MINOT, ND – Central Cass completed an defeated season defeating Shiloh Christian in the State Class B Boys Basketball Tournament championship. The Squirrels finished 26-0 and swept both the boys and girls B Tournaments in 2023.

 

 

State Tournament – Bismarck Event Center
7th Place
Medina-Pingree-Buchanan def. Warwick, 68-51
5th Place
#4 Thompson def. Powers Lake-Burke Central, 72-61
3rd Place
#3 Beulah def. #5 Des Lacs-Burlington, 66-57
Championship
#1 Central Cass def. #2 Shiloh Christian, 61-44

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NORTH DAKOTA MR. BASKETBALL

 

MINOT, ND – Minot High senior standout Darik Dissette was named North Dakota Associated Press Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association Mr. Basketball on Saturday. The North Dakota Mr. Basketball Award is presented and voted on by members of the the North Dakota Associated Press Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association. The honor is given to the top senior player in the state. Finalists for the 2023 ND Mr. Basketball Award were Dissette, Dickinson’s Alex Dvorak, Powers Lake-Burke Central’s Tyson Enget, Bismarck Century’s Ryan Erikson, Grand Forks Red River’s Zach Kraft and North Border’s Ayden Stainbrook. Dissette, who is signed to play men’s basketball at North Dakota State University, averaged 27.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game this season for the Magicians. Dissette finished his prep career with 1,754 points, which is the Minot High program record for career scoring.

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MINOT MINOTAUROS

 

MINOT, ND (MINOTAUROS) – The two games between the Minot Minotauros and the St Cloud Norsemen this weekend were almost mirror images, at least scoreline-wise. The Norsemen rescued a weekend split with a 3-1 victory Saturday night after the Tauros opened the weekend with a 4-1 win Friday night. The Tauros, courtesy of the weekend split, find themselves still in fifth in the Central Division at 25-25-1-1 with 52 points and three points back of fourth-place Aberdeen Wings. Next up the Minotauros hit the road on back-to-back weekends with a chance to pull themselves back into the playoff picture. Next weekend the Tauros are in North Iowa and then the weekend after the Tauros head to Aberdeen.

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MINOT STATE WOMEN’S HOCKEY

 

BOSTON, Mass. (MSU) – For the second time in two games at nationals, Jordan Kulbida twice found the back of the net for Minot State. The recently named ACHA Second-Team All-American scored a short-handed goal to open the scoring, then added a late insurance goal as the third-ranked Minot State Beavers netted a 3-1 win over No. 6 Maryville (Mo.) in the quarterfinals Saturday afternoon at the ACHA Division I Women’s National Tournament. The Beavers (23-10-2 overall) next play a semifinal game on Sunday at 3 p.m. (Ct) against Midland (Neb.).

 

Kulbida put Minot State on the board with her third of the National Tournament with 9 minutes, 22 seconds gone in the second period, a short-handed goal assisted by Denali Sigurdson. That lead lasted for just over four minutes before the Beavers added to it with a power-play goal that proved to be the game winner. With 6:30 left in the second, Gillian Gervin scored her first of the National Tournament for a 2-0 lead off assists from Ensley Fendelet and Sydney Spicer. There it stayed as Minot State goalie Haylie Biever kept the Saints off the scoreboard almost the entire way. Minot State added one more, though, as Kulbida scored an unassisted goal with 3:51 left to play for her fourth of the weekend in Massachusetts. The only blemish on the day ended up being a power-play goal by Maryville with 33 seconds left on the clock, spoiling the shutout bid for Biever, who finished the game with 25 saves.

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MINOT STATE WOMEN’S SOFTBALL

 

MINOT, N.D. (MSU) – Sophomore pitcher Reegan Floyd racked up a career-high 13 strikeouts and recorded her first no-hitter in the circle, leading the way for Minot State which swept a non-conference doubleheader from Regina, 8-0 and 11-1 on Saturday in the Air-Supported Bubble on the MSU campus. Floyd (5-5) dominated in the circle in the opener while freshman teammate Kierra Fournier (2-3) did the same in the second game as she struck out eight and scattered two hits as the Beavers (11-9 overall) returned to the field for the first time in three weeks with two dominating wins. The two teams meet for another non-conference doubleheader on Sunday at noon in “The Bubble.” Gabi Dawyduk gave Minot State an early lead with an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning in the opener, then Paige Kellogg’s two-run single made it 3-0 in the bottom of the third. Minot State stretched the lead to 6-0 on a three-run double by Courtney Chatburn in the same inning, then the Beavers finished off the 8-run, mercy-rule victory as pinch-runner Taylor Smith scored on an error and Taryn Bennett scored the game-ending run on a wild pitch in the bottom of the fifth. Kellogg led the offensive with a pair of hits in the opener. In the nightcap, the Beavers again struck in their first at-bat as Brooklyn Morrison doubled in a run before Minot State tacked on four in the bottom of the second. Bennett, Sara Van Wickler, and Izzy Penner each drove in a run and Smith stole home for a 5-0 lead. A lead that grew to 11-0 in the fourth as Van Wickler had an inside-the-park home run to ignite a six-run rally that saw Morrison and Ann LaCount each drive in a pair of runs, and Bennett added the other RBI. Penner, Morrison, and Bennett each picked up a pair of hits to lead Minot State’s offense in game two.

