l o o h c S h g i H d l e fi h t r o N 15 Wednesday, April 22, 20
Baseball
Softball
Boys Lacrosse
Boys Tennis
Girls Golf
T H G I L T O P S S T R O P S G N I R P S 5 1 0 2
Boys Golf
Girls Lacrosse
Clay Target
Girls Track and Field
Boys Track and Field
PAGE 2
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
GIRLS LACROSSE
Spring Sports Spotlight April 2015
A special project of the Northfield News 115 W. Fifth St., Northfield, MN 55057 www.southernminn. com/northfield_news Publisher: Sam Gett Managing Editor: Jerry Smith Sports Editor: Nick Gerhardt Creative Services: Jenny Schoenbauer, Kate Townsend-Noet, Kayla McMullen Sales Associates: Lauran Rott, Joan Koester, Carly Dabroski The Northfield News’ 2015 Spring Sports Spotlight is distributed to subscribers and readers of the Northfield News at no additional charge.
Back with experience By NICK GERHARDT
orthfield enters the second year of varsity lacrosse and is ready to take the next step in its development as a
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program. The Raiders beat Rochester Mayo in the second to last game of the regular season 11-8 to earn the program’s first victory but the team wants to elevate its game this season.
BASEBALL Thursday, April 23 Winona at Northfield, 5 p.m. Saturday, April 25 Farmington at Northfield, 11 a.m., at Memorial Park Hastings at Northfield, 2 p.m., at Memorial Park Tuesday, April 28 Owatonna at Northfield, 5 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Northfield at Mankato East, 7 p.m. Monday, May 4 Northfield at New Prague, 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Mankato West at Northfield, 5 p.m. Thursday, May 7 Northfield at Faribault, 4 p.m., doubleheader Tuesday, May 12 Red Wing at Northfield, 5 p.m. Thursday, May 14 Northfield at Austin, 5 p.m. Friday, May 15
Northfield at Rosemount, 4:15 p.m. Thursday, May 21 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD Saturday, May 23 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD Monday, May 25 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD Saturday, May 30 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD, at Red Wing Tuesday, June 2 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD, at Red Wing GIRLS GOLF Thursday, April 23 Northfield at Red Wing, noon Monday, April 27 Mankato West, Rochester Mayo at Northfield, 2 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Northfield Invite at Willingers Golf Club, 2 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Northfield vs. Albert Lea, Red Wing at Albert Lea Wedgewood Cove Golf Club, 2:30 p.m.
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“Last year was a lot more about how to play and strategy and things,” Northfield senior Rainah Ward said. “This year we can implement a lot of those things in games, which will be good for us.” Raiders head coach Dan Du-
and got beat up. Now they want to hopefully take a step in the right direction.” Northfield graduated just three seniors from last year’s
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2015 SPRING SPORTS SCHEDULES Monday, May 11 Northfield at Cannon Falls Invite, 1 p.m. Tuesday, May 12 Northfield at Red Wing, 12:30 p.m. Northfield at Faribault, 2:30 p.m. Friday, May 15 Northfield at Emerald Greens Golf Course, 2 p.m. Monday, May 18 Big 9 Conference meet, at Rochester Eastwood Golf Course, 10 a.m. Thursday, May 28 Section 1AAA meet, at Cannon Falls Golf Course, TBD Monday, June 1 Section 1AAA meet, at Cannon Falls Golf Course, TBD BOYS GOLF Thursday, April 23 Winona, Owatonna at Northfield, 2 p.m. Tuesday, April 28 Northfield at Rochester Eastwood Golf Course, 2:30 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Mankato West, John Marshall, Austin, Farmington, Hastings, Shakopee, St. Peter at Northfield, 2 p.m.
