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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I’ve operated a pizza restaurant longer than I’ve had children, but it’s time to say goodbye (to the pizza place, not the kids). I opened Eskomo Pizza Pies in the old Cloquet Co-op building in downtown Esko on Jan. 26, 2006, after spending my entire life’s saving remodeling the space and buying pizza ovens. Jim Ruzic, the old WKLK radio guy, and his buddy, Rick Bassett from the county assessor’s office, were our first customers on Jan. 25, a day early. They came in expecting we were open and...
Entering Friday’s home game, the Eskomos were 2-1 and facing a Mora team that was undefeated and averaging 38 points per game through three games. When the wind died down following the game, the Mustangs were still undefeated and handed the hometown team a 40-18 loss. “They have big strong linemen with fast, athletic running backs,” said Esko coach Scott Arntson. The Mustangs raced out to a 14-0 lead early in the first quarter on a 48-yard touchdown run by Koby Swanson and a 5-yard touch...
For the past few years the Esko volleyball team has come up short against Carlton. After the graduation of a boatload of Bulldogs and only one Eskomo lost to graduation, this year it's the Eskomos who prevailed by downing Carlton 25-19, 25-13 and 25-18 Tuesday, Oct. 29. "We've had a good start to the season and when you lose only one senior you expect your year to go well," said Esko coach Desi DeLeon. "We hadn't beaten Carlton in a few years, so whenever you can beat them it is a nice...
Football Moose Lake/Willow River 28 Crosby-Ironton 6 The Rebels improved to 3-0 on the season with an impressive home win over the Rangers. ML/WR outgained the Rangers 296 to 82 yards for the game. Jackson Thompson had another impressive game for the Rebels by scoring twice. Thompson’s first touchdown came on a 7-yard touchdown dash and his second came on an impressive 93-yard punt return for a score. Both Logan Orvedahl and Carter Johnson also scored for the Rebels. ML/WR led 16-0 at halftime and did not allow the Rangers to score until the fo...
The Moose Lake-Willow River Rebels rode the strong legs of sophomore running back Jackson Thompson to an impressive and competitive 34-21 early season win at Esko last Thursday afternoon. "Jackson Thompson had a breakout game versus Esko, playing every snap on offense and defense," said Rebels head coach Dave Louzek. "He is a very strong, hardworking kid who is going to be a great Rebel football player." Esko scored first when quarterback Kevin Gregory scampered in from 4 yards out, giving them...
Friday, Oct. 9 Football Cloquet-24 North Branch-12 Reese Sheldon scored on a 42-yard touchdown run on his second touch of the football Friday night as the Lumberjacks took the road win in North Branch. Sheldon scored a pair of touchdowns, both in the first half, as the ’Jacks took a 16-12 halftime lead. The lone touchdown in the second half was a 63-yard scoring strike from Alec Turnbull to his brother Will Turnbull. Marshall Hayes added three two-point conversion runs to secure the win. “Our defense played well as a unit. I thought Deeken Fje...
The Cloquet and Esko girls soccer teams wrapped up their regular season last week by playing to a 1-1 draw in Esko. Trailing 1-0 in the second half, the Eskomos got a corner kick that Ava Korby was able to drill into the net to tie the game at 1-1. "Ava's goal came off a corner kick and she was able to get a direct hit on it," said Esko coach Caitlin Lilly. "She's got a great knack for moving at the right time to where the ball will be. Her timing was key for the goal." Earlier in the game the...
Here's a quick look at what fans can expect from area football teams in a shortened season. Aside from the continued pandemic prtocols around all high school sports, spectators will be limted at games. Cloquet If the Cloquet Lumberjack football team is going to compete for a sectional football title, they'll need to rely on strong line play. Fortunately, this year's version of the 'Jacks has what appears to be an impressive group in the trenches. "We will be very strong up front," said longtime...
The Esko girls soccer team picked up an impressive win Sept. 17 as they knocked off Hermantown for the second time this season. Two second-half goals helped secure the 2-0 road win. "I think the girls were much happier with their performance than earlier in the week," said Esko coach Caitlin Lilly. "I thought we controlled the pace for most of the game." After a scoreless first half, the Eskomos scored 16 minutes into the second half when Ava Korby took a feed from Maya Emanuel making it 1-0...
Coming off a win in Hermantown a week earlier, the Cloquet boys cross country team came in atop a three-team triangular meet at their home course in Cloquet Thursday afternoon. Junior Harmony Tracy won the girls meet for the Lumberjacks, but as a team the girls couldn't quite catch the speedy Duluth East Greyhounds. The Lumberjacks boys saw another strong finish, placing five runners in the top 10 Thursday afternoon. Cloquet finished with a team total of 23 points, while the Greyhounds were...
The Esko girls soccer team fell to 2-2 on the season on Thursday night with a tough 2-1 road loss in Grand Rapids. After falling behind 2-0 in the first half the Eskomos rallied in the second half, but the clock expired and the Thunderhawks managed to preserve the win. The Thunderhawks were the beneficiary of two goals by Abbey Birkey in the first half. Birkey’s first goal came just a minute into the game with the second at the 21-minute mark. Ava Korby cut the lead to 2-1 for the Eskomos at the 54-minute mark, but the Thunderhawks were able t...
There was a lot of the expected mixed with a little of the unexpected last Thursday as Esko, Carlton/Wrenshall and Cromwell-Wright hooked up in a cross country race at Pine Valley in Cloquet. The Cardinals had the top two individual finishers in both the boys and girls varsity races and the Eskomos took first place as a team followed by the Raptors in the boys meet. The girls race saw Carlton/Wrenshall nab team honors with Esko taking second. Cromwell-Wright did not have the required five...
