THE BEAR FACTS
November 5, 2022


 Good morning! I’m Gavin Swift!

 I’m Joey Doerning!

 And I’m Benjy Trainer! Happy November from the “Bear Facts”, and all of us here at Bishop Garrigan High School!

 Last weekend eleven Garrigan cheerleaders went down to the Iowa State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, where they competed in the 2022 Iowa cheerleading championships. The Bears had two stunt groups at the competition, and they finished third and seventh overall in the state. The state success came right after the Bears took third in the Triton Classic at Iowa Central Community College.

 Cheerleaders competing at state included Avery Berte, Ella Schaaf, Ellie Rosenmeyer, Ava Kemna, and Ava Hough, plus Reece Kemna, Emma Bacha, Zoey Von Bank, Izzy Waechter, and Ava Snider. Addison Kuper was an alternate at state. Congratulations, cheerleaders!

 There’s more quiz bowl action today. Bishop Garrigan is hosting the Top of Iowa Conference quiz bowl tournament. The Bears have two teams entered in the event. The first features Garrett Heying, Sam Plathe, Ben Greteman, Brendan Plathe, and Benjy Trainer; and the other team includes Avery Lichter, Molly Peterson, Thadd Kollasch, Tate Foertsch, and Kayden Graves.

 Both teams will play five preliminary games against schools from throughout the conference. The top four teams will advance to playoffs, with the winners receiving all-conference certificates and a traveling trophy. Competition begins at 9:15, and the public is invited to watch. Good luck quiz bowl!

 Tonight is your last chance to see the Bishop Garrigan fall musical, The Wizard of Oz. Drew Casey stars as the wonder wizard himself, and you’ll even get to see him float away in a hot air balloon. The cast also includes seniors Savannah Waechter, Nate Bronk, Joey Doerning, Eva Snyder, Maggie Vaske, Ali Lallier, and Audi Crooks.

 The Wizard of Oz also features Sam Plathe, Benjy Trainer, Brendan Plathe, Violet Bode, Carter McGregor, Ethan Marso, and Griffin Geving; together with Alyssa Haugland, Izzy Waechter, Kayden Graves, Spencer Doerning, Amaury Thomas, and Nathaniel Darling.

 You’ll also see Brooke Ludwig, Elena Salinas, Lauren Swift, Addison Kuper, Aubrey Meyer, Allison Denker, and Sacha Alesch; plus Alaina Casey, Madelyn Bronk, Alaina Bormann, Ava Hough, and Noah Berte. Showtime is 7:00 tonight, so be sure to head to Garrigan to see The Wizard of Oz.

 All season long Garrigan sophomore Brooke Ludwig has been part of the Algona swim team. Today that team is competing at regionals down in Ft. Dodge. She’ll be swimming in the 200-meter and 50-meter relays and in the 200-meter freestyle solo competition. The “200 free” is Brooke’s favorite event, and she’s very close to breaking the Algona record in it.

 Swimming is unclassed, so big schools from the Des Moines area will be part of the regional contest today. While the competition will be tough, we wish Brooke and all the Algona swim team the very best as they compete today at regionals.

 Last week Garrigan senior Gavin Swift ran in the state cross-country meet. Gavin ran a good race, finishing in the top half of more than 150 of the top runners in the state. His time was 18 minutes, 2.54 seconds. Congratulations on finishing up a great cross-country season, Gavin!

 Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on one of our best-known seniors, Audi Crooks. Here to tell you about her is Violet Bode.

 Thanks, Joey! Audi Crooks is probably best known for leading the Golden Bear basketball team to a state championship last year. She dominates on the basketball court, but that’s far from the only thing Audi excels at. She’s also won state track championships in both shot put and discus, and she leads the volleyball team in kills. Outside of sports, Audi was drum major for Garrigan’s Solid Gold Marching Band, she’s won awards in choir and speech, and she’s also active in drama. Audi has signed to play Division I basketball at Iowa State next year, and we wish her all the best in the future.

 Thanks, Violet. On our Golden Bear calendar, today is the Top of Iowa Conference Quiz Bowl. The competition starts in about half an hour here at Garrigan.

 Also this morning is the regional swim meet at Ft. Dodge Senior High. Then tonight is the final performance of the BGHS fall musical, The Wizard of Oz.

 After today the coming week is pretty quiet. Girls basketball practice officially begins on Monday. Then at our mass on Tuesday we’ll honor veterans from around the area.

 Election Day is Tuesday, and some of our seniors will be voting for the first time in their lives. State swim is Thursday, and next Saturday there will be quiz bowl at Algona High.

 That’s the “Bear Facts” for another week. Thanks for joining us, and be sure to catch the show again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.