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
Sorted by date Results 201 - 225 of 731
The Cloquet girls basketball team improved to 6-1 on Tuesday, downing Hermantown on the road, 68-50. Ava Carlson scored 17 points and Quinn Danielson 14 to lead the Lumberjacks, who pulled away from a 24-24 halftime lead with a 41-point second half. Danielson hit four three-pointers in the game. Alexa Snesrud added 10 points, Kiley Issendorf eight, Macie Majerle and Carly Johnson seven each, and Katelyn Olson five. Hermantown (1-7) had three scorers in double digits, led by Mikayla Sweeney's... Full story
After decades of playing in the state’s largest hockey class, the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey team will likely move to Class A next season. Cloquet High School activities director Paul Riess told Cloquet school board members at their meeting Monday that the change has been a frequent topic with supporters. The Lumberjacks girls team made the move five or six years ago, then played their way to second place in the 2019-20 season’s Class A state tournament. The last couple years, Riess said, he’s faced even more people asking why the boys...
To say that Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey coach Shea Walters is excited about this season may be an understatement. Walters thinks this year's version of the Lumberjacks has a chance to be a good team. Very good, in fact. Last week, the 'Jacks showed their potential with a 6-1 thumping of a respected Denfeld team. "We are a physical, fast team, and once we got started in that first period we just took off," Walters said of the Dec. 8 game. Just 1 minute, 28 seconds into the opening period,... Full story
Esko parlayed a strong defensive effort into a 72-55 early season win over Cloquet in Esko on Friday, Dec. 9. "It's always a tough game against Cloquet, but it is fun to play your next-door neighbor," said Esko coach Derek Anderson. The Eskomos slipped out to a nine-point halftime lead, but they had their hands full with the 'Jacks, who boasted the tough inside play of Marco Mayorga. "Marco isn't a big guy height-wise, but he is crafty, has a lot of moves inside and he has a lot of swag," said... Full story
Cromwell-Wright and Wrenshall girls basketball met up Thursday, Dec. 8 in Cromwell in what turned out to be a fairly lopsided game. The Cardinals have been among the best small-school teams in the region for the past decade, while the Wrens are trying to build a program under second-year coach Emma Grover. The Cards won 72-18, but the Wrens fought to the end, looking at every opportunity to improve. "It can be a tough game when you know one team is heavily favored," said Cards head coach Jeff... Full story
A tour through the new Cloquet High School Career and Technical Education area makes one thing immediately obvious: This is not your father's shop class. Yes, there are still lathes and bandsaws, wrenches and screwdrivers, welders and automobile lifts. But there are also 3-D printers that can build parts and other three-dimensional objects out of plastic, and laser printers that can etch designs on wood, glass, leather, and even three-dimensional objects. It's been about a year since Cloquet... Full story
Girls-only match is a Cloquet first The Cloquet-Esko-Carlton wrestling team hosted a triangular with Proctor/Hermantown and Mille Lacs Tuesday at Cloquet High School. The 'Jacks dropped the opener 60-14 against the Raiders of Mille Lacs before defeating Proctor/Hermantown 48-36 in the second match. Wrestling fans were also treated to a groundbreaking event in the opener as two CEC female wrestlers took the mat against two Raiders girls, marking the first time that girls faced off on a Cloquet... Full story
If the Cloquet boys basketball team was looking for a tough schedule to start its season, the Lumberjacks found it. The Lumberjacks opened on Friday, Dec. 2 against Hermantown, a state tournament team last season, and will play Duluth East and Esko on Friday. All three are expected to be in their respective sectional finals again this season. "It certainly is a tough way to open the season," said Cloquet coach Steve Battaglia. In Friday's opener against the Hawks, the Lumberjacks got a chance... Full story
After decades of playing in the state’s largest hockey class, the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey team will likely move to Class A next season. Cloquet High School activities director Paul Riess told Cloquet school board members at their meeting Monday that the change has been a frequent topic with supporters. The Lumberjacks girls team made the move five or six years ago, then played their way to second place in the 2019-20 season’s Class A state tournament. The last couple years, Riess sai... Full story
In a game that featured massive momentum swings, the Cloquet and Esko girls basketball teams kicked off thier seasons with a real nailbiter that ended in a 55-52 win for the 'Jacks. Both teams had 20-8 records a year ago and are looking for similar success this season. Early in the game it was the Eskomos with the upper hand as they built a 24-14 lead by late in the first half. A 10-2 Cloquet run pulled them to just a 29-28 deficit at intermission. "It was a great opening game," Esko coach Sue... Full story
Neighborhood rivals Moose Lake Area and Cloquet-Esko-Carlton met up Nov. 22 in a girls hockey clash in Moose Lake. The spirited contest delivered, ending with a 3-2 MLA overtime victory. The Rebels jumped out to a 2-0 lead before the Lumberjacks mounted a third-period comeback to tie the game at 2-2. Things were not decided until the 2-minute, 32-second mark of overtime when Hallie Klavu netted the game winner to give MLA its fourth win of the season. "This is such a special group of kids,"... Full story
If strength of schedule is important to developing a hockey team during the regular season, then the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton girls hockey team is on the right track. The 'Jacks opened the season on Nov. 12 at Anoka followed by back-to-back home games against South St. Paul and Bloomington Jefferson. Despite going 0-3 in that stretch, there is reason to be optimistic. In their opening game road loss to Anoka, the Lumberjacks fell 2-1 in overtime to the Tornadoes. "We have a lot of new faces in the... Full story
This year marked the 50th anniversary of the legislatively approved Title IX provisions that required equal funding for genders in athletics. It is fitting and wonderful that Deb Hunter, who many feel is Cloquet's most gifted girls and women's athlete, made it back to her hometown in 2022 to share some of her fond sports memories. Even though it's not in her nature, I asked Deb to try to not be humble. I wanted to hear the classic sports stories from her vantage point, with no filters. It's... Full story
Esko High School senior Cale Haugen made an official commitment to Minnesota State, Mankato this month. Haugen signed a National Letter of Intent to play baseball for the Mavericks. He signed with his parents, Ben and Connie. Macava Smith signs a National Letter of Intent last week to play soccer at St. Mary's University, with head coach Dustin Randall at her side. Cloquet High School senior Karson Patten signs a National Letter of Intent to play golf at Minnesota State, Mankato earlier this... Full story
What started in March as a group of sports-minded private citizens, business owners and coaches brainstorming ways to fundraise for artificial turf at Cloquet High School has now turned into a much larger project. Cloquet school board members gave their approval Monday for school district officials to explore possible revenue sources and a construction process/timeline for the following items: replacing the grass football/soccer field with turf, moving the tennis courts and doubling the size...
