 4th and against Maple River on September 25th where they lost both games 28-7.

They ended 2015 with a 1-3 Section record and 1-6

conference record. They earned a QRF ranking of 51st with their 19.6 score.

In order to improve, it will take a mix of experienced players that are set to return along with some young blood that may be able to add some new life to the team.

Solem noted that among the key returning players is going to be Seniors in quarterback Mac Graupman, fullback Garret Anderson-Gilman, and offensive lineman Dawson Knutson-Bunde.

Incoming players that the Knights will be counting on to provide a spark is Senior wide receiver Logan Stock, sophomore half-back Tommy Pitts, and sophomore half back Ben Graupman.

When asked what matchups Coach Solem would consider to be key he didn’t want to pinpoint any games in particular.

“Every match-up for us is key for us. We are trying to establish a new identity and to do that you need to focus on every game,” Solem said.

After four games into the season, the Knights have improved on their QRF rating from last year, currently sitting in 27th place with a score of 25.2.

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Page 8

Fall

Blue Earth gears up for success this fall Football, tennis and volleyball are are determined to make their mark. feating Martin County West, Windom Area, and Luverne.

The team was coming together more in these wins

COREY YUMAN Staff Writer The Blue Earth Area Buccaneers football team is back in full swing and are four games into their current campaign when this was written.

The team is coming off of a 2015 year that saw plenty of success with a winning record and a section tournament win.

When they opened up the 2015 season, they didn’t quite get off to the right foot and were defeated by Fairmont 27-0. The Buccaneers were able to bounce back the following week with a win over St. James Area, but then fell in their last two games to start their season 1-3.

They would pull their record to above .500 after de-

the season came in the Class AA-Section 2 Football tournament. Throughout the tournament, the team didn’t

sian-Morristown Buccaneers.

In the battle of the Bucs, it was Blue Earth that succeeded by winning by a field goal

““Our goal this year was to just go out and be competitive in every match, and we have gone way beyond that as a team. As of this point, we are 7-9,” Wolff said.” and won each game by double digits. Closing their season, they took a loss to Pipestone. Pipestone was able to shut out Blue Earth 35-0.

In their 2015 regular season, they went 4-4 overall and 4-3 in their conference.

The biggest success of

play a single home game and opened up at New Richland against the Panthers. Blue Earth scored the most points of their year and defeated New Richland 48-22.

The following week, they headed to Waterville to take on the Waterville-Ely-

17-14.

With that victory, Blue Earth punched their tickets to the finals of the tournament against Maple River. In a hard fought game, Blue Earth raised their hands as the victor with a 17-10 win over Maple River.

The win in the Section tournament earned them a spot in the state tournament. On October 30th, they entered the first round of the Minnesota State Class AA Football tournament. In the first round they played Caledonia, and that’s where their 2015 season came to an end. Caledonia dominated in a 48-0 win, and they would ultimately go on to win the tournament.

Blue Earth ended the year going 7-5 overall. They ended up with a 2-2 home record but were 5-2 on the year when on the road. They were ranked number 7 in the Quality Results Formula (QRF) with a score of 66.1.

As the 2016 season is underway, the results thus far into the season are looking very similar to how 2015 started. Four games into the year they are 1-3. Blue Earth opened up with a 35-0 loss to Fairmont. In week two they

BLUE EARTH PAGE 9

2016

Page 9

BLUE EARTH continued from 8

“So far into their 2016 season, the Buccaneers have been fairing much better. They are currently posted up with a 10-4 record and are chugging along well.” bounced back with a win over St. James to start conference action, and fell in their next two games to Redwood Valley and Jackson County Central. Their loss to Jackson County came in overtime.

As the team sits in the exact same spot as they did last year, it’s easy to say things could be headed in the same direction as last season. It could very easily turn around, however, as they finish the second half of the season facing four South Central White district opponents.

As for the girl’s tennis team, they are just about to wrap up their season. As of writing, the girls are 7-9 on the year with just one game left before the season ends.

The final match will be played against St. James Area on October 1st.

The team is very young, having lost 7 out of 10 varsity players from last year due to

graduation. The team’s lone Senior is Gracie Leland and they have two returning juniors in Malarie Scholtes and Julia Hanson.

“We have 3 eighth graders on our varsity team, along with two sophomores, and two 9th graders, making our team very young,” Head Coach Konny Wolff said.

The girls competed hard throughout the season, winning back-to-back games on three different occasions. The biggest slump they had was a five-game losing streak at the start of the season. While the slump may not have been the best way to start a year, the girls finished strong with a record of 6-4 in the last 10 weeks.

“Our goal this year was to just go out and be competitive in every match, and we have gone way beyond that as a team. As of this point, we are 7-9,” Wolff said.

With the season almost wrapped up, section matches will begin on October 3rd and Blue Earth will be taking on Unite South Central in their first match.

The Roster for the team is as follows: Gracie Leland, Malarie Scholtes, Julia Hanson, Carissa Engesser, Athena Thompson, Sydney Blagg, Maddie McCleary, Serina Wirth, Macie Stevermer, Cali Beyer, Tea Armstrong, Lyndsey Borris, Phoebe Loge, McKenna Dutton, Arika Howard, Britt Howard, Jo Cervantes, Marissa Benz, Kylie Rosenau, Lauren Bless, Allie Lopez, and Karisa Lopez.

Meanwhile, the Buccaneers’ volleyball team is hitting the court once again and they’ve already improved upon what they did last year.

2015’s campaign wasn’t the ideal outcome for any team, but the girls made the best of what they could

while on the court. Their record was 4-11 according to Minnesota-scores.net. They had a home record 3-5 and an away record of 1-6. They posted a Quality Results Formula (QRF) ranking of 116 with their score of 47.5.

Their 2015 season ended after the Class AA–Section 2 volleyball tournament. They hit the road to play against St. Peter and took the match to five sets, but ultimately fell to them 3-2.

Thus far into their 2016 season, the Buccaneers have been fairing much better.

They are currently posted up with a 10-4 record and are chugging along well.

They started the year on a five game winning streak, having won their first three exhibition games against Le Sueur-Henderson, Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial, and Fairmont. In the three games, they only gave up one set and

defeated their opponents by a combined score of 9-1.

Their first tournament of the year came in Luverne.

They won their first two matches, followed by losing two of the last three to put them at 3-2 for the tourney.

The girls finish their regular season on October 22nd against Rochester Century.

Sophomores on the team are Maddie Armon and Sidney Blair. Juniors are Sofie Blair, Alissa Norman, Maddi Oelke, and Lindsey Norman.

The heavy number of Seniors on the team are Samantha Barslou, Kaylor Jacobs, Lindsey Jacobs, Samantha Ripley, Hannah Haugh, Brittany Johnson, Jennifer Scheid, Ryanne Klabunde, and Skylee Bell.

Page 10

Fall

St. James fall sports ready for competition JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer The St. James high school football team is a cooperative sponsorship with Butterfield-Odin High School. The team is a part of class 3AA and competes in the South Central Conference. They are led by Head Coach Jeff Whitney. Last season, they went 1-7. Whitney looks to steer the program in the right direction and win some games this season.

St. James is returning quite a few players this season, with the majority of them being Seniors. It appears that the Saints don’t necessarily have any returning players that play one set position, rather they return a group of utility players that make plays in every position on the field. It all starts with Seniors like Sandin Skow and Brady Stevens. The two shared snaps at the quarterback spot last season and it appears that they are also relied upon at running back and wide receiver. Skow and Stevens will have their number called on many plays this season. Defensively, Stevens will line up at linebacker and Skow will be playing defensive back.

Another key contributor to the team is Senior Max Svalland. He will be making plays at running back and receiver on offense this season. He’s

going to play on the other side from Skow lined up at corner. Landon Malmgren is a key wide receiver that is coming back for his Senior season. He will also be making an impact defensively at the safety position.

A key incoming player for the Saints will be Senior Ryan Witcraft. He will round out the Saints’ legion of boom secondary. He will also be making plays as a running back every now and then.

Up front, the Saints bring a lot of experience with them.

There are seven Seniors who will rotate in-and-out and make a contribution to the offensive and defensive line.

As for the volleyball team, they are a cooperative sponsorship with Butterfield-Odin high school and St. James high school. The Saints are a part of the Big South conference in section 3A of Minnesota. They are led by Head Coach Steve Chapin.

The Saints had a wonderful season last year as they went 16-3 overall and undefeated in the conference. They lost in the first round of the sectional tournament to Worthington.

The Saints return seven varsity players this season.

With everyone being Seniors, they will be relied upon for major contributions. Starting with Senior Libero Nora Schmidt, as she saw action

on varsity last season. She will work with some experience this year.

Another notable Senior this season is defensive specialist Kaytlyn Wensauer. she had a major role for the team last year and will continue to keep improving with her team. Junior setter Kayla Hanson will be relied upon to distribute the ball amongst her teammates. She is a key incoming player that will make an impact right away.

As stated before, there are only seven returning starters on the varsity squad, so Chapin will expect his new incoming players to make an immediate impact in the game. Some notable newcomers include defensive specialist Callie Coleman and middle hitter Elizabeth Asendorf. They will be ready to compete on the varsity level alongside their teammates.

The Saints are going to have to bring their A-game this year. They finished first in the conference last season, so everybody will be gunning for their spot. Chapin and his players are excited for the upcoming season, and ready to take on whatever teams stand in their way.

The cross-country team is heading into the 2016 season with hopes of making it into the playoffs this year. They want to compete with the top teams in their MSHSL Section

2A conference. The boy’s team is coming off an impressive season in 2015 where they ended up placing 7th in the state championship race.

The girls hope to continue to rebuild this year. Last year, they finished off the season placing 18th in the Section 2A state championship race.

