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Articles written by Jake Kachinske


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  • Cards clipped in Section 7A final

    Jake Kachinske|Mar 17, 2023

    For the second straight year and third time in the last five seasons, Mountain Iron-Buhl ended the Cromwell-Wright girls basketball team's hopes of advancing to the Minnesota Class A State tournament. At the final buzzer of Friday night's Section 7A final, the scoreboard read 67-38 in favor of the No. 1 ranked team in the state. The Rangers scored the first 10 points of the contest before Cardinal sophomore Siiena Anderson laid in her only two points of the game to cut the MIB advantage to...

  • Rebels rush is stymied

    Jake Kachinske|Nov 18, 2022

    Third-ranked Barnesville scored on its first two drives of the game and its defense came through time after time in a 21-0 shutout of Moose Lake/Willow River in the Class AA State football quarterfinals last Thursday at a cold and windy St. Cloud Tech High School. The Rebels opened the game with a three-and-out, and the Trojans got the ball on the ML/WR 40-yard line and marched down the field for a touchdown on a 4-yard Braeden Bredman run. Isaac Mandeval punched through the extra point to give...

  • State softball: Rebels fall in title game, an instant classic

    Jake Kachinske|Jun 17, 2022

    For a couple of heart-racing moments last Friday in North Mankato, Rebels fans thought the wait for a state title was finally over when freshman Sandi Ribich sent a towering fly ball into left center field in the bottom of the eighth inning. Seconds later, Nicollet center fielder Brooklyn Bode snatched victory from the jaws of defeat when she tracked down the near home run ball, crashed into the fence and held on for the catch and the opening out. Two batters later, the final out was recorded...

  • Rebels bounced from playoffs in upset

    Jake Kachinske|Feb 11, 2022

    The Moose Lake Area girls hockey team wrapped up its season with a tough loss to Hibbing/ Chisholm Tuesday night at home, falling 4-2 in the opening round of the Section 7A playoffs. The No. 5 Bluejackets started fast in the first period, but MLA fought back. In the end, H/C kept the No. 4 Rebels off the scoreboard in the final two periods. The first period saw a flurry of activity. Hibbing jumped up 1-0 on senior Julia Gherardi's 15th goal of the season at 9:08 of the first. Senior Megan Bussey...

  • Wrenshall splits with Cromwell-Wright

    Jake Kachinske|Jan 21, 2022

    The second time was a charm Tuesday for the Wrenshall boys basketball team as they raced out to a 16-point halftime lead that eventually turned into a 63-49 home victory over Cromwell-Wright. The win avenged a 65-55 Polar League loss for the Wrens Dec. 10 in Cromwell. That game featured more than 60 combined fouls, but this game was anything but, as the refs put the whistles in the pocket and called 24 fouls. Wrenshall coach John Bartczak was impressed with how his team's defense answered the ca...

  • Bombers get section win

    Jake Kachinske|Oct 29, 2021

    Barnum broke open a one-score halftime lead with a big third quarter to advance to the semifinal round of the 7A football playoffs Saturday, defeating Mille Lacs 42-20 in a Tuesday night quarterfinal win at home. Up 20-13 after two quarters, the Bombers scored 90 seconds into the third on sophomore running back Caden Sheff's 26-yard touchdown run. That was followed by senior JJ Stevens' 19-yard TD catch nearly four minutes into the third. Add in senior Willie Richardson's 7-yard rushing score...

  • Cromwell-Wright gets by pesky Esko

    Jake Kachinske|Jan 31, 2020

    Cromwell-Wright's 56-48 win last Thursday night over the Eskomos, on the road, was chock- full of accomplishments for the Cardinals. First: Win No. 15 on the season. Second: A victory on the road over Esko for the first time in more than two decades. Third: Handing Esko its first conference loss at home in more than 10 years. "It was a big win for us," said Cardinals head coach Jeff Gronner following the game. "Playing and winning at Esko is never easy." Ranked No. 2 in Class A according to...

  • Storied softball coaches say it's time to retire

    Jake Kachinske|Oct 11, 2019

    An era came to a close last month when Cloquet softball coach Ron Tondryk handed his resignation letter to activities director Paul Riess, just a few months after the Lumberjacks took third place at the Minnesota State High School softball tournament. It was not only the end of Tondryk's decade-long tenure as head coach for Cloquet, but also the end of a 25-year coaching relationship between Tondryk and assistant coach Kerry Rodd. "It was time," said Tondryk last week. "We both have...

  • Esko makes fourth-straight trip to state

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot News Sports|Jun 7, 2019

    The Esko Eskomos softball squad is once again making plans for the state softball tournament, thanks to a convincing 8-1 win last Thursday afternoon over Proctor. The Eskomos finished off an undefeated run through the Section 7AA tournament by dispatching the Rails at Braun Park in Cloquet. Just two days before, the Eskomos won a 4-3 game over the Rails. The clincher wasn't quite as close. "Any section final game can go three different ways: You win big, you lose big or it's a nailbiter," Esko...

