K-Heart Sports – 01/20/24

K-HEART SPORTS – SATURDAY – 01/20/24
 

MINOT, ND – #5 Nedrose held off Des Lacs-Burlington 38-36 last night in a Class A, Region 3 girl’s basketball game we broadcast on K-Heart. The Cardinals had won their meeting about two weeks ago by 16 points, but this time it was close throughout with the largest lead of the night by Nedrose at 7 points. The Lady Lakers had several opportunities in the final seconds to either tie, or get the win, with a made basket, but they couldn’t convert. Maecey McKibbin was the only player to reach double-figures as she led the Cardinals with 11 points. Lilly Nelson and Ashley Roberts each added 8 points as Nedrose moves to 13-1 overall, 1-0 in Region 3. Des Lacs-Burlington was led by Logan Ystaas with 8 points, while Zannah Bjerklie scored 7. The Lady Lakers fall to 9-5 overall, 0-2 in Region 3.
 
Other scores from the area:
 
High School Girls Basketball
 
Class AA
#1 Minot High def. #4 Bismarck Legacy, 60-52
#2 Bismarck Century def. Bismarck High, 58-38
Mandan def. Bismarck St. Mary’s, 82-59
Jamestown def. Dickinson, 70-62 OT
 
Class A
#1 Thompson def. #4 Devils Lake, 50-29
#2 Bottineau def. Rugby, 57-36
#5 Nedrose def. Des Lacs-Burlington, 38-36
Shiloh Christian def. Watford City, 52-41
Turtle Mountain def. New Town, 62-26
Standing Rock def. Dunseith, 44-39
 
Class B
#7 Kenmare-Bowbells def. Powers Lake-Burke Central, 46-23
Garrison def. Wilton-Wing, 63-36
Trenton def. North Shore-Plaza, 67-14
Divide County def. Ray, 55-34
Washburn def. Richardton-Taylor, 50-42
 
 
High School Boys Basketball
 
Class AA
#1 Minot High def. Bismarck Legacy, 74-61
Bismarck High def. #2 Bismarck Century, 103-61
Mandan def. Bismarck St. Mary’s, 83-63
Dickinson def. Jamestown, 91-68
 
Class A
Dickinson Trinity def. Hazen, 56-36
 
Devils Lake Shootout
#2 Four Winds-MInnewaukan def. Turtle Mountain, 71-37
#3 Devils Lake def. Shiloh Christian, 77-56
Rugby def. Valley City, 56-50
#5 Beulah def. Central Cass, 75-72
#1 Kindred def. Stanley, 54-37
 
Class B
#3 Westhope-Newburg def. Harvey-Wells County, 68-28
#5 Bishop Ryan def. Surrey, 54-32
Velva def. Our Redeemer’s, 77-76 OT
T-G-U def. Glenburn, 73-39
Ray def. Divide County, 60-31
New Salem-Almont def. Central McLean, 50-38
 

High School Boys Hockey
Jamestown def. Minot High, 3-2 OT
Bottineau-Rugby def. Hazen-Beulah, 5-2
Bismarck Century def. Williston, 7-2
 

High School Girls Hockey
Devils Lake def. Minot High, 2-1 SO
Jamestown def. Dickinson, 3-0
Fargo Davies def. Bismarck High-Legacy, 4-1
Grand Forks def. Williston, 2-1
West Fargo United def. Mandan, 2-0
 

High School Girls Gymnastics
 
Mandan Starstruck Invite
1. Bismarck Century, 136.125
2. Mandan, 134.100
3. Grand Forks, 133.750
4. Bismarck Legacy, 129.250
5. Northwest Stars, 123.725
6. Breckenridge-Wahpeton, 122.525
7. Minot High, 103.400
8. Bismarck High, 99.550
 
All-Around Winner: Taryn Swanson of Grand Forks, 36.075
 

High School Boys Swimming & Diving
Minot High def. Grand Forks, 101-85
Minot High def. West Fargo, 95-91
 

