A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
A hometown newspaper with a local office, local owners & lots of local news
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Over the summer, the Cloquet High School outdoor athletic facilities have been transformed. This week saw another milestone in the $4.9 million project, as workers began installing bright green turf on the shared football and soccer field. "It is exciting," said Cloquet activities director Paul Riess. "The amount of work done is amazing. Every time I see something new I get excited." Drone film footage taken Tuesday showed rolls and rolls of turf waiting to be laid down on the new...
It was a tough draw. When Esko opened the Division II Minnesota State Junior Legion Baseball Tournament last Friday in Granite Falls against Morris, most baseball observers felt that the top two teams in the state were squaring off in the opening round. “We really felt that Morris and us were the top two teams,” said Esko coach Nick Legarde. “It was just too bad that we had to meet each other in the first game, but that’s how things played out.” After jumping to a 2-0 lead early in the quarterfi...
Play in the U16/U18 Arrowhead Fastpitch League ended last week with the Cloquet U16 team winning the championship by picking up four impressive victories and going undefeated in the double-elimination tournament. "The girls played very well," said Cloquet coach Tyler Korby. "We did the little things we have to do to win and we did them consistently." Cloquet opened play with an impressive 18-3 win over the Duluth Waves, a team from West Duluth. "We hit well and bunted well and we took advantage...
After the July 25 round of the 8th District Division II American Jr. Legion playoffs, Carlton County had two local teams still in the running. Esko was undefeated and Barnum-Moose Lake-Willow River (BMW) had one loss in the double elimination tournament - the loss coming against Esko. Over the weekend both teams acquitted themselves well, but it was Esko prevailing in the championship with a pair of wins over Ely. BMW ended up third in the tournament. BMW opened weekend play on Saturday with an...
After opening the Division II Northeast Substate baseball tournament with a loss to Proctor, the Esko Legion team bounced back with wins over Milaca and International Falls before bowing out of the tournament with a tough loss to Taconite on Friday of last week. In their 6-0 win over Milaca on Tuesday, July 18, Esko rode the strong pitching of Cale Haugen, who had led the Esko High School team to the Class AA state championship earlier this summer. Haugen was his steady self and Esko won...
The Cloquet VFW topped off an impressive season by taking second place in the District 8 VFW tournament over the weekend and Monday. Cloquet played six games in three days and went 4-2 in the double elimination tournament. "It was a major grind, but the boys gave everything they had and they played well," said coach Nate Knutson. On Saturday Cloquet opened tournament play in impressive fashion with a 2-0 win over West Duluth. The game featured a no-hitter for Cloquet pitcher Bo Harriman. "Bo...
The 8th District Junior Legion baseball tournament started last weekend and continued this week with two area teams continuing to battle for a place in the championship in the double elimination tournament. On Sunday, Barnum-Moose Lake-Willow River throttled Chisholm 17-0 in five innings to secure their spot in Tuesday's second round. Meanwhile, Esko also answered the bell with a snappy 7-3 win over Proctor. Barnum-Moose Lake-Willow River and Esko faced off on Tuesday. Esko managed a 3-2 win,...
The Esko Legion and Junior Legion baseball teams got off to a slow start this summer, but they had an excellent excuse. "We missed the first 10 days of the season because of the long run to the state championship by the high school team," said Nick Legarde, head coach of both the Legion and Junior Legion teams. "For Legion, we've only played nine games so far and normally we'd be at around 15-18 games," he saidd. Esko Legion is 6-3 thus far and opened play in the Northeast District 2 playoffs...
After a busy season for both the Cloquet Legion and VFW baseball teams, playoffs are looming. Legion coach Tyler Olin, also the Cloquet High School boys baseball coach, said they’re as ready as they’re going to be after 13 games so far. “Summer baseball is a whole different thing than high school,” Olin said. “There are some teams in our area that have age-eligible college guys who are back playing, and we don’t have that. We are just glad guys are out getting reps for next spring for the hig...
Former Cloquet hockey star Karson Kuhlman is on the move as he heads back to play on the East Coast in the National Hockey League, this time for the New York Islanders. Last season, Kuhlman started the season with the Seattle Kracken and eventually finished the season playing for the Winnipeg Jets. It was announced last week that he'd signed a contract with the New York Islanders. "I am really excited," Kuhlman said. "The Islanders are well known for taking care of their guys in the...
A year ago lightning, thunderstorms and horrific weather wreaked havoc on the Sawdust 5K in Cloquet, causing first-year race directors Julie and Sam Jacobson all kinds of problems. This time around, the July Fourth race couldn't have gone any smoother. It featured gentle weather and plenty of anxious runners gathering to run Cloquet's favorite summertime race. "Everything went super and there was a great turnout," Julie Jacobson said. "We had 272 runners signed up prior to the race and another...
The third annual Cloquet Wood City Classic girls softball tournament was on a rainy weekend last week at Braun Park in Cloquet. There were 34 teams participating in three age divisions and, as usual, the tournament was another impressive display of teamwork by all. "Our grounds crew, parents, umpires and staff all did an amazing job," said tournament director Adam Maslowski. "We had to battle rain and the elements, but we got all the games in, and there were no complaints and, most importantly,...
When Justin Harriman went to check on the hockey arena over Memorial Day weekend, he knew immediately something wasn't quite right. "I went in and checked on things and found an issue with the ice plant," said Harriman, the facilities manager and association director for the Cloquet Amateur Hockey Association, which operates both the Northwoods Credit Union Arena and the older Pine Valley Arena next door. He got on the phone to Jay Koenig from Gartner Refrigeration. "After they were able to get...
