Before going into the pre-camp break the Purple had media time by Kevin O'Connell, Kirk Cousins, & Patrick Peterson. It was also announced that their preseason schedule will be Sunday, Aug. 14 @ Las Vegas, 3:25, Saturday, Aug. 20 VS. San Fran, 6 pm & Saturday, Aug, 27 @ Denver, 8 pm - none of which will be broadcast nationally.
They also made what could be a not-too-minor tweak to the roster, releasing undrafted kicker Gabe Brkic while not signing another to compete with Greg Joseph.
The Herd's week began with the announcement of another addition to the support staff as Matt Bauman is joining Cramer's crew after a decade in Duluth.
That was the tip of the good-news iceberg as Paige Vargas then announced she would be using her extra year of eligibility in the circle. The California girl must not mind the cold too much!
Before the finally events of the school year commenced in Eugene, OR five of the women were named to the Academic All-League. The men had one less when their list was released.
When the timers were stopped the men's 4x400m relay team had re-written their own record. 19th may not sound like a great finish (& that's accurate) but doing something better than anyone else ever has at an institution 3 straight times is extremely impressive! One of the runners, Jacob Rodin, was then recognized for his academic achievement. Not to be upstaged, Kari Wolfe & Amy Phillips each earned All-American for their performances in the field.
Concordia broke the Summer silence with the addition of Cobber alum & former Grafton head coach Laurie Sieben. If the same sort of success that was achieved up North comes with her to Moorhead then all three of the local women's teams will be fun to watch!
🏐 also added to it's coaching staff as former volunteer assistant Chris Hahn was hired.
🏈 then followed suit with it's own news, announcing a road-heavy 2022 schedule.
Minnesota continued it's front office overhaul with the addition of long-time executive Dell Demps, most recently with Utah. With a week & change remaining until the draft we won't have to wait much longer to get an idea what Connelly really thinks about the roster.
Speaking of not waiting, after a year off Ryan Saunders is reportedly on his way Denver. The way it went in MN may mean he never gets the main job again but as one of the good guys in the Association it's nice to see him get a rebound in a great outfit!
Whether the Replicants will finally end the mind-numbing playoff victory drought is the cloud that will hang over this franchise until it happens. It may require a change of philosophy that thus far the decision makers have been unwilling to make. But if the last three series are any indication maybe, just MAYBE it will get snapped. That would still leave them potentially out in the cold after one series but taking two out of three from Toronto & Tampa while also getting one off the Evil Empire could be a sign of requisite fortitude. The questions about usage & management philosophy are nowhere near answered but with more than half the season remaining some of those things may yet be ironed out. I personally won't be holding my breath on that but crazier things have happened.
If they are able to get that monkey off then Gary Sanchez will play some roll in it. Fair to speculate the team grasping that as they signed him for another year. The team also was forced to swallow a bitter pill as Royce Lewis re-tore his ACL, which likely means he will miss most of next season as well.
As some people say - Can't have nice things...
The Hot Birds began a nine-game home stand Monday, beating Sioux Falls 4 - 1. After losing three of the previous four it helped get them back on track to the tune of four wins, each with it's own flavor. The clincher over the Falls came courtesy of Sam Dexter and could surely be called the crescendo of the week but the squad was far from done after that one!
Reminder that scores are added daily plus there's a new home for recruiting news, so check back often!
Now for this week's highlights
The prep week began in Bismarck as the softball all-star games unfolded. The West took the first two before most of those involved this year came to Casselton (Dickinson players took a trip to the college world series). The change of venue and roster availability weren't enough to tip the scales in the East's favor as it went off in shut-out fashion for the West.
The early part of the week also included the announcement of Oak Grove's Cody Card & Shanley's Jake Skarperud as finalists for the inaugural ND Mr. Golf. That came as Card headlined the Class B All-State ⛳️ while Skarperud was named to the division-less honor.
Along with that, three of the four all-state teams were announced for baseball/softball. Class B ⚾️ was first and then softball A & B came shortly thereafter.
Then came some games.
Sheyenne won their second straight state title while Nate Peyerl had the lowest individual score to secure the sweep. In the wake, Davies Adam Gronaas was named Class A Coach of the year while Jake Skarperud is Senior of the Year.
Moorhead ⚾️ kept it close against Elk River but weren't able to get any of their own guys across home. Girl's lacrosse was shown how far they have to go to compete for a state tournament berth as Elk River put it on them 20 - 2. Stifling defense was the key for the boys in their bid to make it back to state against St. Michael/Albertville as they won the section 9 - 2. They will get the top seed, Benilde/St. Margaret in the first round Tuesday.
At the state softball tournament D/G/F doubled-up two-seed LeSueur/Henderson and finished fourth.
State 🏃 was also fun for some from the area! D/G/F's Josh Finseth won the Class A triple jump. Moorhead's best finisher was Jamal Dixon with the second best high jump. Michael Haugo had the third best long jump on his first try while Alonn Salman matched that in the 100m. Dixon, Haugo, Karson Wendt & Salman also had the third best combined effort in the 4x100. Elinneus Davis reached the podium as well for the discus. That all added up to the boys finishing in third on the team leaderboard as well.
The Semi-Ams had their home opener Saturday after losing both of their games in May. A pair of first half touchdown passes by Kasen Swenson were enough to secure the win but Tim Devaney tacked on another in the fourth quarter. The 15 yards in that one run put up over 50 for the game on 18 carries. Swenson finished the day 13/27 for 163 yards & the scores with 0 INTs.
On the other side of the ball Dominic Goseyun (UM-Morris) & Tanner Jacobson each forced a fumble while Constant Jackson (UM-Crookston) & Tavante Gammage each hauled in a pick.
They will be back at Moorhead high Saturday evening and then not again until mid-July.
Back to back weeks avoiding a loss, that's progress! This week the Fuze fought to a draw as Tre Bonaparte & Sochi Fujioka each netted a pair of goals. It wasn't enough for them to take the lead but as the team-building continues it should be encouraging.
Their ladies will have their first action Friday evening at Moorhead high.
The week also included many game 1s of the season. West Fargo had theirs in MInot, winning 16 - 13. WF then proceeded to take two off Williston, 3 - 0 & 13 - 2 and completing the odd sweep with another win over Minot. Post 400 also added two to it's win column in Jamestown, one of which was a no-hitter! Success on the mound continued in Grand Forks as the 400 got wins of 2 - 1 & 3 - 1 before smashing East Grand 16 - 4. Moorhead had it's first action Thursday against GF and left nothing to chance, 18 - 4. They returned to the field versus Manitoba Sunday, dropping the first game 12 - 10 but roared back with an 11 - 1 victory. Post 2 didn't rock the boat in their pair against Dickinson, 7 - 2 & 5 - 0 but couldn't sustain it against Bismarck, 4 - 2. That blip wasn't able to grow as Granite City was done-in 12 - 0 and then The Deuce smacked Mandan twice 8 - 1 & 9 - 4 to advance to the tournament championship. They rolled in the final 11 - 0 with Bismarck on the wrong end. Adam Leininger left Mandan with five home runs, two in the title game!