Sports

Conference talk, but no action so far

Bison tennis splits triangular; Botzet takes singles title

Girls are undefeated through three games

Cross country team a mix of old, new

Rockford Ringers celebrate 2010 season with awards

Journal-Press Sports Editor Heather Reinhart may be reached
by phone at 763-682-1221 or click here to email her

That’s what Buffalo football Coach Gerard Rohl declared Tuesday before practice began. The Bison are hoping they can repeat that statement for a few more weeks, but have a big opponent standing in the way for the very first game of the season on Friday: Cambridge-Isanti.

“I’d rather not play them right away because it can always be such a violent affair,” Rohl said. “They’re so much like us the way they run the ball.”

Coach Rohl said Rogers, Cambridge-Isanti, and Monticello will all be tough in the Mississippi 8 Conference.

“We should be real tough too,” he said. “I think it’s going to be real competitive.”

Among the top returning players is senior Louis Clifton, a wide receiver who is nearing the school record for interceptions. Senior Tyler Peterson is back in the quarterback spot, and senior Cody Pederson returns to the offensive line. That trio will serve as the team captains this fall.

Other returning starters include senior running back Tim Ernster, senior tight end Matt Lingo, and lineman and back-up quarterback senior Cody Elletson. Also back are junior running back Colton Haight, senior defensive back Brian Holthaus, and senior center Adam VanMuyden. Seniors Dillon Miller, Jerome Begin, and Garrison Elsenpeter also return.

The Bison graduated a lot of strong players including Mr. Football Finalist Ben Henson, but Rohl said a lot of talented players are ready to step up and fill the holes.

“It’s always the key guys (that graduate),” he said. “But we’ve got some good skill kids that will help us out.”

The Bison have more than 70 players on the roster this season and Rohl said there is some good leadership. The varsity coaching staff remains the same. The only addition has been Coach Ron Spier at the ninth grade level.

The Bison took part in a scrimmage at Spring Lake Park on Saturday, where coaches got their first look at the players in action. Rohl said that the offense and defense played pretty evenly at the scrimmage.

“I would say the defense is a little behind yet, but our offense is starting to come together a little better,” Rohl said. “We’re looking like we should have a real strong team again.”

Buffalo will play its first game of the season at Cambridge-Isanti at 7 p.m. on Friday. The Bison defeated the Bluejackets 12-10 last year. On Friday, Sept. 10, the Bison will host St. Michael-Albertville at 7 p.m.

There is a bit of a buzz going around that the Mississippi 8 Conference is in jeopardy, but any discussion of that nature is in the very early stages.

Buffalo Activities Director Tom Bauman said that he and the other conference AD’s met for their monthly meeting on Wednesday, Aug. 18, in Becker and that there was no conference talk at the meeting. It was later learned that four of the schools — Zimmerman, Becker, Big Lake, and Princeton — met a day earlier with AD’s from Mora, Milaca, Foley, St. Cloud Cathedral, and Little Falls to discuss a potential new conference.

Since the meeting, it has been learned that Big Lake attended only to answer questions and to state its position and intention to remain in the M8.

The Mille Lacs County Times, a newspaper in Milaca, reported that the Aug. 17 meeting occurred, and ever since Bauman and others in the M8 have heard their phones ringing off the hook.

Bauman said there has been talk of M8 changes for more than six months, and that Zimmerman has always been the most vocal about finding a better fit since it was placed into the M8 Conference by the Minnesota State High School League in 2008. Bauman said that Becker, Big Lake, and Princeton have always been very up front about the challenges they face in their communities in approaching conference affiliation issues, and added that they are continuing to take care in doing that now.

“This is not a bashing on these schools,” Bauman said. “It is basically information as to why we are at a situation where there is such a buzz and the realities we are facing.”

During the AD’s monthly meeting back in March, discussion first arose about conference affiliation and Becker, Big Lake, Princeton, and Zimmerman mentioned that they had had at least one meeting to discuss conference affiliation with the schools of Foley, Little Falls, Mora, Milaca, St. Cloud Cathedral. They also indicated that they had one more meeting scheduled.