High School Boys Wrestling
 
Metro Duals – Fargo (Day one results)
Minot High def. Devils Lake, 43-26
Minot High def. West Fargo, 58-10
West Fargo Sheyenne def. Minot High, 39-21
Minot High def. Moorhead MN, 45-22
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MSU MENS BASKETBALL
 
MINOT, ND (MSU) – Fresh off making history earlier this week by earning a first-ever NCAA Top 25 ranking, the Beavers added to that history with their first upset of a No. 1 nationally ranked foe. And, Minot State added in career win No. 200 for head coach Matt Murken in the process. Connor Hollenbeck registered a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds to lead the 21st-ranked Minot State men’s basketball team over the No. 1 Minnesota State, Mankato Mavericks 81-71 at the MSU Dome on Friday in front of more than 2,000 boisterous Beaver fans in NSIC action. The Beavers (14-3 overall, 9-2 NSIC) had four players score in double figures, led by Hollenbeck, who notched a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds. Khari Broadway tacked on 12 points and six assists and Jaxon Gunville chipped in as well with 11 points and two blocks. The Minot State offense was very productive from three-point land, making 10 threes on 22 attempts. Gunville was the most prolific shooter for the Beavers, draining three treys in the contest. Minot State did a great job disrupting Minnesota State shots in the contest, coming away with five blocks. Gunville led the way individually for the Beavers with two rejections.
 
After jumping out to a 15-6 advantage, Minot State went on an 8-0 run with 12:32 left in the first half, culminating in a three from Gunville, to increase its lead to 23-6. The Beavers then lost some of that lead, but still entered halftime with a 42-29 advantage. Minot State got a great contribution from its bench in the period, as non-starters accounted for 11 of its 42 total points. Minot State kept its lead intact before going on a 9-0 run, finished off by Gunville’s three, to grow the lead to 62-45 with 9:36 to go in the contest. The Mavericks narrowed the margin somewhat before the game was over, but the Beavers still cruised the rest of the way for the 81-71 win. Minot State got out on the break in the period, scoring nine fast-break points.
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MSU WOMENS BASKETBALL
 
MINOT, N.D. (MSU) – Taylor Goss collected 24 points and Sydney Gustavsson added 21, but the Minot State women’s basketball team fell to the visiting Minnesota State, Mankato Mavericks 87-72 at the MSU Dome on Friday in NSIC action. Goss and Gustavsson’s stellar scoring performances led the Beavers (5-15 overall, 2-9 NSIC) in the contest. Goss tacked on five rebounds and Gustavsson added five assists. Emily Srejma also helped out with 10 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Minot State shared the ball well in Friday’s game, racking up 24 assists on 29 made field goals. Srejma’s seven assists led the Beavers. Minot State struggled out of the gate, falling behind 25-18 at the end of the first quarter. The Beavers continued to lose ground in the second quarter and faced a 49-35 halftime deficit. After intermission, Minot State cut its deficit to 53-41 before going on a 5-0 run, punctuated by a basket from Gustavsson, to trim its deficit to 53-46 with 5:43 to go in the third. Minnesota State countered and stretched its lead to 65-53 heading into the fourth. Minot State played well near the basket, scoring 10 of its 18 points in the paint. Minot State could not pull any closer in the fourth, losing by a final of 87-72. Minot State pulled down four offensive rebounds to score three second-chance points out of 19 total in the period.
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MSU MENS HOCKEY
 
