DULUTH, Minn.- This week’s top play goes to Duluth Denfeld’s Aiden Altona in Friday night’s game against Kasson-Mantorville. Early in the first half, Altona blocked a layup off the backboard, sending the basketball in the opposite direction. Altona left the game following the play with an apparent knee injury, but returned to the bench to cheer on his team in…
HERMANTOWN, Minn.- The Duluth Denfeld boys basketball team opened their season with a hard-fought 75-62 victory over the Kasson-Mantorville Komets. The Hunters faced some early adversity when Aiden Altona left the game with an apparent knee injury. Despite losing the senior and getting into foul trouble, Denfeld was able to clinch the victory by turning defensive turnovers into points. Ethan…
DULUTH, Minn.- In a busy Thursday night for girls’ high school basketball in the Northland, three local hoops teams earned early-season wins ahead of the weekend. After splitting a pair of games during the Thanksgiving weekend, the Mountain Iron-Buhl girls basketball team improved to 2-1 in their 80-72 victory over Proctor. The Rangers started the game with five three-point shots…
DULUTH, Minn.- The Duluth Marshall girls hockey team will once again be in contention for the Section 7A championship with senior Ilsa Lindaman leading the Hilltoppers onto the ice. “Obviously as a senior captain, you have to take on a little bit of responsibility, provide for those points, and then also you have to be sure that it’s definitely a…
DULUTH, Minn.- It would take overtime to decide a winner between Grand Rapids and Duluth East on Tuesday night. Nathan Garski would then play hero for the Thunderhawks as he netted the game-winning goal on a breakaway, giving Grand Rapids the 2-1 victory. Bauer Murphy had the other goal for the Thunderhawks in the victory. Grand Rapids (2-0) will next…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- After splitting a pair of games over the Thanksgiving break in Schofield, the Superior boys’ basketball team earned a 79-68 home-opening victory in overtime over Sioux Falls Central Tuesday night. Superior built an early lead thanks in part to Tre Sanigar, who scored 15 points in the first half. They also had some help from their bench as…
ESKO, Minn.- The Esko boys basketball team has remained one of the best teams in the Polar League over the last decade. However, they haven’t qualified for the state tournament since 2019. In each of the last two seasons, Esko has posted 25 wins, including a perfect record against conference opponents. Head Coach Derek Anderson is looking forward to keeping…
DULUTH, Minn.- Graduate Student Madelyn Granica had a career high of 27 points as the UMD women’s basketball team rolled over Northern Michigan 63-42 Sunday afternoon at Romano Gymnasium. Along with setting a new personal best for points in a single game, she also set new highs for field goals made (11) and field goal attempts (14). Granica added four…
DULUTH, Minn.- With Duluth Denfeld’s boys’ basketball regular season tipping off next week, the Hunters are likely thankful to have both Marnaries Ferguson and Aidan Newton on their roster. In 2022-23, Ferguson became one of the area’s top shooters while averaging 19.5 PPG with a .395 three-point percentage. “Marnaries, I mean, that’s my brother,” smiled Newton. “He’s a bucket, that’s…
MOUNTAIN BUHL, Minn.- After winning their first-ever Class A State Championship, Jordan Zubich and her Mountain Iron-Buhl teammates are now in title defense mode. “Just going out the way we did last season, I think it added like extra motivation to come back this year,” says Zubich, who averaged a team-high 26.5 points per game in 2022-23. “(Winning state is)…
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn.- In their first game inside the newly renovated Yanmar Arena, the Grand Rapids boys hockey team defeated the Hibbing/Chisholm Bluejackets 5-2 Wednesday night. The Thunderhawks had an offensive explosion in the first period, scoring three goals. In total, Nathan Garski scored two goals while William Shoerman, Dominic Broberg and Bauer Murphy recorded one goal each. Tate Swanson…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- The UW-Superior began a lengthy six-game homestand on Tuesday. Unfortunately, it began with a tough loss to the UW-Stout Blue Devils. The Yellowjackets were outscored in every quarter except the 3rd, which went 17-14 in favor of UWS. Superior was led by Elise Besonen, who had 16 points in the contest. UWS (2-3) will next host Luther on…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- It was a night to remember at Wessman Arena as both UW-Superior hockey teams picked up wins on Tuesday. The Yellowjacket women defeated Saint Scholastica 3-2, putting them at 4-3-1 on the season. Jenna Hoops finished with a goal and two assists while Libby Kamp and Lucy Drougas scored UWS’s other two goals. Kaylin Garner was also a…
