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Sunday, June 1, 2008
If You Blinked…
St. Paul, MN
By: Tim McNiff, KARE Channel 11
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Photo(s) By: Kyle Danztler/MyActionPortraits.com
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It’s not as if I’ve done a Rip Van Winkle…What do you mean “Who’s Rip Van Winkle?” Rip was that guy who supposedly fell asleep and woke up an old man. While I feel like I have the “old man” part covered, I hardly slept through the ’07-08 prep sports season. I just find it really hard to believe that it’s already coming to and end, and I wonder what we’ll see next year. It’s been great being a part of HSSTM/VYPE’s first season covering the teams and schools in Minnesota. While I don’t want it to come to an end, I also look forward to what the future has in store.
Teams from the north suburban metro were well represented at all levels this year. Some turned in performances that put their respective schools on the map, while other programs served notice that they had achieved powerhouse status. And for others, their season would witness a return to glory. One program that has separated itself from the competition is the girls gymnastics team from Roseville. The Raiders Class AA state title was their third consecutive and they claimed that crown in convincing fashion. It was a north suburban sweep in the large school classification in Nordic skiing. While the girls from Stillwater Area were on their way to their school’s eighth state title, the Forest Lake boys were establishing themselves by winning their third state title in the last four years.
In boys hockey, the state titles went to two schools that have become arch rivals. Both St. Thomas Academy and Hill-Murray are parochial schools with relatively small enrollments that play in the same conference; however, when it comes to tourney time the Pioneers play, as they always have, in the Class AA tournament, while the Cadets play for the Class A hardware because of their smaller school size. In both cases, each team proved to be superior to their competition. The Cadets mauled Duluth-Marshall in the Class A final, while Hill-Murray returned to the top of the Class AA by dominating Edina.
Of course, not every team gets to celebrate at seasons end. St. Thomas got bumped by Benilde-St. Margaret’s in a rematch of the boys Class A hoops final, while Henry Sibley couldn’t hold on to a sizeable first half lead against Minnetonka in the boys Class AA final. But, perhaps no team suffered a more memorable state final setback than the Mahtomedi football team. In one of the most dramatic, if not simply the best AAAA finals in state history, the Zephyrs drove the length of the field, scored and added a 2-point conversion in the games final minutes; however, the Zephyrs were undone by a last-second touchdown on a deflected pass and saw their state title carted off by Totino-Grace instead.
It was certainly a year to remember and will be remembered most by those who took part. Most kids get involved in sports knowing that a state championship is not in the cards, but they join anyway. All want to win, but there’s something bigger involved; the opportunity to compete, to test yourself, to play with your friends and first and foremost, a final opportunity to play competitive sports. Now, we not only head into the summer, but for many athletes and many school programs, into a season of uncertainty. These are difficult economic times and money is tight at all levels and in most homes. Activity fees, already many times higher then some of us were ever forced to pay, are sure to be higher still in the fall. In some cases, some sports and other extra curricular programs are in danger of being eliminated all together.
So, as you head out for the summer remember not only those moments that headlined the prep sports season, but remember also that it is moments like these that transcend daily life, galvanize a school if not an entire community and give us all something to get through difficult times like we’re experiencing right now. Don’t sleep through the debate that is sure to ensue in school districts in your area and do what you can to ensure that next year at this time we can once again look back at another year of remarkable accomplishments both on the field of competition and in the classroom.
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