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Sports Memories by Tom Jones

10 years

• The Albert Lea Figure Skating team placed third at the Omaha Winter Festival. Placing in the top three of their events were Carine Rofshus, Charley Fleek, Emma Tewes, Cammy Tewes, Dani Helland, Tierney Murtaugh and Christy Crom.
• Carlie Wagner scored 53 points to lead the NRHEG girls’ basketball team to a 100-68 win over Pequot Lakes at the Class AA semi-final state tournament game played at Mariucci Arena.
• The Ball Busters won the bronze division of the Albert Lea Parks and Recreation volleyball tournament. Team members included Matthew Rankin, Julie Jones, Danielle Boss, Ashley Haase, Brett Haase and Kevin LaFrance.

20 years

• The Warroad boys’ hockey team took home the Class A state consolation championship with a 9-0 victory over the Albert Lea Tigers. The Tigers finished the regular season 20-11 and were the first team in school history to play in the state hockey tournament.
• The NRHEG girls’ basketball team advanced to the semi-final round of the state tournament with a 49-47 win over Crosby-Ironton in a game played at Target Center. Alison Anderson scored 14 points to lead the Panthers with Erin Anderson adding 12.
• Seniors Bed Woodside and Stephen Thorn were named to the Big Nine All-Conference boys’ basketball team. Junior Mike Behrends and sophomore Parker Skophammer received honorable mention.
• Albert Lea boys’ assistant hockey coach David Nystrom was named Section 1A Assistant Coach of the Year.

50 years

• Quarterback Jay Gustafson of Albert Lea, who had finished his collegiate football career at the University of North Dakota was offered a pro football tryout with the British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League. He was believed to be the first Tiger to be offered a professional tryout since the program’s inception in 1913.
• Over 1,300 fans turned out at the new Riverside Arena in Austin where they saw the Endres Rangers men’s hockey team lose 5-2 to the Austin Arrows in the Southern Minnesota League championship game. Gary Hillman and Tom Baas scored the only goals for the Rangers, who finished with a league record of 7-5.
• John Speltz of Albert Lea took sixth place in the 100-yard breaststroke and fifth place in the 200-yard breaststroke to help St. John’s University to a third-place finish in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference swimming meet.
• Jeff Jiminez, a member of the Quik Stop youth hockey team, was one of many boys and girls hockey players who was hitting the streets selling candy with proceeds going to the youth hockey program.
• In the opening round of the NCAA Hockey Tournament played in Boston, the University of Minnesota defeated Boston College 5-4. Mike Polich scored a short-handed goal with 13 seconds left in the game to give the Gophers the victory.
• Albert Lea Tigers gymnast Tim Flugum finished 14th on the rings with a score of 76.25 at the Minnesota State Hish School League’s state gymnastics meet held in Minneapolis.
• Coaches Dennis Colstrup and Jim Wodash led the Albert Lea bantam hockey team to a first-place finish at the Waterloo Junior Hawks Tournament. Butch Harves’ midget team also brought home first place while Jack Swanson’s squirts team earned a runner-up plaque.

A look back

To determine the best female basketball shooter at a G.A.A. meeting in 1941, a contest was held with sophomore Bernadine Meuser outshooting all the other girls with 13 baskets out of 25 attempts from the free throw line.