DULUTH, Minn.- After a combined four wins in two years, the Duluth Denfeld boys basketball team had a major turnaround in 2022-23 with 16 wins. Now with nearly all of their top players returning, the Hunters want to take another jump this season. On Monday, dozens of students filled Denfeld’s court for the start of basketball season. The Hunters had…
DULUTH, Minn.- Five games into the 2023-24 season, the Duluth Marshall girl’s hockey team has shown they’ll once again be in contention for the 7A Championship. “This year we have a very skilled team, so that’s what we’re kind of focusing on is using our systems and working around our different skill levels that we have.” Last year, Callie Hoff…
CLOQUET, Minn.- This week’s top play of the week comes from a Thursday night girls hockey game between Duluth Marshall and Cloquet/Esko/Carlton. After a scoreless first period, Marshall’s Avery Lian put the Hilltoppers on the board after intercepting a pass and shooting the puck above the goaltender’s shoulder and into the net. Lian would go on to score another goal…
DULUTH, Minn.- The #4 UMD women’s hockey team had their six-game winning streak come to an end Friday evening as they fell 3-1 to the #8 Minnesota Gophers. Despite the loss, the Bulldogs outshot the Gophers 33-32. Their lone goal was scored by Hanna Baskin in the third period off an assist from Danielle Burgen. UMD will have a chance…
MOUNTAIN IRON, Minn.- Eight months ago, the Mountain Iron-Buhl girls basketball team won their first Class A state championship in a 31-point rout over BOLD. If recent history repeats itself, the Rangers will be the favorites to repeat this season. Since 2007, there have been five Class A basketball teams that have won back-to-back state championships (Minneota, Goodhue, Maranatha, Ada-Borup…
CLOQUET, Minn.- After earning an 11-1 win on Tuesday, The Duluth Marshall girls hockey team kept up their offensive attack in Thursday’s 5-0 shutout over Cloquet/Esko/Carlton. Following a scoreless second period, the Hilltoppers would score as Avery Lian sent a wrist shot past C-E-C Goaltender Izabella Strang. Liang would score another goal in the second period on a power play….
ESKO, Minn.-Â The Esko football team is likely still feeling the pain of Saturday’s state quarterfinals loss to Annandale, but with Jacion Owens returning as their starting quarterback, they should once again be contenders in 2024. “I feel like coming out here and having a good mood helps everyone get through practice,” says Owens, who started practice sharing his Aaron Rodgers…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- In a night full of stars, Team Minnesota rallied from a two-set deficit to defeat Team Wisconsin in five sets. Cloquet’s Ava Carlson, who is graduating as the Lumberjacks’ all-time kills leader, was named the game’s MVP. Below is a roster for each team: Team Minnesota Quinn Danielson, Cloquet Ava Carlson, Cloquet Blythe Proulx, Cloquet Karys Johnson, Duluth…
DULUTH, Minn.- A pair of Denfeld girls soccer players have officially signed on the dotted line to play college athletics in Duluth. Before the start of the fall sports season, Alyssa Doyle had committed to the UMD. The senior ends her high school soccer career as the Hunters’ all-time leader in goals and points. She was also named first-team Class…
DULUTH, Minn.- Despite not reaching nationals as a team, three St. Scholastica runners will be representing the Saints in the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. Lars Dewall, Calvin Boone and Alli Hendrickson have qualified as individuals following Saturday’s NCAA North Regionals. In the men’s race, Dewall placed sixth while Boone followed his teammate in seventh place. In the women’s…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- The UW-Superior men’s basketball team are now 2-0 to start the season with Friday’s 76-68 win over UW-La Crosse at Mertz Motorelli Gymnasium. J’Vaun Walker led UWS in scoring with 18 points. Meanwhile, Reid Johnson and Josef Fahrenoltz each tallied 17 points while Joey Barker added 16 points, along with a whopping seven steals. As part of the…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- The UW-Superior men’s hockey team remains winless four games into the 2023-24 season as they were shut out 2-0 against Bethel in their home opener. This marks the first time the Yellowjackets have started 0-4 since the 2017-18 season. UWS went on to finish that season with a 9-15-3 record. This was the first game of a back-to-back,…
