K-HEART SPORTS – THURSDAY – 11/16/23
MINOT, ND – The final tournament of the fall high school sports season begins today. West Fargo Sheyenne is the defending champ in Class A, while Northern Cass won the Class B title last year. All the matches of the tournament will be broadast on BEK Tv and streamed through their website.
High School Girls Volleyball
Class A
Class A
State Tournament – Fargo Dome
Quarterfinals
(E1) West Fargo Sheyenne vs (W4) Bismarck High, 1 pm
(W2) Jamestown vs (E3) Fargo North, 3 pm
(W1) Bismarck Century vs (E4) Fargo Davies, 5 pm
(E2) Fargo Shanley vs (W3) Bismarck Legacy, 7 pm
Quarterfinals
(E1) West Fargo Sheyenne vs (W4) Bismarck High, 1 pm
(W2) Jamestown vs (E3) Fargo North, 3 pm
(W1) Bismarck Century vs (E4) Fargo Davies, 5 pm
(E2) Fargo Shanley vs (W3) Bismarck Legacy, 7 pm
High School Girls Volleyball
Class B
State Tournament – Fargo Dome
Quarterfinals
#2 May-Port-CG vs Trenton, 1 pm
#3 Our Redeemer’s vs New Rockford-Sheyenne, 3 pm
#1 Dickinson Trinity vs Shiloh Christian, 5 pm
#4 Northern Cass vs #5 LaMoure-Litchville-Marion, 7 pm
Quarterfinals
#2 May-Port-CG vs Trenton, 1 pm
#3 Our Redeemer’s vs New Rockford-Sheyenne, 3 pm
#1 Dickinson Trinity vs Shiloh Christian, 5 pm
#4 Northern Cass vs #5 LaMoure-Litchville-Marion, 7 pm
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MINOT, ND – Five Minot High athletes were honored as a part of the 2023 North Dakota Girls Swimming and Diving All-State Team. Haley Conklin, Ella Kesler and Sam VonBokern were named to the First Team. Ava Williamson and Bostyn Edwards earned Second Team honors. Minot High finished runner up at the State Meet last week.
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UND WOMENS BASKETBALL
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (UND) – A strong defensive second quarter led the North Dakota women’s basketball team to their first win of the season 80-47 over Concordia. After taking a 19-17 lead after the first 10 minutes of action, the Fighting Hawk defense settled in and held the Cobbers to eight points on 2-of-12 shooting in the second frame. UND closed out the final eight minutes of the second period with a 19-0 run to take a 46-25 lead at halftime. Eight Hawks scored in the quarter with Rakiyah Beal scoring six on a perfect 3-of-3 shooting. NoDak attempted just one three-pointer in the second quarter but found success down low with 18 points in the paint. Borowicz paced UND with 22 points on 7-of-13 shooting and was followed by Sammiyah Hoskin and Mikayla Aumer who both scored 10. Hoskin was nearly perfect from the floor, connecting on 5-of-6 attempts, while Aumer knocked down a pair of treys. Borowicz paced the Hawks in the first quarter, pouring in 15 of their 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting. However, the Cobbers shot .500 percent from the field in the opening 10 minutes to keep pace with UND who held a 19-17 lead after one quarter. NoDak spread the ball around in the third period with seven different players scoring and 10 points coming from the bench unit. UND controlled the glass in the third period, outrebounding the Cobbers 15-5 with seven offensive boards. A basket from Darcy Jardine gave the Hawks their largest lead of the night, 34, with 4:30 remaining in the contest. Mikayla Aumer found the range in the fourth quarter, knocking down a pair of deep three-pointers. She led UND in the fourth with nine points after converting an and-one. North Dakota concludes its three-game home stand on Sunday against Montana State. Tip is set for Noon at the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center.
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NDSU WOMENS BASKETBALL
MINNEAPOLIS (NDSU) – The North Dakota State women’s basketball team fell short at Minnesota, 75-53, on Wednesday night at Williams Arena in front of 2,816 fans. Heaven Hamling led the way for NDSU (1-2) logging her second career double-double with a team-high 12 points and team-best 10 rebounds with three assists. Elle Evans hit double figures for the third straight game with 11 points on 3-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc. The Edwardsville, Ill., native has now reached double figures in 17 consecutive games dating back to last season. The Bison shot 31.6 percent (18-57) from the field and 66.7 percent (10-15) from the free throw line. NDSU also hauled in a game-high 38 rebounds with 11 different players grabbing at least one. The Bison bench contributed 15 points with all 13 players checking in for the third straight game. Minnesota (3-0) got off to a fast start opening up a 9-0 lead after Amaya Battle connected on a jumper at the 7:04 mark of the first quarter. NDSU fought back with five straight points cutting the deficit down to four 14-10 after Abbie Draper drained a triple at the 1:34 mark. The Gophers led after the first quarter, 18-12. Minnesota then stole the momentum in the second quarter with a 13-0 run to open up a 34-14 edge with 3:58 to play in the half following a jumper from Battle. Evans ended the scoring drought for the Bison with a triple from the corner to make the score 34-17 with 3:12 on the clock. NDSU was unable to trim the deficit over the final two quarters and went on to drop the contest, 75-53. NDSU will be back in action at Northern Colorado on Monday. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. CT
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MSU FOOTBALL-HONORS
MINOT, N.D. (MSU) – Defense made a huge impact on the gridiron this fall for the Minot State football team so it is no surprise that a trio of team leaders on that side of the ball were honored by the NSIC on Wednesday. The Beavers’ Isaiah Bigby, Knylen Miller-Levi, and Carson Cayko each were recognized for their play this season as the league’s coaches voted each to the 2023 All-NSIC Football Team. Bigby and Miller-Levi were named to the All-NSIC Defensive First Team, while Cayko was named to the All-NSIC Defensive Second Team. The honor is the third time Bigby and Miller-Levi have been named All-NSIC performers, while it is the first for Cayko.
