Rock County Sports

In this column I would like to call out 11 local athletes who have excelled in their sport and gained recognition for their efforts. Nine students have done so through their athletic abilities, and two have not only participated in their sport but also excelled in their academics while at college. To start with I would like to congratulate University of Sioux Falls sophomore Camden Janiszeski…

Rapidly falling air temperatures, dangerously cold water, and the likelihood of skim ice on some ponds across Minnesota means it’s imperative for parents and guardians to talk with their kids about the importance of safety. Whether through thin ice or into open water, falls into the water this time of year can turn tragic quickly, and an unexpected fall can incapacitate even the strongest…

The Hills-Bever Creek Patriots football team will travel to Minneapolis this weekend to compete in the Minnesota State High School League 9-Player State Championship game against the Fertile-Beltrami Falcons. The Patriots will meet the Falcons at 10 a.m.  Saturday, Nov. 23, at US Bank Stadium for a battle of the undefeated. Both H-BC and Fertile-Beltrami come into the State Championship game…

The Luverne High School trap team placed first in Class 1A-Conference 8 action this season. The team also tied for sixth place in the True Team competition. “The Luverne trap team members had an excellent fall season,” assistant manager Julie Wynia said. “Several league members also finished individually in the Top 20 for males/females in the conference, and one was ranked in the top 20 for…

The Luverne boys’ cross-country team placed second at the 2024 MSHSL State Tournament Saturday, Nov. 2, at the University of Minnesota Les Bolstadt Golf Course in St. Paul. LHS finished with 91 total team points, just five points behind the first-place team from Redwood Valley with 86 team points. “Initially we were disappointed as we missed the state title by five points,” head coach Pete…

The Hills-Bever Creek Patriots won the Section 3 Championship, beating Mountain Lake 37-6 Friday, Nov. 1, in Marshall. Now 10-0, H-BC heads to the state quarterfinals against the Section 4 champions, the Border West Buccaneers, at 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 7, in Buffalo. Border West High School is a consolidation of the school districts of Wheaton, Clinton, Graceville, Beardsley, Herman, and…

The Luverne Cardinal volleyball team fell 3-1 to Redwood Valley in the Section 3AA Quarterfinal game Tuesday, Oct. 29, in Redwood Falls. “We ended the season playing our best volleyball and gave the No. 1 seed Redwood Cardinals a run for their money,” head coach Sarah DeBeer said. “Unfortunately, we came up a little short.” Luverne, the No. 5 seed, stunned the crowd and the Redwood team when…

Ray Hoogeveen recorded his fifth hole-in-one Tuesday, Oct. 29, at the Luverne Country Club. “I hit a soft 5 wood into the wind,” Hoogeveen said about the Par 3 seventh hole. “I watched it go into the cup.” Four of his holes-in-one have come at the Luverne Country Club, while the other one was registered in South Dakota. His last hole-in-one came on the same hole at LCC back in October of 2015…

The Luverne trap team turned in final scores for the fall league this past week. “It has been a great season of shooting,” team assistant Julie Wynia said. “Although we didn’t have any perfect rounds this week, we did have nine athletes in league/in-house that scored at least one round of 20 or more.” Lucas Madison was high scorer in the fifth and final week with a 45. Dylan Hoff was two…

John Call recorded his first hole-in-one Wednesday, Oct. 23, on hole No. 7 at the Luverne Country Club. “I knew I hit a good shot off the tee box,” Call said. “I did not see the ball land as we were hitting into the sun.” Call used a No. 4 hybrid driver on the 157-yard, Par 3 hole. His partners, Ray Hoogeveen, Claude Van Driel and Harold Hoftyzer all walked to the green with Call and couldn’t…

Luverne’s David Duffy hosted his Duff Dog Backyard Ultra event Oct. 12 at the Blue Mounds State Park with over 35 competitors. The event, which challenged athletes to complete 100 miles in one day, attracted participants from as far away as Colorado. The youngest were in their 20s, and three were in their 60s.  “Backyard is not just for the elite,” Duffy said. “It’s for everyone trying to find…

Last week Star Media posted its third Sports Talk episode, this time with LHS girls’ tennis coach Nathan Rud. Nate and I discussed the past season and how sections went for the team and in the individual section matches. I would like to say it was shot in one take, but I messed up on the intro and we had to start again. From there it was smooth sailing, and Nate and I had a great conversation…

At the Luverne girls’ tennis meet on Thursday, Oct. 3, in Luverne, the team was cheered on by the past four LHS tennis coaches. The four coaches cover a 50-year span in girls’ tennis history. Pictured are Nathan Rud, left, head coach from 2022 to the present, Jon Beers, head coach from 2018-2021, Greg Antoine, head coach from 2002-2018, and Dave Svingen, head coach from 1975-2001.

Senior Owen Janiszeski and eighth-grader Summer Mollberg participated in one of the largest high school cross country meets in the Midwest Friday, Sept. 20. Janiszeski finished 55 out of 442 runners, and Mollberg placed 279 out of 415 runners at the event. Some of the very best runners and teams from the five-state area were invited to compete at the Roy Griak Invitational at the University of…

The LHS trap team posted its first week scores for the fall season at the Rock County Sportsman’s Club this week. Piper Wynia started the official fall season and Homecoming Week with a perfect 25 score in the first round. She shot a 23 in the second round for a final score of 48. Kale Ver Steeg and Logan Wrigg each finished with a 45, shooting a 23 in the first and a 22 in the second round.…

Pheasant numbers in the 2024 Minnesota August Roadside Survey were similar to 2023 and 19 percent above the 10-year average, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. “The stability in pheasant numbers across the state and most regions is welcome news after the wet spring and summer we had,” said Steven Woodley, DNR senior wildlife research biologist. “Our milder winter meant…