More than 40 local athletes participated in the Minnesota Boys and Girls State Track meet last weekend at St. Michael-Albertville. A number of those athletes had top showings and made it to the finals. Class AA boys Miles Fischer had a big day for Cloquet by finishing in third place in the 1,600 meter run. The senior followed that up with a seventh place finish in the 3,200. He ran 4:18.43 in the 1600 and 9:39.20 in the 3,200. "Miles Fischer almost got the 1600 record from 1985 of John Wodny,"...
The Esko baseball team is on the verge of a state championship after two wins in the Minnesota Class AA Baseball Tournament in St. Cloud. Esko was set to meet Perham at 1 p.m. Friday at CHS Field in St. Paul, where championship games in all four classes are being played. Esko was powered to a win in the semifinal against Cannon Falls Wednesday by a grand slam homer by Issac Sertich in the fourth inning. Esko had stormed back after being down 2-0 early and got a 7-2 win. Getting the jitters out...
It took three games against Cherry in the section tournament, but the South Ridge Panthers got the wins when it counted, and entered the Minnesota State Class A baseball tournament as the top seed Tuesday. Playing at Joe Faber Field in St. Cloud, the Section 7A champs struggled on the base paths in their opening game against Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa and fell by a 2-1 score. The team rebounded in the consolation bracket Wednesday, pounding Legacy Christian Academy 12-2 and taking the consolation...
Esko is the Section 7A boys track champion this year after beating runner-up Crosby-Ironton by 10 points. Two Harbors took the girls title with International Falls taking second and also qualifying for the team state track meet. Cromwell-Wright had a solid meet for the boys with a seventh-place finish as a team and a number of top finishes by individuals. Boys state qualifiers Noah Foster of Cromwell- Wright was the winner of the 3,200-meter run. He also ran in two relay teams that finished...
As the defending Section 7A champions, the Moose Lake/Willow River girls softball team had a target on its back the entire season. The Rebels handled the pressure of the compacted season and last week did the same by going undefeated in the sectional tournament to make the state tournament for the second time in a row. "We told the girls we needed to be ready for that, because every team we played was going to give us their best game," said ML/WR coach Kelly Goeb. "We were ready for that. We...
After a first-round loss to Grand Rapids last week in the Section 7AAA boys baseball tournament, the Lumberjacks responded by pounding out wins last week over Hibbing and Duluth Denfeld. On Tuesday, Cloquet kept things rolling by beating North Branch before being ousted from the tournament in a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to the same team that beat them in the opener: the Thunderhawks. "I am proud of the way these guys battled," said Cloquet coach Tyler Olin. On Tuesday, the 'Jacks opened the day -...
Over the last four years the Section 7A baseball tournament has run through South Ridge. The road this season got a whole lot tougher on Tuesday when the Panthers lost their first game of the day, 6-4, to Cherry, sending them into the losers bracket. “Noah Sundquist is a good pitcher and he pitched well against us,” said South Ridge head coach Aaron Weber. “He kept us from getting any momentum and he pitched well enough to win that game.” Following the loss, the Panthers faced Ely in the nig...
Lumberjacks tennis player Ethan Lavan has had a strong season. Last Thursday, he capped off the regular season by laying claim to the Section 7A individual championship ... as a freshman. Lavan is the first Cloquet boy to make it to the state tournament since Peter Tomhave made it in 2018 and 2019. "Things broke right for Ethan in the tournament," said Cloquet-Esko-Carlton coach Derek Johnson. "The top seed in the section from Rock Ridge decided to play No. 1 doubles, so it opened the door for...
After notching a first-round win in the Section 7AAA softball playoffs, the Lumberjacks were knocked out of the playoffs Saturday with back-to-back losses at home. No. 5 seed Cloquet opened with an impressive 3-1 win over Hibbing, the No. 4 seed, on the road last Wednesday. On Saturday, the 'Jacks entered the double-elimination round at home and fell to the No. 1 seed Chisago Lakes 4-3 in nine innings, then dropped a 12-4 decision to Grand Rapids, the No. 6 seed. In the 'Jacks opening road win a...
The Section 7AA softball tournament opened May 23 with Esko pulling out a convincing 12-1 victory over Two Harbors. That was the first of many games for Esko over the next week as they tried to get a berth back to the state tournament. But a spirited assault through the losers bracket wasn't enough, as Esko fell to Rock Ridge after reaching the championship with a state berth on the line. Still, a 12-10 comeback win for the ages against Rush City left Esko with something to remember. "I've...
Moose Lake/Willow River returns to section final When the Section 7A softball tournament opened play Tuesday at the Grand Rapids Sports Complex, there were only two unbeaten teams remaining: the Rebels and the Raptors. One, Moose Lake/Willow River, was the defending section champion and No. 1 seed. The Carlton/Wrenshall Raptors were seeded in the No. 3 spot. The two met at center stage and the game ended with the Rebels heading back to the championship game at 4 p.m. Thursday in Cloquet, and the...
Entering play last week, the Carlton/Wrenshall Raptors had their sights set on three big games against Cromwell-Wright, South Ridge and Silver Bay. If the Raptors were able to win those three games they would finish as the small-school Polar League Conference champions. Mission accomplished, as the Raptors rode strong pitching from Abby Mitchell and the heroics of a seventh-grader to sweep their rivals and claim the conference crown. "We made some defensive substitutions aligning ourselves for...
