SPORTS FEEVER by Chris Fee of KROX Radio – chrisjfee@yahoo.com
We are less than a week away from the first MSHSL Fall sports practice and competition!!!!! The FIRST day of fall sports practice is Monday, August 11.
The Crookston High School fall sports first day of practice schedule is below-
Football – Will meet at the high school at 12:01 a.m. Monday and camp out at the school. Practice will be at 6:00 a.m.
Boys Soccer – 7:00 to 9:30 a.m.
Girls Soccer – Goalkeepers – 3:45 to 4:45 p.m. Full team on the turf – 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Girls Tennis – Practice – 7:00 to 9:00 a.m. Challenge matches at 9:00 a.m.
Volleyball – 7-12th grade at the high school gym from 3:00 to 6:00 p.m.
Clay Target – Wednesdays at 5:00 p.m.
Click the link for the Fall Sports Schedules- Pirate Fall Sports Schedules – KROX
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The East Grand Forks American Legion Baseball team had a solid showing at the State Division 1 State Tournament last weekend in St. Michael.
In the first round, they beat St. Michael 8-6. In the second round, they beat Hopkins behind a Parker Erickson pitching gem, 1-0 in nine innings. In the third round, EGF beat Osseo 6-0 to advance to the semi-finals.
The semi-final game was a dandy, but Grand Rapids beat EGF 8-6.
In the championship game, Shakopee beat Grand Rapids 13-9. Shakopee and Grand Rapids advance to the Central Region Finals in Fargo.
Just to prove rankings mean nothing – EGF and Grand Rapids were NOT ranked in the top 20 in the final poll of the season.
Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton American Legion Baseball competed in the Division II state tournament.
DGF lost to Luverne 9-6 in the first round. In the consolation semi-finals, DGF lost to Esko 15-4 in five innings, and they ended the tournament with a 6-4 victory over La Crescent to finish 7th place. New London-Spicer beat Montevideo 1-0 in the state championship.
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University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagle Men’s Basketball‘s all-time leading men’s basketball scorer Harrison Cleary signed a contract with Neptūnas Klaipėda of the Lithuanian Basketball League to continue his professional basketball journey. Cleary is entering his sixth season of professional basketball in Europe after ending his career at Minnesota Crookston in 2019-20.
Cleary is coming off a season with VEF Riga of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League. VEF Riga also competed in the Basketball Champions League of Europe during the 2024-25 season. Cleary averaged 15.3 points, and 3.1 assists per game and shot 45.6 percent from beyond the arc. During the 2023-24 season, he played for Lahti Basketball of the Korisliiga in Finland. He had his best statistical season of his career with Lahti, notching 22.9 points, and 6.5 assists per game.
During the 2022-23 season, Cleary competed with SC Rist Wedel of German Pro B, and also played for Veolia Hamburg Towers of the German BBL and Eurocup. For the season, Cleary notched 17.9 points, and tallied 3.7 assists per tilt.
Cleary’s 2021-22 season was spent with CB Carbajosa of the Spanish Segunda FEB. He notched 15.1 points, 2.1 assists, and shot 45.7 percent from beyond the arc.
Cleary made his debut in professional basketball during the 2020-21 season, competing for Amics Castello, and CB Almansa of the Spanish Primera FEB. Cleary averaged 1.7 points per game in his first season of professional basketball.
The Golden Eagles had five former men’s basketball players compete in professional basketball during the 2024-25 season. Javier Nicolau finished his fifth season professionally. He played for Gipuzkoa Basket of the Spanish Primera FEB, notching 7.9 points, and 3.8 boards per game. He spent two seasons in Rioverde Clavijo in Spain, and one apiece playing for Safir Fruits Alginet, and Manderas Soril Benicarolo in the Spanish Segunda FEB. His best statistical season was in 2021-22, where he notched 11.2 points, and 6.5 boards per game for Safir Fruits Alginet.
Ibu-Jassey Demba played last season for Fyllingen BBK in Norway, notching 3.3 points, and 4.8 rebounds per game. He played for Hamar in Iceland in 2023-24. He has also played for Selfoss in Iceland, and was a teammate in 2021-22 with Cleary with CB Carbajosa in Spain.
Matthew Allman spent last season with the Reading Rockets of the British NBL D1. He tallied 2.2 points, and 1.8 rebounds per game. Allman played for Team Newcastle University the previous season.
George Blaj-Voinescu competed for CSM Steaua Bucuresti in Romanian Division I last season, notching 3.4 points per game. For the three previous seasons he played for SCM CSU Craiova in Romania.
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Former University of Minnesota Crookston women’s basketball player Nicole Hernandez has signed a contract to play professionally with Al Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates. Al Sharjah competes in UAE – D1. Hernandez is the first Golden Eagle in recent history to sign to play with a professional basketball team, after competing for Minnesota Crookston for the last three seasons.