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Pay is back for his second year of leading the program and he comes back with more knowledge from last season. “They want to win now,” DuPay said. “They’re hungry for it. They went out and had their first year
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Tuesday, May 5 Northfield at Red Wing Golf Club, 2:30 p.m. Friday, May 8 Northfield vs. Mankato East, New Prague, New Ulm, Prior Lake, Chanhassen at LeSueur, 8:30 a.m. Saturday, May 9 Northfield vs. Mankato East, New Prague, New Ulm, Prior Lake, Chanhassen at Creeks Bend, 9 a.m. Thursday, May 14 Century, John Marshall, Faribault at Northfield, 3 p.m. Saturday, May 16 Northfield at Owatonna Invite, 10 a.m. Monday, May 18 Big 9 Conference meet, at Faribault Country Club, 10 a.m. Wednesday, May 20 Apple Valley at Northfield, at Willingers, 3:30 p.m. Saturday, May 30 Section 1AAA meet at The Jewel Golf Club, noon Monday, June 1 Section 1AAA meet at The Jewel Golf Club, TBD
BOYS LACROSSE Thursday, April 23 Chaska at Northfield, 6 p.m. Saturday, April 25 Northfield at Shakopee, 11 a.m. Monday, April 27 Northfield at Robbinsdale Cooper, 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 28 Owatonna at Northfield, 6 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Northfield at Rochester Century, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Shattuck St. Mary’s at Northfield, 6 p.m. Thursday, May 7 Rochester John Marshall at Northfield, 6 p.m. Saturday, May 9 Hutchinson at Northfield, 2:30 p.m. Thursday, May 14 Northfield at Rochester Mayo, 7 p.m.
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PAGE 3
CLAY TARGET
Clay Target grows and succeeds
tBy NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
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NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
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RA
graders and we’ve got girls on the team too. That’s just how big it is right now.” Quiring estimated that around 80 percent of the participants this season participated last season and the rest of the team is made up of new participants. Northfield finished with 470 points out of 500 last season at
IDE R S!
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lay target shooting is the fastest growing sport in r Minnesota and it’s the osame at Northfield. e The Raiders boast 84 boys and girls on this year’s teams and actually had to turn people away.
An additional 10 or so wanted to participate but did not get their paperwork completed in time to join the team, head coach Scott Quiring said. “Right now the clay target league is actually larger than boys high school hockey,” Quiring said. “That’s a little bit of an odd comparison because we’ve got sixth
the Minnesota State High School Clay Target League Championship in Alexandria. Emily Rinas took second in the female junior varsity competition. Rinas completed a perfect round of 25 at the competition as well and finished with 93 points out of 100. Ashton Croy finished with 96 out of 100 at state in the varsity
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male competition. Cole Dornbusch and Matt Gordon each shot 94 out of 100. Jarrett Croy and Lane Dornbusch each had 93s. Max Olson and Luke Schewe each had 92s. Northfield also had multiple athletes with standout performances during the regular season based upon their overall scores. The following athletes are
ranked in the top 25 for Class 5A Conference 1: Katie Brust, Rinas, Makenzie Mathews, Lauryn Sellner, Ashton Croy and Jarrett Croy. Mathews placed seventh at state with an 83 in the junior varsity female competition. Erik Lundstrom shot two
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PAGE 4
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
BOYS GOLF
Raiders aim for consistency By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
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onsistency is the mark of a good golfer and Northfield will need some of that this season after a roller coaster ride of team scores last season. The Raiders fluctuated from a season-low of 331 to a season-
high of 373, a 42-shot difference. Degrees of difficulty across the varying courses the team played on had a role but Northfield also had a rotating cast of players as the No. 1 player. “We were young the last few years,” Raiders head coach Adam Danielson said. “Some of them weren’t ready for the competition
aspect of golf so they would have bad holes or bad parts of their round, which would hurt our overall team score. Hopefully with guys being older and more maturity and being able to manage the course a little more, we’ll see a little more consistency.” Already in the first two meets of the season Northfield has
displayed a smaller variance in scores. The Raiders shot 338 in their first meet of the season and followed that with a 329. Danielson and the rest of the team will want to see scores closer to 329 as the season progresses and eventually lower those scores further to be competitive in the big meets. JP Knutson and Jimmy Fischer shot 81 at Mankato. Knutson has led the team in each of its two meets and shot 80 at Northfield Golf Club in the team’s first meet of the season against Austin. The team will rely on the entire team playing well throughout the season rather than having one player go low in a round and mixing in three other scores for the team. Northfield graduated just one player from last year’s team in Jake Thiel. Thiel was one of two players to make the second day of competition at the Section 1AAA