When asked what the goals were for the 2016 season, Head Coach Bradley Stark had this to say about it: “We would love to win our conference and possibly go to state. These goals might be slightly beyond us for this year, but we will keep trying.”

The theme for the St. James cross country team this year is to just have fun running with their buddies.

“We try to have fun, develop a family atmosphere, and teach athletes how to move towards reaching their potential,” said Stark.

Some key returning runners for the cross country team is junior Lucas Pierson, who placed 23rd out of 157 runners in the state championship last year. Pierson is currently holds the second fastest time in school history.

Lucas plans to beat his own record and become one of St. James High School’s alltime best runners. And for the girl’s side, junior MacKinzee Miest is coming off an impressive season last year, placing 14th out of 137 ath-

letes in the state championship.

Some other runners Stark hopes to have breakout years are Leo Tellez, Ricardo Vite, Nelson Cuellar, Alex Knickrehm, and Chase Nelson.

Last year the girl’s team contained a lot of youth, consisting of mainly freshmen.

Some returning runners for the girl’s cross-country team are Madeline Foss, Chantel Henderson, and Johana Rodriguez.

Some incoming runners that should make an impact for St. James are Troy Parulski, Mauricio Vite, Jackson Miest, and Seth Pierson. Most of the athletes are younger siblings of the other runners of the team which helps Stark’s hopes of creating a family environment.

St. James is looking forward to squaring off against Windom and GFW this year, as Stark claims they will be their toughest opponents.

Last year GFW edged out St. James in the state championship by placing 6th. St. James is looking for redemption this season

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2016

Page 11

Cleveland football looks to keep winning TOMMY WIITA Sports Editor Going into the 2015 season, the Cleveland high school team had sizeable gaps to fill all over the field.

The Clippers then improved on their 2014 8-3 record and went 10-2. Improvement seems to continue being an upward trend for Cleveland, and it all starts with the cohead coaching of Kyle Atherton and Erik Hermanson. The two were assistants for 12 years together, and they both agreed they have been on the same page from the start.

“We’re great together, “Hermanson said. “It seems like we are yet to have an argument between each other.”

Atherton also had kind words for his fellow co-head coach, saying “We mesh extremely well.”

Last season’s team featured a lot of size and

strength, as this year it was pointed out that may be an issue. Many Seniors last year had size and strength on their opponents, yet Atherton and Hermanson remain optimistic about 2016. Two key players who graduated after last season were All-District co-captains Chandler Berry and Tyler Piotter.

“We have a really athletic and skilled team this year,” Hermanson said. “The only issue is we aren’t that big. I think we can work with that, however.”

Last season’s success was largely attributed to the size and strength of the team, yet the team has made it their focus in 2016 to be just as successful or even better. Both co-head coaches have set the tone of focusing on each individual play, and completing the task at hand.

“As long as everyone does their job, our record and wins will take care of itself,” Atherton said.

The Clippers will have three players on defense coming off a 2015 season in which each player had over 90 tackles. Linebacker Gavin Wenker (110 tackles), defen-

sive end Nick Douglas (108 tackles, 7 sacks) and defensive tackle Josh Baker (92 tackles, 8 sacks) will all look to pace a defense that had a turnover-ratio of +16.

As said by both head coaches, the success on offense will rely heavily upon the Clippers’ offensive line.

The line will consist of all Seniors: tackle Baker, tackle Adam Kunkel, center Nick Douglas and tight end Jacob Weller. Even with the size issue, this group of guys can still excel on the gridiron.

Both Atherton and Hermanson had high praises for the offensive line group, saying they show great toughness and smart talent.

“They have played a lot of games together,” Hermanson said. “[They] are smart, play very hard and are great leaders on and off the field.”

As long as the offensive line plays to their potential, quarterback Carter Kopet should once again have no issues. He completed 62 percent of his passes last season, along with 38 passing touchdowns. Kopet also rushed for 827 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground. Wide

Photo by SPX Sports receiver Jaiden Zishka hauled in 17 touchdown receptions last season, as he and Austin Plonsky (5 receiving touchdowns) will be Kopet’s top targets in 2016.

Senior Gavin Wenker will be leading the running backs in 2016, as he led the Clippers in total carries last season. Senior Brandon Seitz rushed for three scores in 2015 and should see more action for the upcoming season in the backfield, as will junior newcomer Carter Brink.

Brink moved into the District last spring from Belle Plaine, Minnesota.

August 28th will prove to be a highlighted contest for the Clippers, as they take on Hills-Beaver on the road.

Cleveland lost to the Patriots last season, and both coaches have made it a mission to seek revenge this season.

The Cleveland-Edgerton/ Ellsworth matchup will be a tough one, as Edgerton is considered as one of the ‘elites’ in the District. The Clippers will host the Flying Dutchmen for their final regular season game on October 8th. Cleveland will kick off their season August 22nd at Nicollet.

Page 12

Fall

St. Peter Saints aim for consistency in 2016

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer The St. Peter Saints Football team struggled coming out of the gate this season, but there are still plenty of games left to take the season back.

To start off the season, the Saints have gone a less than desirable 1-3. After winning their first game of the season, there was some promise for the players and coaches of the St. Peter Saints. Shortly after, that next week the Saints lost their second game of the season and are on a three-game losing streak as of Thursday, September 29th.

At times, the Saints have struggled to put up points but they have been able to produce occasionally. As a team, the Saints do run the ball fairly well. In the first half of the season they have rushed the ball for 215 yards per game, averaging 4.7 yards per carry, while putting the ball in the end zone nine

Photo by SPX Sports and leads the team in rushing yards per game with 79.

Behind Chadwick, helping with the running attack is junior quarterback Jake Emley, who’s rushed the ball 51 times for 212 yards and seven touchdowns. His seven scores lead the team.

Contributing in the run game as well so far this sea-

Photo by SPX Sports times, according to mnfootballhub.com.

The Saints run game is a stable of running backs lead by junior running back Alex Chadwick. Through four games, Chadwick has run the ball 53 times for 316 yards, and averages 6 yards per carry. Chadwick is the leading rusher for the Saints

son are players like Senior running back Jake McCabe.

In four games, McCabe has rushed for 143 yards on just 24 carries, equaling out to 6 yards per carry. Two sophomores in Joey Baron and Kyle Fogal have made it difficult for defenses to stop the Saints at times.

If the Saints want to turn

their season around, their run game will have to be on point and their pass game will need to step up and help out the run game. The Saints’ next game will be on the road at Fairmont on Friday, October 7th.

As for the girls’ tennis team, they are looking to repeat last season’s success.

The 2015 season saw the team go undefeated in the regular season, and the goal has been set to improve and go even further into the playoffs.

The message was clear from Head Coach Aaron Rothenberger to the players as the season progressed.

“One team on the same journey to improve their game and themselves,” Rothenberger said.

The journey will be long, but if they stay focused and improve like they hope to do then this season could be one to remember for the players and coaches. Rothenberger hopes to see improvement from the players, but it’s the depth of the team that will be a driving force in the team’s success this season.

“This season we hope for improved play by the veterans of the team, along with developing some of the younger talent on the team.

The key to our team success is the consistency and strength at the bottom of our varsity lineup,” Rothenberger said. “If we play well at 3 and 4 singles and 3rd doubles, we have a chance to go far into the playoffs this season, along with competing for a BSC title match.”

Some of the key players

that will have a major impact on this season are players like Kelli Hanson and Josie Carlson who were BSC All Conference, State Qualifiers, and runner-up in State Consolation Doubles. The girls played well last season, but this season’s success cannot be based upon last year’s performance, no matter how good they were.

“In 2015, St. Peter girls’ tennis finished 3rd in the BSC East Division and were undefeated in Section 2A regular season play. In the Section

2A playoffs, the team finished runner-up to Holy Family Catholic, completing a 15-5 record,” Rothenberger said.

“In 2016, the team looks to improve in conference play as well as the section playoffs.”

Improving in 2016 is the goal and with four returning starters with 20 plus wins from last season, the goal seems definitely within reach. Of the four, Kelli Hanson went 28-2 which set the school record in individual wins in a season.

Senior captains Ali Sandquist and Claire Thompson in doubles and well as senior Natalie Yang and junior Alex Gault will all be returning starters, as well as sophomore Liliana Elofson who will be returning to the starting singles lineup. Make sure to keep your eyes out for players like Freshman Amelia Wernsing, Sophomore Lexie Blaschko, and Senior Gracie Willaert.

The Saints are 11-3 as of September 26th. Their final match of the season will be on October 1st against St. James, who they lost to earlier in the season 4-3.

In a coach’s first year as head coach, a lot goes through their head – how will the new coach handle the pressures of coaching for her first season.

Breanna Steele is in the

ST. PETER PAGE 13

2016

Page 13

ST. PETER continued from 12

““This is my first year coaching. With a new coaching staff and after losing a majority of the starters last year, this is a building year,” Steele said. “We are a young team. We have players playing in new positions and in new roles.”” first year of her head coaching career, coming off her college playing career at Minnesota State University. She understands the task at hand as the new head coach replacing Karl Larson, the only head girls’ soccer coach in St. Peter’s history.

“This is my first year coaching. With a new coaching staff and after losing a majority of the starters last year, this is a building year,” Steele said.

“We are a young team. We have players playing in new positions and in new roles.

Even though it is a building year, we still have the same goals and expectations that the program has withheld for the last couple of years.”

So far Steele has done pretty well for herself, as her Saints have gone 6-4-1, and sit in second place in the Big South with a 5-2-1 conference record.

Some of the key returning players to the Saints are sophomores Kiki Krueger and Katie Dirks. Even though her squad is young, Steele likes what she sees in her girls so far this season.

