MACA girls end regular season with sweep win

First off, let's acknowledge the MACA football team's success Tuesday night. The Willmar paper has no coverage of this playoff win outside of the score. Several other games are covered at length. The Willmar paper has no official responsibility to do any of this. It's an honor system for coaches to call in, presumably the home team coaches. It would make just as much sense for the Alexandria paper to do the reporting on Morris. 
The problem with Morris' own paper is that it only comes out once a week on Saturday. During this past season, I have checked the Morris paper's website during the week and found maybe 2-3 sentences about the most recent game. So, that coverage doesn't even count. 
Now, maybe the public is concluding what I have sensed for a long time, that it really doesn't matter how much "press coverage" a team receives. What I'm suggesting is that the coverage has little real value. To the extent it appears to have value, it's in a political context of expecting "the media" to simply pay attention to the teams and the schools, as a political sort of statement, affirming the value of these institutions. So when I make an issue of the Willmar paper at present, it could be that the vast majority of Morris fans are really rather indifferent about it. 
I often use the rough information from the Willmar paper to put up blog posts which are the equivalent to what I used to do at the Morris paper. I enjoy staying close to these things. I'm not sure the Morris paper staff is motivated by the same sense of enjoyment. If they were, we'd see a little more effort on the paper's website. The "paper" version of the paper has such limited value, now that it only comes out once a week. 
I regret I haven't been able to blog more about MACA football this fall. We had a real good start to the season. The coverage then faded. I'm not sure what's going on behind the scenes. Has the coach become skeptical about calling in to the Willmar paper, for reasons I could certainly speculate about, but I'm not certain about? I hope the day doesn't come when media coverage of these teams simply vanishes or becomes negligible. 
Look how the UMM teams are covered on UMM's website. Couldn't high school programs follow that template? It would be exciting and fun.
 
Volleyball: Tigers 3, Minnewaska Area 0
The regular season came to an end for MACA volleyball on October 17. The Tigers hosted and defeated the Minnewaska Area Lakers via sweep. We got our 19th win by scores of 25-18, 25-23 and 25-20. The success certainly sets the right tone for the post-season. Expectations are high. We cruise into post-season play having captured the West Central Conference title outright!
Jenna Howden stood out in several stat categories. Hitting is her forte and again she set the pace, pounding 15 kills at the Lakers. Bailey Marty slammed seven kills. Karly Fehr added five kills to the mix while these three Tigers each had four: Kenzie Hockel, Lexi Pew and Jenna Larsen.
Fehr facilitated the offense as she always does with set assists - on this night her total was 31. Howden and Fehr each executed three ace blocks. Hockel had two ace blocks and Pew had one. Riley Decker was busy in digs with the team-best 15. Fehr had 12 digs while Marty and Larsen each had ten. Howden assumed an aggressive stance at the serving line. She batted three serve aces while these four Tigers each had one: Marty, Fehr, Larsen and Decker.
For Minnewaska Area, Ellie Danielson was tops in kills with 14. Bailey Stewart had two serving aces. Sara Geiser was the top Laker in set assists with eleven. Danielson had two ace blocks. Three Lakers each had ten digs: Jessica Lanoue, Geiser and Stewart.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

There are two Carringtons again in MACA cross country

Conference meet
Hooray! Maddie Carrington is back in action for MACA cross country! Let's say hooray also for Meredith Carrington's high-caliber running. Having the two Carringtons in the MACA lineup is a most encouraging thing to see. Meredith and Maddie excelled in the conference race which was held Monday, Oct. 16, at Olivia.
Meredith took first place with her time of 21:09.20. Maddie took second with her 21:43.60 clocking. The sisters pushed their team to a first place team finish among the six teams. The other MACA runners were: Malory Anderson (12th place, 22:00.80), Kaylie Raths (14th, 23:16.90), Madelyn Siegel (15th, 23:18.10), Caryn Marty (20th, 23:54.40) and Isabel Fynboh (24:58.90). The runner-up team behind MACA was Sauk Centre.
Our MACA boys team topped the standings too. Benson-KMS took runner-up. Jonathan Tostenson of Benson-KMS was the boys champion, time of 17:16.37. Our Tate Nelson arrived at the finish chute No. 3 with his time of 17:57.90. Noah Stewart was No. 5 to the finish line with his time of 18:10.40. The rest of the MACA lineup: Solomon Johnson (10th place, 18:20.71), Ben Hernandez (11th, 18:26.78), Thomas Tiernan (22nd, 19:14.27)., Tyler Reimers (27th, 19:36.21) and Bradley Rohloff (31st, 19:57.55).