Cloquet is sending one more athlete to state competition this fall, after senior Hannah Sandman swam her way to a second place and a personal record during last weekend's Section 7A girls swimming and diving meet in Hibbing. Sandman recorded the fastest time at 2:02.32 in the 200 freestyle Thursday in the preliminary races, then took second in the finals Saturday, which qualified her for the Class A girls swimming and diving state meet. Her final time was 2:01.90, her new personal record.... Full story
After upsetting the top team in the section last week, the Cloquet football team came back down to earth Friday against North Branch. The Vikings played a more physical game and slammed their way to a 34-6 victory in the Section 7AAAA championship game in North Branch. "I thought when we played them in the regular season that our line play matched them," Cloquet coach Jeff Ojanen said. "This time they just were more physical in their overall game, and that was the difference." North Branch ran... Full story
Each season, Cloquet volleyball coach Heidi Anderson has her team take part in a weekly book club, as her players learn life skills they can take with them well beyond the volleyball court. It's clear the Lumberjacks have written in some of their own chapters as well. While it wasn't a storybook ending for Cloquet in another Section 7AAA championship loss to Grand Rapids - an 11-25, 15-25, 18-25 sweep Saturday, Nov. 5 - it's undeniable what the Lumberjacks have accomplished over the past pair... Full story
It's a third at state in run for the record books In a historic run for the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys soccer team, the Lumberjacks claimed third place in the Class AA Minnesota state soccer tournament on Wednesday, Nov. 2. The 'Jacks got a 3–0 win over Richfield to secure the hardware and a 2-1 record at state. The program's first state tournament victory came in a Thursday, Oct. 27 quarterfinal, 3-1 over St. Cloud Tech, before a Tuesday, Nov. 1 semifinal defeat to DeLaSalle, 4-0. Junior Elijah... Full story
Mankato East sported a pitch-perfect record entering its Thursday, Oct. 27 Class AA girls soccer state quarterfinal against Cloquet. The opposing Lumberjacks found out why. Ella Huettl had the game's only goal and the Cougars defense did what they usually do - give up nothing - in keeping Cloquet off the scoreboard in Mankato East's 1-0 victory on a brisk night at Irondale High School. The Lumberjacks were victim No. 20 in the Cougars' unblemished season, as third-seeded Mankato East (20-0)... Full story
If someone had told the typical high school football fan that the Lumberjacks would beat the No. 1 Section 7AAAA seed in a semifinal game, they may have rattled off a list of reasons that idea was crazy. The ’Jacks had lost 27-14 to the Thunderhawks in mid-September. Grand Rapids entered the semifinal undefeated and their QRF ranking was second in the state, while Cloquet had three losses and a QRF state ranking of 21. On top of that, the game was in Grand Rapids, so the odds were stacked for a Thunderhawks win. “Yeah, a lot of people did... Full story
Sectional volleyball play opened across the state of Minnesota last week. Up north the Section 7A tournament kicked things off at various locations Wednesday, Oct. 26, with larger schools joining the bid for a state tournament berth on Thursday, Oct. 27. Section 7A Floodwood received the No. 1 South seed and Ely gained the No. 1 North seed. Local teams included South Ridge, Carlton, Cromwell-Wright, Wrenshall and Barnum. The Bombers, the No. 7 seed, eliminated the Wrens, the No. 10 seed, in the... Full story
NEW BRIGHTON - Entering Thursday's Class AA girls soccer state quarterfinal against Cloquet-Carlton, Mankato East sported a pitch-perfect record. The opposing Lumberjacks leaned exactly why. Ella Huettl had the game's only goal and the Cougars' defense did what they usually do – give up nothing – in keeping Cloquet off the scoreboard in Mankato East's 1-0 victory on a brisk night at Irondale High School. The Lumberjacks were victim No. 20 in the Cougars' unblemished season, as third-seeded Manka... Full story
In their second trip to State in as many years, the No. 3 ranked Lumberjacks boys soccer team beat a tough St. Cloud Tech 3-1 to earn a trip to the Bank, and they're excited. Elijah Aultman scored the first goal in the eighth minute at Thursday's quarterfinal game, hosted by Irondale High School in New Brighton. St. Cloud tied it in the second half and it was gridlock for a time, before two headed goals in the final eight minutes sealed the deal for Cloquet-Esko-Carlton. Sophomore midfielder... Full story
Trailing early, Cloquet stormed to the lead Tuesday and opened the Section 7AAAA football playoffs with a 42-12 victory over Denfeld at home. The game was a rematch of a game that was played in early September. Much like the first game the Lumberjacks struggled a bit in the first half, but then exploded and now have a spot in the sectional semifinals. The win came after a loss to North Branch Oct. 19 in the final game of the regular season. After giving up an early 50-yard touchdown run in the... Full story