This year marked the 65th anniversary of Carlton County's first foray into the Minnesota State High School Basketball Tournament. Led by superstar Harold Bergstedt, Esko qualified for the tourney in March of 1955 at Williams Arena on the University of Minnesota campus. Bergstedt passed away at age 82 in February. The state basketball tournament began in 1913 and no team from Carlton County was able to win Region 7 and advance to the tourney until Esko's achievement 42 years later. The region...
Some semblance of normalcy returned to the local sports scene Tuesday afternoon when the Cloquet girls soccer team hosted Esko at the high school's Rol Bromberg Field. Or maybe it was the new normal, as three Lumberjack players knelt to show their support for the Black Lives Matters movement during the Star Spangled Banner (see Page 3) and all players observed social distancing while introductions were made, waving from the field instead of running out to high fives and handshakes. In the end,...
The Esko boys and girls cross country teams have been notorious for being perennial contenders in the sectional meet. After a challenging time last year, things look to be on the upswing for the Eskomos this season. “Last year was a good year, overall, and a good indicator of positive things to look forward to,” said coach Jeremy Hallsten, who is in his eighth year as head coach. “After having lost key contributors to both our running teams two years ago, we had a bit of a rebuilding year last...
As the new high school sports season arrives, the Esko girls soccer team will be looking to improve on a team that finished under .500 in the win-loss column last year. Under the leadership of first-year head coach Caitlin Lilly, the Eskomos hope to regain their position as one of the top teams in Section 7. "We have five seniors this year and we expect our seniors to command the center of the field," Lilly said. After their 6-9-0 record last year, the Eskomos lost two stellar players, as...
The recent discussion about the “Eskomos” nickname brings a related topic to mind: numerous past proposals to officially rename Thomson Township to Esko Township. The last time was a few years ago and by one of the town’s stalwarts — the late Davis Helberg — in order to honor the town’s heritage. The town board was very supportive, but state statute requires 50 percent (plus one) of the registered voters total number to sign a petition requesting the action. It was suggested at a board meeting that petitions be made available at the town ha...
A petition duel continued this week on the website Change.org considering the use of the nickname "Eskomos" for the Esko school district. Both begun by students at Esko High School, one petition says a name change should be considered while the other says to leave the name alone. It joins a chorus of debate in a time of great social upheaval and awareness. This month, the Canadian Football League team in Edmonton announced it would stop using its Eskimos nickname. Earlier this year, the company...
Suddenly, we’re talking about changing the nickname in Esko to avoid making an indirect negative reference to Eskimos, a historical name for the Inuit in Alaska, which some people seem to think is derogatory. Some don’t, however, and the idea that the word “Eskimo” is a pejorative term is not universally accepted. A little research shows that the term “Inuit” or “Native Alaskan” is preferred, but there doesn’t seem to be consensus that calling someone an Eskimo is insulting. Now, calling some...
Here is a small sampling of the comments found on both Change.org petitions regarding the Esko nickname. Change it Cassi Paszak I grew up in Esko. I remember when our actual mascot was an Eskimo. It was painted on our gym and it was a patch on our jackets. That was offensive enough where they changed the logo to use an igloo instead. If they knew then the logo was wrong and changed that, the name should have changed at the same time. Ethnicity and cultures shouldn't be made into mascots. Please...
It took extra time, but Esko knocked off the Hilltoppers 67-64 Wednesday, March 11 to advance to the Section 7AA title game. Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 outbreak, the Eskomos did not get the chance to play for the championship against Pierz, which defeated Virginia in the other semifinal match up. Things did not come easy for the Eskomos, who fell behind 32-25 at halftime and had to scratch back in the second half. "In the locker room we talked about keeping our composure and battling...
Payton Wefel and James LeGarde led the scoring barrage and the rest of the Esko boys basketball team played shutdown defense in Saturday’s 68-47 win over Pequot Lakes in the Section 7AA quarterfinals at Romano Gymnasium on the campus of the University of Minnesota Duluth. “Defensively we wanted to keep them out of the paint on drives because they are very quick and crafty with the ball,” said Esko coach Derek Anderson of the Patriots. “We wanted to take the driving lanes away and keep them in...
Entering Saturday's Section 7AA quarterfinal game, Esko and Moose Lake/Willow River had identical 16-10 records. Following the game, the No. 1 seeded Eskomos came away with a convincing 80-31 win and a spot in the semifinals Wednesday against No. 2 seed Marshall School at the University of Minnesota Duluth. Key to the Saturday game was a quick start by the Eskomos and their ability to penetrate the Rebels defense, which set them up for open looks throughout the game. "We shot really well to star...
Thursday, Feb. 20 Boys Basketball Cloquet-82 / Crosby-Ironton-68 Five different Lumberjacks scored in double digits to overcome the Rangers. Leading Cloquet was Adam Schneider with 19 points, both Alec Turnbull and Nathan Blatchford had 17 points while both Dylan Heehn and Tyler Issendorf scored 10 points. Jack Sorenson scored eight and Caleb Hansen finished with one point. Moose Lake/Willow River-95 / Proctor-42 The Rebels wasted little time in jumping on the Rails at halftime by a 57-25...
Thursday, Feb. 20 Boys Basketball Cherry-86 Wrenshall-72 Randy Wimmer poured in 26 points and Hunter Holmes added 20 for the Wrens, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Tigers nine-point halftime lead. Also scoring for Wrenshall were Austin Larva (11), Kaden Oleson (5), Isaiah Johnson (4), plus Zeke Rousseau and Mason Perry (3). South Ridge-66 Hill City-43 The Panthers rolled out to a 30-18 halftime lead and put the hammer down in the second half to come away with a 23-point win. Ben Wood led a...
