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 1 - 25 of 822
The Cloquet-Esko-Carlton girls hockey team was hungry for a win as they took the ice for Hockey Day Cloquet Saturday. The Lumberjacks had not had a win since Dec. 5 against Hibbing/Chisholm. Saturday night the young CEC squad snapped a 10-game losing streak with an impressive 2-0 win over the Northern Tier Stars, a Class AA cooperative of St. Francis, North Branch and Cambridge-Isanti. "That was a huge win for us," said CEC coach Kennedy Weets. "The girls were smiling all day long in anticipatio...
Organizers for Hockey Day Cloquet couldn't have asked for a more picturesque setting than what everyone saw Saturday. A fluffy white snow fell all day long, the smell of cookies, popcorn and burgers emanated from food vendor stands, and an energetic crowd surrounded the hockey rink at Veterans Park. Unfortunately, the CEC boys hockey team struggled to put pucks past the Sartell goalie as the Lumberjacks fell in overtime 2-1 in the second game of a varsity and junior varsity quadrupleheader,...
Things are starting to ramp up for the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton wrestling team. The Lumberjacks have already wrestled in three tournaments this season, including Lakeville North, Brainerd and the Jack Hammer Tournament in Pequot Lakes. "We've also wrestled in a triangular against both Crosby-Ironton and Ogilvie," said longtime CEC coach Al Denman. "We beat C-I and lost to Ogilvie by just a few points, and a year ago Ogilvie throttled us. We've come a long way, and our numbers are up." The 'Jacks... Full story
For the first half of last Thursday's boys basketball game, the game between Cloquet and the home team Barnum was close. The Lumberjacks held a slim five-point lead, but the game was still up in the air. That all changed when Cloquet came out in a three-quarter-court trap that proved too much for Barnum to handle. Cloquet went on to win 90-61. "That first half we couldn't get the pace we wanted and Barnum controlled the tempo," said Cloquet coach Steve Battaglia. "We came out in a trap to start... Full story
The Moose Lake Area girls hockey team held a one-goal lead over Cloquet-Esko-Carlton entering the third period on Dec. 20. The Rebels were able to fight through penalties and CEC's push to tie the game by scoring two late empty-net goals for a 3-0 victory over the Lumberjacks. MLA grabbed a 1-0 lead at the 8:07 mark of the first period on a goal by Hallie Klavu with assists going to Sandra Ribich and Lily Ludwig. "The last time we played CEC, they got three goals in the first seven minutes of... Full story
The 2024 version of the Wood City Classic boys basketball tournament was held last Friday and Saturday at Cloquet Middle School, and the venerable tournament did not disappoint local basketball fans. "It is always a good tournament and we love coming to play here," said Cromwell-Wright coach Bill Pocernich. "There's always good competition against good teams." The host Lumberjacks took on Pocernich's Cardinals in the opening game for both teams. Cloquet came out on top 82-48. "We started well... Full story
The Wood City Classic girls basketball tournament is in the books, and both local teams went 1-1 in the tournament. Cloquet opened with a win over Mesabi East and then lost to Pine City, while Cromwell-Wright started with an easy win over Pine City, but then fell to Mesabi East in their second game. A year ago, Cloquet entered the tournament with an 8-0 record and looked to be the favorite in Section 7AAA, but Mesabi East put a stop to the win streak. That loss kickstarted a downward spiral for... Full story
When Tony Bender took over coaching the Moose Lake Area boys hockey team this winter, he had a long list of things he wanted to accomplish. Among the top things on the list was increasing the number of athletes in the program and helping each player to learn the game. After seven games, the Rebels have responded with a 4-3 record and stronger play on the ice. The team's latest win came Monday in a 4-1 home victory over Spooner, Wisconsin. "We compete in every game, but there are times where we... Full story
The Esko girls basketball team stormed out to a big halftime lead and never looked back as they beat next-door neighbor Carlton/Wrenshall, 59-25, on Dec. 12 in Wrenshall. "We went into the game thinking we had a chance of giving them a tough game, but they came out in a press that put us on our heels," said Carlton/Wrenshall coach Emma Grover. "My girls didn't adjust to what we were telling them to do, and it just got out of hand for us." Esko was led by Clara Swanson's 18 points and Kaitlyn... Full story
The Barnum girls basketball team steamrolled to a huge first-half lead in a Dec. 12 matchup against Moose Lake/Willow River and ended up taking a 55-22 road win in Moose Lake. "We have some great athletes, and they really got after it in that first half," said Mariah Minkkinen, head coach of the Bombers. "Getting after it" was almost an understatement, as the Bombers sprinted ahead to a 28-4 lead by halftime. "We knew Barnum was good, but we didn't expect that," said ML/WR coach Andrew Miller. A... Full story
After nine seasons as the head coach of the Esko football team, Scott Arntson has decided to step down and focus on family, freeing up time in what is a very busy life. "I just felt this was the right time and situation for me to step aside," Arntson said. 'I have a granddaughter and another grandchild on the way. My granddaughter lives in Duluth, and I hardly saw her during the season, and the new one will be living in Wausau, so I know if I was the head coach I wouldn't be able to spend the... Full story
Tension and emotions ran high when the Cloquet-Esko- Carlton boys hockey team hosted East Grand Forks at Northwoods Credit Union Arena Saturday. Eventually, the No. 3 ranked Lumberjacks were able to secure a wild and thrilling 4-3 win over the No. 7 ranked Green Wave. "We got the great start we were looking for, and then we started going to the penalty box and the flow of the game changed," said CEC coach Shea Walters. CEC took a 1-0 lead just 1:40 into the game when Neil Elsmore slammed home a... Full story
