Good morning! I’m Mark Fakler!

I’m Kaitlyn Fogarty!

And I’m Emily Marlow! Thanks for joining us for the “Bear Facts” Happy Thanksgiving to you from all of us at Bishop Garrigan High School.

All of Garrigan’s fall sports teams recently held their awards banquets. For the cross-country team, the Most Valuable Runners for 2014 were Emily Riesenberg, Tony Kollasch, Kelsey Hovey, and Zach Kollasch. Jess Marlow, Trevor Darling, Lexi Berte, and Livia Miller were named Rookies of the Year; while Morgan Frideres, Tyler Schnurr, and Ben Fogarty were the Most Improved Runners. The Coach’s Appreciation Award went to Cady Steinman, Livia Miller, Mark Fakler, and Taylor Illg.

The honorary team captains in cross-country are Emily Riesenberg, Morgan Frideres, Zach Kollasch, Tony Kollasch. Emily Riesenberg, Tony Kollasch, and Tyler Schnurr won All-North Iowa Conference honors. The highest award for Garrigan’s cross-country runners is the Adam Sundall Memorial Award. This year that honor was split by Mark Fakler, Morgan Frideres, Zach Kollasch, and Tony Kollasch. Congratulations to all the cross-country honorees!


In volleyball, Johanna Vaske won first team all-conference honors. Taylor Frideres and Kaitlyn Fogarty were second team all-conference, and Emily Marlow was an honorable mention. Betty Straub, Kaitlyn Fogarty, and Taylor Frideres were academic all-state honorees, and the entire team was cited for distinguished academic achievement.

Johanna Vaske was the volleyball team’s offensive MVP, while Kaitlyn Fogarty and Patricia Brandt split the defensive honors. Paige Berte was the Most Improved Player; Emily Marlow and Olivia Vaske split the Hustle Award; and Kaitlyn Fogarty won the Deacon Bob Larsen “Fire in Your Belly” Award. The Coaches’ Award was split by Cassidy Vitzthum, Taylor Frideres, and Emily Marlow; and Betty Straub and Olivia Vaske won the Team Spirit Award. Congratulations, volleyball award-winners!

We mentioned the football all-district honors last week. Ben Vaske and Zac Kibby were named the football team’s Offensive Players of the Year, while Reece Wadle was Defensive Player of the Year. Zac Kibby and Will Kellner won the Special Teams Award; and the Scout Team Award was split by Levi Capesius, Logan Rosenmeyer, Drake Buscherfeld, James Quinlin, and Donovan Berte. The Larry Weier Academic Award and the Dennis Cruise Trophy went to Kirk Kenyon, and Andrew Miller won the Bill Higgins Memorial Award.

Jake Kayser, Landen Studer, and Nick Kayser were named Most Improved on Offense, while the Most Improved Defensive players were Carter Hall, Gibson Behr, and Cameron Langerman. The DEFENSE Award went to Grant Buscherfeld, and Ben Vaske was named Team MVP. Reece Wadle and Nick Kayser split the Deacon Bob Larsen Memorial Award; and the 2015 team captains will be Zac Kibby, Cameron Langerman, and Landen Studer. Congratulations to all the football award-winners!


There were some new records set in fall sports this year. In football Reece Wadle broke the record for longest punt return with an 85-yard return in the playoff game at Ackley. The volleyball team set a new mark for season serving percentage, at 93.9%, and Emily Marlow now holds both the season and career individual serving percentage records. Congratulations to these Golden Bear record-breakers!

Our Senior Spotlight this week shines on Jake Kayser. Here to tell you about him is Taylor Illg.

Jake Kayser, who everyone calls “Jack”, comes to Garrigan from the St. Joe area. His biggest interest is probably motorsports, and he loves working on cars and trucks in general. He also enjoys classes like ecology. Jake has also won awards in football, and he’s also been part of the Golden Bear track team. Jake plans a career in automotive mechanics, and we wish him all the best in the future.

Thanks, Taylor! On our Golden Bear calendar this week, today is the Feast of St. Cecelia. The All-State Music Festival concert is tonight in Ames; and Garrigan choir members Dorothy Kirsch, Mark Fakler, Carolyn Baxter, and Levi Capesius are performing.

Tomorrow is the Feast of Christ the King. Then next Tuesday the Golden Bear girls begin basketball season with a home game against North Iowa.

Wednesday morning we’ll have our traditional mass for deceased alumni. The memorial mass will be at 9:00 Wednesday in Friedmann Auditorium, and friends and relatives of all our deceased alumni are invited to attend.

The Christian Leadership in Action group will present a special meal and presentation on world hunger Wednesday noon. Then we’ll dismiss early Wednesday afternoon for the holiday weekend.

There’s no classes Thursday or Friday at Garrigan. We’ll be enjoying the time off as we celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with our families.

That’s the “Bear Facts” for this week. Thanks for joining us, and be sure to tune in again next week when we’ll be previewing the basketball season here at Bishop Garrigan High School.