Bison
The Empire has struck back. Would I like to be able to save that for a post after winning the championship? YES but by then the hype about Star Wars will have decreased dramatically. One year off and the team looks as dangerous as it ever has. Combined with the other result and it's anyone's guess how the championship will go! For more about the Football team, check out the semi-final recap!
But as always, there was a lot more going on for the Bison this week.
First up was a glorified scrimmage against Valley City State that NDSU won by 43. The minutes distribution and scoring reflect the fact that it was a done as a courtesy for VCSU then as anything too meaningful for NDSU. I'm bored with bigger schools playing with lower level competition - except when the smaller school wins & gets a massive pay day. With Arizona looming tomorrow, gotta wonder how prepared they'll be for the challenge!
While the preeminent team pushed toward Texas, the Wrestlers dualed at Utah Valley. It came on the heels of a big victory over a ranked Central Michigan, though by a narrow margin of three points. The regression is a disappointment but the win shows that they're improving, which is about all that can be asked of an athlete.
The week was concluded by a hoop game between the lady Bison and Cal Poly. In a contrast of styles, NDSU spread the wealth - getting healthy contributions from four players - while their guests were lead by a 31 point scorer and equally little from the rest. While the paths were different, the results were similar, with the two teams being separated by four points at the end. The team that came away with the win needed a fourth quarter W to secure the overall win. NDSU came up short once more, pushing them back under .500 for the season. While the fourth quarter was make or break, the middle two quarters are what defined the play. Each team was stifled defensively while the other made a push on the scoreboard. Going into the fourth, NDSU held the one point advantage but when it counted they came up just short. It's these kind of experience that will get them ready for Sioux Falls. The question remains whether they will learn them or not, which is to be determined.
Vikings
The Sith may have gotten their leader back today but the Vikings remain the kings of the North. Check out the full break down!
Timberwolves
Quick question, which are less eager to follow instructions: the Timberwolves on defense or Anikin Skywalker about anything? It's a coin flip but I don't foresee the Wolves going genocidal on the NBA's talent pool, so that's a difference. I've already pushed back the cohesion deadline once and with the New Year coming quickly it may have to happen again. And again. And maybe again after that. They're the most disappoint top four to eight team in the West that the Timberwolves have ever had.
Twins
Operating as shrewdly as the emperor, the Twins have actually spent some money and signed at least one guy with name credibility, if not actual talent. It's way too early to claim or theorize that the ownership has loosened up on their pocketbooks but off the surprising post season appearance I'm glad for any and all moves that they deem worthy to be made in improving the 40 man! Getting at least one starting pitcher still tops the wish list but I'm doubtful about who they'll ink to help bolster the rotation.
Dragons
The fire-breathers fought their way through Hoth for a pair of Basketball games against Northern State on Friday night. Maybe they should have just found a cave to hide in because neither team managed to have much success in Aberdeen.
To their credit, the ladies fared better then their male counterparts but weren't able to match the 47 points that NSU's top two scorers achieved. A four point loss isn't embarrassing but the trio of Kiley Borowicz (15), Brooklyn Liegel (10) & Jacky Volkert (10) either didn't do enough or didn't get enough help. The right answer is probably some of both.
The bright side for the men's Basketball team is that they got 60 points from three players. The other side of that is the 14 points scored by the other seven members of the team. The good came from Addison Parker (21), Johnny Beeninga (20) & Tanner Kretchman (19). Without them it may have been a 40 point loss, if not an even greater running out of the gym. It should be noted that NSU shot over 53% from behind the arc. Maybe that's the strength of their game but it seems more like a sand trap that they weren't able to escape from.
Both squads will get a second chance as Northern State comes to town on Tuesday night for the lone action on campus until after Christmas.
Cobbers
One competition this week for team corncob as the Men's Basketball team visited the Royals and their palatial slice of Northwestern Minneapolis. Concordia got 25 points in 25 minutes from reserve Kevin Wolfe. Coach Hemmingsen must have wanted to roll with the hot hand because Wolfe's usage was third highest in the game and he nearly doubled up the second highest scorer from his team. As they move forward, not losing that hot hand would be a boon for their chances but others will need to step up. As it was, Jacob Pazdernik (15) & Thomas Schyma (10) did what they could to pick up the slack. The trio's contributions fell short as Bethel had a quartet of double digit scorers and also had the benefit of 26 total points from their bench.
That was the lone showing for Cobber sports and the coming week is nearly as quiet with the Wrestling team being the only ones to get work in. Their duals all come tomorrow.
There's no two ways about it, Christmas break is going into full effect across the campuses!
High School
Took in an early season playoff showdown in catholic country. The newly announced Bison Linebacker, Jake Kava was like a Jedi on the court but Basketball on all levels, except for the NBA, is not a one man show so check out the full recap to see how things went!