“Kiki has many strengths that make her a key player

Photo by SPX Sports on our team. She reads the play well, works off the ball and makes beneficial passes that sets our team up for success. She works hard to pressure the other team’s defense,” Steele said. “Katie is another player who succeeds

in the middle. She has good ball-handling skills that allow for her to get around her opponents. She is another one of our players that never gives up. When she is on the field, she is going to make sure the job gets done.”

Two juniors on the Saints’ soccer team step out in the eye of Steele. Juniors Sienna Wiebusch and Greta Anderson were mentioned as the girls to look out for, for the Saints.

“Sienna is a crucial play-

er in our defensive line. She isn’t afraid to go and win the ball. She is powerful and her strength on the ball allows for not many opposing players to get behind her. She never gives up.” Steele said. “Greta is another type of player who never gives up. She is going to work hard to make sure our team is succeeding. In the middle, she makes those switching passes that allow for her teammates to attack the opponent’s defensive line. She somehow always comes away with the ball when going in for tackles.”

The St. Peter Saints soccer team is hitting the halfway point of the season. There is some good competition coming up, but they seem like they can handle themselves. As of right now, the Saints are 6-4-1, overall. Next the girls’ Saints soccer team will face Worthington Tuesday October 4th at home.

Page 14

Fall

New Ulm excited for soccer, volleyball season The Eagles will be focusing on improving on successful seasons in 2016.

JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer The New Ulm High School volleyball team is a part of section 2AA in the state. They compete in the Big South Conference on the east side.

The Eagles are led by Head Coach Zach Hansen. Last year, they posted an overall record of 1-15 and a conference record of 1-8. Hansen expects to improve this year.

Coach Hansen’s main themes that he stresses to the team are teamwork, attitude, effort, leadership, and family. They’re at the core of his coaching philosophy.

When asked about the team’s goals for the season, Coach Hansen had this to say: “The goals are to grow together as a team, creating a welcoming environment in practice, establish a bar of hard work ethic amongst all players, and get back to fundamentals-especially serving and passing.” If they can improve on these values, then they will flourish as a volleyball team, according to Hansen.

There are quite a few key returning Eagles this season.

Starting with the Seniors in a pair of Middle Hitters Danielle Hogue and Mackenzie Depew. There are three Outside Hitters Makenna Kluis, Madison Suess, and Megan Hulke. Finally, to round out the Senior class are a pair of Setters Emma Bute OPP and Kayla Brandes OPP. Hansen will rely upon the leadership and maturity of his seniors to carry them through this season.

There are a couple incoming impact players this season. Junior Libero Sarah Longtin will be making a major contribution to the team.

Also there is sophomore Outside Hitter Ashlyn Donner.

Her inexperience is made up with her talent and awareness on the court. These two athletes will hope to continue to improve and grow as volleyball players.

New Ulm’s two biggest rivals are St. James Area and St. Peter High School. St. James was top in the conference last year, and the Eagles lost to them twice. New Ulm is determined to make an upset this season against them.

St. Peter was the second best team in the conference last season, and New Ulm lost to

them twice as well. The goal for the Eagles is to knock off the top two teams from last year.

The girls’ soccer team is a part of the Big South con-

in the conference last season, and the main rivals that the Eagles aim to knock off are Waseca and St. Peter High School. New Ulm lost to both of these schools last

the Eagles’ midfielders with their experience.

Defensively, there are three Seniors coming back this season in Tony Rosenhamer, Sam Dobie, and An-

“The Eagles placed third in the conference last season, and the main rivals that the Eagles aim to knock off are Waseca and St. Peter High School. New Ulm lost to both of these schools last year and they’re looking for redemption this season.” ference on the east side.

The Eagles are led by Head Coach Jonathan Johnson.

Last year the Eagles posted an overall record of 7-7-2 and the conference record was 4-5-1, putting them at third in the conference. They made it to the section tournament, but lost in the first round to Mankato Loyola 3-1. New Ulm aims to make it back into the playoffs and go deep.

This year’s team is quite young as there is only one Senior on the roster, and that’s goalie Emily Schotzko. She will be relied upon to be an impenetrable wall for the Eagles between the posts.

Some key returners that will make a major impact are players like junior Forward Ashlyn Berg. She is the team’s returning leading scorer. She was third on the team in goals last season with 2. There are also sophomores Elle Cooper and Nori Ness. They each had a pair of goals last year, and they will be relied upon to make a larger contribution to the offense this season.

This is a very young team this season. The roster says there are nine freshmen, even an eighth grader, on the varsity team. As stated above, there are a couple of sophomores who will play a major role this season. There are five total sophomores on the roster, and all of these underclassmen will hope to bring success to the program.

The Eagles placed third

year and they’re looking for redemption this season. The Eagles also look to make it to the section tournament and hopefully reach all the way to the state tournament. The ceiling is high for the girls’.

They have the potential to be dangerous over the next few years.

The boys’ soccer team is a part of section 2A in the state. They compete in the Big South conference. The Eagles are led by Head Coach Dave Drake. In 2015, New Ulm went 7-6-1 overall with a 5-5 conference record. Their fine season got them a spot in the section tournament where they lost in the second round to St. Peter, 2-1.

The Eagles return many of their impact players from last year. Junior goalie Matthew Jenke returns with a few games of varsity experience under his belt. One of the Eagles’ vital forwards returns in junior Wyatt Huard. He’s a prolific scorer and will be looking to take the next step as a prominent threat with the ball. Alongside Huard at forward, Senior Nathan Miller also returns. Like Huard, Miller has a knack for finding the net. These two will be leading the offense this season.

For the middle of the pitch, Senior Joel Koelpin will be returning for the varsity squad. Fellow Senior Michael Messenger will also be patrolling the middle. Both of these players will be leading

for key roles this season. Two sophomore defensemen in Joseph Wessel and Midfielder Robert Rauh. Also, there are three freshmen in Dan Rosenhamer, Brandon Ocampo, and Andrew Dake.

New Ulm faces tough competition in the Big South conference. Last year, the three teams to finish above them were St. Peter, Worthington, and Waseca. The Eagles are hungry for redemption against the formidable St. Peter team as they lost to them twice the year before. The New Ulm boys’ soccer team is poised for a great season this year and their goal is to not only make the playoffs, but go deep into the playoffs with a possible shot at the state tournament.

drew Blumhoefer. These players provide New Ulm a lot of experience and leadership.

For the junior defensemen, there are Victor Morschauser and John Niebuhr. They will also play a vital role for the Eagles this season.

There are a few underclassmen that made it to varsity and will be looked upon

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2016

Page 15

St. Clair football searching for positives TOMMY WIITA Sports Editor The 2014 season saw the Cyclones go 0-9, and the only way the 2015 team could go was up. They did show improvement, but only at a 3-6 mark. After an 0-4 start to the season, the St. Clair football team dug deep to finish the season 3-2.

“The players bought into the idea of being a family, as it was a close-knit group that supported each on and off the field,” head coach Dustin Bosshart said. “They place we over me, and saw that [motto] carry them to a strong finish to the season after starting 0-4.”

The 2015 season featured a lot of missed opportunities, as the misfortune of not making the big plays when it mattered happened more often than not.

“We didn’t get the big play when we needed it, and had a very slow start to the season,” Bosshart stated.

“Once the players realized they could compete with anyone, they made a nice run at the end of the season.”

The Cyclones are hoping

for a better start in 2016, followed by continued success throughout the season. Overall, the offense improved their numbers as a team from 2014.

The offense put up 1.5 more points per game, rushed 30 yards more per game, passed for 24 more yards per game and racked up 55 more total yards per game in 2015. The offense most certainly made their strides, and the defense made improvements as well.

The stat that sticks out the most is their turnover ratio went from -11 to -1.

“As long as the team continues to improve on the little things, more wins will follow,” Bosshart said.

Some returning Seniors that will prove to be valuable in St. Clair’s turnaround start with Michael Anderson and Evan Gahl. Both are two-way players, at the running back position and linebacker. Anderson last season had 29 rushing yards, but was mostly a receiver on the offensive side of the ball. He recorded 17 receptions for 274 yards, 2 touchdowns and averaged 16.1 yards a catch. On the defensive side of the ball, Anderson recorded 34 total tackles. Gahl was a reserve last season, and can prove to be valuable heading into 2016. Anderson will also be getting looks at the quarterback position, and if the Cyclones decide that be his

position Gahl could see more significant playing time. Fellow Senior Daymon Leech will also be in the mix at the running back position.

“Daymon is a powerful runner on offense but will be one of the keys on defense holding down a linebacker spot,” Bosshart said.

Quarterbacks will feature a battle amongst Anderson, Dylon Schons and Dylan Rasmussen. Rasmussen saw most of his playing time in 2015 on special teams, but he will be one of the leading candidates for the quarterback spot, as well as defensive back. “[Rasmussen’s] leadership, football knowledge and great attitude will help bring our team along this year,” explained Bosshart.

According to Bosshart, the offensive line will be the motor for the football team.

Devin Brolsma will be anchoring the offensive line this upcoming season, as he transitioned well from the receiving position last year. A twoway starter, Brolsma filled in at both guard and tackle. On the defensive side of the ball, Brolsma was strong at the defensive-end position. “[Brolsma is very disciplined on the football field, as he was chasing down running backs and quarterbacks left and right,” said Bosshart.

The goal is for the St. Clair

Photo by SPX Sports football team to continue the success they ended with in 2015. Through the first four games, the Cyclones scored 10 points. In the final five games, they managed to tally a total of 111 points. As coach Bosshart puts it, the only significant thing to remember is this is a family.

“We want to continue to build the program based on the idea of we are a family

and there is a bigger picture in life than just football,” Bosshart stated. “This year they chose the motto ‘Brothers with a Purpose’ for the upcoming season.”

The hope is to get off to a better start to the season, and build on the momentum the Seniors of 2015 left with this year’s team.

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Page 16

Fall

Mankato East seeks victories in 2016 Girls’ swim team, volleyball team and both cross-country teams ready to go.

