The next movie in the “Transformers” franchise has its official title. At a virtual event, director Steven Caple Jr. revealed that the next film in the blockbuster franchise will be called “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts”. The director revealed that “Rise of the Beast” will centre on Optimus Prime, and will follow up the ’80s-set “Bumblebee” by being set in the year 1994. In the film, audiences will see Optimus Prime forming his lasting bond with the people of Earth. Bumblebee will also be returning for the new film, taking the form of a classic yellow Camaro, but decked out with off-road features.
The film will will be shot around the world, including Montreal, and will be set primarily in Brooklyn, New York, as well as Machu Picchu, Peru. Joining the robot aliens are human characters — Noah, played by Anthony Ramos, and Elina, played by Dominique Fishback.
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is set to debut in theatres June 24, 2022.
Editorial credit: DFree / Shutterstock.com
CROOKSTON LEGION BASEBALL DROPS BOTH GAMES OF DOUBLEHEADER WITH GRAND FORKS
The Crookston Legion Baseball Nels T. Wold Post 20 team faced off with the Grand Forks Blues in a doubleheader on Thursday. In game one, a huge fifth inning propelled the Blues to a 17-15 victory. In game two, the Blues scored in all five innings on their way to a 10-6 win and a sweep of the doubleheader played at Jim Karn Field in Crookston.
GAME ONE –
Grand Forks got off to a good start in the first inning scoring two runs. An error started the game, and was followed by an RBI single to give the Blues a quick 1-0 lead. A double put two runners in scoring position and a sacrifice fly brought in the second run.
Crookston was able to answer back with a run in the bottom of the inning. With one out, Jacob Miller singled and stole second. Then with two outs, Brooks Butt singled him home to make it a 2-1 game.
Crookston put up a crooked number with four runs in the second inning. The first four batters reached on three hit batters and a walk to score one run. With the benefit of just one hit in the inning from Cade Coauette, Crookston brought in three of those free runners in to score to make it 4-2.
Grand Forks got one back in the top of the third inning. A lead off single got the inning started. Crookston got the next two batters out, but the Blues came through with a two-out single to cut the lead to 4-3.
Crookston kept on scoring in the bottom of the inning with three more runs. Butt led off with a walk, Carter Bruggeman followed by getting hit by a pitch, and after a strikeout George Widman was hit by a pitch to load the bases. After the second out, Gunnar Gunderson walked to bring in a run, and Alex Longoria singled to bring in two more runs to make it 7-3.
Crookston’s offense continued to produce runs with three more runs in the fourth inning. Coauette and Butt started the inning with back-to-back singles. With one out, Cade DeLeon doubled in a run. Another walk with the bases loaded and a flyout brought in two more runs to give Crookston a 10-3 lead.
Grand Forks started a comeback in the fifth and took the lead with an eleven-run inning. The first two batters walked and after a strikeout the next three batters also walked. After another strikeout gave Crookston to limit the damage, they could not collect that third out. The next seven batters reach on three walks, two errors, a double and a single. All-in-all, the Blues scored eleven runs on a two hits, eight walks, and two errors to take a 14-10 lead.
Crookston was able to get two runs back in the bottom of the inning. Alex Longoria singled to lead off and Miller drove him in with an RBI hit. After a groundout, Brooks Butt was able to bring in Miller with a single to cut the deficit to 14-12.
Grand Forks added three more insurance runs in the sixth inning. A walk and hit batter led off the inning and they came in to score on a single and a sacrifice fly. The third run came in on another single to make it 17-12.
Heading into the final inning, Crookston needed at least five runs in the bottom of the seventh inning. A walk and hit batter put two runners on to start the inning. Cade DeLeon singled in the first run. After a couple of walks loaded the bases, Gunderson hit a sacrifice fly and another run came in on a wild pitch to make it 17-15. Crookston got the tying run to second base, but no farther as they fell in game one by that score.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
| Grand Forks | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 17 | 9 | 0 |
| Crookston | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 15 | 10 | 4 |
GAME TWO –
Grand Forks got started where they left off in game one but getting a run in the first inning of game two. They started the game with a single and a stolen base to get a runner in scoring position. With two outs, they got a run on an RBI base hit to take the early 1-0 lead.