At the time, Bauman said, the reaction of the five other activities directors from Buffalo, Cambridge-Isanti, Monticello, Rogers, and St. Michael-Albertville was one of surprise.

“Although we were a bit surprised, I do not know that we should be,” Bauman said. “In looking at some other conference situations around the state, I consider us lucky, and I am appreciative of the stability we have enjoyed that last five years.”

The conference was first formed in 2004 and began competing in the 2005-06 school year. Then, it consisted of eight schools all located within 10 miles of the Mississippi River. Zimmerman was added in 2008.

“The Mississippi 8 Conference as a league has served it schools well in the last five years,” Bauman said. “It has been a great experience for Buffalo, and I truly think the school staff, students and communities are some of the finest in the state. I would hate to see it break up.”

As of right now, the Mississippi 8 Conference with nine schools is intact for the 2010-2011 year. If the four schools do choose to leave down the road, the M8 has several options. It could have a conference with five member schools, attract other schools to the conference, or look to join other conferences.

“Many schools have found their situations much more challenging and difficult,” Bauman said. “We have options and we will make something work if changes are on the horizon.”

The Bison girls tennis team hosted a triangular with Rosemount and Rocori on Wednesday, Aug. 25, and earned a split, beating Rocori 6-1 and losing a 4-3 match to Rosemount.

Buffalo swept the doubles matches against Rocori. Mackenzie Rixe and Hailey Morningstar won their No. 1 doubles match 6-2, 7-6 (7-4). In the No. 2 spot, Jessica Eckard and Tera Lubinski lost their first set 3-6, but won the next two with ease (6-2. 6-1). The No. 3 doubles team of Holly Hanson and Anna Melgard also won their match 7-5, 6-3.

In singles play, No. 1 player Anna Botzet won 6-1, 7-5, Kaylyn Skinner won 6-3, 6-0 in the No. 2 spot, and Claire Parsons won 6-2, 6-4 at No. 3 singles.

Against Rosemount, Buffalo’s Skinner picked up a win in the No. 2 singles spot with a 6-1, 7-6 (7-2) victory. The Bison also won at No. 2 and No. 3 doubles. Madalyn Nones and Eckard won 5-7, 6-4 (10-4), and Morningstar and Lubinski won 6-3, 6-4.

The Bison also competed in the Buffalo/Delano Invitational on Thursday, Aug. 26. Buffalo hosted the doubles matches, while Delano hosted the singles matches. There were eight individuals/teams in each bracket.

Botzet was the lone Buffalo player to win her bracket. She played No. 1 singles and earned a 6-3, 6-4 victory over a Staples player and a 6-2, 6-2 victory over a SSP player to reach the finals. There, she defeated Delano’s Laura Finn 6-4, 4-6 (8-6) to claim the title.

Coach Charley Keifenheim said Botzet was working on hitting the ball consistently in the power zone, attacking the short serve, coming in on short balls and taking them high in the arc, and putting top spin on her cross-court shots from various positions.

At No. 2 singles, Skinner finished in fourth place, Kelsey Hane and Parsons each placed sixth at No. 3 and 4 singles respectively. Skinner was working on putting top spin on all her shots, and on net clearance. She won a close first-match over Orono by scores of 6-2, 4-6 (7-4).

Buffalo’s No. 2 doubles team of Nones and Eckard took fourth place after losing to Elk River in a third-place tiebreaker by scores of 7-5, 2-6 (7-4). The No. 3 doubles team of Hansen and Melgard also finished fourth after losing their third-place match by scores of 7-6, 6-2.

Buffalo’s No. 1 doubles team of Rixe and Morningstar placed seventh in their bracket, as did the No. 4 doubles team of Addison Thein and Lubinski.

Buffalo headed to Chanhassen for a dual match on Tuesday. See next week’s paper for results. The team will then take a week off from competition before heading to Cambridge-Isanti for the first Mississippi 8 Conference match of the year on Tuesday, Sept. 7.

