Weekly state polls
Here are this week's prep polls from Minnesota Basketball News and Let's Play Hockey.
BOYS BASKETBALL
MINNESOTA
By Minnesota Basketball News
CLASS AAAA
1. Hopkins 18-2; 2. Champlin Park 17-4; 3. Osseo 18-3; 4. Robbinsdale Cooper 19-3; 5. Forest Lake 17-4; 6. Cretin-Derham Hall 16-4; 7. Henry Sibley 16-6; 8. Eden Prairie 18-3; 9. Apple Valley 16-5; 10. Tartan 16-5.
CLASS AAA
1. St. Paul Johnson 20-0; 2. Winona 19-1; 3. Benilde-St. Margaret's 16-4; 4. Orono 17-3; 5. Grand Rapids 17-2; 6. De La Salle 16-2; 7. Rocori 16-3; 8. Waconia 17-3; 9. St. Paul Central 14-5; 10. Hutchinson 18-2.
CLASS AA
1. New London-Spicer 20-1; 2. Plainview-Elgin-Millville 21-2; 3. Crosby-Ironton 20-1; 4. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown 21-0; 5. Albany 18-1; 6. Morris 18-1; 7. Byron 18-2; 8. Mayer Lutheran 19-1; 9. La Crescent 20-2; 10. Staples-Motley 16-3.
CLASS A
1. MACCRAY 20-0; 2. Minnesota Transitions 19-3; 3. Sebeka 19-1; 4. Ada-Borup 21-0; 5. Park Christian (Moorhead) 18-2; 6. Maranatha Academy 19-2; 7. Cass Lake-Bena 17-3; 8. Bertha-Hewitt 16-2; 9. Ellsworth 17-3; 10. Minneota 16-3.
WISCONSIN
By Associated Press
DIVISION 1
1. Racine Park (11) 18-0; 2. Milwaukee Hamilton (2) 14-2; 3. Madison East 17-2; 4. De Pere 18-1; 5. Antigo 9-0; 6. Madison Memorial 15-4; 7. Hartland Arrowhead 17-2; 8. Menomonee Falls 15-3; 9. Superior 17-2; 10. Kaukauna 16-3.
DIVISION 2
1. New Berlin Eisenhower (13) 19-0; 2. Waukesha Catholic Memorial 17-2; 3. Wisconsin Lutheran (1) 16-3; 4. (tie) Waupun 17-2 and Seymour 16-2; 6. Port Washington 15-3; 7. Valders 16-1; 8. Northwestern 15-3; 9. East Troy 15-3; 10. Little Chute 16-3.
GIRLS BASKETBALL
MINNESOTA
By Minnesota Basketball News
CLASS AA
1. Lakeville North 23-0; 2. Edina 22-1; 3. White Bear Lake 21-2; 4. Maple Grove 21-2; 5. Prior Lake 18-5; 6. Bloomington Kennedy 19-4; 7. Chaska 17-5; 8. Eden Prairie 17-6; 9. Minneapolis South 18-5; 10. Hopkins 16-7.
CLASS AAA
1. DeLaSalle 23-0; 2. Benilde-St. Margaret's 20-2; 3. Bemidji 19-1; 4. Alexandria 19-4; 5. Hill-Murray 17-5; 6. New Prague 14-8; 7. Red Wing 17-5; 8. Richfield 17-6; 9. Waconia 17-4; 10. Willmar 18-4.
CLASS AA
1. Sauk Centre 22-0; 2. New London-Spicer 21-2; 3. Hawley 20-0; 4. Rochester Lourdes 22-2; 5. Minneapolis Roosevelt 14-9; 6. Chatfield 20-3; 7. Caledonia 21-3; 8. St. Croix Lutheran 20-1; 9. Fairmont 16-2; 10. Braham 19-4.
CLASS A
1. Cedar Mountain-Comfrey 19-0; 2. Barnum 20-2; 3. Parkers Prairie 19-1; 4. Northern 19-0; 5. Bertha-Hewitt 18-1; 6. Canby 19-1; 7. Spring Grove 19-4; 8. New York Mills 19-1; 9. Marantha Academy 17-5; 10. Southwest Minnesota Christian 17-3.
WISCONSIN
By Associated Press
DIVISION 2
1. Monroe (13) 17-0; 2. Freedom 16-1; 3. Hayward (1) 15-0; 4. New Berlin Eisenhower 17-1; 5. Columbus 13-2; 6. Winneconne 16-1; 7. Pewaukee 16-1; 8. Wittenberg-Birnamwood 17-1; 9. New London 15-2; 10. Ashland 15-2.
