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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Esko and Duluth Marshall faced off in the championship game of the Esko Coaches Classic boys basketball tournament last week, with the Eskomos rolling to a 73-44 win. The Hilltoppers gained entrance into the championship game via a forfeit win over Nashwauk-Keewatin, the result of bad travel conditions for the Spartans. The Spartans were able to travel to Esko on Wednesday where they defeated Hinckley-Finlayson 68-48 to capture third place. In Esko's first-round win over the Jaguars things...
It took a little while, but the Esko boys basketball team started clicking early in the second half and came back to win 66-63 over the Lumberjacks Friday night at Cloquet Middle School. "For us, we were a little sluggish on offense in the first half," said Esko coach Derek Anderson. "We had too many guys watching one guy dribble or try to create. There was no flow or movement, which is why we struggled." Cloquet played its way to a 32-25 halftime lead, with five players scoring in the opening s...
Prior to the Lumberjacks first game of the season Tuesday, head coach Heather Young said "the first game of the season we normally feel rushed and ready to go, but tonight I think we are set." This was a prophetic statement. Cloquet came out in mid-season form to beat the Eskomos for the first time in eight years with a 68-54 victory in Esko. The Lumberjacks jumped out to an early lead and never looked back. Dominant play from Maddie Young and Alexa Snesrud proved to be the big difference in...
The Eskomos' hopes of moving into the state Class AAA championship next week dwindled away down the stretch of the fourth quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium Saturday afternoon. That's when Dassel-Cokato came from behind and defeated Esko 21-14 in the State Class AAA semifinals. Esko knew they would need to come out ready to play against the top-ranked team, and that is exactly what happened as the Eskomos exchanged punches with the Chargers and never backed down. They earned a lot of respect from...
Thumbs up to our local veterans groups and their auxiliaries. Not only did they serve our country, many continue that tradition of service here at home. On Veterans Day, they offered food to fellow military veterans free of charge, and next week the DAV will serve Thanksgiving dinner to anyone who wants it, also free of charge. Veterans serving in the various Honor Guard groups around the county offer time and comfort through ritual for grieving families. They lead our parades, and they lead by example. Americans who have forgotten what it is...
The clock showed 19.7 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Esko had battled, back and forth, with New London-Spicer in the Class AAA state quarterfinal in Brainerd Saturday afternoon. The score was tied, and now the Eskomos had the advantage, the ball on the 11-yard line. It was third down, and Esko coach Scott Arntson was ready to call another run to center the ball for reliable field kicker Wyatt Stankiewicz. "You want to take a shot?" That's what Arntson recalls hearing from Stankiewicz...
In front of a packed audience, Esko school board chairperson Jeff Salo started Monday's meeting with a lengthy apology but no details regarding an incident following a recent Eskomos football game. Salo said he accepted responsibility for his actions and acknowledged that his handling of "the issue on the field" was wrong. He continued, explaining that while he was acting as an alumnus and former football player, and not a board member, it didn't excuse what he said at the Oct. 30 game. "I'm...
Prior to Esko's Section 7AAA championship game against Aitkin, Eskomos head coach Scott Arntson told anyone who would listen to him that the game would be a dogfight. He based his thoughts on the fact that when the two teams met earlier in the season, Esko managed to sneak out a 2-point win. Arntson was right. The Eskomos pulled out another close win Thursday when they booted a field goal, making the final 17-14 and sending Esko to the state tournament. "It was a good game and that was exactly...
The Esko football team is loaded with speed, talent, and power. All three of those elements were on display Saturday as the Eskomos blasted their way to a 43-14 win over Rock Ridge in Esko in the Section 7AAA semifinals. "We did what we needed to do," said Esko coach Scott Arntson. "We also worked on what we needed to work on and continue to try and improve each week." The first quarter had one explosive play when quarterback Ty Christensen hit Mason Perich for a 40-yard touchdown pass, giving...
As the volleyball playoff season begins, the Pine Knot News takes a look at how our local schools were seeded and who their first round opponents will be, plus a look ahead at what might happen in the second round. All games will take place on Friday night unless otherwise noted. 7AAA In Section 7AAA, Cloquet completed its first 20-win season in years. The Lumberjacks' 20-6 record gave them the No. 2 seed in the section and earned Cloquet a home opening-round game against No. 7 seed Duluth...
As Minnesota rushes into postseason football, two Carlton County teams look like contenders to make a state run. Esko in Class AAA and Moose Lake/Willow River in Class AA both have gone undefeated this season and are favorites in sectional play. In Section 7AAA, the Eskomos finished the season 8-0 and allowed a total of only 34 points in those eight wins. In fact, the Eskomos shut out five of their eight opponents, including a Class AAAAA Duluth East team in the final game of the regular...
The top-seeded Esko girls soccer team shut out Two Harbors 2-0 in the Section 7A quarterfinals last Wednesday, but came up short in the semifinal game Saturday. The Eskomos fell to No. 4 seed Legacy Christian Academy in a penalty kick shootout after a 0-0 game with neither side scoring in the 20-minute overtime. “Our game on Saturday was one of those games that haunts the players and the coaches,” said Esko girls soccer coach Caitlin Lilly. “We showed up a little lackluster and by the time...
The end of the high school cross country season is on the horizon. On Tuesday night all six local teams participated in the Proctor Lions cross country meet in an effort to show how far they've come as they get ready for the sectionals. The Raptors girls team captured top honors for Class A in Proctor as they continue to prove they will be a force this season. South Ridge finished second, Moose Lake/Willow River/Barnum was third, Marshall finished fourth, MIB was fifth, Esko took sixth and Hill...