Volleyball: Tigers 3, Sauk Centre 2
Karly Fehr worked proficiently as setter, getting the ball to the hitters in a way the hitters could really finish off. She distributed the ball in deft fashion, and this was an ingredient in a 3-2 MACA win over the Streeters of Sauk Centre.
The October 12 home action had these scores: 25-23, 25-21, 18-25, 22-25 and 15-12.
Karly Fehr is making inroads in the record books. Against Sauk Centre in this marathon match, she performed 62 set assists. Kenzie Hockel and Jenna Howden each had one serving ace. Howden was a force in hitting as she so often is, on this night getting 30 kills. No. 2 on the list was Bailey Marty with 14 kills. Jenna Larsen pounded down ten kills and Lexi Pew had nine. Hockel came through with four kills and Fehr had two.
Three Tigers each had one ace block: Fehr, Howden and Pew. Riley Decker maneuvered to accumulate 39 digs. Marty performed 27 digs. The list continues with Fehr (19), Larsen (9), Hockel (6) and Howden (6).

Football: Sauk Centre 39, Tigers 8
We're coming down the stretch of the fall sports schedule. As I write this post on Tuesday, the weather is summer-like. Sure doesn't feel like typical conditions for the MEA week game. Do people still call it that? The MEA week game?
The October 13 assignment for our MACA football Tigers was to play at Sauk Centre. There weren't a lot of smiles on the way home. We were humbled by the Streeters: a 39-8 final. Our only touchdown came in the second quarter. Camden Arndt got into the end zone from the two. Connor Koebernick ran for two on the conversion. However, futility would characterize the MACA offense on this night, a night when the host Streeters scored in each of the four quarters.
Hunter Fletcher scored the first Sauk Centre touchdown: a big play run of 58 yards. The score became 8-0 when Dylan Haskamp ran for two. The score was 8-0 at the end of one quarter. Sauk Centre scored two touchdowns in the second quarter. Casey Schirmers ran the ball into the end zone from the one. Haskamp again carried for two on the conversion. MACA got on the board with the Arndt run but the Streeters answered with a big play pass. Casey Schirmers passed to Royal Weber on a play covering 54 yards. The Schirmers-to-Weber combo worked again on the conversion.
Sauk Centre created some distance on the scoreboard with two second half scores. Fletcher turned on the jets for a scoring run from 16 yards out. Haskamp ran successfully on the conversion. Haskamp then went to work on a one-yard run to polish off Sauk Centre's offensive fireworks on the night. This time the Streeters kicked and Fletcher's toe was true. The Sauk fans could savor this 39-8 triumph.
The stat report shows Arndt of the Tigers creeping over 100 rushing yards to finish at 101, achieved on 23 carries. Connor Koebernick rolled up 44 yards on 13 carries. Also on the ballcarrying list: Nathan Beyer (eight carries, 24 yards), Joel Ruiz (3-18), Parker Dierks (1-2) and Austin Berlinger (2-0). True to form, the Tigers passed very little. It was really negligible. Not only did we have just one completion, we also threw two interceptions! Groan. I'll omit the names. Parker Dierks had the only reception. On defense, Dierks had an interception.
Hunter Fletcher of the Streeters rolled up 136 rushing yards on 15 carries. He was part of a 1-2 punch that also included Dylan Haskamp (22 carries for 124 yards). The Sauk passing game had only slightly more impact than MACA's. Sauk had two pass completions for 61 yards. The pass catchers were Royal Weber and Cade Neubert. Schirmers and Weber made the Sauk Centre interceptions.
The Streeters upped their won-lost mark to 5-2 while Morris Area Chokio Alberta slipped to 3-4.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

A $ commitment to help UMM's aspirations

We were pleased to get a thank you card from Stacey Aronson and Bradley Miller the other day. Mom and I are pleased to have made a financial infusion to UMM Humanities. We made a financial infusion to the music department, quite logical since my late father Ralph founded the music department. I wrote up some background material on our whole family's background with UMM. I submitted this to the appropriate department within UMM which requested it. I have learned that this has been edited down quite a bit. As a journalist I fully understand this. Nevertheless I wish to share the entire text, which I am doing with this post today. I have my own communications platforms. I guess I don't even care if UMM publishes anything I submitted. I am my own journalist. The image you see with this post is of mom Martha H. Williams in her well-known "gait" across the UMM campus, in her role as post office supervisor. Many years have passed since our direct involvement with UMM. Employees there are less and less aware. Knowledge of the past enriches our present. Maybe we can even hear Dad's "UMM Hymn" again someday. But that decision lies in someone else's hands. If you read what I present below, you'll note that I affirm UMM's historic core mission. In the past I have shared a little skepticism of that - the pure liberal arts commitment - but in the spirit of wanting to show faith in UMM's leadership, in rooting for their goals, I do in fact affirm the mission. Good luck on that. - B.W.

