Lakers boys' basketball rallies before halftime against Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta

After leading 5-2 in the opening minutes against visiting Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta, the Minnewaska Area Lakers boys' basketball team fell into a major scoring drought and went over six minutes without scoring a point. Meanwhile, the Tigers reeled off a 16-0 run fueled by 12 points by Austin Dierks to go up 18-5.

At halftime, after falling behind as much as 26-11 with 6:40 left, the Lakers face a 28-23 deficit.
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D-Mac and Smooth Magic 107 is bringing the airwaves and internet play-by-play coverage.

Dierks has 16 points at halftime.

*Update: 90 seconds into the 2nd half, the Tigers have a 30-24 lead. The Minnewaska Lakers just ended a streak of making 13 consecutive free throws.

Final: Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta 60, Minnewaska Area 48. The Tigers shot 9-of-16 at the free throw line in the game, while the Lakers lost in spite of a 22-of-27 performance at the charity stripe.

Tigers senior Austin Dierks had a monster double-double with 22 points and 15 rebounds.
The Lakers are 2-1 overall and 0-1 in the WCC-North schedule; they travel to Sauk Centre (1-0) next Tuesday night in another WCCN game.

D-Mac has Minnewaska head coach Todd Beecher on the Smooth Magic 107 FM Coaches' Roundup show on Saturday morning, December 8.

Christmas parade in Glenwood

On the evening of November 29, 2012 in Glenwood...

Bridget Opdahl shines at Class A state swimming and diving prelims

A clip from the prelims at the Class A girls' state swimming and diving meet on Friday, November 16 at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center in Minneapolis...


Minnewaska Area senior Bridget Opdahl took 4th in the prelims of the 50 freestyle and 5th in the 100 freestyle races. She competes today (Nov. 17) in the Sweet 16 round of the state meet.

Great job!

Minnewaska Area vs. BOLD football - Section 5AA championship!

After the first quarter was complete, BOLD and Minnewaska Area stood in a 7-7 tie at Big Cat Stadium in Morris tonight.

A 20-yard touchdown ending a 11 play, 77-yard drive on a Jake Amundson reception from quarterback Austin Ostrander put the Lakers ahead 6-0 with six minutes left in the first quarter.

BOLD later scored with 1:35 left in the first quarter to knot the game up.

The two teams are squaring off for a Class AA state tournament berth.

At halftime: BOLD 21, Minnewaska Area 7. With 3:40 left in the first half, BOLD scored from seven yards out. Then on a punt return, the Warriors got a 48-yard return on the punt (making it a negative-14-yard-punt) and then scored on the first play of that drive from the 12-yard line.

Third-quarter update: with 7:06 left in the third quarter, the Warriors scored on a 10-play drive to go up 28-7.

The Lakers fell behind 35-14 in the second half and got to within 35-21 before the Warriors scored in the final two minutes of the fourth quarter to win 42-21.

First football playoff win since 2004!

Final score tonight from Veterans Field: Minnewaska Area 42, Yellow Medicine East 6 in the Section 5AA quarterfinals.

It's the first time since 2003 that Minnewaska Area has won a football playoff opener.

The Lakers (5-4) host #3-seed Paynesville Area on Saturday night in a 7 p.m. game. The Bulldogs (5-4) defeated Eden Valley-Watkins 34-27 tonight in their playoff opener.

Minnewaska Area girls' tennis falls in Section 6A Final Four

The Osakis Silverstreaks, on their way to a second straight state tournament berth, defeated the Minnewaska Area Lakers girls' tennis team 6-1 in the section semifinals on Thursday, Oct. 11 in Sartell.

  Video from doubles action...

Lakers win Homecoming!

The Minnewaska Area Lakers football team made it two wins in a row with a 45-20 win over Sauk Centre on Homecoming night.

The Lakers trailed 14-13 briefly in the first half before taking a 19-14 lead into halftime. They owned the Mainstreeters in the second half, punching in their final touchdown by JV personnel with around three minutes left in the game.