BOYS HOCKEY
MINNESOTA
By Let’s Play Hockey
CLASS AA
1. Minnetonka (9); 2. Wayzata (1); 3. Eden Prairie; 4. Hill-Murray; 5. Edina; 6. Bloomington Jefferson; 7. Blaine; 8. Centennial; 9. Burnsville; 10. Eagan; 11. Elk River; 12. Duluth East; 13. Holy Angels Academy; 14. Andover; 15. Benilde-St. Margaret’s.
CLASS A
1. Breck (6); 2. St. Thomas Academy (4); 3. Hermantown; 4. Warroad; 5. Mahtomedi; 6. Virginia-Mountain Iron-Buhl; 7. Thief River Falls; 8. Rochester Lourdes; 9. Alexandria; 10. Faribault; 11. St. Cloud Cathedral; 12. Blake; 13. Sartell-St. Stephen; 14. Hibbing-Chisholm; 15. Mound-Westonka.
WISCONSIN
By wisconsinprephockey.net
1. Wausau West 22-1-1; 2. Notre Dame Academy 23-1; 3. Stoughton 21-1-2; 4. Eau Claire Memorial 18-5-1; 5. Appleton United 16-4-3; 6. Superior 13-7-1; 7. Madison Edgewood 15-7-2; 8. Middleton 17-4-2; 9. Cedarburg 16-6-2; 10. Waukesha 18-4-1.
Posted by: Rick Weegman on 2/17/2010 at 8:05 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Tags: basketball, hockey, preps, sports
Prep hockey pairings
It's that time of year again. Boys hockey playoffs are right around the corner. Here's the Minnesota pairings for next week, and Superior's path in the Wisconsin playoffs.
MINNESOTA
SECTION 7AA
Saturday’s Play-in Game
No. 9 Princeton at No. 8 Cloquet-Esko-Carlton, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s Quarterfinals
Cloquet-Esko-Carlton/Princeton winner at No. 1 Elk River, 7 p.m.
No. 5 Grand Rapids at No. 4 Forest Lake, 7:30 p.m.
No. 7 Cambridge-Isanti at No. 2 Duluth East, at DECC, 7:30 p.m.
No. 6 St. Francis at No. 3 Andover, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 27
Semifinals
At DECC
Quarterfinal winners, noon and 2 p.m.
Thursday, March 4
Championship
At DECC
Semifinal winners, 7:30 p.m.
SECTION 5A
Tuesday’s First Round
At 7 p.m.
No. 9 Moose Lake Area at No. 8 North Branch
No. 12 Meadow Creek Christian at No. 5 Sauk Rapids-Rice
No. 11 Pine City-Rush City at No. 6 Proctor
No. 10 Mora-Hinckley-Finlayson at No. 7 St. Michael-Albertville
Thursday, Feb. 25
Quarterfinals
At 7 p.m.
North Branch/Moose Lake Area winner at No. 1 Hermantown
Sauk Rapids-Rice/Meadow Creek Christian winner at No. 4 Rogers
Proctor/Pine City-Rush City winner at No. 3 St. Cloud Cathedral
No. 10 St. Michael-Albertville/Mora-Hinckley-Finlayson winner at No. 2 Duluth Denfeld
Saturday, Feb. 27
Semifinals
At Cloquet Area Recreation Center
Quarterfinal winners, 2 and 6 p.m.
Friday, March 5
Championship
At Cloquet
Semifinal winners, 7 p.m.
SECTION 7A
Tuesday’s First Round
No. 9 Ely at No. 8 Silver Bay-Cook County, 7:30 p.m.
No. 10 Two Harbors at No. 7 Greenway, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday, Feb. 25
Quarterfinals
At 7:30 p.m.
No. 5 Duluth Central at No. 4 Duluth Marshall, at Mars Lakeview
Silver Bay-Cook County winner at No. 1 Virginia-Mountain Iron-Buhl
No. 6 Eveleth-Gilbert at No. 3 Hibbing-Chisholm
Greenway/Two Harbors winner at No. 2 Interna-tional Falls
Saturday, Feb. 27
Semifinals
Quarterfinal winners, at Hibbing, 1 p.m.
Quarterfinal winners, at Grand Rapids, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, March 3
Championship
At DECC
Semifinal winners, 7:30 p.m.
WISCONSIN
SECTIONAL 1
Tuesday’s First-Round Results
Webster Area 8, Baldwin-Woodville 4
Somerset-Osceola 9, Barron 2
Hudson 11, Spooner 0
Thursday’s Regional Finals
At 7 p.m.
Webster Area at No. 1 Superior (13-7-1)
No. 5 River Falls at No. 4 Amery
Somerset-Osceola at No. 3 Menomonie
Hudson at No. 2 New Richmond
Tuesday, Feb. 23
Semifinals
Amery/River Falls winner vs. Superior/Webster Area winner
Menomonie/Somerset-Osceola winner vs. New Richmond/Hudson winner
Saturday, Feb. 27
Championship
At Wessman Arena
Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.
