Good morning! I'm Brandon Donahe!
And I'm Tyler Struck! Welcome to our last episode of the "Bear Facts" for the 1998-99 school year.
There's only two more hours of school at Garrigan. All that's left is finishing up finals, which we'll be doing Tuesday morning. With school almost out, we're going to be spending most of our last "Bear Facts" looking ahead to the events of Summer, 1999.
But first a special congratulations. This has been a year of championships for Garrigan. Last fall we won state championships in cross country and dance, and last weekend junior Angie Froehlich brought home another state title. Angie cleared 5 feet 4 inches to beat all the other competitors in the state high jump competition. Congratulations to Angie and to the rest of the girls' track team.
You're likely to hear about more state championships this weekend. At the boys' state track meet, cross country champ Adam Sundall is favored to win the mile and two-mile races, and the Bears' relay teams also stand a good shot of placing high. Competing for the Bears in Des Moines are seniors Doug Besch, Phil Kramer, and Adam Sundall; juniors Tyler Struck, Dean Boever, Chris Weir, Dennis Gisch, Trent Youngwirth, and John Mosbach; sophomores Nick Even, Bryan McAlpine, Ben Richter, and Hank Greer; and freshman Greg Fowler. Good luck at state, boys track!
Last week the Golden Bear boys' golf team surpassed all the competition to become the regional champions. They're in Iowa City today, playing at Finkbine Golf Course for the state championship. The top golfers include seniors Michael Bernhard, Matt Kunkel, and Anthony Gervais; junior P.J. Vaske; sophomore Russ Vaske; and freshman Tyler Erpelding. Congratulations to Coach Tom Froehlich, and to all these state tournament golfers!
Baseball season is here! Coach Meister has a very busy season planned for the boys of summer. They've already played Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday this week, and over the next month and a half there's only five days when there's not a game scheduled. One new feature in this year's schedule is the Dowling Classic in West Des Moines June 12 and 13. There's also the traditional CYO tournament June 5 and 6 at Carroll, and play-offs begin on Monday, July 12. The Bears have done well in play-offs almost every year in recent memory, but they've always fallen short of making it to state. We hope this might be the year they go all the way.
There are twenty-six boys out for baseball this year, but it's sophomore superstar Brad Nelson that everybody's expecting to lead the Bears to victory this summer. Brad's an outstanding hiter, a top-notch pitcher, he's quick on the base paths, and he's also good in the infield. Joining Brad in the starting line-up are seniors Jeremy Bartolo, Joe Lucas, and Mark Anderson; juniors Sam Lickteig, P.J. Vaske, and John Mosbach; and sophomores Josh Hanig and Ben Lickteig. Several other boys are likely to see a lot of varsity action this summer. Among them are senior Chuck Rahm, junior Eric Eischen, sophomores Scott McGuire and Steven Courtney, and freshman Jeff Vaske. Good luck to all the Golden Bear baseball team!
The softball Bears also have a busy summer. They'll begin their season on Memorial Day with a doubleheader at Manson Northwest Webster. The CYO softball tournament will be June 12 and 13 at Storm Lake, and play-offs start at the end of July. We wish good luck to Coaches Giles Struck, Lisa Boekelman, and Maggie Nelson, and all the Golden Bear softball players!
Like the baseball team, the softball team is heavy on sophomores. The starters this summer are likely to include sophomores Sara Reding, Sara Seeley, Deanna Kohlhaas, Kelly Kunkel, Molly Meyer, Michelle Vitzthum, and Lisa Arndorfer. Joining them will be senior Katie Reding and juniors Nicole Erpelding and Corrie Stetzel. Also likely to see a lot of varsity action are seniors Jessica Richter and Julie Henkelvig, junior Angie Weber, and sophomore Julie McGuire. Good luck, girls!
Seven Garrigan students will be spending part of their summer in sunny Spain. On June 28 Spanish club members Heidi Pierson, Abbey Studer, Rachel Studer, Sherri Kollasch, Jennifer Reinhart, Marian Studer, and Sarah Kollasch will be flying to beautiful Barcelona. After a couple of days there they'll take a trip to old Seville, and then they'll exlpore the heartland of Spain. Spanish teacher Muriel Singer is escorting the Garrigan group, as well as a couple of Algona High students. We wish all of them "bon voyage"!
Many of you have heard about a musical group called "Everything Red" that is made up of Garrigan students. The group's first performance was right here at Garrigan during the 1999 pops concert. They went on to play at a benefit dance for Melissa McGuire, and they joined up with three other bands for a concert at the VFW. Now Everything Red is still as strong as ever. Their next big concert will be July 26, when RAGBRAI stops in Algona.
Junior Josh Harp leads the band with his top-notch electric guitar and vocal skills. Backing him up with his own electrifying guitar and vocal skills is junior Wade MacDonald. Brandon Donahe, also a junior, brings variety to the group by providing a heavy bass sound. Rounding out the group with a dynamic tempo and exciting riffs is freshman Josh Dittrich. Don't miss the event of the summer. Be sure to catch Everything Red live at RAGBRAI on July 26.
On our summe Golden Bear calendar, there's a cheerleading stunt camp today from 9 to 4. Then on Monday the Solid Gold marching band will be playing for the Memorial Day festivities here in Algona. Finals end on Tuesday, and school is officially out at 11:15am.
Drivers' ed also starts on Tuesday. CYO baseball is this coming weekend, and CYO softball will be June 12 and 13.
On June 24 Alicia Arndorfer and Tracey Fickbohm will be leaving for Nashville to show off their EMT skills in the National Health Occupations Competition. Right after that the Spanish club leaves for Barcelona.
Baseball and softball play-offs are at the end of July. Then in August it's time for football, volleyball, and cross-country practice to begin.
The teachers will be back at Garrigan on August 18. Fortunately, school doesn't actually start up again until Monday, August 23.
Before we leave this week, we'd like to thank everyone who helped out with our show this past year. Thanks to Garrigan's talented and gifted coordinator David Burrow, who serves as our faculty producer. Thanks to all sixty-four students who wrote and announced for the "Bear Facts" this past year, and thanks also to all the teachers who supplied us with information. Thanks to KLFA for airing our show for the past seven years, and thanks to the sponsors who help to keep us on the air.
Finally, thanks to all of you for listening to the "Bear Facts". That wraps up the 1998-99 school year, but we hope to be back in September to start our eighth season on KLGA, bringing you all the news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