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer The Mankato East Cougars’ swimming and diving team will hope to turn around a tough start to the season and make the best out of what has been handed to them.

When asked about the theme for this season, Head Coach Greg Summers adopted and adapted the famous Julius Caesar quote “I came, I saw, I conquered.”

“I would say our theme is Veni, Natavi Vici - I Came, I Swam, I Conquered,” Summers said. “Our goal as coaching staff is to take the team to the next level by increasing our competitive drive, increasing our success

“Our returning swimmers are working on continuing to improve based on last season’s performance and get after their individual and relay events.”

Keep an eye out for swimmers and divers like Claire Krenik who is a Senior captain, Eaden Javens, a returning junior and Megan Burrows, a returning sophomore.

They were a part of the school record-setting Medley Relay team last season.

“Our up and coming younger swimmers would be Eve Anderson and Kaylee Sivertsen, who have really developed into strong varsity athletes,” Summer said.

“Parker Beavens is a 7th grader that has shown great leadership in the Junior High program and is starting to move herself into a great position on the JV team.”

Two meets that are likely to be very close in points coming up will be Albert Lea and Rochester Century. Me-

Photo by SPX Sports in the water, and making the best of what we have.”

Even though the Cougars are off to a 0-5-3 start, the coaches and swimmers come to practice each day with the goal to keep improving every day. That’s the kind of mentality Summers is trying to instill in his swimmers and divers.

“We are really working on building this team in both numbers and general swimmer ability. We were fortunate to have 15 brand new swimmers join the team, and we are really working on getting this group to help build a solid foundation for future seasons,” Summers said.

gan Burrows is looking to break the 100-Back record at 1:03.66 with her current season best at 1:04.40. Eaden Javens will be trying to break the 100-Fly record at 1:03.55 with her current season best at 1:05.14. Claire Krenik is also looking to break the 100-Breast record at 1:10.30 with her current season best at 1:14.72.

If nothing else, the Cougars can try to break a few school records and keep improving every day. Their next meet will be the Albert Lea invitational at Albert Lea at 6 p.m. Tuesday, October 4th.

This season, the cross country teams are putting the

Photo by SPX Sports pedal to the medal to finish the season.

“Relentless!”

That was the theme boys’ Head Coach Chris Ward tries to instill this season in his athletes. Ward also has some long-term goals for this group of young men and future ones to come.

“The goal is to improve over last year and prepare ourselves for future years when we aim to be the best in school history,” Ward said.

Goals like that are exactly what you want to hear out of your head coach. It sounds like the boy’s cross-country team is in good hands and heading in the right direction.

Some key returning players for the Cougars are Seniors Nathan Scruggs and Tadhg Fitzpatrick, and juniors, Caleb Caflisch, Jake Engler and Luke Lehne. However, depth is where the Cougars stand out according to Ward.

“We didn’t lose any varsity athletes so we’re expected many guys who were on varsity last year to step up and challenge for the top spot.

We have great depth at JV, any of the individuals, many of whom are new, could be our lead man at any given race. Athletes like, Matthew Wedzina, Jett Oachs, Calvin Rykhus, Carter Roles, Wyatt Sluneck, Devon Schutz and Noah Surprenant,” Ward said.

So far the Cougars are 28-5 and are completely focused on the Big 9 Conference and Section 2AA meets.

Their next meet however will be at Fairmont, Thursday, October 6th. They’ll have to stay focused on the few meets ahead but they have high expectations and they seem ready to meet them.

The volleyball team has experienced a less-than-stellar start, losing their first 10 of 15 to begin the season.

This season’s motto for

the team provided by Head Coach Piper Timmer is more relatable to this season then maybe she had hoped.

“Our theme this year is that we sink, or swim together,” Timmer said.

To start their season, the Cougars went on a 10-game losing streak, and are now on a five-game winning streak heading into their next game against Rochester Mayo.

Rochester Mayo is 10-1 and undefeated in Big 9 Conference play, according to mnvolleyballhub.com.

Timmer set out goals early in the season for the girls but one message has stayed clear all the way throughoutunity and togetherness.

“The goals for the season are to improve on the mental aspect of the game and work on team unity,” Timmer said.

Some key returning players for the Cougars this year will be Bella Kalbough, Senior defensive specialists Lea Orth and Autumn Boik. At the hitter positions, players like Seniors Emma Baynes and Shayla Karge will be returning this season. Some key incoming players will be defensive specialist Lydia Orth, and setters Maya Mukamuri, and Maggie Taylor along with Sammie Bruggeman.

So far this season, the Mankato East Cougars girl’s volleyball team has been outscored 678 to 825.

The Cougars next game will be on the road at Rochester Century High School to play an undefeated Rochester Century in the Big 9. The match will begin at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 1st.

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2016

Page 17

Waseca football looks to finish better in 2016 is going to have this year, then the notion of him working even harder should be a warning sign to opposing defenses on Waseca’s schedule

COREY YUMAN Staff Writer Three points separated the Waseca Blue Jays from advancing in the 2015 ClassAAA Section 2 tournament and Senior running back Jack Milbrett hasn’t forgotten that fact.

“That loss against Hutchinson was so close, we should have won,” Milbrett said.

After becoming the number-two seed and receiving a first round bye in the tournament, the Blue Jays earned a home game that came against the Hutchinson Tigers. It was a closely contested match-up, but Waseca fell to them 25-22.

“I just think about that and it’s what I use to work harder.

If I’m feeling down I just think about that game as motivation to work harder,” Milbrett said when speaking on what motivates him the most.

If last year is any indication of the productivity Milbrett

going to get better numbers than last year. So no pressure, I know I can beat that easily from last year,” Milbrett said.

Wendland noted that Mil-

proaches. Milbrett is feeling good not only about himself, but his team as the season gets closer.

“I feel really confident, I

““I just think about that and it’s what I use to work harder. If I’m feeling down I just think about that game as motivation to work harder,” Milbrett said when speaking on what motivates him the most.””

this year.

“I’ll say this right up front, I’m glad he’s on our side,” Head Coach Brad Wendland said, speaking on Milbrett.

Milbrett had an outstanding 2015 year after rushing for 1,278 yards off of 131 carries. Not only did he excel on offense, but he led the team in total tackles with 79 on defense. It’s no easy feat for an athlete to consistently reproduce quality seasons, but Jack has confidence and determination heading into this year.

“I’ve got a mindset that I’m

brett has everything one could want in a running back, including strength, speed, and natural talent.

“What makes Jack as good as he is how intense and tough he is,” Wendland said.

“That’s what has him a step ahead of [other] people who [are] just as tough or fast.”

Milbrett took the summer to attend some camps, and as a result of that he’s feeling even quicker and stronger than he has in previous seasons. That will benefit not only him but the rest of the team as the season ap-

think we’re really good,” said Milbrett Jack isn’t the only one feeling good about the team, as Wendland echoed similar sentiments. Wendland feels that the team is working well on both sides of the ball and noted the front defensive seven as being among the best units on the team. It’s this mix of offensive and defensive talent that Wendland feels is well balanced and going to take Waseca far this year.

“I think we have a pretty good grasp of what we want to do on both sides of the

ball. I think we’ll be a little faster on defense and a little bit more explosive,” said Wendland.

The goals for this team this year are as simple as can be and that’s to simply be the best football team they possibly can be. That goal should be made a little bit simpler with the group they have this year as Wendland has high praise for the squad on and off the field.

“We have a lot of kids that really care about football and their school and their community and it’s very important to them. They’ve been working hard on it for a long time,” explained Coach Wendland.

With 10 starters returning to the field, split up between five on offense and five on defense, there are many factors coming into play to achieve success. The leadership of Jack Milbrett, the experience of last season, and the hunger to not meet the same close-loss fate they met last season. The Waseca Blue Jays seem primed to make another large impact this year.

Page 18

Fall

Tennis, volleyball season upon us for Mankato West Both teams have set high standards to accomplish entering the 2016 season.

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer For the Mankato West Scarlets Volleyball team, the goal throughout this season is to stick together and play as one cohesive unit.

Sarah Kirby is in her 6th

season as Head Coach for the Scarlets and like usual, the goals she has set for her girls are high as expected.

“We want to finish in the top-three of our conference and make it past the first round of sections,” Kirby said.

The Motto or theme for this season’s team is “one heart, one team, one dream.”

As of September 27th, the Scarlet’s have gone 9-4 and come off a win that ended a three-game losing streak

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against teams like Hutchinson, and others.

“We have already played Rochester Mayo and had a very frustrating loss, and the same happened with Northfield,” Kirby said. “We believe those were two of our biggest competitors and hope that we are back on a winning streak now.”

They will have to turn that losing streak into a winning streak if they want to make it to their goal to finish in the top-three in their conference and make it past the first round in sections. Leading the way for the Scarlets are seven Senior girls all with varsity experience, but two in particular lead the way upfront.

“We look to Maija Russell and Krista Goerger to dominate at the net for us,” Kirby said.

By the numbers, Goerger leads the Scarlets with 160 kills on the season, adding 11 assists, 30 aces and 30 blocks. Leading the team in assists by over 200 is Alexis Pagel, with 276 so far this season. Other notable players include Russell who has 97 kills on the season and leads the team in digs with 123.

Goerger just broke the school ace serving record set in 1996 at 171, as Goerger is now at 174 aces for her ca-

Photo by SPX Sports reer. Paegel also received her 1000th career set assists this season.

The success the Scarlets have seen through the past years can be thanked in large part to the coaches running the Scarlets volleyball pro-

gram, and Kirby seems to have a lot of faith and trust in the coaches below her trying to develop young talent.

“We have a phenomenal

MANKATO WEST PAGE 19

2016

Page 19

MANKATO WEST continued from 18

“We have a phenomenal coaching staff starting at the 7th grade level,” Kirby said.