Posted by: Rick Weegman on 2/17/2010 at 4:53 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Trojans hope to go out in style
Duluth Central wrapped up what is likely the school’s final boys hockey regular season Tuesday night, but Trojans players and coaches have treated this final campaign as anything but a lame-duck swan song.
Central’s 15-9-1 record is the program’s best in years, that despite the uncertainty of what ultimately will befall the school and its underclassmen’s chances of winning roster spots at either Denfeld or East next season.
“We went into the season with the mentality that everyone’s a senior this year, because nobody knows what’s going to happen next year. I don’t think the school board knows what’s going to happen yet,” Central co-coach Louie Krenzen said after a 7-1 loss at Hermantown on Tuesday night. “But everyone’s handled it well. It’s a tough situation, especially for 17- and 18-year-olds.”
Players say they’ve handled the situation by not dwelling on it. Out of sight, out of mind.
“You don’t want to think about it, because if you think about it, then you’re not going to be able to play your game,” junior forward Mike Andrews said.
Andrews said he agrees with the Duluth school board’s decision to close a high school, and believes a two-school system will benefit the remaining schools and their athletic programs.
“Personally, I just want to play hockey,” he said. “If [the school closes], I’m not going to complain. Some kids might think it’s a big deal, but I think it’s going to be good for Duluth.
“It’s going to make a lot of kids realize what they had, and it’s going to affect a lot of kids. You’re going to have work hard and earn your spot. I’m excited.”
Sophomore forward Ryker Holm feels similarly, though knows the move won’t be easy.
“I think it’ll be better off in the end, but it’s hard to swallow having to switch schools,” he said.
Though the total number of varsity positions would be reduced by a third, Krenzen said a two-school system would make for more competitive junior varsity programs and, ultimately, better varsity teams.
But, for now, the Trojans are just concentrating on the next game. That will come in next week’s Section 7A playoffs, likely against Hibbing or Duluth Marshall. A playoff win or two might cement the team’s status as the best Central team in a generation.
“We came in knowing it’s the last season, and we wanted to do the best we can to leave a legacy,” Holm said.
Charlie Comnick scored two goals as Hermantown (21-3, 8-1) wrapped up the LSC title with the victory, edging Duluth Denfeld by two points. The Hawks and Hunters earned the top two seeds in the Section 5A playoffs and have first-round byes. Hermantown opens against either North Branch or Moose Lake Area in the quarterfinals, while Denfeld takes on the winner of the first-round game between St. Michael-Albertville and Mora-Hinckley-Finlayson.
Duluth Central 0-0-1—1
Hermantown 1-3-3—7
First period — 1. H, Willis Kantonen, 3:03.
Second period — 2. H, Adam Krause (Cody Christopherson, Jared Thomas), 9:39; 3. H, Charlie Comnick (Brian LeBlanc, Jared Kolquist), 11:26; 4. H, Conner Hady (Chad Bannor, Garrett Skrbich), 14:14 (pp).
Third period — 5. H, Thomas, 3:26; 6. DC, Mathew Beaulieu (Ryker Holm), 8:47 (pp); 7. H, Comnick, 12:06; 8. H, Christopherson (Krause, Jeff Paczynski), 16:15 (pp).
Saves — Tyler Ampe, H, 15; Bret Gitar, DC, 58.
Posted by: Rick Weegman on 2/16/2010 at 11:42 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Tags: duluth central high school, hockey, preps, sports
Tuesday's Prep Report
Overtime was the theme of the night in boys hockey as two of the marquee matchups went to an extra period. Hermantown, 7-1 winners over Duluth Central, wrapped up the Lake Superior Conference title, and Grand Rapids earned Iron Range Conference honors thanks to a rival's victory. Here's the highlights.
Ryan Johnson’s goal with 16 seconds left in overtime gave Hibbing-Chisholm a 3-2 victory over Virginia-Mountain Iron-Buhl in a high school boys hockey game Tuesday night, handing the outright Iron Range Conference title to Grand Rapids.
The 14th-ranked Bluejackets (12-9-2, 4-3) tied the game at 2 on Marcus Bugliosi’s power-play goal with 19 seconds left in the third period.
Nathan Tromp made 28 saves Hibbing, while Casey Myhre totaled 29 for the seventh-ranked Blue Devils (15-7-3, 4-2-2), who could have tied for the conference title with a win.
GRAND RAPIDS 2,
DULUTH DENFELD 1
Patrick Moore’s goal at 3:49 into overtime lifted the Thunderhawks to the nonconference win at Heritage Center.
Dom DeGuiseppi made 23 saves for Grand Rapids (11-11-2), winners of four straight, while his counterpart, freshman Zach Thompson, had 32 for the Hunters (12-11-2).
