Good morning! I'm Jeff Hellman!
And I'm Autumn Thompson! Welcome to another edition of the "Bear
Facts", the weekly radio show from Bishop Garrigan High
School.
It was cold, snowy, foggy, and miserable Thursday afternoon, but that didn't keep the Garrigan
cross-country team from giving an all out effort. The Bears ran at the district meet, and when everything was finished they ended up tying with host team-powerhouse Eagle Grove-for second place overall. A tiebreaker placed gave the Bears third in the record books, but that didn't matter, because either way they qualify for state. The Bears will be down in Ft. Dodge next Saturday to run in the state cross-country meet. This is a big accomplishment, because it's the first time since 1984 that the Golden Bear boys have qualified for state.
Jeff Hellman was sixth among all runners, with a time of 17 minutes 16 seconds for the five-kilometer course. He qualified for state as an individual. John Kohlhaas was Garrigan's second strongest runner, finishing in thirteenth place overall in 17:52. Also scoring for the Bears were Brandon Rowley in 22nd place, Matt Courtney in 25th, and Seth Rogers in 43rd place overall. Eric Cassman and Tyler Rolling also ran personal bests for the Bears. On the girls side the top Golden Bear runner was Rose Mayer, who ended up in 44th place overall. Congratulations to Coaches Kohlhaas and Ahlers and to the boys cross-country team-the first state-qualifiers of the 2002-2003 school year!
This was also a great week for the Bishop Garrigan volleyball team. The girls entered districts on Tuesday by hosting Sentral of Fenton. They played a tough match and ended up beating the Spartans in five games. Then the very next night the Bears hosted Twin River Valley for the second round of play-offs. Garrigan cruised to victory in three straight games. That puts the Bears in the district championship, which will be played next Monday here at Garrigan. Garrigan will take on North Kossuth-a tough team, but one the Bears have already beaten once this season. We wish good luck to Coach Schnurr and the volleyball team!
Last Saturday over three hundred students were in town for the twelfth annual
BGHS Quiz Bowl Tournament. It was no surprise to anyone that Ankeny won the tournament. What did come as more of a surprise was that local teams fared pretty well on the day. North Kossuth was second overall, Algona High was fourth, and Garrigan itself had two teams qualify for play-offs. The team of John Kohlhaas, Jeff Hellman, Steven Kellner, Matt Courtney, and Rosalind Kirsch finished in sixth place out of sixty-six teams entered, while Drew Miller, Zac Lickteig, Tyler Rahm, and Mike Blocker were eleventh. Congratulations to them.
There's more quiz bowl action today. At about the time this airs on the radio, nine Garrigan students should be arriving in Ankeny for their second meet of the season. Autumn Thompson is the captain of the Bears' top team. Playing along with her are Mike Blocker, Nick Dahlhauser, and Eric Fouarge. Garrigan's other team features Captain Tyler Rolling, as well as Adam Cink, Seth Rogers, Jeff Lappe, and Amanda Golwitzer. Good luck to Coach Burrow and the quiz bowl team!
If you were out at Garrigan this past week, you might have heard some strange noises. That's because major repairs are being made to the roof of the school. The roof was damaged by wind storms, and we've been listening to loud whirring and grinding as the repairs are made. The noises should be over soon, and then we won't have to worry about leaking through the winter.
This week's Senior Spotlight shines on Lee Elbert. Here to tell you about him is
Andrea Schiltz.
Lee Elbert is probably best known for his running ability. In fall he's the top running back on the Golden Bear football team, and in the spring you'll hear his name among the school's top sprinters. Lee enjoys computers. He's worked on the school's website, and he and his friend Mark Steier even designed their own personal webpage. Lee plans a career in agriculture, and he'll be off to college in the fall. Good luck, Lee!
Thanks, Andrea! On our Golden Bear calendar this week, there's quiz bowl today at Ankeny. Also today several Garrigan music students are auditioning for all-state choir.
Tomorrow it's time to turn the clocks back as Daylight Savings Time ends. A large group of Garrigan students will be traveling to Carroll tomorrow for the diocesan Catholic youth rally.
Monday the second quarter begins. The freshman football team hopes to finish a strong season that night as they play Clarion-Goldfield. Also on Monday the volleyball team hosts North Kossuth for the district championship.
Tuesday a group of sophomores will take the PLAN test. Then Wednesday the band and choir will be recording a special CD that they will be selling to raise money for the music trip next spring.
Thursday is Halloween. Friday the Seton students will join us for an all-school mass for All Saints Day. Then that night the Golden Bear football team will close out their season at Ft. Dodge St. Edmond.
Finally this week we want to remind you of the annual BGHS magazine drive. For the next week and a half every Garrigan student will be selling subscriptions. Rates are competitive, and 40% of every dollar you spend stays right here in Algona to support school activities at Garrigan. So throw out those renewal notices, find your favorite Golden Bear, and buy your magazines through the school.
That's the "Bear Facts" for October. Thanks for joining us, and be sure to set your dial here again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