The Buffalo girls soccer team got off to a great start last Thursday, Aug. 26, when it hosted section foe Elk River and came away with a 1-0 victory.

Sophomore Jordan Skarin scored the only goal of the game in the opening minutes of the second half while senior teammate Courtney Daniels assisted. Senior Rachel Mussell earned her first shutout in net after moving into the goalkeeper position this season. She made 12 saves.

“Our defense and midfielders held them to low-percentage shots,” Bison Coach Steve Doimer said. “The defense played very, very well I thought.”

On Saturday, the girls headed to St. Cloud to take on Apollo in extremely windy conditions. Doimer said the wind blew straight down the field, and the Bison had it in their faces for the first half.

Early in the game, Daniels was fouled in the penalty box and junior Katie Halvorson took the penalty shot and made it to go ahead 1-0. Senior Shana Roberts also scored in the first half off an assist from senior Alesha Spande, and Buffalo led 2-1 at the break.

The Bison went on to win the game 4-2 after scoring twice more in the second half. Spande scored the third goal for the Bison off a crossing ball from Daniels. Later, senior Beth Leipholtz scored an unassisted goal after taking along shot in the wind from 40 meters out.

On Monday, the Bison hosted state-ranked Eagan and came away with a 1-1 tie. Both teams scored in the first half, and two five-minute overtime periods were played but the tie could not be broken.

Eagan got on the scoreboard first, but then Halvorson passed the ball to Skarin who took it 25 meters down the field and scored to tie the game.

“As a team, we rallied and had an excellent effort,” Doimer said. “I thought our effort in the second half against Elk River was good, but this was an excellent effort.”

“Rachel had a very nice game,” he said. “She did a nice job controlling her space.”

Senior Amanda Munsterteiger and junior Erika Doimer both played solid games defensively against Eagan. Neither player came off the field for the entire 80 minutes of regulation and 10 minutes of overtime.

The Bison will host state-ranked Wayzata, who is the defending state champion, in a 7 p.m. game on Thursday, Sept. 2. Wayzata is also ranked in the top 10 nationally, and should provide a good contest for the Bison.

“Our team is just getting better so rapidly,” Doimer said. “By playing these high-quality players, by the time we get to conference we’ll be in great shape.”

Next Tuesday, Sept. 7, the Bison will play a 5 p.m. game at Monticello, and on Thursday, Sept. 9, they will head to St. Michael-Albertville for a 7 p.m. start.

Also coming up on the Bison schedule is a Saturday, Sept. 11, game against St. Cloud Tech, which will be played at St. Cloud State University’s Husky Stadium. The junior varsity teams will face off at 5 p.m., with the varsity game following at 7 p.m.

This year’s cross country teams from Buffalo are quite different. The boys side consists of 30 runners including all but one member of last year’s strong squad. The girls, meanwhile, graduated a slew of varsity runners and have a small squad of 12 this season that will be learning as they go.

This year’s boys will be led by returning runners senior Blake Solberg, junior Matt Dietrich, and senior brothers Jon and Josh Wedemeier. Dietrich was a state qualifier last year who is hoping to return this season. Also back are sophomores Dan Pettit, Andrei Casey, and Michael Swearingen.

Seniors Cody Jacobson-Hanson and Marty Carter have also been showing a lot of senior leadership for the younger team members so far this fall.

“It is so exciting,” Coach Jill Hanson said of the boys team. “There’s talent here and the future looks good. I’m looking forward to a good season.”

A good chunk of the boys team worked out together over the summer months and will be looking to take the Mississippi 8 Conference title. Last year, the Bison finished second in the conference to Cambridge-Isanti by a mere two points.

“We certainly should be in the hunt there, as we should at the section meet, as well,” Coach Hanson said.

The Bison girls have just 12 runners out this season and many are young, but Hanson said the group has a lot of quality runners. Buffalo has just one senior in returning runner Katie Oden. Other top runners include sophomore Kailey Johnson, eighth grader Hayley Downing, and juniors Blair Solberg, Emily Bedker, and Elise Walters.

