Fusion team is True Team State-Bound!

Just tonight the Melrose-Sauk Centre Fusion boys' swimming and diving team learned they received an at-large bid to the upcoming Class A State True Team meet in Minneapolis. That will take place on Saturday, Jan. 26 at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center beginning at 1 p.m.

The Fusion team earned a runner-up showing at last weekend's Section 3A True Team meet.

Mainstreeter girls remain unbeaten in West Central Conference

In a home game tonight against Melrose Area, the Sauk Centre Mainstreeters girls' basketball team won73-47 to remain undefeated in the West Central North Conference standings. They improve to 12-1 overall and 5-0 in the conference standings. Up next: a non-conference border battle at Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa (in Belgrade) next Tuesday. The Jaguars (3-10, 0-7) lost to Kimball Area 51-33 in a Central Minnesota Conference game tonight.

On Friday against defending Mid-State Conference champion Park Rapids/Menagha/Nevis/Walker-Akeley-Hackensack, Prairie Centre Area lost 4-1 to the Panthers in Long Prairie in a conference match up.

Mainstreeter boys' hoops pounds Montevideo

The Sauk Centre Mainstreeters boys' basketball team annihilated visiting Montevideo 74-44 at SCHS gymnasium Thursday night in West Central Conference action. Talk about putting the hurt on a pretty good basketball team - a nice win for the Maroon. Nick Adams led Sauk Centre with 17 points and four assists. The Thunderhawks (7-5, 5-2 WCC-South) brought in a pretty good resume, including a convincing win over a very good A-C-GC team on Jan. 11. Up next: state-ranked Melrose at Melrose next Tuesday. The Dutchmen won a shoot out against A-C-GC 85-70 tonight. At stake is first place in the WCC-North standings.

At Melrose on Thursday night, the Sauk Centre-Melrose wrestling team lost 51-13 to Alexandria in a dual meet. The Cardinals are one of the top teams in the Central Lakes Conference this season and got out to a 15-0 lead through three weights with two pins in that period. SC-M picked up wins from Will Funk (126), Derek Karasch (160) and Saul Ellering (195). Up next: a triangular at SCHS next Tuesday, Jan. 22 beginning at 5 p.m. The first match features SC-M taking on Montevideo in West Central Conference action, and SC-M meets Big Lake in the final match of the night.

*Friday night's action: the Prairie Centre Area boys' hockey team hosts a Park Rapids Area-based conglomerate at the Long Prairie Expo Arena, while the Mainstreeters girls' basketball team entertains Melrose Area in a conference border battle at SCHS gymnasium. For the North Stars, the JV hockey game starts at 5:15 p.m.

Coming tonight: Fusion intersquad meet plus a home wrestling meet

The Sauk Centre-Melrose wrestling team hosts Alexandria in a dual meet at the Melrose high school. It's a 7-12 event with JV and varsity wrestling.

The Melrose-Sauk Centre Fusion boys' swimming and diving team hosts their annual intersquad meet tonight starting at 4:30 p.m. in the Sauk Centre pool.

Hockey action in Sauk Centre this weekend

Passing along word on the upcoming PeeWee Hockey tournament in Sauk Centre at the Civic Arena this weekend. Here's the website for the local youth hockey association where you can see more details:

http://saukcentremelrose.pucksystems.com

North Stars boys' hockey picks up third win

Prairie Centre Area picked up a hard-earned 4-2 win at the Redwood Falls Ice Arena tonight in a non-conference boys' hockey contest against Redwood Valley/BOLD (2-7, 1-4 Southwest Conference). The North Stars are 3-9-1 and host Park Rapids/Menagha/Nevis/Walker-Hackensack-Akeley at 7:15 p.m. this Friday in Long Prairie. PR/M/N/WHA is 6-5 overall this season and 3-1 in the Mid-State Conference. The North Stars are 0-2 in the Mid-State Conference and look to move up in the standings with a win on Friday.

Detroit Lakes leads the Mid-State Conference with a 4-0 mark (5-9 overall).

Oh boy, try announcing "Park Rapids/Menagha/Nevis/Walker-Hackensack-Akeley" on the radio once or twice! That's quite an athletic pairing.

LPGE leads at halftime over Mainstreeters...then OT! Fusion team wins at Sauk Rapids

At halftime, Long Prairie-Grey Eagle has a 27-20 lead over the Sauk Centre Mainstreeters boys' basketball team. The Mainstreeters had an early 10-2 lead evaporate against the quick pressure of LP-GE's tough 2-3 zone defense.

Now with under 7 minutes to go, it's 34-32 LP-GE with the lead! With 5 minutes to go, two free throws by Nick Adams makes it 36-34 with the Mainstreeters ahead! Neither team scored from the nine minute mark to the seven minute mark.

Nick Adams, whose free throws put the Mainstreeters ahead in the latter part of regulation play tonight, is shown hauling down a rebound at Minnewaska Area last Thursday. PHOTO BY MARK BEASLEY, Pope County Tribune

The game is being carried by BOB FM 105.5.

Final score in overtime: Sauk Centre 46, LP-GE 45. What a game! The Thunder squad's seven-game winning streak comes to a dramatic end. The Mainstreeters improve to 7-3 overall and host Montevideo in a conference match up on Thursday. Read further coverage of this huge win in the Jan. 17 issue of the Sauk Centre Herald.

At LQPV, the Sauk Centre-Melrose wrestling team lost a dual meet 46-26 in West Central Conference action to the paired LQPV/Dawson-Boyd team.

At Montevideo, the Sauk Centre Mainstreeters girls' basketball team won 58-29 over the Thunderhawks in conference action.

And to top it off, at Sauk Rapids tonight, the Melrose-Sauk Centre Fusion won by a decisive 108-78 margin in a non-conference boys' swimming and diving meet. They are now 6-1 in dual meets this season and have a break in competition until Thursday, Jan. 24 when they host Montevideo in conference action at the Sauk Centre pool.

No word yet on how the boys' hockey team fared in Redwood Falls.

All varsity teams in action tonight

It's a busy night coming up for Sauk Centre varsity sports.

Wrestling: at Lac qui Parle Valley
Boys' basketball: home against Long Prairie-Grey Eagle in a border battle
Girls' basketball: at Montevideo
Fusion swimming and diving: at Sauk Rapids-Rice
North Stars boys' hockey: at Redwood Falls to face Redwood Valley/BOLD