“We are looking to build a strong and consistent program that is based around passion and dedication.” coaching staff starting at the 7th grade level,” Kirby said.

“We are looking to build a strong and consistent program that is based around passion and dedication.

This season’s Scarlets volleyball team will need to set the tone and lead the way for the younger girls, but so far they are off to a good start. If they continue to play as one cohesive unit, the girls should continue to build on the success they’ve had so far this season. The Scarlets are set to play Hopkins on the road October 1st at 9 a.m.

The girls’ tennis team wrapped up their season September 27th against Mankato East in a 4-3 cup match victory.

When asking Scarlets tennis coach Adam Doll what he told his girls at the beginning of the season, Doll said to “Have fun, play with confidence, and know you gave it your best full effort. You do those things, [and] you’ll have no regrets.”

Hopefully his girls took the message to heart. All that can be said is they ended the season on a very good note.

Doll’s goals early in the season for the girls might have

Photo by SPX Sports been exactly what they needed to take the next step.

“Our goals are always to beat the same teams as last year’s. We always strive to get to the bubble on section finals days and finish in the

top 4 of the 12 Big 9 teams,” Doll said.

The Scarlets return 3 of their top singles players this year, with Lexi Miller leading the charge. Miller will likely break the school career sin-

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gles record around section time, as she plays the top spot. Sydney Douglas moved from the number three spot to second in singles and is having an outstanding season. Chelsea Schaffer moved

from the number four spot to the third spot in singles and is continuing her winning ways.

She won over 20 matches last year, according to Doll. Alyssa Haley and Lauren Smith played number-two doubles last year and now lead the way for the Scarlets in doubles in 2016.

When asked who else there is to keep an eye out for, Doll had one player particularly in mind.

“Josie Goellner,” Doll said.

“She is the only other returning varsity player and has lead the way at two in doubles and is now playing with Teagan Townsend.”

The Scarlets end their season with a 10-8-1 record after winning their final game against Mankato East. They finish at the top of their conference with a 7-3 record and 4th in Section 2AA play. They will be heading into postseason play with momentum from a successful regular season.

Page 20

Fall

New Ulm football ready to turn a corner Experience and leadership will be key for the Eagles’ success in 2016.

JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer It is a new year and a fresh start for the New Ulm high school football team. The Eagles are a part of section 2AAAA, and compete in the South Central conference in the Red district. They are led by first-year Head Coach Corey Kneeshaw. Last season, the Eagles went 0-9, and according to Kneeshaw, they have had only three wins in the past five years.

The theme for this year’s football team is to lay the foundation for the new and improved New Ulm program.

Kneeshaw’s goals this year are very simple.

“The first goal is to win a ball game. New Ulm didn’t win any games last year, and only had three wins in the last five years, so winning the first game is very important for these group of kids, who are great and work hard,” Kneeshaw said.

There are a few key returning players for the Ea-

gles’ offense. Starting with Senior running back Jordan Hillesheim. He will be the workhorse in the backfield

The Eagles will have a first year varsity quarterback starting this year. Junior Alex Portner will take the reins of

Brett Bianchi. They will strive to shut down the run game and fly around the field, making plays.

““The first goal is to win a ball game. New Ulm didn’t win any games last year, and only had three wins in the last five years, so winning the first game is very important for these group of kids, who are great and work hard,” Kneeshaw said.” this season. The Eagles’ air attack is led by a pair of talented Senior wide outs in Cooper Yackley and Max Deslauries.

New Ulm’s offensive line is a very experienced group with three Seniors starting.

Center Cole Wellman, tackle Joe Fortwengle, and guard Connor Gag will be the hogs up front creating holes for Hillesheim to run through.

the offense. Junior receivers Hunter Ranweiler and Luke Scheid will be relied upon for major roles this season.

Portner has no shortage of targets to go to this season, as the passing game should hopefully flourish.

Defensively, the main contributors are mostly the same guys from offense.

The line-backing crew is led

by Cole Wellman and junior

The defensive line is led by the same Seniors that lead the offensive line minus Wellman. Joe Fortwengle will be playing defensive tackle and will stuff the run at the line.

Connor Gag is the Eagles’ tall and lanky defensive end who will be making it a priority to hunt for the opposing quarterback this season.

The Senior pair of wide receivers, Yackley and De-

slauries, will not only catch touchdown passes, but stop opposing teams from reaching the end zone through the air. Yackley will be playing corner along with junior Luke Scheid. The safeties consist of Deslauries and Ranweiler.

The Eagles were last in the South Central conference last season, and Kneeshaw and the team are striving to make their names relevant this year.

The key games to look out for this year are the season opener against Pipestone Area, and the homecoming game against Belle Plaine.

“Homecoming game will be played on New Ulm’s brand new field on September 30 this season,” said Kneeshaw.

Kneeshaw is revamping this program and they could be a force to be reckoned with for the next few years.

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2016

Page 21

Wins expected for Madelia football TOMMY WIITA Sports Editor The initial thought for the Madelia football team going into 2016 is nothing new from years past: winning.

“We have six consecutive winning seasons now, so expectations are high as expected,” head coach Nick Willaert said. “At this point, we expect to have a winning record and do well in sections every year.”

Last season, the Blackhawks went 6-2 in District play and 9-2 overall. They won the District Championship over Edgerton/Ellsworth as well. The team was Senior heavy as a whole, and that is what helped translate success on the gridiron.

“It seemed like we got better every week, which set the tone of improving our performance throughout the season,” Willaert said.

The team jumped from 6-4

overall in an injury-plagued 2014 season to 9-2 and a section championship in 2015.

In 2016, Willaert knows the sky can be the limit if the team can learn quickly. The Blackhawks will not be heavily leaned on Seniors for this season, but will have a lot of

end/defensive back Ernie Arizmendi and running back/ defensive back Jordan Osborne. Osborne is coming off a season in which he led the team in total tackles (89.5), solo tackles (25), and assisted tackles (129). He also rushed for 1,052 yards and 10 rush-

“I want to get better as a player this season, and even with some players gone this year our [team] goal is to get back to sections, win the [section] championship and advance to state,” Osborne stated.

Baumgartner will have his

““We have six-consecutive winning seasons now, so expectations are high as expected,” head coach Nick Willaert said. “At this point, we expect to have a winning record and do well in sections every year.””

talent mixed with inexperience to work with.

“The young guys will have to learn on the fly,” Willaert explained, “but we believe we can still produce a winning football team with the talent we have.”

Some players to mention the Blackhawks will rely heavily on for success in 2016 are quarterback Matt Baumgartner, running back/defensive back Riley Reed, tight

ing touchdowns, as he shared playing time with two other running backs who were also 1,000 yard rushers.

“I feel like I have had a great offseason, and I’m looking to contribute even more this year,” Osborne said.

Being the leading tackler and a 1,000-yard rusher can produce a lot of stress to shoulder, but Osborne remains optimistic about the upcoming season.

chance as the starting quarterback this season, as he contributed mostly on the junior-varsity team last year.

The offense last season was electric, as they averaged 42.8 points per game. The defense also held their own, only allowing 17.3 points per game. Another stat that will prove to lead to more success is their turnover ratio.

In 2015, that stat stood at a +18 mark. Again the team will

lean on their rushing game to carry their offense, as just over 70% of their yards came on the ground.

The defense tallied up 32 total sacks last season, and forced 30 total turnovers.

Having a player like Osborne returning will help both sides of the ball, as he can show his dominance as a leader either way.

Osborne also had some kind words for his head coach. “[Willaert] has coached me since 7th grade, so we have had a great relationship,” said Osborne. “I love the guy.

He’s a good coach, and he is always there for you no matter what.”

Madelia has built quite the winning resume in recent seasons, and it looks like another successful season is in line for 2016. The Blackhawks will kick off their season August 22nd against Edgerton/ Ellsworth, in what will be a rematch of the section championship from last year. The game will be hosted by the Flying Dutchmen, and kickoff is slated for 7 p.m.

Page 22

Fall

Football, soccer ready to show out for Cougars

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer The Mankato East Cougars boys’ soccer team looks to finish their season strong and move up a few spots in the conference rankings.

The Cougars are 6-5-1 so far this season and sit 4th in the Big 9 at 5-3-1, just two points behind the second place spot on the conference. If the Cougars can step up their play in the next weeks to come, they have a very good shot at taking that

second spot in the Big 9.

Leading the way for the Cougars is Senior forward Zach Yarrow, who has 10 goals and 3 assists. Getting in the mix as well for the Cougars is Senior Bailey Marshall and sophomore Suleiman Haji. Marshall has 3 goals and 2 assists, while Haji has 2 goals and 4 assists, according to mnfootballhub.com.

While the boys are going and doing their thing, the Cougars girls’ soccer team is stepping up the competition.

The Cougars are 8-4-1 and have just three games left until it’s time for postseason play.

Their next game will be at home against Waconia at 4:30 p.m. Monday, October 3rd.

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The football team is ready to give it everything they got and end the season strong after a 2-2 start by the Cougars.

Every year, there is usually a theme of the season that the coaches come up with for the players. This season, the theme of the 2016 Cougars football team is “Finish”.

Eric Davis, head coach of the Mankato East Cougars, elaborated on the season ahead.

“The theme of this year’s team is Finish. Our team goal is to improve throughout the season and compete for a section championship,” Davis said.

In order to get into the position to compete for a Section Championship, the Cougars must finish the season strong like their theme suggests. The only way they can do it is if key All-Conference players like linebacker Dominick Nussmeier, linebacker/ offensive lineman Luke Makovsky, wide receiver/cornerback Dez Bassett and running back Kaje Warren all step up.

Other key players on the team will include quarterback Richard Kamara, wide receiver D’Andre Moore, and defensive end Josh Hamond. If each can make a large impact on the team, a section championship might be right within sights for the Wolverines.