meet last year. Northfield finished 11th out of 12 teams at the section meet after shooting 348 and did not qualify as a team for the second day of the meet. Senior Andy Carroll was the only other player to reach the second day of the section meet. Carroll shot 86 in his first round of the Section 1AAA tournament and 80 in his second round. Carroll is hoping to pick up where he left off last season and break 80 consistently. “I played in a couple of MGA tournaments where I was shooting mid 70s,” Carroll said. “Hopefully that continues into the spring.” In addition to Carroll, the Raiders will return Jake Noel, Lucas Halvorson, JP Knutson, Jimmy Fischer, Casey Parker and Sam Gainey. “We’ve got a lot of guys knock-
ing on that door of shooting 80 to 85,” Danielson said. Northfield has relied on its depth to be competitive but if it can get a player to emerge as a clear-cut No. 1 it will become a dangerous team. “That will be something to look at this year,” Danielson said. “Do we have a guy that can break 80 and if we do we’ll be very competitive with a lot of teams.” The move to the Big 9 Conference means playing some new courses this season, but the team feels confident it can compete in the top half of the conference. “Conference-wise, we can finish in the top half, top four,” Noel said. “We have to shoot under 330 as a team.” Nick Gerhardt is the Northfield News’ sports editor. You can reach him at 645-1111. Follow him on Twitter @NorthfieldNick.
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
PAGE 5
BOYS LACROSSE
Northfield regroups after losses By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
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he buzz and excitement hasn’t worn off for Northfield, but now the real work begins. The Raiders enter their second year as a varsity sport and face a transition year after graduating 13 seniors from last year’s team that finished 4-9. “I crunched the numbers and we lost 106 saves from (goalie Alex) Novak and we lost 89.5 percent of our scoring from last year,” Northfield head coach Gunnar Olson said. “Obviously it’s going to hurt losing that group of guys.” A combined 12 goals return for Northfield. Jase Simon scored nine of those and had one assist last year. Brandon Foster scored two goals and Chase Marlenee had one goal. All that will mean a different
brand of lacrosse this season for the Raiders. Northfield will have to rely on good defensive play and find a way to generate offense after graduating a pair of 25-goal scorers in Luke Marlenee and Cory Gett. “We’ve refocused our team and I think we’re going to focus on being a defensive team this year,” Olson said. “That’s where our strength is going to be. (Assistant coach) Nils (Haugen) really loves our zone, I do too. It worked well against especially the top-end teams. We’re going to use that zone a lot but we’re going to try to be really agile and move in and out of zone and man.” Replacing Novak in goal this season will be a difficult task. Novak had a .540 save percentage and played a big role in organizing the defense while showing a fearlessness in handling the ball and starting transitions. Max Heil and
Ben Lucas will split time in goal to start the season, Olson said. “It’s going to be a two-man system until someone becomes the clear frontrunner,” Olson said. “They’re both good players but we have to work on some things.” Seniors Jakob Otten and Jackson Schuerman will serve as captains this season for the team. Otten will hold down the midfield and Schuerman will lead the defense. With two younger goalies, Schuerman knows the team will have to play tighter on defense. “We just have to set up the defense a little differently,” Schuerman said. “Instead of letting them take outside shots like we did last year, we just have to press out at them.” Schuerman and Otten, along with Russel Brown, are three players who were among the first group of players Olson coached when he first started coaching
with the club team. “We are the ones who started in ninth grade and we’ve been in it all four years,” Otten said. “It was really cool seeing it go from a club to an actual school sport. I think that’s been the coolest for me.” The team will work on more fundamentals this season as it ushers in a new crop of players
with less experience but it will also focus on learning to recognize situations on the field more easily. “We’re going for high reps as far as stick work and also this year we’re putting in a concentrated effort on the academic side of the game,” Olson said. “We want these guys to really simplify the game
in their minds so when they get out there, they don’t have to worry about a thousand things.” The team will move to Memorial Field for its home games this season, a welcomed move after playing on the football practice field last season. Northfield opened the season with a 13-4 loss against Hastings in Northfield.