Why give to UMM music? Our family wants to be sure to have a connection to UMM's present as well as its past. We are inspired to give to UMM based on our conviction that UMM's mission will remain as viable as ever. Our family's background is inextricably tied to the University of Minnesota. The late Ralph Williams was a founding faculty member of UMM. He had a background with the U before we came here. He was a graduate of the U and taught at the U's St. Paul School of Agriculture in the 1950s. Ag schools were heading toward obsolescence. Morris had this nice if challenging transition from the WCSA to the pioneering UMM: a small public liberal arts college. The grand experiment would seem to have turned out quite nicely! Students have been happy here even when the campus had fewer amenities. 

We give to music at present because this was my father's life. He invested a big part of this life here in Morris. He directed the band in its debut performance on November 5 of 1960, at the old armory where the public library is now. That concert represented the kind of campus/community bond that has always been held up as an ideal. The concert was for an audience of about 1000 composed of Stevens County 4-Hers and their parents. There were 50 band members. "A band of this size was not anticipated the first year," the Morris paper reported. 

My Mom Martha Williams was UMM post office supervisor and worked at the bookstore before that. She was known for her "gait" across campus as she handled chores for the post office. She was very thoughtful toward her student workers. She played violin in the original UMM orchestra which was directed by my father. That group along with the men's chorus put out a vinyl record album.

What about me? I came to campus often on behalf of the Morris newspaper. I wrote many sports articles in the days when UMM sports information had more limited resources than today. We're talking pre-Internet! I enjoyed writing about UMM soccer in its debut year.
I played trumpet in the West Central All-Stars in the early days of Jim Carlson's fabulous Jazz Festival. Jim had been a member of my father's men's chorus. I was recruited to fill out the concert band's french horn section for a short time in the late 1960s when I was merely junior high age. It was interesting because I soaked in the feeling of campus turbulence in the Viet Nam war era. I showed up for rehearsal one day when rehearsal was canceled due to a Viet Nam "moratorium" - remember those? - at Edson Auditorium. Rather than just leave I grabbed a chair and listened. I was in the band for graduation that year, very memorable. We are blessed not having a war tearing apart our society today.

How do we want to see out gift applied? We defer to the department chairman in this regard. We may pick up a British accent yet! We hope the gift furthers the spirit of networking that friends of the campus feel. It's all about community. In music this is easy to appreciate because of the regular music concerts. Music enriches, entertains and serves a public relations purpose for the institution. All that was borne out when my father took the UMM men's chorus to the Seattle and New York World's Fairs. The chorus opened the Minnesota Day program at the Seattle event. 

The Williams family is delighted to make a contribution ($10,000) that will help ensure that UMM music keeps its exciting and enriching quality. We have fond memories of UMM Founders Day events where we'd get to hear students sing my father's "UMM Hymn" which he wrote for UMM's inception. We are giving in the spirit of "giving back."

- Brian R. Williams

Tigers sweep to win No. 14 at ACGC court

Tigers 3, ACGC 0
The MACA volleyball Tigers surged to a 14-3 season record with a sweep win on October 5. This road contest brought scores of 25-18, 25-20 and 25-19. The host team was the Falcons of ACGC.
Karly Fehr facilitated the most effective MACA offense with her 33 assists. Riley Decker contributed two assists. Kenzie Hockel and Jenna Howden each batted two serving aces while Fehr had one. Howden slammed hard in the hitting department, on this night accumulating 15 kills. Jenna Larsen impressed with her eleven kills. Bailry Marty had five kills, Fehr four, Lexi Pew three and Hockel two.
Pew came at the Falcons with two ace blocks. Fehr, Howden and Larsen each had one ace block. Riley Decker was proficient in her specialty of digs, accumulating 21. Marty had eleven digs while Fehr had eight and Larsen six.
For ACGC, Rachel Wilner had 21 set assists. Addison Bernstein had the team-best seven kills. Wilner and Brenna Anderson each had an ace block. Bernstein led the Falcons in digs with 12. Falcons with serving aces were Anderson (3), Lindsay Minnick (2), Madison Denton (1) and Pailey Wilner (1). ACGC's won-lost numbers are the reverse of MACA's.
I have to plead some ignorance here, perhaps. The Willmar newspaper reported that setter Fehr of the Tigers got her 3,000th career "save" in the match. I have written countless volleyball articles through the years but I am unfamiliar with the term "save." I associate that term with hockey goalies. Sorry, it's hard to be a master of all the details in all these sports, but "save" eludes my understanding in volleyball. At least I am showing some humility regarding this. I hope my critics will understand.
Coach Kristi Fehr was quoted saying of her team "It wasn't our best match, but to their credit they played hard."
 