  • Cards' state wait ends

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot Sports|Mar 22, 2019

    CROSBY-The last time Cromwell-Wright sent a boys basketball team to the state tournament, there was just one champion crowned. The next year, boys basketball would move to the four-class format as we know it today. That 1996 boys state tourney was the final year of a two-year experiment that mixed small schools with large schools that resulted in one champion in the end. Both years, Minneapolis North would come away winners of the "Sweet Sixteen" tournament format. Although Minneapolis North...

  • Cardinals tame Tigers, advance to semifinals

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot News Sports|Mar 15, 2019

    BRAINERD -The Cromwell-Wright boys basketball team survived a couple of comeback attempts by their Section 5A quarterfinal opponent Tuesday night but held off Browerville- Eagle Valley 47-42. The Cardinal win set up a rematch against Nevis in the north subsection championship (essentially the section semifinals) in Brainerd Wednesday night, a game that was not finished when The Pine Knot News went to press. On Tuesday, Cromwell-Wright saw a nine-point lead disappear early in the second half,...

  • Cardinals state run ends with semifinals

    Jake Kachinske, Sports Pine Knot News|Nov 23, 2018

    [email protected] - Spring Grove quarterback Alex Folz played a role in all seven of his team's scoring plays as the defending nine-man champion Lions rolled over the Cromwell-Wright Cardinals 48-12 last Thursday in the state semifinals at U.S. Bank Stadium. Spring Grove (13-0) moved on to play Mountain Lake Area in today's 10 a.m. championship at Prep Bowl 37. Spring Grove set the tone early and often in the first quarter, taking the opening kickoff to midfield and then...

  • Bank on it!

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot News Sports|Nov 16, 2018

    Cardinals ride defense to state semifinals BEMIDJI - It took an interception by freshman Ethan Shelton late in the fourth quarter to preserve a victory last Friday night at Chet Anderson Stadium, but the Cromwell-Wright Cardinals will be doing their banking in Minneapolis this week. A 14-7, nail-biting state quarterfinal victory over Norman County East/Ulen-Hiiterdal in 14-degree conditions sent the Cardinals (12-0) to the more climate-friendly confines of U.S. Bank Stadium Thursday, where they...

  • Minnesota Wilderness sweep Blizzard

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot Sports|Nov 16, 2018

    CLOQUET - The Minnesota Wilderness junior hockey team bucked a month-long trend by sweeping the Brookings Blizzard last weekend at home. Scores at Northwoods Credit Union Arena were 5-0 Friday and 5-4 Saturday in front of 1,600-plus fans both nights combined. Wilderness head coach and general manager Dave Boitz credited "solid special teams and goaltending" and "a lot of balanced scoring" for the victories. Dating back to the weekend of Oct. 5-6, the Wilderness had been splitting each two-game...

  • Off to state ... again

    Jake Kachinske, Sports Pine Knot News|Nov 9, 2018

    Jake Kachinske [email protected] ESKO-On the final play of the first quarter in the Section 5 nine-man football game last Friday, Cromwell-Wright senior quarterback Drew Libbon was knocked out of bounds on a scramble towards his own sideline. After a lengthy delay, he was back-boarded off the field by medical personnel and later diagnosed with a dislocated hip and did not return. That could have been disastrous for the Cardinals. Leading only 6-0 at that point, the Cardinals defense took...

  • Carlton wins 7A crown, dismantles Deer River in three

    Jake Kachinske, Sports Pine Knot News|Nov 9, 2018

    HIBBING-The Carlton Bulldogs are making another trip to state volleyball tournament this week after a convincing 3-0 win over the Deer River Warriors in last Saturday's Section 7A championship match. The final lasted less than an hour at Lincoln Elementary Gymnasium, with Carlton winning games one and two 25-15 and 25-19, and the final game 25-9. "I didn't see them nervous at all out there today. Even when they got behind early in that second game, I didn't see them get rattled. This group just...

  • Cromwell-Wright handles Carlton, advances to section final

    Jake Kachinske, Pine Knot Sports|Nov 2, 2018

    CROMWELL-The two-time defending Section 5 Nine-Man football champion Cromwell-Wright Cardinals are into another section final, thanks to another big performance from their backfield. Seniors Cameron Cahoon and Kannon Korpela each rushed for three touchdowns as the Cardinals won big at home Saturday night over the Carlton Bulldogs, 57-14. "We came out and took care of business. Cameron and Kannon ran well, [quarterback] Drew [Libbon] threw some nice balls and our defense shut them down," said...