I first started at the Bemidji (Minn.) Pioneer as an intern in the summer of 1996. That would begin six years as a news reporter, sports reporter and copy editor for a small, six-day-per-week daily newspaper in northern Minnesota. I wrote a large range of stories from multiple beats, to features to sports, my favorite being the coverage of the Red Lake Reservation High School basketball team named the Warriors. Here is a collection of my stories from my time at the Pioneer.
Oct. 3, 1998
By Devlyn Brooks
The Beavers volleyball team continued to roll Friday, wrapping up their 10th win of the season in three sets 15-8, 15-8, 15-8 over conference foe University of Minnesota-Morris.
The win, the Beavers' fourth straight, and its second in three days increased their record to 10-6 overall and 4-1 in the NSIC.
On Wednesday, BSU gutted out a five-set, come-from-behind win over nationally-ranked Minnesota-Duluth which put them in sole position of the conference lead.
It was the first UMD conference defeat in more than 30 matches dating back to 1995, and it was Beaver head coach Donna Pavlivec's first victory over the Bulldogs.
"They wanted this; they really wanted to win today," Palivec said. "This week has set a tone as to what we can do in the future. It has opened their eyes so that they know what they can do."
BSU was led again by junior outside hitter Peggy Hammel, who recorded her fourth double-double of the season with 13 kills and 14 digs.
Sophomore Sarah Lundbohm added 10 kills and eight digs, while setter Michele Dinius had 38 set assists, five kills and eight digs.
Neither squad started particularly fast in the first game with BSU trading Morris a point in between several sideouts.
Morris took the first lead with two, two-point rallies, during which the Cougars recorded two aces.
BSU rallied next for five points on two Kristin Meyerson aces, a block, and kills by Amanda Daninger and Lundbohm.
The Beavers then increased their lead with kills by Peggy Hammel, Maureen McCartney and Angie Nelson and an ace by outside hitter Lundbohm. The last four points came on a McCartnery block, Nelson kill, Lundbohm block and a Morris error.
In game two, it was Morris who took the 5-1 lead on a couple of blocks, an ace and two BSU errors. And then the two teams traded points until Morris took a 7-5 lead.
But it was Bemidji who strung together an eight-point rally on Meyerson's serve to take control of the match. Morris managed another point, but BSU closed the match out on a Nelson kill and a Cougar error.
"You have to have good ball control against a team like Morris," Palivec said. "They're going to look at the court and see where you're not ... hit it there. We struggled a bit against them at times."
That was especially apparent in game three where the Beavers struggled the most.
BSU was sloppier than usual, losing five of its first six points on erros.
Fighting off the mistakes, Bemidji tied the game at 6-6, and used a four-point rally late to set the cruise control.
The Cougars managed to battle for two more points before they bowed on a Jenny Fischer kill and a Dinius block.
The win couldn't have capped a sweeter week for head coach Donna Pavlivec had she charted it herself.
Not only did her Beavers record their ninth and 10th wins of the year, one of which was over the No. 19 UMD Bulldogs, but she also was inducted into the North Dakota State University Hall of Fame Friday morning before the Morris match.
"This has been a special week," she said. "This (Morris win) is the culmination of a great week."
The Beavers' next action will be Saturday versus Winona State at BSU Gymnasium.
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