This season, the Cougars have had a balanced attack averaging 144 yards rushing and 124 yards passing. In four games, Mankato East has

Photo by SPX Sports outscored opponents 87-70, according to mnfootballclub. com.

Leading the charge for the Cougars in the pass game is Kamara. Over four games, Kamara has completed 68 percent of his passes for 482 yards and 4 touchdowns with a passer rating of 117. In addition to that, he’s averaging 9 yards a pass with 120 yards per game through the air.

Supporting the Cougar pass game is a stable run game. As an offense, the Cougars average 144 yards per game, averaging 4.5 yards per carry and scoring 6 touchdowns. In the first four games, leading the rushing attack for Mankato East are running backs Warren and Caleb Miller. Warren has 144 yards on 29 carries, averaging 5 yards a carry and

48 yards per game with two touchdowns. Miller has 142 yards on 32 carries, averaging 4.4 yards per carry with just a single touchdown.

When asked what upcoming matchups to look out for this season, Davis said, “Upcoming matchups to look out for include the #3 ranked team in 4A, the Marshall Tigers, as well as undefeated Winona.”

The race to the Section Championship is on its way for the Mankato East Cougars. The Cougars are set to face Rochester Century at home September 30th at 7:00 p.m. Then they will have to take it to the road to face Marshall Friday, October 7th for one of the highlighted upcoming matchups mentioned

by Davis.

2016

Page 23

Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s fall sports preview JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer The Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s football team competes in section 3A in Minnesota.

They belong to the Southwest district that’s comprised of 18 teams. The Knights are led by Head Coach Brent Kucera. Last season, they posted a 5-5 record and made it to the second round of the sectional tournament before losing to Adrian, 3426. The Knights’ last state tournament appearance was in 2013.

The Knights’ offense is led

by Senior quarterback Nick Strate. Strate started for St. Mary’s last season as well, so he will bring not only a strong arm to the field, but experience and leadership as well. A trio of Senior receivers will lead the passing attack for the Knights this season.

Strate will be connecting with Andrew Kiecker, Nathan Schroepfer, and Nic Helget.

The Knights’ run game will be showcasing an experienced duo in the backfield. Senior Kyle Windschitl and junior Andrick Sanchez will be relied upon to in the ground game this season.

Both running backs saw action last season, and will be fighting for bigger roles on the Knights’ offense.

The offensive line will showcase a couple of big boys who will bring experience with them. Seniors Sean

Salfer and Kaleb Fischer are 250 plus pound linemen that will look to see some action for the Knights in 2016.

The Knights are not an extremely deep team, so many of the notables mentioned on offense will also be playing defense as well. The Knights are full of ironmen who don’t have many breaks during the game.

The Knights face tough competition in the Southwest district. On the west side, the side that Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s is a part of, New Ulm Cathedral finished first a season ago. On the other side of the district, Minneota won the class A state championship last season. The Knights will strive to put themselves back on the top of the district and the state.

Another matchup that the Knights always like to face off with is cross town rival Sleepy Eye Public High School. St. Mary’s has the advantage in the series. The Knights have won the past four years.

Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s is poised for a breakout season as they bring back lots of talent from the year before and they hope to bring back the winning tradition that St. Mary’s has had in years past.

The Knights of Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s volleyball team is poised for success in the 2016 season. Last season, the Knights were a very young volleyball team and they were able to return many of their

vital impact players to this year. They are led by Head Coach Jen Walter.

This year’s roster is very experienced with varsity competition as it is filled with juniors and Seniors. There is only one sophomore on the team. For the key returning Senior players, there are libero Megan Labat, defensive specialists Kayci Kuebler and McKenzie Hoffmann, and middle hitter Lydia Goblirsch.

Some returning impact juniors for the season are players like setter Jody Hansen.

Along with Hansen, there is also right side hitter Sarah Reinarts, outside hitter Ali Beltz, and middle hitter Abby Johnson. All of these players saw action last season as sophomores and will be looking to take on a bigger role in 2016.

The Knights are a part of section 2A and compete in the Tomahawk conference.

Last season, there were three teams ahead of St. Mary’s in the conference standings.

GFW, Wabasso, and Springfield. The Knights didn’t manage to win a single game against any of these schools, so they’ll be geared up for redemption this season. Of course, there is always the cross town rivalry against Sleepy Eye High School. Last season, the Knights were able to beat them twice. They look to continue their winning streak against the Indians.

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ers are ready to kick off the 2016 season, as they have big expectations. They not only plan to make the sectional tournament, but also they are striving for a spot in the state tournament this season.

The cross country team for the Sleepy Eye area high schools is a cooperative sponsorship between Sleepy Eye High School, St. Mary’s of Sleepy Eye High School, and New Ulm Cathedral High School. What their team mascot is called is surely up for debate amongst the runners who claim different schools.

This cross country team is led by Head Coach Scott DeMaris For the boys’ team, they return all but one runner from the season before. Notable returners are runners like Senior Caleb Kirchberg.

Kirchberg ran a personal best time of 19:30.7 last season at the section 2A championship held at Montgomery, Minn.

He did not qualify for the state championship race, but he plans on making the trip to St. Olaf this year.

Another notable Sleepy Eye runner is junior Josh Drummer. Drummer also ran his personal record at the sectional championship last year with a time of 19:57.8.

There is another notable junior runner for the sponsorship, Isaac Nelson. Nelson ran his personal best race at the Milaca Mega Meet last season with a time of 20:01.9.

The boys’ team placed 20th last year in the section 2A championship. They did not qualify for state, but they are striving to consistently improve and make strides as an overall team to reach the state championship.

For the girls’ side of the cooperative sponsorship, there is notable returner junior Brianna Polesky. Polesky ran her personal best at the Norwood Young America Lions Invitational with a time of 21:05.9. That time put her in 5th place at the meet. She also placed 7th at Milaca Mega Meet, and 28th at sectionals as well.

Another notable returner is Senior Jenny Lax. She had a personal best run of 22:16.0 at the sectional championship. She will be motivated to qualify for the state championship and finish her Senior year on top.

As a team last season, Sleepy Eye girls placed 10th in the sectional tournament. They did not qualify for the state championship.

DeMaris and his runners’ ultimate goal is to qualify for the state championship race.

More importantly, DeMaris wants his athletes to continue to push themselves, their teammates and work to be the best teammates they can be.

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Page 24

Fall

Mountain Lake hungry for more in 2016 COREY YUMAN Staff Writer Football season is upon us once again, and the Mountain Lake Area Wolverines are focused and hitting the field once more. Led by Head Coach Tim Kirk, the team is going to be looking to improve on what they accomplished in 2015. The team is very young and looking to gain some experience along the way.

“This year’s team has a lot of inexperience but a lot of athletes. Our theme is to get better every day in practice and get better every game,” said Kirk.

In 2015, the team held an overall record of 7-3. In the regular season, they only lost two games, both home games against Madelia and Cleveland, and the games were lost by 11 and 12 points, respectively. Aside from those two small hiccups, the team had an incredible regular season. They ended with a 6-1 section record and 6-2 in the South West conference.

Their biggest victory of 2015 came in week two where they hit the road to play Nicollet and trounced them 50-0. The Wolverines often dominated in their vic-

tories and at the end of the season they averaged to beat their opponents by 29 points per game. Their best stretch of the regular season came in weeks 4-6 where they won three in a row against Hills-Beaver Creek, Edgerton/Ellsworth, and Westbrook-Walnut Grove.

Their stellar play in the regular season earned them a trip to the Class 9-Man Section-3 Football tournament. They opened up the first round at home with another match up against Westbrook-Walnut Grove. Mountain Lake would once again prevail in the match up and scored their highest amount of points of the year in the process and defeated Wes-

didn’t score quite as much as their previous game of the year but still won handily 3416. Madeila went on to win the entire tournament.

Mountain Lake ended the year with a Quality Results Formula (QRF) ranking of 19 with their score of 29.9.

As the 2016 season is already underway, the goal for this year is pretty simple according to Kirk.

“Our goal is to go as far as we are capable of going,” said Kirk.

Kirk noted some of the key returning players as quarterback/defensive back Levi Stoesz, All-District fullback/ linebacker Jacob Suess, All-District center/defensive lineman Sam Grev, and of-

“As the 2016 season is already underway, the goal for this year is pretty simple according to Kirk.

“Our goal is to go as far as we are capable of going,” said Kirk.”

brook 70-30.

Round two ended up being a road match up as they traveled to play Madelia. In the same way history repeated itself against Westrbook, history would repeat itself against Madeila. Madelia

fensive lineman/linebacker Kris Menken.

Some of the key incoming players that Kirk noted are offensive lineman/defensive lineman Junior Garcia, wide reciever/running back/ defensive back Aj Vongsy,

tight end/defensive lineman Drake Harder, defensive end/ tight end Jacob Sahdan, and linebacker/running back Jeff Wright.

Some key match ups that were noted for the season are against Hill Beaver Creek, Edgerton Ellsworth, and Cleveland. As of writing, the only one of those games to happen thus far was against Hills Beaver Creek which they took a loss.

The loss against Hills Beaver Creek was their only one of 2016 so far and they are holding on to a 3-1 record.

Their currently sitting in 20th in the QRF with a score of 20.9 As for the volleyball team, they are geared up and ready to go as the voyage into the 2016 campaign begins.

They are hoping for a better start this season compared to last year’s, as they dropped their first seven of 11 matches. Their final game of the year came in the Class A – Section 2 Volleyball tournament. They hosted the first round match-up against Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton. The game went to four sets but Janesville got the win, 3-1.

The Wolverines finished the year with a Quality Results Formula (QRF) ranking of 112 with their score of 58.2.