After Crookston went scoreless in the first inning, Grand Forks added on to their lead with another run in the second. A leadoff walk came in to score one batter later on a single and an error to make it 2-0.
Grand Forks continued to add to their lead in the third with a three-run third inning. The first two batters reached base on a single and a walk and they came in to score on a triple. A groundout scored the runner from third for a 5-0 lead.
Crookston got on the board in the bottom half of the inning with a run. Longoria doubled with one out and after a walk, an error brought him home to make it 5-1.
Grand Forks offense continued to click with another three-run inning in the fourth. It looked to be a quick inning with the first two batters recording outs. However, they put together a two-out rally. A double and consecutive triples brought in the first two runs. Two hit batters loaded the bases and a single scored another run to give the Blues an 8-1 lead.
Crookston got another run back in the fourth. Bruggeman and Blake Melsa walked and Widman was hit by a pitch to load the bases with an out. Longoria scored Bruggeman on a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 8-2.
Grand Forks scored in the fifth inning adding two more insurance runs. A walk and a double got the inning started. After two pop outs, a walk loaded the bases, and a single brought two runs in make the score 10-2.
Crookston added four runs in the fifth inning, but it was too little too late. Two walks began the inning, DeLeon and Bruggeman followed that up with a couple of singles to score a run. Melsa grounded out to bring in a second run. Both DeLeon and Bruggeman both scored on passed balls. They got a runner to third, but a flyout ended the game with Grand Forks winning 10-6.
Crookston falls to 4-4 this summer and will have a total of four games on Saturday and Sunday as part of the Wood Bat Tournament that they will host at Jim Karn Field.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | R | H | E | |
| Grand Forks | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 11 | 1 |
| Crookston | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
The post CROOKSTON LEGION BASEBALL DROPS BOTH GAMES OF DOUBLEHEADER WITH GRAND FORKS appeared first on KROX.
ARREST/FIRE REPORT- JUNE 25, 2021
The Northwest Regional Corrections Center reported the arrest of the following –
Aaron Charles Stevens, 61 (no address given) for Disorderly Conduct-MS
Matthew Paul Anthony Zavoral, 32 of East Grand Forks for Drugs-4th Degree Possession
The post ARREST/FIRE REPORT- JUNE 25, 2021 appeared first on KROX.
CROOKSTON CHAMBER AMBASSADORS VISIT UNITED WAY AND CARE AND SHARE
The Crookston Chamber of Commerce Ambassadors were out in the community recently to congratulate and recognize two very integral people/organizations in Crookston.
The first stop was to visit Elizabeth (Libby) Boucher, United Way Executive Director. In Libby’s own words, “Born in St. Paul, moved to Crookston in 1989 to work as an announcer at KROX. I was a manager at Arby’s, ran the offsale at IC Mugg’s, ran Casey’s for over three years and now at the United Way. My family has all worked for non-profits, my mom and all three of my sisters so it’s kind of in the blood!” Congratulations Libby, we know you’ll do great things for the United Way and your impact will be extraordinary.
The second stop was to visit Care & Share Executive Director, Brian Halos. Brian has been in this position since January of 2020, and has had an incredible influence on both residents and staff. One of Brian’s biggest highlights is that he went through extreme measures and precautions to prevent COVID from spreading at the Care & Share, and reported a number of only two cases during the pandemic. Congratulations Brian, you are truly a champion and are excelling in the Executive Director Position.
Front: Alicia Berhow (Tri-Valley Opportunity Council), Carrie Bergquist (RiverView/Chamber Board of Directors), Brian Halos (Care & Share), Amy Hovey (Altru), Lindsey Erdman (Benedictine Living Community-Crookston).