New runners also in contention for a varsity spot include Samina Pelham, CeCe Kulzer, Claire Daughters, and Rachel Thaemert.

“They’re young, new, and untested,” Hanson said. “We’ll be looking big time for Kailey and Hayley to step up.”

Monticello is the team to beat for the Bison in Mississippi 8 Conference, after the girls took second to the Magic in 2009.

“The girls are kind of a wild card,” Hanson said. “We’re going to have fun and grow and get better as a team.”

Dave Knutson returns as the assistant coach, while 2008 BHS graduate Ben Rodriguez will be a new assistant this season, primarily working with the middle school runners.

Buffalo will begin the season Friday at the Northfield Invitational at St. Olaf College. The team will then be off until Friday, Sept. 10, when the Bison head to the Hopkins Invitational.

The Rockford Ringers Horseshoe Club held its annual Awards night on Tuesday, Aug. 24. There were 36 league members in attendance for the pot luck supper. A short meeting was held, followed by the presentations of trophies, medallions, and N.H.P.A. (National Horseshoe Pitchers Association) patches. Rockford Ringers Club President Ron Fadden presented the individual awards for both league nights. There were 19 pitchers each night of league.

Taking top four honors in the Tuesday Night League were: First: Gordy Bonn of Hanover; Second: Steve Lilly of Corcoran; Third: Lowell Johnson of Buffalo; and Fourth: Len Anderson of Rockford.

Tuesdays Club-Only Tournament Champion Class Patch winners were: Marlys Timm of Loretto (Class A), Ron Fadden of Waverly (Class B), and Zack Holm of Elk River (Class C).

The following pitchers also earned patches for their efforts in the Tuesday Night League.

High Average patches went to: Marlys Timm (45.75%) and Len Anderson (36.64%). High Game patches went to: Marlys Timm (62.5%) and Len Anderson (55%).

The High Game over average winners were: Ron Fadden (+22.37%) and Robyn Holland (+17.97%). Most Improved were: Steve Lilly (+11.31%) and Robyn Holland (+4.53%). Junior pitchers Kyle Holland (age 9), Kayla Holland (12), and Lauryn Bacon (11) each earned a Rookie of the Year patch, as well as a Class Champion patch and junior participant medallions.

Kay Littell and Mike DeMars were voted as the Sportsmanship Award recipients for 2010 by their fellow pitchers.

Game % patches were also presented to the following: 40% Lowell Johnson, 30% Kay Littell, 30% Robyn Holland, 20% Zack Holm, 10% Kyle Holland, 10% Kayla Holland, and 10% Lauryn Bacon.

Taking top four honors in the Wednesday Night League were: First: Dave Borscheid of Buffalo; Second: Bill Marquette of Buffalo; Third: Ron Fadden of Waverly; and Fourth: Steve Simonson of Rockford.

Wednesdays Club-Only Tournament Champion Class Patch winners were: Ron Fadden of Waverly (Class A); Jeff Thieman of Delano (Class B); and Bruce Kremer of Rockford (Class C).

The following pitchers also earned patches for their efforts in the Wednesday Night League.

High Average patches went to: Bill Marquette (51.50%) and Debi Pool (14.69%). High Game patches went to: Bill Marquette (67.50%) and Sherry Boucher (30%). High Game over average went to: Dave Borscheid (+23%) and Sherry Boucher (+18.84%).

The Most Improved were Todd Skeide (+3.13%) and Debi Pool (+4.06%). Rookie of the Year awards went to Bill Marquette and Sherry Boucher. The Wednesday night Sportsmanship Award winners were Jeff Thieman and Debi Pool.

Game % patches were also presented to the following: 60% Dave Borscheid, 60% Bill Marquette, 30% Bruce Kremer, 30% Sherry Boucher, 20% Steve Simonson, 10% Kevin Lovig, 10% Nick Tieri, 10% Chris Zwart, and 10% Joe Steffl.

All first-year sanctioned club members received an N.H.P.A. sanctioned league member patch. For more information on the club, please visit www.rockfordringershorseshoes.com .