Bigby is a junior defensive back from Las Vegas, Nevada who was named to the All-NSIC Team following the 2019 season and last fall, as well. This season, Bigby led the Beavers with 89 tackles as he became the all-time leader in tackles in Minot State history with 238 career tackles. He also intercepted two passes, recovered two fumbles, broke up three passes, and had 2.5 tackles for loss.
Miller-Levi, a senior defensive back from Las Vegas, Nevada who was named a Second Team AFCA All-American last season, also was named to the All-NSIC Team in 2021 and 2022. He finished his senior season with 49 tackles, third-most on the team, had one interception making him No. 3 all-time with 11 career interceptions, he forced two fumbles, broke up eight passes, and had seven tackles for a loss, second-most on the team. He also added a 100-yard kick-off return for a touchdown, the second career kick-off return for a touchdown in his Beaver career.
Cayko, a junior linebacker from Fairview, Montana was second on the team with 71 tackles, giving him 192 in his career which ranks No. 4 all-time. He also led the Beavers in sacks with five, and tackles for loss with 12.5, giving him 28 tackles for a loss in his career which is a new all-time Minot State record. He also forced a fumble, broke up three passes, and scored a safety.
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WOLVES-SUNS
PHOENIX (AP) — Devin Booker scored 31 points in his return from a calf injury, Kevin Durant also scored 31 and the Suns cruised past the Minnesota Timberwolves 133-115. The Timberwolves had their seven-game winning streak snapped as they played on back to back nights for the first time this season. Karl Anthony-Towns led the Timberwolves with 25 points on his 28th birthday. Mike Conley had 14 points while Anthony Edwards, Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels all scored 13. Minnesota had a tough shooting night, particularly behind the 3-point arc, making just 5 of 27 (18.5%). The Timberwolves travel to New Orleans on Saturday.
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VIKINGS-DOBBS/HOCKENSON
EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — T.J. Hockenson has found a summer home in Tennessee, where a small group of NFL players spearheaded by his close friend tight end George Kittle train together between seasons. The sessions take place at Kittle’s 75-acre property outside of Nashville, where there’s a workout facility in a remodeled barn and a football field in the San Francisco 49ers star’s yard. The group brings in their own physical therapists and speed and strength specialists, too. Sometimes, Joshua Dobbs joins them. “There’s not a ton of quarterbacks down there, so whenever we could throw with Josh we were all hyped and excited,” Hockenson said. “It was one of those days we weren’t going to miss, because he’s got a great ball and he’s a great quarterback and he’s a great dude.” Little did he know this casual connection made in recent summers would form the foundation for one of the NFL’s most productive passing duos. Over two games with the Minnesota Vikings, Dobbs has targeted Hockenson 27 times. Dallas Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb (30) is the only player in the league with more over that span, according to Sportradar data. More than 40% of Minnesota’s passes went to Hockenson in Weeks 9-10, the third-highest rate in the NFL. “It’s not like we planned on doing that in a game,” said Dobbs, who played in college at Tennessee and also has an offseason home in the state. “But it was cool to have banked reps and banked communication with somebody, right? Especially one of your best playmakers on offense. Have reps with him, have a feel for how he gets in and out of routes. Obviously, there’s a matchup issue, and it shows.” Hockenson outgained New Orleans by himself with 128 receiving yards in the first half last week, when the Vikings beat the Saints 27-19 for their fifth straight victory.
“The ball keeps coming to you, and I was reading the defenses real well and just feeling it a little bit. So that was a blast,” said Hockenson, who played through two injured ribs. There was no better example of their synergy than the third-and-5 play early in the second quarter against the Saints. Dobbs outran two pass rushers to his right to avoid a sack before firing an off-balance throw to Hockenson. The two-time Pro Bowl tight end freelanced to find open space once Dobbs left the pocket, made a leaping catch and plowed forward rugby-style through the defense for a 24-yard gain. The Vikings scored the tiebreaking touchdown two plays later. “With him in the backfield you can’t think the play’s over,” said Hockenson, who leads all NFL tight ends with 681 receiving yards. “If he doesn’t get you on the first time or the second time, he’s going to move around. You just try to find an open area and beat your guy. It’s a little like street ball.”
The Vikings (6-4) play Sunday night at Denver, when wide receiver Justin Jefferson could rejoin the offense and give Dobbs even more to work with. Jefferson, who has missed the past five games with a hamstring strain, will continue to ramp up his intensity this week before the Vikings consider whether or not to activate him. Wide receiver K.J. Osborn, who was held out against the Saints because of a concussion, has cleared the protocol and was a full participant Wednesday in practice. “I’ve been around some talented offenses, but with the guys we have here rolling, man, it’s definitely hard to top the guys in this locker room,” Dobbs said. “That’s what’s so exciting.”