Lakers volleyball third in home invitational

On Saturday, the Minnewaska Area Lakers volleyball team hosted an 8-team invitational. They took third place behind champion Perham and runner-up New London-Spicer. The Lakers defeated Brandon/Evansville 25-23, 25-16 and Osakis 25-23, 25-22 before splitting the remaining two matches 1-1 with Hancock and Perham.

Now 8-3-1 overall, the Lakers travel to Montevideo on Tuesday for a West Central Conference match. The Thunderhawks are 3-3 overall and 3-1 in the WCC.

Minnewaska Area Lakers girls' tennis starts 1-0 in the West Central Conference

The Minnewaska Area Lakers are 1-0 in the West Central Conference girls' tennis standings after earning a 4-3 win over Benson/Kerkhoven-Murdock-Sunburg on Thursday night. They face Sauk Centre on the road next Tuesday in another WCC match. The Mainstreeters are 2-0 in the conference.

In their home opener on Friday night, the Lakers football team was shut out by BOLD 35-0 in a WCC game.

Photo gallery link to scenes from the Pope County Fair

Click here to follow to the link at the Sauk Centre Herald website:
http://saukherald.mycapture.com/mycapture/folder.asp?event=1514901&CategoryID=69413&ListSubAlbums=1

Yo Yo Master performs at the Pope County Fair

"Dazzling Dave" performed twice on Friday before large crowds...

126th annual Pope County Fair is underway

The Little Red Barn at the Pope County Fair.

126th annual Pope County fair is set up for the five days of crowds

A view of part of the fairway and also the 4-H food stand building on Wednesday morning.

The carnival opens up at 6 p.m. tonight with "armband" night.

A five-minute clip from the Bald Eagle Ski Show on Saturday night during Waterama

Their show was excellent! They played out unique story lines from the Wizard of Oz.

Fair time!

The annual Pope County Fair starts tomorrow (Wednesday) and runs through Sunday.

Open class exhibit registration and non-livestock 4-H judging takes place today.

Bald Eagle Ski Show entertains Waterama crowds on Saturday and Sunday

A scene from Saturday night's performance on Lake Minnewaska...


...and a clip from the Waterama kiddie parade on Saturday afternoon by the city park...

Glenwood Waterama Junior Royalty coronation held

From Saturday afternoon at the city park following the kiddie parade:

Glenwood Waterama is underway

The 2012 Waterama royalty candidates...

The 2012 Waterama Candidates after taking the stage on Friday night for the Queen Candidate Revue.

Junior Waterama candidates with their fathers on the stage on Friday night.

Today is an action-packed day for the 57th annual Glenwood Waterama. You can read more about the events by clicking here: http://waterama.org

Video from Minnewaska vs. B-B-E 5th-6th grade fastpitch

Minnewaska Area and Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa both play in the Osakis summer fastpitch softball league. Below is a clip from the second game of a double-header in Brooten, about a stone's throw on the east side of the Pope-Stearns County line.

Bonanza Valley Days held this past weekend in Brooten

The Pope County Men's Chorus added their musical entertainment to the Bonanza Valley Days parade on Sunday.

Don't miss out on the Terrace Mill Theater plays this week

Performances of Aesop's Fables will be this week on Wednesday and Thursday nights at 6:30 p.m. at the Terrace Mill Theater. Julie Lloyd of Sedan is the director.

Another video from Lowry Days

Coming up this week is the 30th annual Heritage Days in Starbuck with action beginning today and running through Sunday. The Miss Minnewaska and queen candidates "Style Show" will be at the Community Center tonight starting at 5:30pm. Live entertainment begins at 9:00pm for aduls with Kentucky Thunder at Franny's Bar.

At 9:30pm a movie will be played at the city park. The movie is called Big Miracle, which is a true story about the plight of three gray whales that were stranded under the ice near Barrow, Alaska, in 1988.

Visit the Starbuck Chamber of Commerce website to see the full schedule of events for Heritage Days.

Come to Terrace and enjoy the Fourth of July!

A "family fun night" is in store at Terrace on the Fourth of July, with a picnic beginning at 5:00pm at the Terrace Mill followed by family-friendly games at 6:30pm. Coffee and lemonade will be provided at the picnic.