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PAGE 6
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
BOYS TENNIS
Raiders return with talent By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
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orthfield returns to the court Thursday with three all-conference players back and some lineup decisions to make on the doubles side. The Raiders have gone 5-2 through their first seven match-
es and have gone 4-1 in the Big 9 Conference. The new crop of doubles players has performed well early after Northfield had to replace its second and third doubles teams and pair Tanner Ruppe with a new partner at No. 1 doubles. Max Olson has moved into the No. 1 doubles team with Ruppe,
while James Miller and Dez Young have held down second doubles. Gage Hofstad and Tim Roback have solidified the lineup at third doubles in their first year of playing in varsity matches. The Raiders finished with a 12-5 record last season and return three all-conference players in seniors Evan Johnson, Andrew
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Johnson and Tanner Ruppe. Evan Johnson finished with a 15-5 record playing at No. 1 singles, Andrew Johnson had a 13-6 record at No. 2 singles, while Ruppe partnered with Ryan Walser-Kuntz at No. 1 doubles last season. WalserKuntz graduated last year and is among the six seniors the team will have to replace from last season. Varsity players Michael Zell and Kevin Kowalewski also graduated last season. “The match is going to come around really quick on Thursday so we’re trying to figure out some lineups right now,” Northfield head coach Mark Johnson said. Sophomore Christof Zweifel returns on the singles side this season after holding down the fourth singles spot last season. Junior Max Nickel returns to the team after splitting time between singles and doubles last season as Olson. The doubles lineup for the
Raiders graduated their third doubles team of Jordan Shimek and Scott Silkensen. “We’re kind of mixing and matching right now as far as trying to figure out lineups and who our six through 10 players will be,” Mark Johnson said. The team’s season came to a close with a 6-1 loss to fifthranked Rochester Mayo. Northfield finished with a 5-2 record in its last season in the Missota Conference. “Our lineup is probably going to change a little bit throughout the season until we get a little more practice under our belt,” Mark Johnson said. “We’re happy with where we’re at. The kids have been working hard at it and you can tell who’s been around the ball in the offseason.” Northfield had success at the junior varsity level last season. Last year’s team went 11-1 and that should bode well as the team
tries to fill out its lineup from last year’s junior varsity players. “I’m happy with where we’re at and looking forward to that first match,” Mark Johnson said. The Raiders will have to contend with the Rochester schools this season, particularly powerhouse Rochester Mayo and the rising squad of Rochester Century. Northfield lost to the Panthers 5-2 earlier this season. The doubles teams of Miller and Young and the team of Hofstad and Roback picked up the only victories for the Raiders in the match. So far the new cast has fit into its roles well for Northfield and that will help set the stage in the future for the team after it graduates three of its core.
Nick Gerhardt is the Northfield News’ sports editor. You can reach him at 645-1111. Follow him on Twitter @NorthfieldNick.