DULUTH, Minn.- This week’s top play comes from the girls high school soccer all-star game on Monday. Duluth East senior Kendall Wittmers-Graves gets the deep shot to go and even celebrates in style. Categories: Friday Night Frenzy, Sports
DULUTH, Minn.- In this week’s Coaches Corner, we hear from St. Scholastica Cross Country Head Coach Chad Salmela as the Saints get ready for NCAA Regionals on Saturday, November 11 in Colfax, Wisconsin. Salmela has been the Saints’ cross country coach since 2016. Before that, he coached CSS’s nordic ski team for 10 seasons. Categories: Coaches Corner, College, Friday Night…
ESKO, Minn.- On Saturday, the Esko football team will be in Brainerd to kick off Minnesota’s AAA State Quarterfinals. It’s the same field where Esko lost in last year’s quarters after leading by seven points at halftime. Esko enters Saturday 10-0, which includes last week’s 34-14 win over Pequot Lakes in the Section 7AAA Championship. Their opponents will be Annandale,…
GRAND RAPIDS, Minn.- The Mountain Iron-Buhl Rangers won’t be repeating as 9-player football state champions this year as they fell to Nevis 12-8 in Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup. The Rangers went scoreless in the first half, despite reaching the red zone twice. They also recovered a fumble on defense that led to a 94-yard return by Evan Anderson, but the would-be…
DULUTH, Minn.- The college basketball season is underway, and St. Scholastica celebrated with a pair of wins Wednesday at Reif Gym. The CSS men defeated Northland College 84 to 74. The Saints led 39-29 at the half and kept their lead throughout the second half. Kevin Thomas was the Saints’ leading scorer with 13 points. The Hermantown product added nine…
DULUTH, Minn.- This Saturday will mark the end of St. Scholastica’s football season. Standing at 2-7 overall, things haven’t gone the Saints’ way this fall, but one of their defensive captains is committed to turning CSS around in 2024. “After each week, we’ve gotta take a look in the mirror and make sure we’re getting better and fixing the mistakes…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- It’s become a fall tradition of sorts for both of UWS’s soccer teams to win the UMAC and advance to the NCAA Division III Tournament. The next step is for one of them to make it through the first round, a feat neither team has accomplished since 2019. On Monday, the men’s soccer team learned they will be…
DULUTH, Minn.- Some of the best high school soccer players in Duluth and the surrounding area had one more night to shine on Monday as part of the Essentia Health All-Star Soccer Games. Below is a roster of each All-Star team: Boys- Team White (Duluth) Camden Rask, Duluth Denfeld Matt Eklund, Duluth Denfeld William Foldesi, Duluth Denfeld Jonah Engebretson, Duluth…
DULUTH, Minn.- The UMD football team’s reliable kicker is once again getting recognized for his steady play on the field. Curtis Cox has been named the NSIC Special Teams Player of the Week following Saturday’s win against Concordia St. Paul. Cox knocked down both of his field goal attempts, along with all four point-after tries. This is the second time…
DULUTH, Minn.- The UMD women’s basketball team is now turning its attention to the regular season after defeating Bethel University 78-32 in Monday’s preseason finale. Madelyn Granica scored 14 points for the Bulldogs while knocking down 70% of her shots. UMD’s regular season begins on Saturday, November 11th when they take on Thomas More on the road. They’ll have to…
DULUTH, Minn.- One week after the tragic on-ice accident resulting in the death of Adam Johnson, the UMD Men’s hockey team honored their former player before their first game since his passing. At AMSOIL Arena, the team held a seven-second moment of silence, as well as a final stick salute and a tribute video highlighting Johnson’s time with the Bulldogs….