Games at 6:30 include wheelbarrow races, three-legged races, shoe toss, sack races, turtle races, water balloon toss and an egg toss.

Also, be sure to mark your calendars for later in July when the Terrace Mill Theater Company presents the Children's Workshop I performance of Aesop's Musical Foibles directed by Julie Lloyd of Sedan.

Chicken Pooping contest at Lowry Days

The weather was beautiful today for Lowry Days

Food was served outside the Community Center while children enjoyed the inflatable rides.

Many area children enjoyed the T & T Pedal Pull contest.

Don't miss out on Lowry Days this weekend

Action kicks off on Friday night (June 22) with a Pork Chop Feed at the Lowry Legion from 5:00 to 8:00 pm. An old-fashioned Sing-a-Long is at Ben Wade Church at 7:00.

Saturday's action begins with the Lions Pancake Breakfast from 8:00 to 11:00 am and then a Kids Bike Rodio from 10:00 am to 12 noon. A T & T Tractor Pedal Pull for kids ages 4 to 11 is at 12 noon, and a Kids Carnival runs from 12 noon to 3:00 pm.

Read all the details about the Lowry Days celebration at http://www.lowrymn.com

Relay for Life held at Minnewaska Area high school

A clip from the Relay for Life ceremony before the walking began around the high school track...


The dunk tank, which was a fundraiser to support the Relay for Life program...

Lakers are second at Class 2A state golf meet

In their bid for a sixth state championship, the Minnewaska Area Lakers girls' golf team finished second at the 2012 Class 2A state golf tournament. They shot a 654 to earn runner-up honors, while Detroit Lakes won the title with a score of 619.

Cyrus Days is underway

Water Wars on Saturday afternoon in Cyrus...

Walking Taco fundraiser held for Relay For Life at Glacial Ridge Health System

Below, musical entertainment during the walking taco fundraiser...

17th annual Kids Day in Glenwood is a big success

Families enjoyed fishing along the shoreline of Lake Minnewaska on Saturday morning...

A video clip from the boat safety demonstration by the Department of Natural Resources and Pope County Sheriff's office...
 

Wood carving demonstration at Wagner Hardware Grand Opening

17th annual Kids Day in Glenwood is on June 2

A long list of activities begins at 7:30am at the Glenwood City Park across from the Lakeside Ballroom.

Consolidation issue in play with Cyrus and area school districts

The school boards at Hancock, Morris Area and Minnewaska Area are all currently studying the impact of partial or full consolidation with the Cyrus school district, which will most likely be dissolved by the beginning of the beginning of the 2012-13 school year. The enrollment at the K-6 math and science magnet school dropped to around 30 students in 2011-12.

A special school board meeting was held at Minnewaska on Tuesday night this week. Further details will be released as they become available.

Minnewaska Area fastpitch squad falls out of playoffs

Ottertail Central, the number three seed in Sub-Section 6AA-West, knocked Minnewaska Area out of the fastpitch playoffs by a 4-2 score on Tuesday night at the Alexandria softball complex. The Lakers finished with a sparkling record of 18-3 overall and 9-1 in the West Central North Conference.

The Minnewaska Area baseball team opens the playoffs next Tuesday, May 29 at Long Prairie. The Lakers were seeded number eight, while LP-GE is the top seed in Sub-Section 6AA-West.

At the Sub-Section 3AA-North golf meet yesterday in Benson, the Lakers girls' golf team won the title and the boys' team finished in second place. Four individuals on the Minnewaska boys' golf team qualified for the Section 3AA meet, which is on May 31 at the Eagle Creek Golf Club in Willmar.

Difficult news at Minnewaska Area schools

The Minnewaska Area school district ended both the soccer and cross country programs at a special school board meeting on Wednesday night. Beginning next year, the fall sports at Minnewaska will consist of girls' tennis, girls' swimming and diving that is paired with Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta, volleyball and football.

A couple items. In 1991 when the Villard, Glenwood-Lowry and Starbuck school districts merged, the Minnewaska Area school district had over 1,800 students. Today, the enrollment in K-12 hovers a little over 1,000 students.