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
PAGE 7
SOFTBALL
Raiders reload with youngsters By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
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orthfield is getting starting shortstop Kate Arneson back this season — she missed all of last season due to an anterior cruciate ligament tear — and that should help shore things up on the infield. The Raiders made 91 errors last season on their way to a 1-17 record and their fielding percentage sat at .826 for the season. Without Arneson, Northfield had to shift players in the infield and give more first-year varsity players an opportunity. “I’ve been looking forward to this for a while,” Arneson said. “I think this year is going to be an improvement from last year, especially since last year for a lot of the girls was their first year of varsity. That can make a huge difference, being comfortable enough
to come back the next year and having that bit of experience.” That added experience will help as the Raiders move to Big 9 Conference competition. Northfield have faced the likes of perennial powers Mankato East and Mankato West this season. “I think we’re definitely heading in the right direction,” Raiders head coach Ryan Pietsch said. “We have a handful of girls back that have a year of experience under their belts.” Northfield turned to younger players this season and those players have responded. Eighth-graders Jillian Noel and Caroline Pritchard have helped carry the offense early on. Noel has hit .474 with 11 RBI through the first six games. Pritchard has hit .400 with five RBI for third on the team for RBI. Freshman Bridget Sullivan is second on the team in RBI with six and is hitting .278 through the
first six games. Sophomore Hannah Johnson has bolstered the lineup as well with a .455 batting average and two RBI. The Raiders are showing some depth in the lineup with three different players tallying four RBI through six games. It’s beginning to appear as though the future will be bright for Northfield for the next several years with such a young core of players coming up this season. Pietsch has options to fill the rest of the infield spots with senior Quinn Hanzlik, who played third base, first base and shortstop last season, junior Erin Holman, who played second and third, along with sophomore Sierra Barck, who played second base last season. Barck also threw 43 2/3 innings last year and finished with a 1-6 record. Barck is the pitcher
with the most experience returning for Northfield. Miranda Woodward threw three innings last season on varsity but saw the majority of the innings on junior varsity. The Raiders have some hitting returning with Hanzlik, who hit .352 with four RBI. Holman finished with the team lead in RBI
with 10 and hit .319. Barck led the team in runs with 10. Northfield struck out 94 times last season as well and that’s something Pietsch wants to see less of this season. “We’ve got to get our strikeout totals down at the plate,” Pietsch said. “Try to draw a few more walks, take pitchers deep in the
count.” The Raiders will have to replace catcher Katie Lloyd, who moved to Prior Lake, Pietsch said. Lloyd hit .250 last season. Nick Gerhardt is the Northfield News’ sports editor. You can reach him at 645-1111. Follow him on Twitter @NorthfieldNick.
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NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
BASEBALL
Raiders ready for run at sections By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
T
he time is now for Northfield. The Raiders feature nine returning seniors this season from a team that reached the Section 1AAA Final Four last year and have the makings of a team ready to compete for a section title.
Northfield, which lost in the section title game in 2013, finished 13-10 last year after a 7-3 loss to Rochester John Marshall in which the Rockets broke a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Raiders stranded 10 runners on base and seven were left in scoring position. Lakeville South, a No. 12 seed, went on to
win the section title with an 8-5 Pete Maus said. “That’s how far team can call on juniors Cameron win over Rochester Mayo. we’ll go.” Gray and Zach Eddy. Northfield has plenty of arms Northfield has opened the Malek has increased his veseason with a 6-1 record and has returning with seniors Cody Pol- locity from last season and is an hit 10 home runs in seven games zin, who went 3-2 with a 3.29 ERA intriguing option. Malek threw 18 while getting good defense. in 34 innings, and Colin Shepley, innings last season and finished As always, success for North- who had a 2-1 record with a 4.45 with a 3.96 ERA. Hwy 3 South, Northfield • getting close to throwfield will depend on pitching. 1101 ERA in 30 innings. Juniors Caleb “He’s 507-663-0236 “We’ll go as far as our pitch- Malek and Chris Antoine ate up ing 90,” Maus said. “We’re hoping NWlast 4th Street, Faribault ing takes us,” Raiders head coach 525 innings year as well and the he fi•nds the strike zone. You need 507-332-7040
somebody throwing 90 to be out there pitching for us.” Malek also led the team in hitting with a .333 average, 25 RBI and two home runs. The team also returns senior infielder Tommy McDonald, who has committed to Minnesota State