The post CROOKSTON CHAMBER AMBASSADORS VISIT UNITED WAY AND CARE AND SHARE appeared first on KROX.
CROOKSTON LEGION BASEBALL FALLS TO STEPHEN-ARGYLE
A back-and-forth battle between Crookston Nels T. Wold Post 20 and Stephen-Argyle Post 353 went to Stephen-Argyle as they pushed a couple runs across in the bottom of the sixth inning to win 8-6 in a game played in Argyle. “Unfortunately, I don’t think we played too sound in the first couple innings and they bit us a little bit,” said Crookston Head Coach Rob Silvers. “We kept battling at the plate and got guys on and that’s all you can ask for.”
In the first inning, Crookston did not take long to take the lead when Alex Longoria sent the first pitch of the game over the left field fence to give Crookston a 1-0 lead. “He is seeing the ball really well and that is why we moved him to the top of the order,” explained Coach Silvers.
Stephen-Argyle answered back with a three-run inning in the bottom half. A single with one out from Jackson Kekke and a single from Dawson Feuillerat and a hit-by-pitch with two outs to load the bases. A wild pitch scored one run and a throwing error allowed two more runs to score to give the Storm a 3-1 lead.
The scoring got going again in the third inning when Crookston tied the game with a couple of runs. Jacob Miller singled with one out and Alex Longoria deposited another ball over the left field fence for a two-run homer to tie the game at 3-3. “A lot of that second homer goes on me, and not on that young man’s [Woinarowicz] fault,” explained Stephen-Argyle Head Coach Jon Labine. You don’t put the same pitch down the same spot of the plate, and unfortunately for Jackson I called the wrong pitch at the wrong time. Longoria has great hands at the plate.”
Stephen-Argyle took back the lead in the bottom of the fourth inning with three more runs. Brody Pietruszewski reached on an error and Will McGlynn followed with a single to start the inning. Jason Lindgren doubled to score one run, and Kekke followed that up with another RBI hit to make it 5-3. Lindgren came in to score on a throw into center field on a first-and-third steal play to make it a 6-3 game. “We were pretty good at the plate today and we are starting to hit the ball much better,” added Coach Labine. “My hope is that by July 20th we are that team that nobody really wants to play. That’s what we are striving for and that’s the goal.”
Crookston slowly whittled away at the lead by adding a run in the top of the fifth. Longoria doubled with one out to get a runner on for Post 20. He advanced to third on a groundout, and came in to score on a single off the bat of Cade Coauette.
Crookston continued the scoring in the top of the sixth with two more runs to tie the game. The first two batters were quickly retired, but Crookston had a two-out rally in them. Austin Trinkle reached on an infield single and got to second on a throwing error. He scored a couple pitches later on a single by Ashton Larson. Jacob Miller kept it going with a single of his own, and Larson scored on when Longoria reached on another Storm error to tie the game at 6-6. “Top to bottom I think everybody is pretty good at getting on base. Everybody on this team can hit,” added Coach Silvers.
Stephen-Argyle was able to bounce back quickly take back the lead in the bottom of the sixth with their own two-out rally. Kekke singled, and Mike Jacobsen hit a double to the wall to put a couple of runners in scoring position. Feuillerat followed with a clutch single to center field that took a tough hop and skipped all the way to the fence. Two runs came in to score and Feuillerat ended up at third. Still, the Storm took a 8-6 lead into the final inning.
Crookston needed at least two runs in the final inning to keep the game going. They put a threat together when Coauette walked to lead off. After two strikeouts and Crookston down to their final strike, Carter Bruggeman was hit by a pitch and Trinkle reached on an infield single. With the bases loaded, Stephen-Argyle brought in Dimitri Oberg to collect the final out and he did just that by inducing a game-ending groundout to secure the 8-6 victory for Post 353. “Jason was on a pitch count for us because he’s playing for an All-Star team for the high school this weekend so I wanted to keep him fresh,” explained Coach Labine. “So we brought Dimitri in and I told him to put the ball over the plate and that’s what he did. He is a frazzy young man that isn’t afraid of any pressure or drama.”
