THE BEAR FACTS
January 9, 2021

 Good morning! I’m Meredith Tigges!

 I’m Aric Laubenthal!

 And I’m Jack Snyder! You’re listening to the “Bear Facts”. Happy New Year from everyone here at Bishop Garrigan High School.

 Last Tuesday the Golden Bear girls basketball team extended their winning streak to 11 – 0 this season. Ten of those victories were by 35 points or more. With those stats, it’s no surprise that the Bears are starting 2021 as the #1 team in Class 1-A. The Bears are alone in first pace in the Top of Iowa Conference, and they expect to finish out the season there.

 Some of the strongest players on the team are younger players. Molly Joyce is one of the best ball handlers in the state, while fellow sophomore Audi Crooks had good height and the ability to drive and score. Abby Capesius and Ashlyn Hovey have also been at the core of the girls’ team. Other players bring good experience—like seniors Kaylyn Meyers, Reese Rosenmeyer, Kely Baade, Anna Berke, and Gracie Elsbecker; and juniors Emma Grandgenett and Meredith Tigges. Good luck in the rest of the season, girls’ basketball!

 The Golden Bear boys have also been having a good season. Among their season highlights was a big win at Algona High right before Christmas. Leading the boys’ team is senior Angelo Winkel, and fellow seniors Kyle Schaaf, Joe Meis, and Kyphus Goche have also had good years. Sophomore Drew Fogarty has been draining threes, while Jack Grandgenett has helped with his ball-handling skills. Good luck to all the Golden Bear boys!
 The cast was just announced for the Bishop Garrigan spring play. This year’s show is a radio play version of the classic “It’s a Wonderful Life”, which was chosen so it can be adapted to whatever COVID restrictions are in place when it’s time for the performance. The play is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, March 20 and 21.

The cast includes senior veterans Derrick Kirsch, Joey Trainer, Noah Bronk, Jack Snyder, Kelle Bormann, and Emily Lappe. Joining them are juniors Ava Eisenbarth, Meredith Illg, Marguerite Fakler, and Meredith Tigges; plus Molly Bormann, Mya Kemna, Lexi Galligan, and Isabel Casey.

Younger students featured in the cast are Maggie Vaske, Savannah Waechter, Eva Snyder, Drew Casey, and Nate Bronk; as well as Sam Plathe, Benjy Trainer, Brendan Plathe, and Elena Salinas. Rounding out the cast are Alaina Casey, Madelyn Bronk, and Violet Bode. Remember the dates—March 20 and 21—and make a point of seeing the BGHS spring play.

 This is the busiest time of the year for the Golden Bear speech team. There’s just two weeks to go before district contest, and this year there are some special issues to overcome because the contest will be virtual—with all the performances recorded ahead of time. Coaches David Burrow and Renetta Seiler are hoping for to do well with the group events.

 The speech events this year include a Readers’ Theatre presentation of “Wait ‘Til the Sun Shines, Nellie” and a Choral Reading of Dr. Seuss’ “Oh! The Places You’ll Go”. There are two Ensemble Acting selections: “The Eskimos Have Landed” and “The Mouse and the Raven”. Students will also perform Musical Theatre selections from “Bonnie and Clyde” and “How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying”. On top of all that, there’s a Group Improvisation entry. Best wishes to the speech team as they prepare for district!


 You’ve probably heard that Garrigan announced that next fall we’ll be playing eight-man football. While our enrollment has been stable in recent years, like most schools in our area, we’re smaller than we used to be. Many of the opponents we used to face have gone to eight-man, and in recent years Garrigan was literally the smallest school in the eleven-player division. It will be a big change, but most of the younger Golden Bears are looking forward to it.

 Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Angelo Winkel. Here to tell you about him is Derrick Kirsch.

 Angelo Winkel is the man everyone is gunning for on the Golden Bear boys’ basketball team. The Bears’ tallest player, he passed 1,000 career points last year as a junior, and he was an all-tournament player at state. He’s led the Bears in scoring and rebounds this year as well. Aside from basketball, Angelo was a wide receiver for the Golden Bear football team, and he’s one of the students who helps maintain the school website. Angelo signed to play basketball at Augustana College next year, and we wish him good luck in the future.

 Thanks, Derrick. On our Golden Bear calendar this week, the Golden Bear basketball teams will host a quad against Belmond—Klemme next Tuesday. Then on Wednesday semester tests begin.

 There will be a special schedule on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. We’ll have three tests each day, and there’s open campus whenever we don’t have tests scheduled.

 Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday are also out of uniform days that were a fundraiser to send cows to Haiti. The other main event on the calendar is next Thursday, when the boys basketball team will host Pocahontas.

 That’s our first “Bear Facts” for 2021. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to join us again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.