Lots O’ Stuff
After an absence, Lots O’ Stuff returns. A big item in this space is to provide updates on area student-athletes competing on levels beyond the high school ranks while also covering some other items as well.
And it’s usually capped off by something completely different.
Here we go.
Area graduates
Two Jackson County Central graduates got their college volleyball seasons started this weekend.
Alicia Brandt is a 6-foot senior middle blocker at Waldorf University. She had nine kills and five blocks for the Warriors in a 3-1 win over Culver-Stockton Saturday in Canton, Missouri.
On Friday Waldorf lost twice in Fulton, Missouri, falling 3-0 to host William Woods and 3-1 to Mount Mercy. For the weekend, Brandt had 13 kills and seven blocks.
The Warriors play a pair of matches in Peru, Neb. next Saturday, facing host Peru State and Bethany (Kan.).
Emma Haren, a freshman outside hitter at Morningside, hit a team-high .556 and had six kills Saturday night in a 3-0 win over Arizona Christian in Caldwell, Idaho.
In four matches this weekend she had 19 kills and nine blocks for the Mustangs, who went 3-1, with the loss coming to NAIA No. 3 Eastern Oregon.
Morningside plays four matches at the GoSarpy.com Classic in Bellevue, Neb. next weekend, facing Goshen (Ind.) and Ottawa (Kan.) Friday and John Brown (Ark.) University and Saint Mary (Kan.) Saturday.
Heron Lake-Okabena-Lakefield graduate Lindsay (Voss) Wilber is in her 10th season as head volleyball coach at Dakota Wesleyan University. The Tigers opened their season going 1-3 in Montana.
DWU is at Dakota State next Saturday.
As we’ve written about, Lindsay’s husband, Matt Wilber, is an assistant coach with the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA. The Mercury are 1-1 since returning to play following the Olympic break, including a 98-89 loss to Caitlin Clark and the Indiana Fever before a crowd of 17,274 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
Phoenix, 14-13 on the season and sixth in the 12-team WNBA, hosts Chicago Sunday night and then plays back-to-back games at Atlanta Wednesday and Friday.
As the fall season gets going in full gear, we’ll try to track how local graduates are doing on the collegiate level. Following are some other local graduates that I’m aware of competing or coaching in college. Some schools have not updated their websites for the new season yet.
If there’s someone you know that should be added to the list, let me know at sportsdr44@hotmail.com.
Michelle (Van Epps) Aggen, JCC, Director of Volleyball Operations, Iowa State
Alyssa (Taylor) Maiers, Gustavus, Associate Volleyball Head Coach
Megan Bezdicek, assistant coach, Minnesota State volleyball
Alaina Wolff, 5-6 senior defensive specialist, South Dakota volleyball
Sadie Voss, 5-9 junior outside hitter, University of Sioux Falls volleyball
Elese Paplow, 5-5 freshman setter, Northwestern (St. Paul) volleyball
Laura Thompson, junior, Augustana cross country
Salute to Service
JCC will be hosting “Salute to Service” Day at its home game vs. Minnesota Valley Lutheran on Saturday, Oct. 5. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.
The team and the Jackson County Central School District will salute active service personnel and veterans of the Armed Forces that day.
Veterans and active Armed Forces personnel will receive free admission and will be recognized at the game.
Windom football
The Windom football team has a new head coach this season.
According to Joel Alvstad of the Cottonwood County Citizen, coach Adam Farag resigned in a surprising move last month.
Farag coached the Eagles for two seasons, going 0-9 in 2022 and 3-7 last season. That was the most victories in a season since going 3-6 in 2017 and Windom won a section playoff game for the first time since 2015.
The Eagles played a schedule of mostly Class 1A teams but played in Section 3AA for the postseason in 2023 and will do the same this year.
Wyatt Minion is the Eagles’ head coach this season.
Windom is creating a temporary home football/soccer field inside the current track at WAHS. Windom student-athletes are part of a cooperatively sponsored soccer program with St. James Area and Madelia.
The jump areas inside the track have been removed, filled and sodded and relocated to an area outside the track.
A small, temporary scoreboard will be used. The school is exploring bringing in temporary light towers to allow for night games. The school’s website does list all home games as 7 p.m. kickoffs.
Here’s Liberace and the Young Folk on the Red Skelton Show.
Young Folk was apparently the name of the group that appeared on the show weekly to appeal to younger viewers.
Ultimately the Skelton Show was the first victim of the “Rural Purge” on CBS that would go on to claim rural-themed shows Mayberry R.F.D., The Beverly Hillbillies, Petticoat Junction, and Green Acres, despite all still doing well in the ratings.