Crookston’s record falls to 4-2 this summer. They have two games on Thursday against Grand Forks and four more games this weekend when they host their Wood Bat Tournament. “We had a great chance to tie this ballgame up again or take the lead and we just weren’t able to finish that off,” said Coach Silvers. “It wasn’t our best defensive day. We just have to be more confident on that side of the ball.”
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | |
| Crookston | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 11 | 4 |
| Stephen-Argyle | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | x | 8 | 9 | 3 |
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | K | |
| Ashton Larson- Crookston | 2.0+ | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| Brooks Butt- Crookston (LP) | 3.2 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Cade Coauette- Crookston | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jackson Woinarowicz- Storm | 5.0 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| Jason Lindgren- Storm (WP) | 1.2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Dimitri Oberg- Storm (S) | 0.1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
FOR CROOKSTON
Alex Longoria- 3 for 4, 2 home runs, double, 3 RBI, 3 runs
Austin Trinkle- 3 for 4, double, run
Jacob Miller- 2 for 3, run
Cade Coauette and Ashton Larson- 1 hit and RBI each
FOR STEPHEN-ARGYLE
Jackson Kekke- 3 for 4, 2 runs, RBI
Mike Jacobson- 2 for 3, double, run
Dawson Feuillerat- 2 for 3, RBI, run
Will McGlynn and Jason Lindgren- 1 hit each
The post CROOKSTON LEGION BASEBALL FALLS TO STEPHEN-ARGYLE appeared first on KROX.
COURT BISHOP SCHENK #2010 OBSERVES 50-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
Due to covid19 in 2020, Court Bishop Schenk #2010 was finally able to observe their court’s 50-year anniversary on Monday, June 21.
Each charter member received their 50-year pin, a corsage, a rosary, a CDA clock, a special 50-year pin from State Regent Mary, and a fresh vase of flowers.
Each of them reminisced of events that happened over the years and how they came about joining our court. Local Regent Elaine Sylvester was the master of ceremonies. Other special guests: State Treasurer Vera Hannig, District Deputy Alana Kuznia, and Past State Regent Margee Keller.
The post COURT BISHOP SCHENK #2010 OBSERVES 50-YEAR ANNIVERSARY appeared first on KROX.
OMNIBUS TRANSPORTATION BILL TO ALLOW HEAVIER LOADS OF CRUSHED SOYBEANS ON THE ROADS
The Omnibus Transportation bill passed Wednesday afternoon on a vote of 112-21 included a provision authored by Rep. Deb Kiel (R-Crookston) to allow the soybean crushing plant to deliver heavier loads of crushed soybeans to market. After the passage of the bill, Rep. Kiel released the following statement on the provision.
“I was proud to vote for this year’s transportation bill, which contained several important projects across the state, including my provision allowing heavier loads to be hauled from the soybean crushing plant,” said Kiel. “I have heard from so many farmers in our community on this issue, and I have been working with local farmers and leaders on this provision for quite a while. With Polk County being the largest soybean producer in the state, I was proud to get this bill included in the final transportation deal.”
In addition, the bill included funding to provide education for more new State Troopers, as well as funding for rural roads in Northwest Minnesota.
The post OMNIBUS TRANSPORTATION BILL TO ALLOW HEAVIER LOADS OF CRUSHED SOYBEANS ON THE ROADS appeared first on KROX.
DRAFTS SPORTS BAR & GRILL EXCITED FOR SUMMER
Drafts Sports Bar and Grill in Crookston is now open six days a week for the summer with Monday being the exception. The restaurant made the decision to close down on Mondays due to the number of staff members, a problem many businesses in Crookston are having.