SUPERIOR, Wis.- The UW-Superior women’s soccer team have captured their third consecutive UMAC Championship, defeating Northwestern (Minn.) 3-0 at NBC Spartan Sports Complex on Saturday. Despite outshooting the Wolves 8-1 in the first half, the Yellow Jackets were scoreless at halftime. “I told them at the end of the day, we were working hard, but we needed to calm down…
DULUTH, Minn.- The UMD women’s hockey team has captured their fifth-straight win, defeating St. Thomas 3-1 on Friday. The Bulldogs got off to a 2-0 start in the first period while outshooting the Tommies 21-10. UMD and St. Thomas will square off again Saturday afternoon. Meanwhile, the UMD men fell on the road to the Minnesota Gophers 3-1. They’ll have…
DULUTH, Minn.- This week’s top plays feature a pair of impressive scores from a college captain and a high school footballer. At number two, UMD’s Mannon McMahon scored a goal unassisted on a breakaway in the first period against St. Thomas. The Bulldogs women’s hockey team would go on to win 3-1. At number one, Hermantown’s Martin Sleen dodged tacklers…
DULUTH, Minn.- The Hermantown football team wasn’t able to return the favor to North Branch on Friday, falling to the Vikings 28 to 21 in the Section 7AAAA title game. This is the 2nd straight season the Vikings have advanced to the state tournament. Weirdly enough, both of the contests that Hermantown and North Branch met up this season, ended…
ESKO, Minn.- After losing to Barnum in their season opener, Moose Lake/Willow River got the last laugh in the Little Brown Jug rivalry Thursday night with a 13-0 win in the 7AA Championship. The Rebels scored on their opening drive as Micah Thompson broke a run on a 4th and 3. Thompson would score again on a one-yard run in…
ESKO, Minn.- Esko’s class of 2024 has produced several students who will go on to play college athletics. That includes Kyra Johnson, who will play volleyball for Gustavus Adolphus next fall. Johnson hasn’t been shy of sharing her admiration for both volleyball and her Esko teammates. “This season has been so much fun with all of them,” she says while…
CLOQUET, Minn.- The Cloquet volleyball team continued their quest for a state berth on Monday, defeating North Branch 3-1 in the Section 7AAA semifinals. The Lumberjacks would fall in the first set before rallying to win the final three sets. The scores were (22-25, 25-20, 25-17, and 25-22). Ava Carlson had a team-leading 12 kills in the victory. Cloquet will…
Part 1: Part 2: DULUTH, Minn. – The UMD community and hockey world are mourning the loss of Adam Johnson, who passed away after an accident during a hockey game in England on Saturday. Johnson, 29, was playing for the Nottingham Panthers in the Elite Ice Hockey League when he collided with a member of the Sheffield Steelers in the…
DULUTH, Minn.- Esko and Hermantown punched their respective tickets to the Sectional Finals in Saturday’s high school football playoff action. On their home field, Esko defeated Pierz 56-8. They’ll now have the chance to earn their third-straight Section Championship on Thursday when they take on Pequot Lakes at Malosky Stadium. Meanwhile, Hermantown took out Duluth Denfeld 10-6 on the Hunters’…
SUPERIOR, Wis.- The UW-Superior volleyball team was unable to keep up with Minnesota Morris on Swarm Night, falling in four sets on Friday. In the defeat, Maiana Stark led the Yellow Jackets with 14 kills. Ayla Oltmanns added 12 kills while Kaylin Plautz contributed with 11. Defensively, Jenna Anderson tallied 34 digs. Plautz, Sydney Smith and Marena Saeger each recorded…
PROCTOR, Minn.- In this week’s Coaches Corner, we caught up with Proctor Hermantown girls swimming head coach Jon Nelson as his team prepares for the Lake Superior Conference Championships. Proctor Hermantown will also compete in the Sectional Championship November 9-11 in Hibbing. Categories: Coaches Corner, Friday Night Frenzy, High School, Sports
DULUTH, Minn.- This week’s top play goes to the UMD soccer team for their game-winning goal Sunday against the University of Sioux Falls. With three minutes left, Lauren Hansen’s corner kick went straight to Myra Moorjani, whose header found the back of the net, giving UMD a 2-1 victory. Categories: College, Plays of the Week, Sports
ESKO, Minn.- The Esko volleyball team is still alive in the playoff hunt as they defeated Pine City in four sets in Friday’s Section 7AA quarterfinal match. This marks Esko’s 10th-straight victory, which spans back to September 28. Esko will now head to Mesabi East in the Sectional semifinals on Wednesday, November 1. Last year, Esko made it as far…
PROCTOR, Minn.- The high school girls swimming and diving season is nearing its end, and swimmers with the Proctor Hermantown is hoping to make some waves before in a pair of crucial upcoming meets. Despite not having a dive team — and practicing in a pool five yards short of regulation — Proctor Hermantown has kept up with their conference…