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UND WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

 

LEXINGTON, K.Y. (UND) – The University of North Dakota Fighting Hawks (19-12) took home the win against the Northern Illinois Huskies (16-16), 102-99 (OT) . This was the first overtime game of the season. Head Coach Mallory Bernhard notches her first winning season in her 3rd season as head coach of the Fighting Hawks. This win is UND women’s basketball first national postseason win in the Division I era. Kacie Borowicz led with 35 points and six assists. She also drew ten fouls. Claire Orth scored 19 points. Orth is 13 points away from 1,000 career points as a Hawk. She hit her fifth three of the season in the fourth quarter. Juliet Gordon had 16 points and led with eight rebounds. Joli Daninger had 11 points. DJ Davis had her best game of the season. She had eight points, played 26 minutes, and went two for two from the line.

 

North Dakota started the game off hungry. The Huskies drew blood first the Hawks would answer right back. These two teams traded baskets for the first four minutes of the game before UND would take their first lead of the game., 9-8. The game would be tied up again at 11, just a short two minutes later. Before DJ Davis would steal the ball with a pass to Gordon for the jumper just outside the paint, 13-11. North Dakota pulled away late in the first to end the quarter 21-13. NIU’s Grace Hunter took a three point jumper to start the quarter, which Borowicz would match a minute later to extend the lead back to eight. The Fighting Hawks battled hard to tie the game four successive times at 28, 30,32, and 34. They would take a one point lead into the locker room, 38-37. The Northern Illinois Huskies came out strong in the third quarter going on a 6-0 run to start the stanza. The Hawks kept the game close fighting back from a eight point deficit. However, they would be down six heading into the final ten minutes of regulation. The Fighting Hawks flew back late in the fourth quarter, when Claire Orth would make her fifth three point basket of the season to give North Dakota the 83-81 led. This was the first time UND pulled away since halftime. However, Gordon would take a foul on A’Jah Davis would drop both from the line to tie it up at 83. Orth than converted a layup to take the lead. Following that, with 40 seconds left Orth sent Chelby Koker to the line who would make both to send the game into overtime at 85 aside. In the thirty first game of the season, brought the Fighting Hawks a new challenge, overtime. They shot a scolding 80% from the floor. Two veterans, Gordon and Davis, led the offensive with five points apiece. Gordon also led the way with one rebound and one crucial steal in the extra frame. Borowicz capped off her 35-point performance with a go-ahead layup and followed by a successful free throw to give UND 100 points. She would than add one more made free throw followed by a made foul shot by Gordon to give the Hawks some insurance. Final score 102-99.

 

North Dakota will play tday against Florida International University at 1:30 pm CT.

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WOLVES-RAPTORS

 

TORONTO (AP) — Pascal Siakam had 27 points and 10 rebounds and the Toronto Raptors extended their season-high home winning streak to seven by beating the Minnesota Timberwolves 122-107. Jakob Poeltl had 14 points and 11 rebounds while matching his career high with a fourth straight double-double. The Raptors improved to 24-4 all-time in home meetings with Minnesota. Fred VanVleet scored 28 points for Toronto, Gary Trent Jr. had 19, O.G. Aunoby 15 and Scottie Barnes 10. Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 12 rebounds and Naz Reid scored 22 points for the Timberwolves, who were playing the second game of a back-to-back. Minnesota lost in double overtime at Chicago on Friday, and didn’t arrive at its Toronto hotel until 5 a.m. Saturday. The Wolves played without guard Anthony Edwards, who left in the first quarter Friday because of a sprained right ankle. Coach Chris Finch said Edwards is using a walking boot, adding there’s no timetable for his return. A first–time All-Star this season, Edwards was injured when he landed awkwardly after jumping while throwing a pass. Jaden McDaniels scored 18 points as the slumping Wolves lost their third straight and fifth in six.

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WILD-BRUINS

 

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — David Pastrnak scored his 47th goal of the season and Linus Ullmark made 29 saves as the Boston Bruins beat the Minnesota Wild 5-2. Jake DeBrusk, David Krejci, Patrice Bergeron and Trent Frederic also scored for Boston, which has won two in a row as it seeks to surpass the record 62 wins and 132 points in a season. Pastrnak has six goals and seven assists in his past eight games. Marcus Johansson and Oskar Sundqvist, both acquired by Minnesota at the trade deadline, scored goals. Filip Gustavsson stopped 34 shots in goal for the Wild. Minnesota, which started the day one point behind Dallas for first and two points ahead of Colorado in the Central Division, hadn’t lost in regulation since Feb. 15 against the Avalanche. The Wild were 11-0-3 in a franchise-record, 14-game point streak.