CEO/Owner Brent Melso says that they would love to be open all seven days of the week, but its’ simply not in the cards right now. “We decided because we’re short-staffed we need to find more workers before we’re able to open up all seven days” said Melso. He added, “I’m not sure if it’s because of the benefits from unemployment or why people aren’t applying but we’ve seen a drastic drop in applications.”
Drafts will also be looking into getting some more live music for this summer along with a few potential remodeling projects in the future. “We’ve done a cornhole league the last three years on Thursday nights and that’s gone over pretty well.” Melso also said they’re looking to add a sand volleyball pit when the time is right. “We’ve talked about putting a sand volleyball pit in, although I’m not sure if it’ll be anytime soon, it’ll be a project that we look to take on when the time is right.” There is one band already on the schedule for September 25th and it’s “No Stone Unturned” with Crookston native Don Beiswenger.
Even though Drafts won’t be open Mondays for the time being, their weekly specials will be staying the same. “We will be doing ribs on Friday, and we’ve moved the build your own Mac & Cheese to Tuesday so that people can still do that if they want,” said Melso.
Melso admits the summer isn’t going to be the same with hours being different and the construction out in front of the restaurant on Fisher Ave, but he says that is no reason for people not to stop by. “It’s going to be a little different summer with the construction out front, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get out to Drafts and have some fun.”
The post DRAFTS SPORTS BAR & GRILL EXCITED FOR SUMMER appeared first on KROX.
Michigan GOP Senate rejects Trump’s claim of election fraud
A months-long probe of the presidential election led by Michigan Republican lawmakers found that claims by former president Donald Trump about widespread voter fraud were false.
According to a report released Wednesday, human error and lack of training were the only factors that contributed to inaccurate and unofficial vote counts, especially in Antrim County, where Trump and his supporters claimed votes were miscalculated in favor of Joe Biden. The report stated: “These errors were quickly discovered and rectified by the protective and redundant systems our state has built to verify and protect election integrity, including re-countable, paper ballots. Even more significantly, the official vote count was never in doubt and was validated several times, including during a complete, hand recount.”
The four-person committee recommended that legislation strengthen the law regarding the conducting of “logic and accuracy” tests prior to the election, including prohibiting Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson from mailing unsolicited absentee ballot applications. It also recommends Attorney General Dana Nessel consider investigating those who pushed false claims “to raise money or publicity for their own ends.”
Biden won Michigan by 154,000 votes. Court decisions, canvassers and reviews by officials reinforced the outcome of the vote.
Editorial credit: Underawesternsky / Shutterstock.com
President Joe Biden announces ‘major crackdown’ on illegal gun sales
President Joe Biden said that his administration will implement a “major crackdown” on illegal gun sales, unveiling a plan to slow the increase of gun violence in the United States. Biden announced on Wednesday that the plan included gun control measures, support for law enforcement and helping formerly jailed individuals re-enter society amid an increase in homicides in the country and an expected rise in violence in the summer months. “We are announcing a major crackdown to stem the flow of guns used to commit violent crimes,” the President said. “It is zero tolerance for those who willfully violate key existing laws and regulations.”
The President’s plan aims to hold “rogue” firearms dealers responsible for violating federal gun laws, give law enforcement resources to address traditional summer increases in crime, invest in community violence interventions, support unemployment and youth programs, and assist initiatives that help formerly incarcerated people successfully re-enter the community. Biden said: “If you willfully sell a gun to someone who is prohibited from possessing it, if you willfully fail to run a background check, if you willfully falsify a record, if you willfully fail to cooperate with the tracing requests or inspections, my message to you is this. ‘We will find you and we’ll seek your license to sell guns.’”
Gun violence has also risen significantly in the United States in 2021, with several mass shootings in Atlanta and Boulder, Colo., in March and San Jose, Calif., last month.
Editorial credit: archna nautiyal / Shutterstock.com