FREMONT, NE. (MSU) – In a game where they got better as it rolled along, the Minot State men’s hockey team took care of business once again as they were on the road to take on the Midland Warriors. The Beavers (21-4-0) defeated the Warriors (9-14-1) by a final score of 8-2 behind a strong effort all around. Minot State scored twice in the opening frame, followed by a stretch of four goals in nearly a five-minute span during the second period, and two on the power play to close out the game. Six goals ended up being the biggest lead of the night as Midland countered with their only two tallies halfway through the middle frame. Minot State filled the net and did not stop on a night where they outshot the Warriors 46-18. Leading goal scorer Reid Arnold did what he does best as he registered two more goals to improve his season total to 16. Troy Hamilton is right behind him after getting his 13th of the year. Logan Rands, Brayden Pawluk, Reece Henry, and Joey Moffatt also scored for the Beavers in the win. Carter Barley was excellent at setting up his teammates, with three assists for the captain. Jake Anthony returned in net for the Beavers after some time off, as he picked up 16 saves on 18 shots. Minot State played well defensively in front of him, only allowing one shot on net in the final period of regulation. Both teams will meet again today for a 7:30 p.m. (CT) puck drop.
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MSU WOMENS HOCKEY
 
MINOT, N.D. (MSU) – Despite a strong effort early on from the Beavers, the first period proved to be a killer one as Minot State women’s hockey returned to action for the first time in over a month. Their first game of 2024 was a big test against the No. 1 nationally ranked Midland Warriors. The No. 8 Beavers (11-10-0) fell to Midland University (21-0-1) by a final score of 4-2. Period one was scoreless for almost halfway through until Midland struck twice in less than four minutes to round out the action after 20 minutes. Scoring would turn out back-and-forth the rest of the game, with Minot State getting the first goal in the second and third periods to cut multiple Midland leads down to one. In the end, MSU could not find the equalizer as Midland’s 2-0 lead proved to be a major difference maker. The Warriors were able to match the Beavers goal-for-goal for the remainder of the game. Midland now has their fifth straight victory over the Beavers this season following their meeting in the 2023 ACHA National Tournament semifinals. Olivia Kirwan and Krissy Rink tallied the lone goals for the Beavers. For Kirwan, it was her second of the year. In a short-handed breakaway, Rink collected her sixth and took over the top spot in goals scored on the team. As far as good news goes for Minot State, Haylie Biever made her first start in net coming off injury. She grabbed 28 saves on 32 shots. The Beavers six-game winning streak came to an end tonight at the hands of Midland. Both teams will meet again today at Maysa Arena for a 7:30 p.m. (CT) puck drop.
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UND HOCKEY
 
ST. CLOUD, Minn. (UND) – Senior goaltender Ludvig Persson stopped 34 shots to help No. 6/7 North Dakota defeat No. 13 St. Cloud State, 5-3, on Friday night from the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center in St. Cloud, Minn. The goaltender was stellar in his return to the net, stopping a season-best 34-of-37 fired his way to help the Fighting Hawks (16-6-1, 7-4-0 NCHC) vault into first place in the conference standings with 25 points and give the visitors only their second win in the last nine games in St. Cloud. Sophomore forward Jackson Blake exploded for a pair of goals and an assist for his sixth game of the season with three points while extending his point streak to five straight. Forwards Cameron Berg (1G, 1A) and Owen McLaughlin (2A) also notched multi-point outings while defenseman Jake Livanavage dished out a pair of helpers for his second-career game with two assists. North Dakota will go for the series and season sweep over St. Cloud State tonight at 6:07 p.m. from the HBNHC.
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MINOTAUROS
 
MINOT, ND – The Minot Minotauros scored a shutout win in Aberdeen last night with a 3-0 tally over the Wings. Niklas Ketonen got the Tauros on the board in the first period, while Nicholas Sewecke and Trevor Stachowiak added third period scores. Lukas Swedin made 27 saves for the Tauros who increase their lead in the NAHL Central Division to 13 points over Bismarck. The Tauros will try to complete the weekend sweep over the Wings tonight in Aberdeen.
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WILD-PANTHERS
 