A quick start for the Esko boys basketball team was the perfect recipe for an 86-69 win over the Cloquet Lumberjacks last Friday night in Esko. "We were ready to go from the start," said Esko coach Derek Anderson. "We talk to the guys about the fact that the outside perception of our team is that we will be down this year, but our expectations are the same as they've always been, and that's to win a section championship and get to State." Esko scored quickly and often on their way to grabbing a... Full story
With nine players contributing points, the Carlton/Wrenshall Raptors girls basketball team secured a 56-23 win over the Fond du Lac Ogichidaag last week. "This is the most amount of players we've ever had," said Raptors coach Emma Grover. "We have 33 kids out in grades 7-12 and we have 12 total on our varsity roster. For us, those are awesome numbers." Myleena Ojibway led the Raptors with 16 points and was the lone Raptor in double-digit scoring. Raina Shabaish had 11 points for FDL in the Nov.... Full story
A strong second half helped propel the Cloquet boys basketball team to a 95-88 home win over Chisago Lakes last Saturday afternoon in Cloquet. Entering the second half, the Lumberjacks and the Wildcats were tied at 51-51, but then Cloquet clamped down defensively. "At times the game was sloppy, but we did a lot of good things," Cloquet coach Steve Battaglia said of the season opener. "Despite giving up a ton of size, we out-rebounded them by a significant margin. To open the season against the... Full story
A five-goal burst in the third period helped push the Cloquet-Esko-Carlton boys hockey team to an impressive 7-1 opening game win over Bloomington Jefferson at Northwoods Credit Union Arena on Saturday afternoon. "Every year we play them, they give us a good game and I thought this is one of the better teams they've had as of late," said CEC coach Shea Walters. "They came out hard in the second period, but we weathered the storm and then we really got things going in the third period." The... Full story
Heading into Tuesday's girls basketball Battle for the Paddle, neither Cloquet nor Esko had put a mark in the win column this season. The Lumberjacks entered the game 0-2, with losses to Proctor and Hermantown, and Esko came in 0-1 with a loss to Rock Ridge. On Tuesday night the 'Jacks were able to overcome a challenging game to come away with a 71-43 victory. They also won the paddle, which goes to the victors. "We got the paddle back," said Cloquet coach Heather Young. "We will take the win,... Full story
After more than 20 years with the Cloquet football program, head coach Jeff Ojanen has resigned. He told his team Nov. 20 about his decision. He said he wants to spend more time with his family. "It really comes down to how priorities change in your life," Ojanen said. "When I took the head coach job three years ago I thought I'd be able to handle missing some stuff for my girls, but it got harder and harder. Right now, I want to see my girls play and help them and their teammates in any way I... Full story
Over the past few years, the Minnesota State High School League has aired public service advertisements on television and radio stations across the state asking people to "get in the game" and become officials. The reason those ads air is simple: in many sports across Minnesota, there is a vast need for more officials. The lack of football officials hit home in Carlton County this year when Esko had to move its homecoming football game time forward to 4 p.m. Oct. 4 while Barnum moved its game... Full story
The Wilderness have had a rollercoaster ride both on and off the ice this season. Off the ice, head coach Colton St. Clair decided to step down as coach in early October and then the Wilderness hired Zach Stepan as the head coach for the team based in Cloquet. Stepan was not new to the organization, as he was already coaching the NA3HL Wilderness team based in Eveleth. “It’s been busy trying to get through the transition of new systems while not having had a full training camp for them to lea... Full story
When Cromwell-Wright took the field on Halloween night it seemed like all odds were stacked against them. The Cardinals were facing an undefeated team, last year's state champions, and the top-ranked team in nine-player football this season. Nevis had beaten them by 40 points a little over a month before hte Section 5 title game on Halloween night in Brainerd. Add to the odds the fact that Cromwell-Wright's starting quarterback was dealing with an injury. All that, and none of it mattered as the... Full story
When Moose Lake/Willow River and Mesabi East stepped onto the field in Esko for the Section 7AA championship game last Thursday, they had to deal with cold and wet and a field covered in snow. In the end the Rebels overcame the elements and the Giants, earning another trip to state - the 18th time in school history - by winning 24-14. The Rebels got two big runs from Levi Mikrot in the first quarter to gain the early lead. Mikrot rumbled 41 yards for the first score of the game, giving ML/WR an... Full story
For three years in a row, the Esko volleyball team has met Rush City in the Section 7AA championship game and for three straight years the Tigers have come away with the title. The latest championship tilt came on Saturday night when the Tigers nabbed a 3-1 win in Hermantown. "Last year Rush City finished as the runner-up at the state tournament," Esko coach Pete Stasiuk said. "Our girls were excited to come out and play them." Esko started by grabbing a first set win with a strong finish,... Full story
The Esko girls made their mark in the Minnesota State Class A Soccer Tournament this past week. After winning on penalty kicks Oct. 24 over St. Cloud Cathedral in the opening round, Esko fell to top seed Southwest Christian, 2-1, in a tense semifinal game Tuesday at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. The first half of play was tightly played with the Esko defensive corps doing a stellar job of not allowing one of the state's best forwards, Maya Johnson, to get free as the teams went to halftime... Full story
After two rounds of playoffs, just two local football teams remain in the hunt for that elusive state tournament berth. Both of those teams, Moose Lake/Willow River and Cromwell-Wright, are rich in postseason success and were scheduled to play for section championships Thursday night, after the Pine Knot News went to press. The stunner in the second round was top-seeded Barnum falling, 22-14, in Section 7AA, to No. 4 Mesabi East. The Giants jumped on the Bombers in the first half and held a... Full story