DULUTH EAST 6,
HASTINGS 4
Phil Johnson scored two first-period goals to spark the visiting Greyhounds (15-5-4) to the win, extending their unbeaten streak to eight games.
GIRLS HOCKEY
EVELETH-GILBERT AREA 4,
HIBBING-CHISHOLM 0
Kayla Moe scored two of the Golden Bears’ four second-period goals and Vicky Fossland earned her 10th shutout of the season in the Section 7AA semifinal at Cloquet Area Recreation Center.
It was the third time this season that top-seeded Eveleth-Gilbert (22-4-1), which won its 10th straight game, defeated the Bluejackets (5-21-1) and sends the Bears into Friday’s championship game against Chisago Lakes Area.
The Wildcats scored three goals in each of the second and third periods to beat International Falls 6-2 in the other semifinal.
BOYS BASKETBALL
CLOQUET 65, ESKO 53
Andy Wappes scored 26 points as the Lumberjacks beat their neighbors in the nonconference game at Esko.
DULUTH CENTRAL 71,
MESABI EAST 70
Darcell Williams scored 32 points and Austin Beichler’s putback with 2 seconds to play gave the Trojans the nonconference home win.
DULUTH DENFELD 65,
ASHLAND 61
C.J. Ham scored 25 points as the host Hunters held off the Oredockers in overtime of the LSC game.
GRAND RAPIDS 83,
HERMANTOWN 56
Michael Johnson scored 25 points as the fifth-ranked Thunderhawks (17-2) won their ninth straight.
NORTHWESTERN 57, LADYSMITH 35
Kendall Abrahamzon led a well-balanced Tigers attack with 10 points as the Heart O’North champions improved to 16-3 overall and 12-0 in the league.
WRESTLING
NORTHWESTERN FALLS
IN SECTIONALS
Host Amery defeated Northwestern 42-28 in the semifinals of a Division 2 team sectional Tuesday night, ending the Tigers’ season.
Northwestern received victories from Nathan Nelson and Wes Snow in the 130- and 140-pound weight classes, respectively, as well as three forfeits, but lost eight head-to-head matches along the way.
Ellsworth won the sectional crown by defeating Neillsville 48-21 in the semifinals and Amery 64-9 in the championship.
Nelson, Snow, Bob Tahtinen (145), William Pedersen (152), Josh Zinmer (189) and Ryan Miesbauer (215) will compete in the Division 2 individual section meet Saturday in Somerset, vying for the right to compete at next week’s state tournament.
Posted by: Rick Weegman on 2/16/2010 at 11:39 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
Tags: basketball, hockey, preps, sports
Tuesday's prep girls hockey capsules
HIBBING-CHISHOLM VS. EVELETH-GILBERT AREA
What: Section 7A semifinal
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Cloquet Area Recreation Center
Records: Hibbing-Chisholm 5-20-1; Eveleth-Gilbert 21-4-1
Outlook: Maddy Wheelecor kept the fourth-seeded Bluejackets’ playoff hopes alive Thursday with an overtime penalty shot in a 3-2 quarterfinal win over Moose Lake Area. Wheelecor (14 goals, 5 assists, 19 points) leads an offensively challenged team that has averaged just 1.4 goals per game this season. Hibbing-Chisholm has relied on sophomore goalie Dory Johnson (3.48 goals-against average, .915 save percentage), whose 873 saves rank second in the state. … The Golden Bears outshot Babbitt-Embarrass 58-11 in a 4-0 quarterfinal win, their ninth in a row. The defending section champions average nearly 4.5 goals per game, led by Kayla Moe (20-34—54), Amanda Arbogast (23-20—43) and Jordana Turner (19-14—33). Vicky Fossland leads the area in goals-against average (1.47) and shutouts (9) and was in the nets in 2-1 and 3-2 regular-season wins over the Bluejackets.
INTERNATIONAL FALLS VS. CHISAGO LAKES AREA
What: Section 7A semifinal
When: 8 p.m.
Where: Cloquet Area Recreation Center
Records: International Falls 12-11-3; Chisago Lakes 10-13-3
Outlook: The sixth-seeded Broncos downed host Princeton 4-2 in the quarterfinals behind Amy Auran’s hat trick and Taylor Nelson’s 15 saves. International Falls entered the playoffs on a 3-8 run its previous 11 games. These teams did not meet in the regular season. … The Wildcats edged Silver Bay Area 4-3 in overtime in the quarterfinals. Megan Lushanko (14-15—29) and Sam Lorr (15-12—27) are the team’s leading scorers, while Jamie Dobosenski (3.92, three shutouts) has played more than 1,000 minutes between the pipes.
Posted by: Rick Weegman on 2/15/2010 at 5:15 PM | Comments (0) | Permalink
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