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Kirill Kaprizov scored two of Minnesota’s five power-play goals, Ryan Hartman also had two goals, and the Wild beat the slumping Florida Panthers 6-4 on Friday night. Joel Eriksson Ek and Mats Zuccarello also had power-play goals for the Wild. Brock Faber had three assists and Matt Boldy had two. Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 10 of 11 shots he faced before leaving due to an injury with 9:28 left in the second period. Filip Gustavsson came on and finished with 21 saves to get the win. Aaron Ekblad, Eetu Luostarinen, Anton Lundell and Gustav Forsling scored for Florida, which lost its fourth straight for the first time this season. The five power-play goals allowed tied a Panthers record, done three times previously — the last in 2006. It also matched the most by any team in the NHL this season; Dallas scored five on the way to beating Minnesota 8-3 on Nov. 12. The Wild play at Carolina on Sunday.
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VIKINGS-COUSINS
 
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Kirk Cousins plans to be ready to return for practice in the spring wherever he ends up playing next season. Cousins continues progressing from a torn Achilles tendon that ended his season after eight games. He’s set to become a free agent following six years with the Minnesota Vikings but the team wants him back and the feeling is mutual. “My expectation is that I’ll be able to practice during OTAs as normal,” Cousins told the AP on Wednesday. “But the question will be, is it worth it? And so you have to weigh that a little bit. But my goal would be that I’m saying I can go and you guys are going to have to stop me because I feel that good. If I’m not allowed into the full-team drills, I know I can do basically a full-speed practice on the field next to it is pretty much my goal. But 7-on-7, there’s nobody around you. It’s a safe drill. So at a minimum, I would think that’s a drill that, as a pocket-passing quarterback, would be very doable. And that’s kind of the beauty of the Achilles injury is that you can get back and you can get going again in a way that isn’t as crippling as if it was a back injury or something that’s a little more critical, like your shoulder or your elbow.”
 
Cousins called his recovery “a real positive process” and said the healing is on track. He spoke with Aaron Rodgers prior to having surgery. Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon in the first quarter of the first game and was able to return to practice just 77 days later but he wasn’t cleared to play and the New York Jets were out of the playoff race anyway. “He obviously kind of blazed the trail with being able to get back on the practice field so quickly and kind of set a high bar,” Cousins said. “I think he’s given me and a lot of people who have torn their Achilles a lot of hope and encouragement that it can be a quick return and you can be back to your old self without really too much lost time. Hopefully both of us are playing next year and we don’t even remember that we tore it a year ago.”
 
Cousins threw for 2,331 yards with 18 touchdowns and five interceptions, finishing third in the NFL in passer rating (103.8). He led the Vikings to a 4-4 record before he was injured. The team went 3-6 with Joshua Dobbs, Nick Mullens and Jaren Hall starting in his place. Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah already said he wants Cousins to return and plans to offer him a new contract. Coach Kevin O’Connell and star wide receiver Justin Jefferson also made it clear they want Cousins in purple and gold. “I appreciate their support, and the feelings are mutual in terms of being so grateful that I’ve gotten to play with Justin and been coached by the great coaches I’ve had,” Cousins said. “So, it goes both ways. And, I think that’s part of the feeling in Minnesota for a while has been we have a good locker room and we all really enjoy the group we have and the work we’ve done together.” Cousins, who turns 36 before next season, can’t be franchise-tagged. He said winning will be his priority as he determines his future. “That will kind of always be the priority but what’s interesting is how unpredictable winning can be,” he said. “There are teams every year that you think should be in the Super Bowl, and they don’t even make the playoffs. And then there’s teams that you think had no business making the playoffs and they’re making it to the second or third round.”
 
Cousins, a favorite among fans and teammates, has been showing a fun side to his personality in recent years from going shirtless with a thick gold chain around his neck to singing a duet with Kelly Clarkson in a tribute to Tom Brady at the “NFL Honors” show last year. Now, Cousins is swapping his helmet for a chef’s hat, partnering with Tostitos to give fans a chance to win a Super Bowl experience that includes tickets to the game and and a VIP reservation at Tost by Tostitos with tableside service by the four-time Pro Bowl QB. “I’ll be showing up to prepare and serve the food at the restaurant, so it should be a lot of fun,” Cousins said.
 
 

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