Football: Homecoming win
I have been unable to find a Homecoming game review of our Friday win. It wasn't in Saturday's Willmar paper. Then I hoped there would be a belated summary in the Monday paper. This happened the week previous with the game versus Minnewaska. It was in Monday. So I stopped at Casey's early this morning (Monday) to buy the Willmar paper, with darkness still prevailing outside. Got home, opened the paper with the hope of learning of the game's highlights which I assumed would be substantial. Nada.
I checked the Morris paper website on Saturday and found only 2-3 token sentences about the game. I seem to recall the score was 21-20 over Osakis.
I was disappointed during the radio broadcast to hear an announcer speak for several minutes about the upcoming referendum for high school improvements. There was really no place for this on the broadcast. It's a politically charged topic. The announcer complimented his boss, the superintendent, for being just "informational" on the referendum topic and not crossing the line into advocacy. Does anyone think that school officials have really been neutral on this? Did you get that flyer in the mail? That flyer screamed "vote yes" without saying so in a direct, explicit manner, although some might say it was explicit. I assume the law prohibits that.
I don't want to see the expected upcoming library referendum endangered. I don't want people to tire of referendums to the extent they turn down a really bona fide one, which would be our library proposal. As for the school, it always has such an insatiable appetite for money, I tire of it. I think we have allowed our school campus to expand too far. We can be gleeful about this until we realize that all that infrastructure demands maintenance. These buildings need to be built in a more sound and durable fashion in the first place.
A friend said to me "I wouldn't allow these problems in my home."
I would love to have an extensive blog post put up today reviewing the MACA Homecoming football win. I would love to have put up this post on Saturday. Nada. I rely on the Willmar paper for rough information. I feel bad about this shortcoming.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com

Gruber & Lakers surge late to 35-7 win over MACA

Minnewaska Area assumed control late with a 35-7 win over the Morris Area Chokio Alberta Tigers on September 29. The Lakers notched win No. 4 at their home field. The Tigers slipped to 2-3.
Matthew Gruber was a key contributor for the host as he covered 117 yards on the ground on 18 carries. Gruber scored two rushing touchdowns and one with the aerial attack. 'Waska outdid the Tigers with the ground game, amassing 347 yards to the Tigers' 162. The 'Waska defense held the Tigers scoreless in the first half.
The lone orange and black score came in the third quarter: a one-yard run by Nathan Beyer. Eli Grove kicked the point-after. The rest of the game saw MACA languish in terms of seeking points while 'Waska scored in three of the four quarters. The Lakers poured it on with 21 points in the fourth quarter.
Gruber scored the first 'Waska TD of the night: he was off to the races with a 37-yard run. The PAT kick try failed. The first quarter ended with the score 6-0. The second quarter was scoreless. Each team scored a touchdown in the third quarter. Beyer had that one-yard run for MACA for six. Garrett Jensen scored on a five-yard run for Minnewaska. Jensen also ran for two on the conversion.
The Lakers really got some separation on the scoreboard in the fourth quarter. Here we go: Gruber passed ten yards to Jaeger Jergenson for a score. Drew Nelson kicked the point-after. Gruber built the onslaught with a six-yard TD run, after which Nelson kicked the point-after. The game's final score came on a big play 51-yard run that had Laker Tyson Meyer clutching the football. Again Nelson kicked the point-after.

Turning to stats, Camden Arndt of the Tigers cooled down some from his recent norms, rushing for a still-decent 77 yards on 16 carries. Beyer churned forward for 65 yards on 14 carries. Other Tigers with rushing yards were Kyle Staebler (four yards), Joel Ruiz (3), Connor Koebernick (12) and Jack Riley (1). Once again the Tigers' passing game was minimal: Koebernick had one completion in five attempts for eight yards, and he had one interception. Parker Dierks had the reception. On defense, Gage Wevley had a fumble recovery.
Minnewaska's Gruber rumbled for 117 yards on 18 carries. Ryan Christianson was another force on the ground for the winner: 95 yards on 13 carries. Tyson Meyer charged forward for 53 yards on just two carries of the football. Garrett Jensen had 47 rushing yards on eleven carries. Jack Blevins' numbers were 21 yards on five carries. Jackson Johnsrud added four yards to the mix. Gruber handled the passing game and completed six passes in 14 attempts for 39 yards and no INTs. The pass-catchers were: Johnsrud (two catches, nine yards), Blevins (1-11), Christianson (one for negative yardage) and Jaeger Jergenson (2-29). Gruber was quite opportunistic on defense as he intercepted a pass and recovered two fumbles. John Helander recovered one fumble.
Should MACA try to cultivate more of a passing game? Inquiring minds want to know.
- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com