All-American

Sarah Miller of Crosslake, a freshman libero at Central Lakes College in the 2012 volleyball season, has earned All-American status in both the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III and American Volleyball Coaches Association individual honors. She is one of 12 first-team NJCAA picks and 18 players in all to be nationally recognized. For more go to http://www.njcaa.org/sports_awards.cfm?sid=47&divid=3&slid=17. The AVCA named 18 players in various divisions of two-year colleges. Sarah was the ONLY player from the NJAA Div. III to earn first team All-American in this organization. AVCA is based in Lexington, Kentucky.

First win for men

Kevin Kuefler (shown) scored 20 points and nabbed nine rebounds in a Central Lakes College men's basketball win, 86-82,  over the Concordia  junior varsity Wednesday in Brainerd. The effort earned his Northern Division Player of the Week honors for Week 3 of the MCAC. Tyler Flugum added 16 points and seven boards and John Jedneak had 17 points and five rebounds for the Raiders, who won their first game in four starts. CLC held a 47-42 advantage at the half and shot 50 percent (8-16) from 3-point range compared to the Cobbers’ 31 percent. The Raiders held a 44-27 rebounding edge. The CLC bench outscored the Cobbers 36-20, led by Nathan Holm’s 10 points.
Images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/58518185@N04/

No bowl game

Central Lakes College will not be sending its football team to the 2012 Valley of the Sun Bowl in Arizona. CLC, which won the Minnesota College Athletic Conference championship Nov. 4, was to have played Glendale Community College on Dec. 1. It would have been the fourth bowl game in as many years for the Raiders. “It appears as though we may have had a relatively small, but still significant eligibility issue with a one or more football players,” said Kelly McCalla, interim vice president of academic affairs. He said the issue has to do with when a student is considered fulltime. “It appears to have been a student misunderstanding” as opposed to willful wrong-doing, McCalla said. “It was a simple mistake, but one with real consequences.”

Women lose to Cobber JV

The Central Lakes College women's basketball team lost to the Concordia Cobbers junior varsity, 86-56, Monday. Lindsay Monson led the Raider scoring with 17 points and had 10 rebounds, Taalyr Egeness added 13 points and Sierra Benning 10. FG 24-63 (38 percent). FT 5-9 (55 percent). Overall: 0-4. Next: host Anoka-Ramsey 6 p.m. Nov. 30.

Raider teams lose

The Central Lakes College men's and women's basketball teams are still looking for their first wins of the 2012-13 season. The Raider women (0-3) lost 70-35 to Minnesota State Community and Technical College (MSCTC) at Fergus Falls Saturday, Nov. 17, and the CLC men (0-3) fell to the Spartans, 75-70. For the Raider women, Lindsay Monson scored 10 points and Taalyr Egeness grabbed eight rebounds. CLC scored just 12 points in the second half. For the men, Kevin Kuefler scored 19 points and had 13 rebounds. Brandon Davis added 13 points and nine rebounds. The Raiders shot 44 percent (29-66) from the field and converted 3 of 17 threes and 9 of 22 free throws. The Raider women play host to Concordia (Moorhead) College's junior varsity Monday, Nov. 19 at 7 p.m., and the men will do likewise Wednesday, Nov. 21 vs.the Concordia JV.

Football team moves up

Despite not playing a game last weekend, the Central Lakes College football team moved up to No. 8 from No. 10 in the latest NJCAA poll. The Raiders are awaiting word  regarding a possible post-season bowl game, with several bowl game hosts reportedly showing interest. More should be know sometime today. The Raiders ran their 2012 record to 10-1 by defeating Rochester, 33-23, in the MCAC championship Nov. 4. CLC has played in post-season bowl games three straight years and came closest to winning two years ago in Arizona. Two decisives losses came at the hands of Iowa teams in bowl games played in the UNI Dome at Cedar Falls.

Player of the Year

Sarah Miller, a freshman from Crosslake, was named Northern Division Player of the Year by the Minnesota College Athletic Conference in 2012. The Brainerd High School graduate played in the libero position, which is a defensive or service-receiving specialist. Her role isn't one that tallies a lot of statistics, said Coach Jane Peterson, but someone with Sarah's athleticism and instincts can and did make a difference in the Raiders' 22-7 season. CLC won the Regional, regular-season championship with a 13-1 record, losing only to the eventual regional champ, Northland, which took third place in the NJCAA Division III tournament Nov. 10 in Rochester. Other Raiders receiving MCAC honors: Alanna Hansen, sophomore from Brainerd, first team All-State and All-Region; Lindsay Monson, freshman from Pierz, second team All-Region. The Brainerd Dispatch featured Sarah Miller in  the Nov. 13 edition. http://brainerddispatch.com/sports/2012-11-12/college-volleyball-bhs-grad-becoming-reluctant-raiders-leader

CLC Fall Classic

Women close the gap

The Central Lakes College women continued the growing process Saturday afternoon with a 74-67 loss to Bismarck State at the Brainerd campus in the CLC Fall Classic basketball invitational. Freshman guard Sierra Benning (shown) of Clarissa led the Raiders with 17 points on 5-of-7 shooting. Lindsay Monson and Jalynn Lamb each added 15 points for the Raiders. Other scoring: Mariya Pierskalla 3, Ashley Arenson 9, Taalyr Egeness 4, Carlie Sweet 4. Team FG 26-67 (39 %), FT 14-22 (64 %). 3-point 1-9 (11 %). Overall: 0-2. 