Undefeated Esko and once-beaten Two Harbors football teams collided on the Esko field for homecoming and the Eskomos proved who is the elite team, taking it to the Agates 24-0. After a scoreless first quarter, the Eskomos offense got rolling, especially on the ground. "Two Harbors has a nice football team, and they made us work," said Esko coach Scott Arntson. "Our offensive line played well, and that allowed us to run the ball pretty well." Nolan Witt got the scoring started in the second quart...
During a foggy Tuesday night game, fans barely saw the Esko girls soccer team fall 2-1 against a tough Denfeld side. A slow start for the Eskomos left the team unable to control a strong Hunters offense. In the 17th minute, Denfeld's Kamryn Hill broke the deadlock with a goal following a corner from Aliyah Bartling. Denfeld took the wheel early and continued to break through the opposing defense. The Eskomos responded with mounting chances near the end of the first half, but the game remained...
In front of a raucous crowd of competing student sections, the host Cloquet volleyball team defeated Esko on Tuesday, 3-0. The Lumberjacks, now 12-4 and ranked 11th in AAA, defeated the Eskomos by the scores of 25-14, 25-21 and 25-13. Esko's record falls to 10-7. The win comes after a weekend championship at a tournament in Virginia, which proved to be the remedy for a 3-1 loss to Greenway on Sept. 23. Cloquet coach Heidi Anderson said the Tuesday home game, invaded by scores of Esko fans, was...
When the Esko and Barnum volleyball teams met up last week, tradition would have predicted the Eskomos would be walking out of the gym with a win. Not this year. The Bombers went into Esko and walked out Sept. 9 with a 25-22, 25-21 and 25-18 win against the perennial Polar League champion. The win was the first by Barnum over Esko since 2010. "They came in and took it to us," said first-year Esko coach Pete Stasiuk. "Barnum played hard, they dug the ball out on defense and we couldn't stop...
The Esko football team rolled to an impressive 37- 0 win over Duluth Denfeld Sept. 2 to open the season. The Eskomos put up impressive offensive and defensive numbers. "I still think we made too many mistakes," said Esko coach Scott Arntson. "We had three turnovers and six penalties and we need to clean that up if we want to beat the better teams, or they will take advantage of that." Last season the Eskomos had 70 players in grades 9-12, but this year have 54 after graduating a large senior cla...
Cloquet and Esko girls soccer fans were treated to a solid early-season game Tuesday night in Esko. In the end, the Lumberjacks won 1-0, but the game was well-played despite being the first game of the season for Esko and the second for the 'Jacks. "For our first game of the year, I thought things went OK," said Esko head coach Caitlin Lilly. "We have a lot of kinks to work out, but to open against a dangerous offense like Cloquet has can be tough." Esko goaltender Orie Randall and her defense m...
The summer baseball season is slowly creeping towards the sunset. While the Senior American Legion has come to a close for our local teams, the Junior American Legion and VFW age playoffs are just ramping up. Esko did not field a team in the Senior American Legion playoffs due to a lack of numbers. Cloquet, on the other hand, did field a very young senior team, which dropped its first two games of the playoffs last week. Cloquet opened against one of the top seeds in the tournament on the road...
Last week's Minnesota State Class A boys and girls track meet yielded a few surprises in the weight events for both boys and girls, two of those by area athletes. In the boys discus event, Esko's Gage Stankiewicz was a heavy favorite to take the title, but notice was served by South Ridge's Deekon Anvid in sectionals. Anvid narrowly missed beating Stankiewicz, who had recorded the longest throws in the state this season. In the state meet, Stewartville's Will Tschetter and Anvid both surprised,...
In Thursday's boys Section 7A meet, Moose Lake/Willow River had four first-place finishes, but that was not enough to overcome the depth of the teams which finished in first and second. The Rebels grabbed first place in the 4x200-meter and 4x800 relays and then got second place in the 4x100 relay behind South Ridge. The Rebels won the 4x200 in 1:34.37, the 4x800 in 8:20.25, and then ran a 45.18 in the 4x100, which was second to the South Ridge's 44.91. The boys title went to...
It was a wild scene at Cloquet High School on Thursday as Cloquet hosted the Section 7A boys and girls track meet. Champions and team winners were crowned in a myriad of events. Winning the Section 7A girls championship was Esko with 93.40 points, with Proctor taking second with 90 points. "It has been a great year for our girls; the hard work and focus they've put in from Day 1 has turned our program around this spring," said Esko girls coach Matt Peterson. "Winning the Polar League and...
When the Section 7AA tournament continued Tuesday, Moose Lake/Willow River and Greenway were the two lone unbeaten squads. Esko, Eveleth-Gilbert, Proctor and Rush City were also remaining, but those four teams had one loss apiece and were a game away from elimination. The only two teams remaining now are undefeated Greenway and once-beaten Proctor, which marched through three straight wins to gain the championship round on Thursday. Tuesday's games featured teams that all had one loss. Esko, the...
Don’t look now, but the South Ridge Panthers are on the verge of another state tournament after dispatching Silver Bay 7-3 on Tuesday in a nine-inning game in the Section 7A playoffs. “The win over Silver Bay was huge,” said Panthers coach Aaron Weber. “We knew it would be a close one, but our guys fought till the end.” The Panthers faced North Woods for the section title Thursday at Mesabi East, with a second game set for 7:30 p.m. if the Panthers lose the first game. Against Silver Bay Jaxso...
