Dazzling Huebner-to-Asmus pass in 21-12 win

The Tigers accomplished a record over .500 in the regular season with the Wednesday night football win. Action was at Big Cat. I was present for a portion. I was there to see Drew Huebner lead Riley Asmus perfectly on a TD pass. Beautiful thing to watch. At first I thought maybe the pass was overthrown. Asmus caught up to it in stride. Touchdown! 

Thrilling to see in this 21-12 win over the Fergus Falls Otters. The success put us at 5-3. We are 4-3 in conference, 3-2 in section. We're actually doing better in road games than home! 3-1 as road warriors, 2-2 at Big Cat. We are certainly getting nice fan turnouts at the local facility. Each home game is like a spectacle, the most impressive spectacle you will see in Stevens County. 

Unfortunately I find I barely recognize anyone any more. The MACA upperclassmen were born at the time I left the Morris newspaper. They have no knowledge of how I once "roamed" on behalf of the Morris paper. The years have really rolled by. I knew when I left the paper it would be a big adjustment process. I knew things would never be the same. And they haven't been. 

My role at the paper was the only really defining role I have had in my life. It disappeared overnight. Still I try to persevere. 

People check the web to get their news in our contemporary age. So what's available on this Thursday morning as we deal with fog and wet conditions in Morris? The Fergus Falls Daily Journal has coverage posted. But it is behind a very tight paywall. So you'd have to buy a subscription to the Fergus Falls newspaper. Who here would want to do that? So we must cross that off. 

The odds are slim of finding coverage anymore on the West Central Tribune site. No, there is nothing there today on the Tigers' Wednesday win. There is nice thorough coverage of the Minnewaska Area game. The WC Trib has a paywall but I know how to get around it. I will repeat that if MACA coaches were to call in there, the calls would be accepted and notes taken. Maybe something to consider.

"Craig Olson Sports"

Oh, here's a nice resource, today at least: It's the old "Craig Olson Sports" site, good for getting details beyond just the cursory score and stuff. Nice to see players' names. I have barely typed any MACA volleyball players' names this fall - unfortunate. 

"Craig Olson Sports" reports that MACA built a 21-6 lead for halftime. This article does the same as what "Minnesota Scores" does all the time: reports that our home games are on the UMM campus. As if we're playing on the UMM facility. That is not technically true, in other words it is not true: Big Cat is a joint venture with the U and the public school, right? It just "feels" like we're on the college campus. 

Fergus Falls finishes its regular season with a 2-6 mark. 

I can trumpet here that Owen Anderson had a monster game rushing. Owen rolled up 193 yards on 32 carries. Our team total in rushing was 257, a big portion of our 292 total yards. So the thrilling TD pass Huebner-to-Asmus was the exception to the rule. It sure worked! 

The Tigers got up 8-0 on a one-yard Anderson run. Huebner carried the ball into the end zone on the conversion. Fergus Falls struck with the pass to get on the scoreboard. Isaiah Holmes made the throw, Levi King the catch. It was a 21-yard connection. Huebner outdid that with his 34-yard "rainbow" TD pass that had pinpoint accuracy to Asmus. The play capped a drive of 77 yards. 

The Tigers went up 21-6 for halftime on a five-yard carry of the football by Huebner. We kicked for the extra point. The Otters scored in the fourth quarter on a nine-yard pass: Henry Bethel to King. 

Holmes and Bethel combined for ten pass completions. Fergus Falls had a rather anemic offense, or let's say that our defense was awesome! The Otters were limited to 89 rushing yards. They threw for 116. Griffin Babolian gained 45 yards on 13 carries for the visitor. 

The fan turnout at Big Cat was a little more than yours truly expected, especially for a mid-week game. We are deep into the fall when weather will not be as pleasant or accommodating. So the Tiger spirit is high! Thoughts will now get laser-focused on post-season play. Who knows how the Tigers will fare?

 

MACA volleyball struggles

Tiger volleyball has not had the same upbeat tone. That's the way it goes sometimes. The Tigers closed out the regular season with a loss by sweep, leaving our W/L at 8-15. We are 5-9 in conference. We played Tuesday at Minnewaska Area where the host Lakers ruled. Can the Tigers maybe surprise in the post-season? That's the hope now. I'm not really betting on it. But hope. 

The game scores from the Tuesday match are on the West Central Tribune site. The host Lakers entertained their fans to success 25-15, 25-22 and 25-17. 

I see "stats not available" for MACA. Again, please consider just calling in, someone. Our radio station website has nothing and since Brett Miller left, I have little faith in that site now. I don't want to sound harsh but the person who types stuff there now will not be a good resource - it will be cursory at best, in other words lots of "scores" and not a lot else. 

Let's give some credit to the Minnewaska Area individuals. Haillie Schulz batted two ace serves across the net. Avery Fier, Brooklyn Meyer and Dreya Barsness each had one ace serve. Haley Shea and Schulz shared the load in setting with 20 and 17 assists respectively. 'Waska had three big guns in hitting led by Barsness with 14 kills. Fier slammed 12 and Dacia Fleury eleven. Miaya Guggisberg had an ace block. In digs we see Fier with eleven, Shea with nine and Emma Poege with seven. 

Minnewaska football had a good night Wednesday with its 28-6 win over Melrose. Action was at Melrose. But 'Waska has taken some lumps this season, now with a 2-6 record.

 

Other media

Is it worth even checking the Morris newspaper website? It's an affront that they have the site all set up to report current news and sports. A check of sports reveals links to items that are almost 100 percent UMM. Is that the only sports we care about here? Is the newspaper ownership that tone-deaf? 

The Morris paper only publishes once a week. That creates an unforgivable timeliness problem. I know of a former highly-regarded MAHS school administrator who would get emotionally mad on these issues. We published twice a week. Again, gave us a far bigger advantage for staying on top of sports. It is basically hopeless now unless the paper were to start getting ambitious with its website, which it should. Those people won't listen to me. Maybe some others should step up? 

I say all this in a week when the "Stevens County Times" really stepped in it with its hostility toward the elected community leaders of Donnelly. Is there a backstory there? What on earth is so important about what the Donnelly city council would be doing anyway? This isn't Watergate. I would expect that the biggest issue over there might be someone's dog barking too late at night. 

I say this in a spirit of compliment toward Donnelly: it is a quiet and safe community. Compare that to the big cities now. 

Why on earth did a certain Morris newspaper writer get such a bee in her bonnet? Defies understanding. And then the paper uses its power to try to put Donnelly on the spot. IMHO that's an abuse of power. 

You know the old saying about how "when you point fingers. . ." Yes, some could be pointing back. So let's ask more questions of the paper and how it shows such an uncaring attitude about MACA sports on its website. The website has the power to provide really timely coverage. In this week when the game was played Wednesday, that would be so nice to see. 

And the paper has someone paid to write sports? That person should just sit down today and "riff" something about the game for a web article. No, instead it's me doing it. And I do not get paid. 

And I wish I could type the names of MACA volleyball players more often.

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com