Mabel-Canton senior cheerleader Katelyn Kleiboer will be eliciting school spirit next year at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI). She was selected after a day-long evaluation and competition at the McLeod Center on campus at Cedar Falls. The first round was an evaluation of tumbling, motions and memorization of the fight song and a cheer. Round two involved physical stunts. … [Read more...]
Pieper wins high jump, Wait 400M run for C/SG boys
Chris Pieper matched a personal record with a winning 6-foot, 2-inch high jump and eighth grader Fischer Wait won the 400-meter run with a personal-best time of 56.59 seconds as the Caledonia/Spring Grove boys finished second in a triangular track meet at Rushford on April 30. With an injury-limited lineup, only four Warrior girls made the trip and finished third in the team … [Read more...]
Lions turn back second Cougar rally, 6-5
Spring Grove could not protect its first three-run lead, but the Lions went back ahead by three and held on to turn back visiting Mabel-Canton, 6-5, on April 20. Mabel-Canton, after erasing the first three-run deficit, had a two-run rally fall short later with the tying run on base in the final seventh inning. The Lions’ second scheduled game of the week, versus Southland, was … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Fortunate to have peach papers in the privy
The four-generation family farm of 316 acres was “well-endowed with improvements, not the least of which was the outhouse,” wrote Marie (Middendorf) Muenkel, born in Winnebago Township, about her childhood in 1930s Houston County. Yes, at one time, the outhouse was a modern improvement, especially when considering the options before one was available. By definition, it did not … [Read more...]
Lion baseball enjoys, endures run-rule results
The Spring Grove boys were delayed by two days of cold temperatures, but once on the diamond, they experienced two extremes of opponents and results - a 10-run-rule, home 11-1 win over winless Schaeffer Academy a day before a run-rule 17-0 loss at undefeated, state-ranked Randolph. It was the Rockets fifth shutout in eight games and fifth time they have scored 17 or more … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Midnight phone calls cost 10 cents extra
Part three of a series “Hello, central?” and “Number please,” were commonly heard during the first half of the 1900s as telephone callers spoke with central switchboard operators, who would connect their calls. There was a personal touch to every call. Operators were required for anything other than calling other telephones on a shared party line. Caledonia received its first … [Read more...]
Bjerke, Pieper pace C/SG boys to runner-up finish at first track meet
Junior Reid Bjerke won the 100-meter dash, ran second at 200 meters and was part of the second-place 4x100-meter relay foursome for the Caledonia/Spring Grove track and field boys, who finished as the team runner-up at the five-team GMLOKS track meet on April 16 at Grand Meadow. Chris Pieper had a personal-record 6-foot, 2-inch high jump to win that event while junior Logan … [Read more...]
Peering at the Past Could you “talk German” on one of those “electric-speaking” telephones?
Part two of a series Can you imagine sharing a telephone line with 20 families – not 20 people, but 20 large farm families. No? Well, it was better if one lived in town. Telephones (most likely diaphragm string phones) had come to southeast Minnesota in the 1880s with “electric speaking” phones available in the mid-1890s. The first switchboard came to Caledonia in 1900. … [Read more...]
Spring Grove handles Houston in baseball opener, 13-2
Isaac Griffin, with both his arm and the bat, sparked Spring Grove to a soggy, season-opening 13-2 baseball win at Houston on a rainy April 9 afternoon. The Lions scored a run in the second inning, added a pair in the fourth inning and then sealed the win with back-to-back, five-run eruptions to win with the 10-run rule after six innings. Meanwhile on the mound, Griffin … [Read more...]
Leahy voted Lion MVP; Spring Grove girls honor four
Junior Jordian Leahy was voted Most Valuable Player by her 2021 Spring Grove basketball teammates. Junior Ava Olerud was honored with the Lion Attitude Award, while eighth grade guard Emerson Ingvalson was the choice for Most Improved. Freshman Katelyn Kraus was voted the Hustle Award. Leahy (MVP), a 5-foot-6 junior guard who received Honorable Mention on the … [Read more...]