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NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
PAGE 9
Schedule: 2015 Northfield High School Sports From Page 2 Monday, May 18 Northfield at Tartan, 7 p.m. Wednesday, May 20 Farmington at Northfield, 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 26 Section 1AA tournament, TBD Friday, May 29 Section 1AA tournament, TBD Tuesday, June 2 Section 1AA tournament, TBD GIRLS LACROSSE Thursday, April 23 Northfield at Chaska, 7 p.m. Saturday, April 25 Northfield at Shakopee, 1 p.m. Monday, April 27 Tartan at Northfield, 6 p.m. Tuesday, April 28 Northfield at Rochester Mayo, 7 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Rochester Century at Northfield, 6 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Northfield at Shattuck St. Mary’s, 6 p.m. Thursday, May 7 Northfield at Rochester John Marshall, 7 p.m. Saturday, May 9 Northfield at Hutchinson, 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 12 Owatonna at Northfield, 6 p.m. Thursday, May 14 Rochester Mayo at Northfield, 6 p.m. Monday, May 18 Northfield at Rochester Century, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 26 Section 1AA tournament, TBD Friday, May 29 Section 1AA tournament, TBD Tuesday, June 2 Section 1AA tournament, TBD
SOFTBALL Thursday, April 23 Northfield at Winona, 5 p.m. Saturday, April 25 Northfield at Farmington, 12:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 28 Northfield at Owatonna, 5 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Mankato East at Northfield, 5 p.m. Monday, May 4 Northfield at Albert Lea, doubleheader, 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Northfield at Mankato West, 5 p.m. Thursday, May 8 Faribault at Northfield, doubleheader, 4 p.m. Tuesday, May 12 Northfield at Red Wing, 5 p.m. Thursday, May 14 Austin at Northfield, 5 p.m. Friday, May 15 Northfield at Rochester Lourdes, 5 p.m. Wednesday, May 20 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD Saturday, May 23 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD, at Austin Tuesday, May 26 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD, at Austin Thursday, May 28 Section 1AAA tournament, TBD, at Austin BOYS TENNIS Thursday, April 23 Northfield at Rochester Mayo, 4:30 p.m. Monday, April 27 Northfield at Farmington, 4:15 p.m. Tuesday, April 28 Northfield at Winona, 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 30 Faribault at Northfield, 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 6 Lakeville South at Northfield, 4:15 p.m. Saturday, May 9
Big 9 Conference tournament, at Rochester, 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 12 Section 1AA team tournament, TBD Thursday, May 14 Section 1AA team tournament, TBD Tuesday, May 19 Section 1AA team tournament, TBD Thursday, May 21 Section 1AA individual tournament, TBD, 9 a.m. Tuesday, May 26 Section 1AA individual tournament, TBD, 9 a.m. TRACK Tuesday, April 28 Boys track: Northfield at Rochester Century, 4:30 p.m. Girls track: Northfield at Mankato East, 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, May 5 Section 1AA True Team, at Lakeville North, 2:15 p.m. Tuesday, May 12 Mayo, Red Wing, Northfield, at Carleton, 3:45 p.m. Friday, May 22 Big 9 Conference meet, at Mankato East, 10:30 a.m. Thursday, May 28 Section 1AA meet at Lakeville South, TBD Saturday, May 30 Section 1AA meet at Lakeville South, TBD CLAY TARGET TEAM Sunday, April 26 Meet, 2 p.m. Sunday, May 3 Meet, 2 p.m. Sunday, May 10 Meet, 2 p.m. Sunday, May 17 Meet, 2 p.m. Saturday, May 30 Meet, 2 p.m. Thursday, June 11 State Tournament, at Alexandria, TBD Saturday, June 20 State tournament at Minneapolis Gun Club, TBD
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PAGE 10
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Girls lacrosse: Raiders regroup for second year From Page 2 squad so the learning curve this season won’t be as steep as last year. The Raiders return leading scorer Brooke Carey from last season, along with Kieran Rodning, Nicole Nelson, Rebecca Soderlund, Piper Nelson and Mariah Casmey, who all contributed offensively last season. “Last year we planted the seed, this year we hope it sprouts,” DuPay said. “I think we have four seniors only this year. Next year we’ll have a huge group of seniors. Hopefully this year we improve a lot and next
year the girls that have been playing for three years will do well as seniors.” Northfield will have to find a replacement for graduated goalie Christina Kuether. Last season, the Raiders used Hannah Edwards in goal at times and others, but it’s a question mark heading into this season. Northfield will emphasize winning more draws this season after struggling in that area last season. It became clear last season to DuPay and the team how important draws become in the game. “That’s one thing last year we
didn’t work on a lot,” DuPay said. “It’s a huge part of the game. If you get the ball, you get control and you have a chance. If you lose the draw and they get the ball and go down and score then you go back to the draw. That’s what happened to us a lot last year is we lost the draw. That’s one thing we really want to work on.” The numbers for the program remain in the 50s this season, DuPay said. The Raiders have enough numbers for three squads this season. “We already know what to expect,” Soderlund said. “We’re just regaining the memory.”