With the 2016 season currently underway, the girls are sitting on a 5-9 record. They opened their first four games going 1-3 having only defeat-

ed Madelia in five sets.

Their first tournament of the season was the Sleepy Eye Tournament – Pool Play where they went 2-1. They took a loss in the opening match against Sleepy Eye Saint Mary’s but bounced back with two wins over Martin Luther/Gran-Hunt-EC/T and Lake Crystal-Wellcome Memorial.

The wins put them in bracket play, but that didn’t go as well for the team. They played both Redwood Valley and once again Sleepy Eye Saint Mary’s and lost both matches by a combined score of 4-0.

Their next tournament will be the St. Clair Tournament which happens on October 1st.

So far into the season, they are holding onto a QRF ranking of 128 with their score of 32.0.

The roster includes ninth graders Destiny Sybounheuan and Margo Stoesz, tenth grader Taylor Nass, eleventh graders Marta Stoesz, Jordan Boldt, Jewel Soutthivong, and Jenneel Rodney, and twelfth graders Emily Jahnke, Kassandra Telles, Lexia Peters, Meredith Suess, Brook Sunderman, Jaden Hoek, and Kalley Rempel.

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2016

Page 25

Mankato Loyola primed for success COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer The Theme for this year’s Mankato Loyola Crusaders girls’ soccer team is all about unity and one team with one dream.

When Head Coach Nicole Ruhland was asked what goals she set for the girls at the beginning at the season, she made them more about the team and less about a number or record that they’d like to meet.

“Communication, improve our technical skills and conditioning,” were the goals Ruhland listed for her team to focus on this season. So far,

goals. She also has 3 assists to match. Leading the team in assists is Coughlan will 11 along with 3 goals to add to it. Another key goal scorer for the Crusaders is Botker with 8 goals on the season and 5 assists.

Also, keep an eye out for players like Schumacher, who has 6 goals and 5 assists on the season and Annalisa Winch with 4 goals and 4 assists on the season. Both are also expected to make a big impact.

There are two more games remaining on the girls’ soccer schedule. One will be on the road against Waseca on October 3rd. They’ll then be wrapping up the season against New Ulm, and then it’s off to sections.

The Loyola boy’s soccer team isn’t seeing quite the success that the girl’s team is seeing this season. Coming

Photo by SPX Sports the Crusaders are 8-2-2 on the season and have a 5-1-2 conference record.

Look out for players like Tiara Coughlan, Kit Krmpotich, Nora Coughlan, Jenna Helget, Emily Schumacher, and Sidney Botker to play big roles this season. In 12 games, Helget leads the team with 17

towards the end of the regular season, the Crusaders are 0-11 with two games left to finish out the season.

As the season gets underway for the Mankato Loyola Crusaders boys and girls cross country teams, the focus will be on building off of last season’s strong finish.

Photo by SPX Sports Dale Compton, Head Coach of the boy’s and girl’s cross-country teams, has set a theme for this year. The theme is quite simple.

“The theme is team - we work together as one team,” Compton said.

After finishing the season 3rd in section 2A, Compton’s goals for his athletes were to continue progressing from the strong finish of last season. When asked specifically what his goals were for his athletes, his answer was straight to the point.

“Finish the season strong [and] continue to improve,” Compton said.

The Crusaders return some key athletes such as juniors Landon Javens and Kyla Haas who is are three-time state participants, as well as sophomore Micah Rentschler and Junior Brady Omtvedt, both of which are coming off state meet performances last spring in Track. Some key incoming athletes are freshman Mitchell Johnstone and freshman Kielee Grams.

“Our boys’ team is returning most of our varsity runners from last year and looks to build upon our strong finish at the end of the season,” Compton said. “Landon has been working very hard and looks to be ready for another solid year.” Compton added “I think the rest of the boys are also ready to step up this season.

When mentioning the girls on the cross-country team, Compton spoke promisingly about his runners.

“On the girl’s side, Kyla is looking good to start the sea-

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Fall

MANKATO LOYOLA continued from 25

““Our boys’ team is returning most of our varsity runners from last year and looks to build upon our strong finish at the end of the season,” Compton said. “Landon has been working very hard and looks to be ready for another solid year.” Compton added “I think the rest of the boys are also ready to step up this season.”” son with Ellie Nygren running well too. We are looking to Alyssa Compton to step up to round out the top-five for the girls. She had a really solid finish to the season last year and that should carry over to her senior year,” Compton said. “Kielee Grams should be a top-five runner for the team this year in her first year out as well.”

However, Compton does think there will be a lot of fierce competition.

“On the boy’s side, Jordan and Belle Plaine are both very strong teams that are capable of winning at any time. On the girl’s side, look for Fairmont to make a return trip to state with Belle Plaine finishing near the top of the Section,” Compton said.

Hopefully even with the tough competition, the Crusaders can finish their season strong. The boys and girls of the Mankato Loyola

scoring once through four games.

Offensively, the Crusaders are lead by quarterback Luke Sellner. Through the air, Sellner has 36 yards on 3 of 12 passes. Sellner also leads the team in rushing with 36 yards on 41 carries. Behind Sellner are players like Coleton Giefer, Nick Salzie and Noah Haefner looking to get in the mix and provide that spark needed on offense.

The Crusaders are set to play St. Clair on the road at St. Clair High School Friday, October 14th after their game against Blooming Prairie was canceled.

Photo by SPX Sports cross-country team next meet will be on October 6th against Waseca, at Waseca High School at 4 p.m.

After a rough start to the season entering their 5th

game on Friday, October 7th, the football team hopes to bounce back and turn around a tough go early on.

Through four games as of September 27th, the Crusad-

ers have gone a disappointing 0-4 to start the season, with half the season left to play.

The crusaders have struggled mightily on offense, only

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2016

Page 27

JWP football, cross country to challenge conference

COREY YUMAN Staff Writer The 2016 football season for the Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton Bulldogs will hopefully be a story of a team coming together to work hard at becoming a better unit than they were the year before. The Bulldogs will be looking to rebound from the 1-8 record they posted last year, and the team’s dual threat wide receiver and linebacker Alex Kjolstad will be a large piece of the puzzle to help accomplish that.

Kjolstad is entering the year as a Senior and will be playing in the wide receiver spot for the third year and linebacker for the second year.

“We like what he brings for athleticism. He’s a playmaker, and when watching film, we like how explosive he can be,” Head Coach Joe Joyce said on Kjolstad.

Kjolstad does look at last year’s record as motivation and considers himself a much smarter player than he was just a year ago. His 2015 campaign as wide receiver saw him grab 29 catches for 434 yards including four touchdowns and a successfully converted two point conversion.

“I feel like I bring the team a no quit attitude and give it my all,” Kjolstad said.

It’s that kind of attitude and player mentality that can help bring out the best of his teammates if he’s able to rub off on them.

While Kjolstad may have a bit less experience on defense than he does on offense, Joyce still thinks he will end up playing a large part of the Bulldogs defense while still contributing on both sides of the ball.

“We need him at both just about as much, but he’s hopefully going to be a leader this year on defense,” Joyce said.

Kjolstad stands out as an unselfish player, often deferring questions about him as an individual and answering them about his team as a

whole.

“The team seems better, we’re a lot more focused this year,” Kjolstad stated on how he’s feeling heading into the new season.

His team mentality didn’t stop there though. When asked if he had any goals entering this year he said, “Just want to make sure the team is good”.

The road to making the team good may not end up an easy one, however, it is a road that Joyce is up to tackling.

“After every season you look to make changes to see what you can add or take out so it definitely motivates you a little more but nothing changes after that,” Joyce said.

Joyce’s strategy to getting better is a traditional approach that will require patience, determination, and a lot of hard work.

“Our goal is just like every year to get better after every practice and after every rep,” said Joyce.

Entering this year, they will be attempting to get better after losing eight Seniors from the 2015 season but are

bringing back 14 letter-winners.

“I think we got some guys that are coming back, we were pretty young last year, and are ready to make an impact with more cohesiveness,” Joyce explained.

Having these fourteen boys back will go a long way in helping the team gel as a unit. Joyce believes that both sides of the ball are looking good but seems to like where his defense is standing.

“I think we will be more balanced on offense, and we like how fast we can play on defense,” said Joyce.

It’s also cross country season once again and the goals of the JWP Bulldogs boys’ and girls’ team is pretty simple.

“We have a few individuals that have goals of qualifying for the state meet. As a team, we would like to finish in the top half of the conference and section meets,” Head Coach Troy Stehr said.

In addition to that, the team is striving to just get better throughout the duration of the season and run to the best of their abilities for the conference and section

meets.

Among the top returning athletes for the boys’ team are 11th graders Kaden Cameron, who is also a returning state qualifier, and Lewis Becker, 10th grader Marco Geyer, and 12th grader Jack Galler. A key incoming runner to keep an eye on will be 11th grader Riley Clark.

“Clark has had success running track and is new to cross country this year,” said Stehr.

Some girls to keep an eye on at events this year are 8th grader Emma Johnson, who is in her first year of cross country but was noted as the girls number one runner this year. Also, 7th graders Lauren Dimler and Courtney Kunst both ran for junior high last year.

Stehr noted that the teams are most focused on their conference and section meets this year.

Page 28

Fall

Sleepy Eye Public preview for football and volleyball The Tomahawk Conference will feature tough matchups for the Indians.

JAMES ANDERSEN Staff Writer The Sleepy Eye Public high school volleyball team competes in the Tomahawk conference in the southwestern part of Minnesota. The Indians are led by Head Coach Nicole Jensen. Last season, they posted an overall record of 1-13 with an 0-8 conference record.

Jensen instills the theme within her players of a tough, hard-nose type of volleyball.

“Hard Hat: the blue collar work ethic we want our program to possess,” said Jensen. She uses this theme to implement her goal for this season which, according to Jensen, “To improve daily and continue to work towards being great teammates.” The key to a great team is to create a great relationship with the teammates involved.