Hernandez holds the school’s career shot blocks record with 167 from 2022-25. Hernandez set the single-season mark with 80 blocked shots during the 2024-25 season. She averaged 8.1 rebounds per game in her career, which is in the Top 10 all-time. She is top five in defensive rebounds in a season, and is sixth in defensive rebounds in a career. Hernandez ranks ninth in career rebounds with 546. She averaged 6.2 points per game in her career, with her best scoring mark coming as a senior with 8.0 points per game. Hernandez is a native of Oak Creek, Wis., and is one of 11 former Golden Eagles competing in either baseball, hockey, or basketball professionally.
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The Big Ten Hockey Tournament, which determines the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Tournament, will shift to a two-week, single-elimination format with all games played on campus.
The 2025-26 regular season concludes with games on Thursday and Friday, March 5-6. All seven teams will qualify for the Big Ten Tournament with quarterfinals being held on Wednesday, March 11. Teams seeded No. 2, No. 3 and No. 4 will host the No. 5, No. 6 and No. 7 seeds respectively. The No. 1 seed gains a bye into the semifinals.
Semifinals will take place on Saturday, March 14, hosted by the No. 1 seed and the highest advancing seed from the quarterfinals. The championship game will be held the weekend of March 20-21 and hosted by the highest remaining seed.
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Bob Motzko is cookin (as the kids say). What a week it has been.
oorhead is a D-1 Hockey producing machine. The latest was Spud Boys Hockey player Wyatt Cullen announcing he will play for THE University of Minnesota Golden Gopher Men’s Hockey team. He will join Lakeville North center Gunnar Conboy and former Grand Rapids goalie Carter Casey.
Cullen (only 16 years old) has some pretty good genes. His dad, Matt Cullen was a former Spud and St. Cloud State hockey player and played 21 years in the NHL. His grandpa is a former Spud Boys Hockey coach. Cullen is a shrimp only 5’8 and 146 pounds, but can play as he was on the U.S. National Team Development Program’s Under 17 squad and had 9 goals and 39 assists in 88 games. He couldn’t play in Moorhead anymore because in 2023-24, he scored 68 goals and 98 assists in 60 games for the Moorhead Bantam AA team!!!!!!!
A few days later, Brooks Cullen followed and decommitted from Michigan State and chose the Gophers. Brooks had 48 points last year while leading the Spuds to a State Class AA Championship. The good news for Gopher fans is that there is another Cullen in the pipeline, too. Joey Cullen is a consensus Top 10 American-born forward!
The latest signing comes from Luca Jarvis of Stillwater. He had 24 goals and 24 assists for 48 points in 30 games while leading Stillwater to the Class AA championship game last season. He will play in the USHL for Youngstown this upcoming season.
The question is…..Why put W. Cullen if only one Cullen will play for the Gophers? We will see if the Gophers can steal one from Sparty.
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Moorhead Spud Girls Hockey player Olivia Kortan has committed to play hockey for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. Kortan was named the 2024-25 Class AA Herb Brooks Award winner and led the Spuds with 47 (22 goals and 25 assists) points this past season.
The Spuds defenseman Anika Stromme committed to Minnesota State Mankato and goalie Taylor Kressin signed with Ohio State. A pretty impressive crew for the Spuds.
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The Northern Sun Conference (NSIC) has released its preseason Football Coaches Poll. Nothing has really changed. The top five teams are still the top five and the rest are the rest. Newcomver Jamestown is getting zero respect in the poll and probably for good reason. The jump from NAIA to NSIC D2 is overwhelming, just look Minot State and Mary. The poll is below.
Full NSIC Coaches’ Poll
1. Minnesota State (11), 167
2. Augustana (3), 153
3. Minnesota Duluth, 139
4. Bemidji State, 130
5. Sioux Falls, 129
6. Wayne State, 106
7. MSU Moorhead, 96
8. Northern State, 84
9. Winona State, 77
10. Minot State, 67
11. Concordia-St. Paul, 50
12. UMary, 35
13. Southwest Minnesota State, 27
14. Jamestown, 14
NSIC South Division Coaches’ Poll
1. Minnesota State (6) 36
2. Augustana (1) 30
3. Sioux Falls 26
4. Wayne State 22
5. Winona State 15
6. Concordia-St. Paul 12
7. Southwest Minnesota State 6
NSIC North Division Coaches Poll
1. Bemidji State (4) 33
1. UM-Duluth (3) 33
3. MSU-Moorhead 26
4. Northern State 20
5. Minot State 18
6. U of Mary 10
7. Jamestown 7
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The University of Minnesota Crookston soccer team will host an ID Camp August 9 from 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m., at the Minnesota Crookston Soccer Field. The camp is for grades 9-college. The campers will be able to experience life as a student-athlete at the University of Minnesota Crookston. Participants in the ID Camp will be instructed by the Golden Eagle soccer staff and get a glimpse of campus. The campers will be led through drills and observed by soccer coaches at the U of M Crookston and nearby universities. The camp will include technical training, possession drills, small-sided and 11v11 games. Campers and families will get a tour of campus and have a Q&A session with Minnesota Crookston coaching staff.