Baseball: Raiders poised for success this year From Page 8 University next year for baseball, along with senior infielder Thomas Meland, who hit .306, and first baseman Adam Rodgers. McDonald led the team in runs with 18 and stole eight bases.
In the outfield, senior center fielder Joey Eckhoff, who hit .307 last year, returns, as does senior outfielders Quinten McGregor, Ethan Finger and Sam Stuckmayer. “We’ve had good years coming up in baseball so we’re hoping senior year can be special,”
Shepley said. With so many returners Northfield can get into a rhythm quickly to start the season. “Section, state all that’s in our minds but just getting better every day is what we’re focusing on,” McDonald said.
GIRLS GOLF
Raiders return to form By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
H
ere’s a fun fact: Northfield has sent at least one golfer to the state meet since 2008. That’s quite the run and now the Raiders will see who becomes the next in the lengthy run. Northfield finished fourth at the Section 1AAA meet behind section champion Lakeville North, Winona and Owatonna. The Raiders shot 736 for the twoday meet and sat in third place after the first day of the tournament. Lakeville North shot 685, Winona finished with 717 and Owatonna shot 726. Ashley Houser qualified for
the state meet last season for Northfield and finished 65th in her final career meet. Raiders senior Laine Fischer might become the next senior to reach the state meet. Fischer shot 87 on the first day of the section meet and held a spot in the top 10, but shot 92 on the second day of the meet to miss qualifying. Fischer played on the Northfield team that qualified for state when she was in eighth grade. “I think she would probably say she was rounding out the roster but that’s not how I viewed it at the time,” Raiders head coach Brian Stevens said. “We were really building her for something later on and this is that later on for her.”
Northfield returns junior Elizabeth Schwartz, along with seniors McKenzie Hasse, Molly Gainey and Schuller Pavek, who all contributed to the top varsity four last season. Gainey played some of her best golf of the season in the section meet with a season-low 94 on the first round, while Schwartz and Hasse consistently contributed. “We have four seniors which is really nice,” Fischer said. Having four seniors with that much experience is somewhat of a luxury for Stevens. “I’m so excited to have that many seniors that know the ropes, they know the process,” Stevens said. “These four have been playing since seventh grade.”
Clay: Clay target team rising and succeeding From Page 3 consecutive perfect rounds and finished 50-for-50 last year at a competition for the Raiders. Cameron Running recorded a perfect round, going 25-for-25 and Olson completed a perfect
round last year. “I’m really hoping that we can put some nice scores up so that we can compete in the conference we’re with,” Quiring said. Northfield’s novice team took seventh at state last year and its junior varsity finished 12th.
The Raiders compete on Sundays at the Morristown Gun Club. Nick Gerhardt is the Northfield News’ sports editor. You can reach him at 645-1111. Follow him on Twitter @NorthfieldNick.
