Thursday, August 31st was a tough start for two area football teams as they were shut out. Rogers defeated Sartell, 45-0, and Cambridge-Isanti blanked the Tech Tigers, 28-0. On the other hand, the game between Chisago Lakes and St. Cloud Apollo was a nail-biter. The teams went into three overtimes, with Chisago Lakes eventually coming out on top with a score of 44-38. Fullback Evan Lavalle was the star of the game, scoring five touchdowns for Chisago Lakes. In regulation, Apollo made some big plays, including a 49-yard pass from quarterback Da’Vion Jackson to Maurice Brown for a touchdown. The defense also scored a touchdown by returning a fumble 88 yards.
In other football games, Becker had a strong victory over Hill-Murray with a score of 40-14, while New London-Spicer dominated Albany with a final score of 48-20. Foley defeated Brooklyn Center with a shutout 48-0, and Eden Valley-Watkins had a convincing win over Melrose with a score of 50-14. Holdingford won against Sauk Centre, 28-16, Kimball outscored Howard Lake-Waverly-Winsted with a score of 36-8, Little Falls defeated Pierz with a score of 30-16, Paynesville won against Montevideo, 37-28, Princeton was victorious over Milaca with a score of 20-7, and Rockford defeated Royalton, 42-24. Tonight’s games to watch include Detroit Lakes at ROCORI and Irondale at Sauk Rapids-Rice.
In volleyball, the Central Lakes Conference saw an intense match between Sartell and Sauk Rapids-Rice. Sartell came out on top, winning 3-1 with a final score of 25-20, 25-21, 22-25, 25-23. Abby Haus was the standout player for the Sabres. In another Central Lakes Conference match, ROCORI defeated Brainerd with a clean sweep of 3-0 with scores of 25-8, 25-11, 25-22. Kate Holthaus led the Spartans with 18 kills. Willmar also had a strong victory over Apollo with a score of 3-0 and scores of 25-8, 25-12, 25-12.
In the Granite Ridge Conference, Foley won against Staples-Motley with a score of 3-0 and scores of 25-19, 25-15, 32-30. In the Central Minnesota Conference, Paynesville defeated Dassel-Cokato with a clean sweep of 3-0 and scores of 25-12, 25-13, 25-14. Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa also had a win over MACCRAY with a final score of 3-1 and scores of 25-22, 24-26, 25-22, 27-25.
In boys soccer, Sartell remained undefeated with a strong victory over Fergus Falls with a score of 9-3. Anthony Colatrella, Baylor Stebbins, and Seth Davidson all scored multiple goals for Sartell. Alexandria defeated Sauk Rapids-Rice with a score of 2-1, with Leif Rudnick scoring the lone goal for the Storm. In a match between Apollo and Becker, the Eagles emerged victorious with a score of 4-0, bringing their season record to 2-1. ROCORI had a draw with Little Falls, ending the game with a score of 1-1. In the Granite Ridge Conference, Crookston and Melrose drew with a final score of 1-1.
In girls soccer, Sartell had a strong victory over Fergus Falls with a score of 4-0, with Kaia Gack and Kelsey Tangen both scoring twice.