Good morning! I'm Renee Taphorn!
And I'm Jacob Richter! Welcome once again to the "Bear Facts," the radio show where each week we bring you all the news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
Last Saturday the Golden Bear quiz bowl team competed in the Bulldog Invitational at Algona High, and they had a great day. Garrigan had a 7 - 1 record after the preliminary rounds and was seeded fourth going into the play-offs. Their only loss in play-offs was to the championship team from Estherville, and in the end they defeated West Bend/Mallard to take third place out of 41 teams in the tournament. Team members included captain John Kohlhaas, Matt Courtney, Jeff Lappe, Jacob Hellman, and Jesse Bode. Congratulations!
There's more quiz bowl action today. Fifteen students left very early this morning for Orange City, where they'll be competing in the Little Dutch Quiz Bowl at MOC/Floyd Valley. Scott Stence is captain of Garrigan's top team. His teammates are Matt Courtney, Tyler Rolling, Amber Golwitzer, and Adam Cink. Garrigan has another varsity team that includes Jesse Bode, Amanda Thompson, Jacob Richter, Renee Taphorn, and Amanda Golwitzer. There's also a strong J.V. entry from the Bears. Sophomores playing J.V. include Jacob Hellman, Gavin Freking, Spenser Rahm, Jeff Lappe, and Andrew Missal. Good luck to the quiz bowl team.
One of the biggest activities at Garrigan is Christian Leadership in Action. The name pretty much tells you the purpose of the group, which is putting Christian values into action to serve the school, community, and world. Some of the members are receiving training to serve communion in their parishes and for school masses, and others are involved in a wide variety of service projects. One project that the group did recently was last month's CROP last month, which helped to fight world hunger.
Theology teacher Rob Meister supervises Christian Leadership in Action, and sixty-four students are involved in the group this year. We won't go through all the names, but we will mention the seniors in the group. They include Lisa Thilges, Scott Stence, Katie Salz, Cassie Recker, Aaron O'Kane, Brooke Myers, Michaela Mescher, and Nettie McGuire. Other senior in Christian Leadership are Sarah Mayer, Jenna Kollasch, John Kohlhaas, Amber Golwitzer, Eric Cassmann, Josh Broesder, Elizabeth Bormann, Molly Black, Ashley Berte, Lindsay Becker, and Adam Arndorfer.
The cross-country team held their awards banquet last Wednesday. This year's most valuable runners were John Kohlhaas, Brandon Rowley, and Maria Kohlhaas. Allison Even and Rose Mayer won the Courage Award, while Molly Black received the Coaches' Appreciation Award. Eric Cassmann, Donnie Monson, Marissa Spain, and Alison Brandenburg were Most Improved Runners, with Chris Cassmann earning an honorable mention. The Rookie of the Year honors went to Jacob Hellman, Chris Scobba, Tami Lallier, and Allison Even, with an honorable mention to Scott Kollasch.
John Kohlhaas received the Adam Sundall Four-Year Dedication Award, and he and Tyler Rolling each were honored for six years in cross-country, middle school through high school. The honorary team captains were John Kohlhaas, Matt Courtney, Eric Cassmann, and Nettie McGuire. Brandon Rowley, John Kohlhaas, Jacob Hellman, and Maria Kohlhaas were all-conference cross-country runners, and Brandon also received all-district honors. John received an academic all-state award for state cross-country. In addition to those named earlier, Seth Rogers, Kelly Schmidt, and Emily DeWaard also earned cross-country letters this season. Congratulations to all the cross-country award-winners.
Next Tuesday the National Honor Society will hold their annual induction ceremony. Eight seniors and fifteen juniors will be honored for their accomplishments in scholarship, leadership, service, and character. The new senior members are Jesse Bode, Nicole Krieps, David Laubenthal, Nettie McGuire, Aaron O'Kane, David Rasmussen, Cassie Recker, and Melissa Vaske. Among the juniors joining are Andrew Berte, Matt Vitzthum, Katelyn Besch, Amanda Thompson, Miranda Boekelman, Renee Taphorn, Matt Courtney, and Lindsay Schiltz. Rounding out the inductees are Emily Salz, Theresa Reising, Nicole Reding, Kristina Reding, Holly Lancaster, Samantha Kirsch, and Brianne Donahe. Congratulations, N.H.S. inductees!
Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Scott Stence. Here to tell you about him is Brianne Donahe.
It would probably be easier to list the activities Scott Stence isn't in than the ones he is. Scott is a letterwinner in football, basketball, and track. He's also been in co-ed danz squad, and he finished second in the state in math competition. He enjoys quiz bowl, youth council, drama, and announcing here on the "Bear Facts". He's a National Honor Society member, and in the past he was on student council. He was even the top seller in the Garrigan calendar drive for five straight years. Scott plans to major in pre-law and communications in college, and we wish him all the best.
Thanks, Brianne! On our Golden Bear calendar today there's quiz bowl in Orange City. Also the nurse's aide students are finishing up their clinical exams.
Tomorrow night the football team will hold their awards potluck. Then Monday boys basketball practice begins. Tuesday is the National Honor Society induction ceremony.
Also on Tuesday the school board meets, and that night the girls basketball team has a jamboree at Corwith. Then on Wednesday there's a night of reflection for the freshmen in confirmation.
Thursday is National Principals' Day. That night the quiz bowl team will be competing for charity in the Trivia Champions Think-a-Thon. Then on Friday we'll celebrate Presentation Day, the day that honors the sisters who serve the Algona area.
That's the "Bear Facts" for another week. Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to join us again next week for more news from Bishop Garrigan High School.