Men lose another close one

The Central Lakes College Raiders find themselves in unfamiliar territory as they fell to Bismarck State Saturday 84-81 to drop to 0-2. Tyler Flugum totaled 15 points and Marcus Brown and Kevin Kuefler each tallied 13 for CLC. The Raiders built a 48-30 halftime lead, but were outscored 54-33 in the second half. Other scorers: Benji Subah 4, Andre Thomas 11, Nathan Holm 3,  Bryan Gichaba 7, Brandon Davis 7, Kahreem Horsley 5, John Jedneak 9, Herbert Tarpeh 2, Brent Koehler 2. FG 35-71 (49 %), FT 7-13 (54 %). 

Raiders lose openers

The Central Lakes College men's and women's basketball teams dropped their season openers Friday in the CLC Fall Classic on the Brainerd campus. The women lost to Bismarck State (N.D.), 78-50, and the men lost a last-second heart-breaker to United Tribes (Bismarck, N.D.), 73-71. Taaylr Egeness led the Raider women in scoring with 14 points, followed by Lindsay Monson with 12, and Jalynn Lamb with 10. The Raiders suffered from poor shooting but, after trailing 46-26 at the half, improved their effort to hold the Mystics to 32 in the last half. The teams meet again today at 2. The men also had a tough shooting night against the Thunderbirds 23 of  73 (32%), and 14 of 25 from the free throw line. The winners emerged with 2.3 seconds left, making a basket with .9 of a second left to escape. CLC scoring: leaders: Andre Thomas 17,  Kevin Kuefler 16, Brandon Davis 11. The Raiders face unbeaten Division I Bismarck State today at 4.
Photo: Carlie Sweet of CLC is fouled as she shoots vs. Bismarck State.  (Courtesy of Kelly Humphrey, Brainerd Dispatch)

Raiders finish at No. 10

The Central Lakes College Raiders football team, which on Nov. 4 won the Minnesota College Athletic Conference championship, 33-23, over Rochester, is ranked 10th in the NJCAA football poll released Nov. 6. This is the highest ranking for CLC during the season, which brought 10 straight wins after the opening 30-28 loss at Northland. The rankings: 1. Iowa Western (10-0), 2. Butler, Kansas (10-0), 3. Nassau, N.Y. (9-0), 4. Northeastern Oklahoma A & M (9-1), 5. ASA, N.Y. (8-0), 6. Mississippi Gulf Coast, Miss. (9-1), 7. Snow, Utah (9-1), 8. Arizona Western (7-1), 9. Navarro, Texas (8-2), 10. Central Lakes College (10-1). Rochester (9-2) is ranked 18th (last week 14th).

Honors

Central Lakes College student athletes have earned post-season honors for their effort during the recently completed Minnesota College Athletic Conference football season. The Raiders captured the 2012 MCAC championship on Nov. 4 with a 33-23 win over defending champion Rochester. The CLC team earned a No. 12 national ranking on the strength of its 10-1 season record.

State champs!

The Central Lakes College Raider football team captrued the Minnesota College Athletic Conference championship Sunday at St. Cloud State's Husky Stadium by defeating Rochester Community & Technical College, 33-23. It is the second title in four years for CLC, which improved to 10-1 on the year with a second 2012 triumph over the Yellowjackets (31-23 in September). The defining moment: A 75-yard kickoff return by Anthony Shelman that put the Raiders back in front, 26-23, following a fumble that produced RCTC's 23-19 lead in the third quarter. The MCAC top-seeded and nationally 12th-ranked Raiders then put the game away in the fourth quarter when QB Andrew Johnson hoofed it 3 yards and Andrew Leonhardt kicked the PAT for a 33-23 lead with 5:51 to go. Johnson threw three TD passes, completing 9 of 22 attempts for 167 yards, and he added 64 rushing for 231 yards of offense. Beau Bellmore rushed 30 times for 126 yards to lead the attack behind some outstanding blocks. TD receptions were by Bellmore, Brandon Kiel, and Michael Sparish. The Raiders picked off six passes -- Matt Mogere had 3, Jared Hoemberg, Calvin Belfrey, and Jordan Bialke each had 1, according to CLC defensive stats. Bialke was in on 12 tackles. Erik Chouinard had a pair of QB sacks. CLC outgained the MCAC's previously top-producing offense, 355-306.
Images: http://www.flickr.com/photos/58518185@N04/

Hall of Fame

Jane Peterson, Central Lakes College head women’s volleyball coach, on Thursday, Nov. 8 will be inducted into the Hall of Fame of the NJCAA Volleyball Coaches Association. She holds the distinction as having coached the most wins among active coaches in the National Junior College Athletic Association. Peterson, who this season surpassed 500 wins, will accept the honor at the national tournament banquet at the Kahler Grand Hotel in Rochester. The Division III championship event is held in Rochester, where three Raider teams coached by Peterson have earned national titles and made nine appearances as the regional champion. Peterson’s volleyball coaching record at CLC is 507-226 through 22 seasons. She reached 500 wins on Oct. 3, a milestone equally as significant as the 2007 award from the American Volleyball Coaches Association: Coach of the Year.

Fall Classic

The 2012-13 men's and women's basketball season at Central Lakes College starts Friday, Nov. 9 in the first day of the CLC Fall Classic event on the Brainerd campus. The Raider women play Bismarck State (ND) at 5 p.m., followed by the 7 p.m. men's opener pitting CLC against United Tribes (ND). The first game of the day is at 3 p.m., with the Quakerdale (Iowa) Prep men playing Bismarck State. On Saturday, Nov. 10, the venue starts at noon with the United Tribes men taking on Quakerdale. At 2 p.m., the CLC women play Bismarck State. At 4 p.m. the CLC men will square off against Bismarck State.