The key returning players that will play a major role on the team are juniors Mya Ibberson (Middle), McKenzie Cselovzski (Outside Hitter), and Courtney Dittbenner (Libero). While they are only juniors, they carry a great amount of experience and leadership to the team. Some key incoming players for the Indians include sophomores Madi Krueger (Outside Hitter), Jaidyn McGee (Middle), and Cassidy Hoffmann (Setter). All of these players will be relied upon to contribute and be a cohesive unit.

Jensen had this to say about her team: “We are a young team that is showing improvement each day. Within the last week, we have really shown a lot of growth as a team and look forward to finishing the season strong.”

To round out the roster, there is one Senior defensive specialist in Holly Helget. Also, there are three more juniors in Mariah Miller (Right-side Hitter), Josie Lang (Defensive Specialist), and Lynette Dominguez (Outside Hitter).

When asked who Sleepy Eye’s key matchups this year were, Jensen answered honestly. “Each night out is a key match for us,” said Jensen.

“We are working on playing consistently throughout an entire match, not giving up, and working hard.”

Of course, there is the cross town rival of Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s. Jensen stated that the team always enjoys the match-up with them. The

Indians are going to look to keep improving as a team, with the season’s goal of

theme this year is to gain a hard-working and winning mentality.

looking for new talent to step in and take the lead. One of the key returning players who

““Hard Hat: the blue collar work ethic we want our program to possess,” said Jensen.

She uses this theme to implement her goal for this season which, according to Jensen, “To improve daily and continue to work towards being great teammates.” The key to a great team is to create a great relationship with the teammates involved.””

reaching their full potential as a unit.

The football team is in section 3A in the Southwest district of the state. The school currently holds no state titles, and their last state tournament appearance was in 2005. The Sleepy Eye High School football team will look to improve from their season last year. In 2015, they went 0-9 on the season. For Head Coach Cory Haala, the team’s

“Focus on what you can control,” said Haala.

The goals for Sleepy Eye football are simple. Improve a little bit every day. “We want to play the best football by the end of the season, so we can win a few playoff games this year. It has been a few years since we’ve done that,” said Haala.

The Indians’ leading rusher and passer of last year have graduated, so they will be

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can step in and fill that role is Senior Sam Tessmer. He leads the Indian offense at quarterback and will be playing defensive back for the defense.

Senior Gunner McGee was a key contributor last season as he was second on the team in rushing yards. He will be another impact player for the Indians’ offense at running back. Gunner will also be playing defensive back.

Sleepy Eye is anchored at

the line with Seniors Colton Gemmill and Adam Steffl.

Senior Lane Trebesch is the Indians’ tight end and defensive end, as he will be wreaking havoc in the opposing backfields this season.

There is a platoon of incoming underclassmen that have a major role for the team. A total of 14 juniors and 4 sophomores will be making plays for the varsity team.

According to Haala, the team to beat in the conference this year is Wabasso.

They have the size and ability to make them a scary team.

Haala and the rest of the team look forward to facing off against them later in the season in week 7.

“We are expecting to be much improved, a lot more competitive coming off a zero-win season last year,” said Haala, “I’m excited for my players and the challenges we will face this season.”

So far this season, Sleepy Eye has lost a couple close games including one to their in-town rival Sleepy Eye St. Mary’s by a score of 21-6. They have already started figuring out their winning mentality, however, as they have won their most recent game, and first game in two years against Springfield with a score of 42-26.

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2016

Page 29

Sibley East football looks forward to growing road ahead to get to where they want to be by the end of the season. When asked what the goal for the guys was for this season, Hartman kept it

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer After a 2015 season where the Sibley East Wolverines only finished with a 4-6 record, improving as a team will be the mindset set forth for a group of young men trying to improve every day.

Coming into a 2016 season where the expectations are somewhat unknown, it’s important for Head Coach Chuck Hartman of the Sibley Easy Wolverines to keep his players focused on the goal at hand, growing and moving forward.

“Grow. We want to grow and keep Rowing the Boat,” Hartman said.

Growing as a unit and continuously improving as a squad seems to be the direction the Wolverines coaching staff is trying to take the guys.

The Wolverines are 2-2 this season as of September 28th and will need to focus on the

fax-Winthrop and Mayer Lutheran. They will be facing New Richard-Hartland-Ellenda on September 30th.

Key players to look out for

verines in touchdowns and total rushing yards. Behind Durham is Bates, who in just two games has rushed for 356 yards on only 39 carries

“Coming into a 2016 season where the expectations are somewhat unknown, it’s important for Head Coach Chuck Hartman of the Sibley Easy Wolverines to keep his players focused on the goal at hand, growing and moving forward. “Grow. We want to grow and keep Rowing the Boat,” Hartman said.”

short and simple.

“Kind of the same, we want to change our best every day,” Hartman said.

After four games the Wolverines have a 2-2 record and have won their two last games against Gibbon-Fair-

on the Sibley East Wolverines are guys like Kevin Durham, Jesus Rodriguez and Brody Bates. In four games, Durham has rushed the ball 55 times for 651 yards, 10 touchdowns and 162 yards per game.

Durham also leads the Wol-

and four touchdowns, while averaging nine yards per carry. Bates also leads the team in rushing yards per game with 178, according to mnfootballhub.com.

Other players to make an impact will be Rodriguez,

who is averaging 13 yards per attempt on 21 carries, which leads the team. Quarterback Gavin Bates has contributed mightily as well to a Wolverine run game that can be a lot to handle at times.

As a team, the Wolverines have rushed for 1,552 yards on 167 attempts. Through four games, the Wolverines have averaged 9.3 yards per carry and have totaled 17 touchdowns on the season by way of the ground, while averaging 388 total yards per game. Opponents haven’t had as much luck rushing against the Wolverines’ defense, as they’ve only ran for 170 yards total. Lop-sided figures like that should help lead to wins for the Wolverines.

If the Wolverines can continue to grow as a team and continue to have the success in the ground game, then they will be a tough team to beat come Friday. The Wolverines next game will be on the road at the Waterville-Elysian-Morristown High School.

The game will begin at 7 p.m. on Friday, October 7th.

Page 30

Fall

Mankato West soccer, cross country focused for 2016

COLT JOHNSON Staff Writer Both the boys’ and girls’ soccer programs for Mankato West are finishing in dominant fashion as their seasons come to a close.

Both the boys and the girls are 11-2-0 this season enter-

column is sophomore Ashley Gustavson and freshman Kristen Rasmussen. Gustavson has 7 goals and 8 assists on the season, and Rasmussen also has 7 goals and 3 assists in 13 games.

The Scarlets are 9-0 in the Big 9 conference and are a lock to take the conference title home with them. Their next game will be at New Prague on Monday, October 3rd at 4:30 p.m. Playoffs seem to be the bigger picture for both of these teams.

As for the boys’ and girls’

Photo by SPX Sports ing their last two games of the season before section playoffs. Through 13 games this season, the boys’ soccer team has outscored their opponents 48-14. Leading the way for the Mankato West Scarlets is Jacob Makela.

With three games left in the season, Makela has an incredible 34 goals and 5 assiststhat’s an average of over two and a half goals per game.

Others getting in on the action are players like midfielder James Miller. In 13 games, Miller has 7 goals and 6 assists and Jared Lim adds 2 goals and 6 assists. The rest of the team as a unit accumulates for 7 goals and 15 assists.

The Scarlets boys’ soccer team will be at home against Albert Lea next Tuesday, October 4th. The Scarlets boys’ team will try to continue their winning ways and hope to be hot coming into playoffs.

The Scarlet’s girls’ soccer team are led by a pair of juniors who know how to put the ball in the back of the net.

Leading the team in goals is McKenna Buisman. In 13 games, Buisman has 14 goals and 9 assists to match. Right on her tail is Shelby Lund with 12 goals and 4 assists.

Helping out in the scoring

cross-country team, they both come into this season with high expectations for the team as a whole. The

theme of this season is being focused on the team as a unit.

For the boys’ cross-country team, the theme for this year presented by Head Coach Joseph Broze is “we, not me.”

The boys’ cross-country team will need to stick together and pick each other up at all times if they want to continuously improve this season. When asked what the goals were for this season were, Broze provided a direct answer.

“Win the Fairmont Invitational, win the Mankato East Invitational, finish in the top 3 in the Big 9 and to finish in the top 2 at the Section 2AA Meet,” Boze said.

Some key returning athletes are guys like Kellen Brudwick, Jack James, Ian Sandry, Derek Engen, Antonio Berrones and Aaron Erdman; all of which are entering their junior years. Also keep an eye out for sophomores Jacob Haley and Sam Csizmadia. On the girls’ side, look out for another group of juniors in Briggs Carlson, Cait Flannery, Emma Lieske and Jenni Schwartz to make some noise.

Leading the girls are a group of Senior captains that have been through just about it all in their time running for the Scarlets. Broze also commented on the leadership and the strength of his group of guys.

“We have three excellent

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Photo by SPX Sports Senior captains in Erik Krenz, Gavin Harrison and Sheamus Westermann. All three having been in the program for six years,” Broze said. “We have 45 runners on this year’s roster, ranging from grades 7-12.

Our top seven guys are currently within 35 seconds of each other, which makes for a nice “pack” of runners, which helps teams place very well in competition.”

The Scarlets returned 10 letter winners from last years’

team and will need to pack that mentality in order to finish at the top of the Big 9 this season. The Mankato West Scarlets are set to be in Chaska next on Tuesday, October 4th. They’ll be wrapping up their season shortly after that, ending their season with two meets. One is in Owatonna, the other at rival Mankato East.

WISHING ALL AREA COLLEGE AND HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETES A GREAT FALL SEASON!

2016

Page 31

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Fall 2016