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Northfield News
NorthfieldNews.com
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
PAGE 11
GIRLS TRACK
BOYS TRACK
Pole vaulters set bar high
Raiders go the distance
By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
N
NORTHFIELD SPRING SPORTS
orthfield seniors Lexi Kiefer and Christy Anderson have helped make the Raiders one of the best pole vaulting teams in the state and head coach Troy Cohrs hopes their accomplishments forge a legacy. Kiefer took second at the Class 2A state meet last season and Anderson finished 13th as a freshman at the state meet. Together the two competed in the Hamline Elite meet last season. “I’m hopeful that they can leave a legacy of sorts when they graduate, not in what they have done for us as a team and themselves individually, for the younger girls to keeping this going,” Cohrs said. “Northfield girls pole vaulting. I’d like it to be a tradition.” Northfield competed in its first meet of the season last Tuesday in Owatonna. Three additional girls started pole vaulting this season after Anderson and Kiefer were the only two who vaulted last year. Kiefer, a University of Minnesota recruit, went on to place second at the USA Track and Field National Junior Olympic Championships last summer and cleared
13 feet at the regional meet. The Minnesota Class 2A record for pole vault is 13 feet, set by Rochester Century’s Andi Jacobs in 2013. Jacobs won the Class 2A title last season and returns for her senior season this year. “I still have a lot of goals like going to state and breaking my school record,” Kiefer said. Kiefer’s school-record height is 11-9. She said hitting 13-6 is a goal this season. “If I don’t make that, I’m not going to be upset,” Kiefer said. “I just want to get better. If my focus is going to be on my run and I improve my run, that will be a successful season for me even if it doesn’t compute to a specific height.” Anderson finished fifth last season at the Section1AA meet with a height of 9-6. “Christy’s been really solid for four years,” Raiders pole vault coach Karl Viesselman said. “We hope to improve this year. We hope this is the year we get better, a lot better.” On the track, Northfield sent its 4x100-meter relay to state last season and Kaia Bierman took fifth in the 800-meter run in her senior year. Anna Pfefferle and Abby Stets ran two of the legs of the relay and graduated last
spring, but the Raiders return sophomores Mya Jirik and Emma Rezac to the relay. “I know we have the numbers to replace them and I’m confident we can at least put one of them together and have another shot at state,” Cohrs said. Jirik finished third at the Section 1AA meet in the 100-meter dash last season, while junior MacKenzie Vermeire took eighth in the 400. In the distance events, sophomore Marissa Thornton and senior Savannah Dimick will lead the team. Thornton finished 16th in the 1,600-meter run and Dimick took 18th last season at the section meet. Northfield has to replace three of its legs in the 4x400 relay and just one on its 4x800 relay that finished sixth at the section meet. Junior Siri Olson returns this season in the throws after taking 12th in the shot put at the section meet. “I think what I like best about this season is it’s not even so much coach them up as it is discover new talent,” Cohrs said. “We do have a lot of young girls and we want to keep them out. The fun part now is just trying to find out what they do best.”
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Northfield News
NorthfieldNews.com
By NICK GERHARDT
ngerhardt@northfieldnews.com
N
orthfield boys track and field head coach Scott Peterson begins his first season at the helm this spring and with it he’ll get a fresh look at some of the athletes on the roster. Peterson spent the first week of practice testing the team in different events to gauge where athletes will fit best. With a young team and newcomers this season, there’s a lot to learn about the team. “It’s going to take us a few more weeks to see where we’re going to be able to fill out the lineup, where we’re going to be the strongest,” Peterson said. “Because of our youth and the size of our team, the kids are going to have to be flexible. They’re
going to have to do multiple events every single meet in some events they might not be used to doing.” The Raiders competed in their first meet last Tuesday in Mankato. Northfield has experience coming back in the distance events with Corbin Godfrey, Adam Kasper, Lars Ripley and Clay Quiring returning. All four ran cross-country in the fall and will help lead the track team this spring. Godfrey finished eighth last year in the 1,600-meter run at the Section 1AA meet. Northfield junior Alex Stanton will compete in the pole vault this season along with some sprints and relays. Stanton ran a leg of the 4x100-meter
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relay team that finished eighth at the section meet and is one of three returners to the relay. Jacob Vesledahl and Armando Noel also return. The 4x400 relay team of Kasper, junior Will Clark, junior Ben Mohlke and junior Isaac Stadler remains intact after taking 12th at the section meet. The 4x800 relay team returns three of its legs with Kasper, Quiring and Ripley. The relay finished 15th last season. “We’ve got some younger guys that we think are really going to be able to helps us in the throws and the jumps,” Peterson said. “It will be an interesting season to see how we all put it together.” Peterson has 44 athletes on the roster this season and only seven seniors.
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