Registration for the camp will commence at 9 a.m. A t-shirt is included in registration with an overall cost of $100. Campers should bring appropriate soccer attire, shin guards, socks, cleats, tennis shoes, a water bottle, and sunscreen.
For more information on the camp and to register visit https://register.ryzer.com/camp.cfm?sport=7&id=307710
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JOKES
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How are former Crookston Pirates athletes doing in college or elsewhere?
****LET ME KNOW OF OTHERS TO ADD TO THE LIST. Email me at chrisjfee@yahoo.com
Paul Bittner is an assistant coach on the University of Wisconsin-Superior Men’s Hockey team.
Reese Swanson is a freshman playing hockey at St. Olaf.
Carter Coauette is a freshman playing football at Minot State.
Isabelle Smith is a freshman playing Tennis at Concordia College.
Isaac Thomforde is a freshman playing Tennis at Northwestern College in St. Paul.
Emilee Tate is a Sophomore playing Softball at Northland Community and Technical College.
Halle Bruggeman is a Sophomore on the University of Wisconsin-Stout Women’s Rugby team.
Ethan Boll is a Red-shirt Freshman on the University of North Dakota Football team.
Breanna Kressin is a Junior on the Hockey Cheer Team for THE University of Minnesota Golden Gopher Hockey team.
Jacey Larson is a Sophomore playing hockey at Dakota College at Bottineau.
Aleah Bienek is a Junior playing hockey at Trine University in Indiana.
Joslynn Leach is a Senior playing golf at Concordia College in Moorhead. The Cobbers wrapped up the Fall season.
Brooks Butt is a Junior playing football at the University of Jamestown.
Ty Hamre is redshirt Junior playing football at Bemidji State University.
Elizabeth Erdman is a coach for the Moorhead Red Dragon swim team.
Crookston School District Coaches
Blake Bergeron is the head Pirate Wrestling Coach.
Ben Parkin is the head Pirate Baseball Coach.
Jason Cassavant is a Jr. High Baseball Coach
Amy Boll is the head Pirate Girls Track head coach
Sarah Reese is the Pirate Head Girls Soccer coach
Marley Melbye is an assistant girls golf coach
Connor Morgan is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach
Ben Trostad is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach
Ethan Magsam is the Pirate Boys Hockey assistant coach
Chris Dufault is a youth wrestling Coach
Non-Crookston High School coaching/Admin/etc
Elise Tangquist is the Head Girls Golf Coach at Horace High School in Fargo, ND.
Carmen (Kreibich) Johnson is the head Little Falls Volleyball coach.
Tim Desrosier is an Assistant Coach for Warren-Alvarado-Oslo Pony Boys Basketball
Pat Wolfe is the head wrestling coach for Fosston/Bagley.
Austin Sommerfeld is an Assistant Athletic Director for Strategic Communication at the College of St. Scholastica in Duluth.
Collin Reynolds is the head baseball coach for the University of Colorado Buffalo Club Baseball team.
Trent Stahlecker is a School Security Specialist & he works for the Brevard Public Schools, Florida.
Cody Weiland is an assistant wrestling coach at Proctor/Hermantown.
Josh Edlund is the head football coach and phy ed teacher at Flandreau, South Dakota.
Allison Lindsey Axness is Assistant Varsity Volleyball Coach at Champlin Park
Jeff Olson is the Head Wrestling Coach and Head Baseball coach at Delano.
Jake Olson is an Assistant Football Coach and Head Boys Tennis coach at Delano.
Matt Harris is an Assistant Principal/Athletic Director at Saguaro High School in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Marty Bratrud is the Superintendent and High School Principal at Westhope High School.
Gordie Haug is an assistant football coach at the University of North Dakota.
Mike Hastings is the Wisconsin Badgers Men’s head Hockey coach.
Mike Biermaier is the Athletic Director at Grand Forks Schools.
Stephanie (Lindsay) Perreault works with the North Dakota State stats crew for Bison football, volleyball, and basketball in the winter. Stephanie’s husband, Ryan, is the assistant director for Bison media relations.
Jason Bushie is the hockey athletic trainer at Colorado College.
Chris Myrold is the Director and Fitness at Mission Ranch and Fitness in Camel, California.
Kyle Buchmeier is a Tennis Pro at the Reed-Sweatt Family Tennis Center in Minneapolis
Jaren Bailey is serving our country and is currently in the Marines’ Boot Camp.
Ben Andringa is serving our country in the Army and is now a Ranger.
Jarrett Butenhoff is serving our country with the U.S. Navy.
Joshua Butenhoff is serving our country on a Submarine with the Pacific Fleet with the US Navy.
Peter Cournia is a 2002 Crookston High School Graduate and a grad of West Point and currently serving in the U.S. Army.
Philip Kujawa class of 2004, from Crookston High School. He is an Army recruiter in Rochester.
Rob Sobolik is the General Manager of the Fargodome
That’s it for this week. Thanks for the comments, and if you have anything to add or share, please e-mail chrisjfee@yahoo.com or call. Thanks for reading and listening to KROX RADIO and kroxam.com.