Last fall, no team was seeded higher than 6th for sub-sections across all girls' and boys' sports at Minnewaska. Fielding competitive teams is becoming an issue for the Lakers athletic programs.

Conference champions! Softball playoffs open on Thursday

The Minnewaska Area Lakers softball team earned a share of the West Central North Conference title on Tuesday with a convincing 9-0 win over Sauk Centre.

The Lakers (17-2) host the same Mainstreeters team on Thursday this week with a home game at 4 p.m. Minnewaska is the number two seed, while Sauk Centre was seeded number seven in the Sub-Section 6AA-West playoff rankings.

Pequot Lakes (20-0) is the number one seed.  

Below, action from the baseball game at Sauk Centre on Tuesday...the Mainstreeters won a close game by a 6-5 score. 

Glacial Ridge Health System hosted a craft and bake sale at Wild Ridge Bar and Grill in Glenwood on Saturday afternoon.Below are some of the offerings and a view of the other vendors who were on hand.

Minnewaska Area fastpitch softball knocks off state-ranked Albany

In a game with conference title implications, the Minnewaska Area fastpitch team defeated the previously undefeated Albany Huskies on Wednesday on the road by a 6-5 score in eight innings. Winning pitcher Mady Phillips went the distance on the rubber, giving up three earned runs, no walks and firing two strikeouts.

Both teams combined for a whopping 25 hits in the game, which was tied 4-4 after seven innings were complete.

Hitting for the Lakers were Kaylyn Oberg with one single, Phillips with a single, Kaylee Jacobs with a single, Julie Helander batting a thousand (4-for-4) with a double, Courtney Schmidt hitting two singles with one RBI and Allyssa Engfer hitting one single and two doubles with four RBI.

Lakers baseball, fastpitch sweeps Sauk Centre

Blake Johnsrud, senior shortstop for the Lakers baseball team, makes a 6-3 putout throw against Sauk Centre during Minnewaska's 8-6 come-from-behind win on April 19.

Coach Hoffmann rallies his team during their 7-6 win at Sauk Centre on April 19.

Minnewaska fastpitch softball begins 2012 season with a win

In an extra-inning game, the Minnewaska Area Lakers fastpitch team won their 2012 season opener over Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa.

In the sixth inning, B-B-E tied the game at 6-6 to erase a 6-4 deficit. The Lakers scored twice in the 8th inning to earn the win.

Coach Johnsrud resigns

Long time head coach Phil Johnsrud of the Minnewaska Area boys' basketball team announced this week that he is resigning his post. Johnsrud is a Starbuck High School graduate and has been with the Minnewaska Area Lakers program since 1992. He is only the second head boys' basketball coach in Minnewaska school history dating back to 1991, the year the school was formed.

Johnsrud took the reigns of the program from Greg Starns in 1997. His teams have multiple West Central South Conference championships to their credit since 1997, as well as one trip to the Class 2A state tournament in 2001.

His resignation leaves huge shoes to fill for the Minnewaska administration.

Terribly sad news...Pope County Tribune editor dies in car crash

Click on the link to read about the accident:
http://pctribune.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=9862&SectionID=1&SubSectionID=16

Minnewaska 5th-6th grade basketball championship game held

...on Feb. 4, 2012 at the Minnewaska Area high school...

Minnewaska Area high school Pep Band

From halftime of the Jan. 31 game between Minnewaska Area and the Albany Huskies in girls' basketball action...

Minnewaska boys' basketball team wins conference opener tonight

Against visiting Albany in the West Central North Conference opener, the Minnewaska Area Lakers boys' basketball team nearly let a 14-point halftime lead slip away before turning it on down the stretch in a 79-67 win.

The Lakers entered the contest with a 2-7 record in a pure non-conference schedule to start the season. They started tonight's game with a 10-0 run.

Minnewaska led 44-27 at the break, but Albany made a run to close the gap to 64-63 with 3:30 left.

Albany had 3 guys foul out and went 7-of-14 at the line; the Lakers shot an unheard of 47 free throws and connected on 31 of them. Andrew Ostrander went 9-of-13 at the line.