Editorial
Another week has gone by, and it has been a largely successful one for the athletic department. Soccer, volleyball, both men’s and women’s golf, cross-country and of course, football all, for the most part, had a good week.
Soccer swept a homestand and have now surpassed their win total from a season ago and have the vast majority of their season still ahead of them. Coach Regan and his squad (now 4-2-2) are bringing the excitement back to historic Dacotah Field. Keep it up, Bison!
The football team won another dominating victory on Saturday beating Big South member, North Carolina A & T in a big way. I don’t imagine many were shocked at this result, but I am always nervous to begin with and when the Bison face an opponent they have never faced before, I still get anxious. Up ahead is a game many have waited for. A chance to face another FBS opponent and a nationally televised game on Fox Sports 1. I’m told by someone in the know that the U of Arizona isn’t very good, but again, I’m fit to be tied. So, I’ll tune in Saturday night and be nervous until it is over. Then, like the Bison themselves, I’ll focus on next week.
Shame on us here at The Spectrum. We have spent little time covering the cross-country program and all they do, since I have been here anyway, is win. Both individually and as a team. This fall, both the women’s and men’s teams have won both the meets they have competed in. Two meets, two wins, three medalists, multiple Top 5 and Top 10 finishers…that’s all. Allie Wahlund, Kaleesa Houston, Hunter Klimek and Symon Keiser are some of the names you haven’t been hearing about. We pledge to do better. Keep up the great performances.
I have never been a fan of volleyball. One of my sisters played but I never went to a match. I’m her brother after all! So, when I walked into the Bentson Bunker Fieldhouse last Friday afternoon, I was not sure what to expect, but I had a great time…I really did. The atmosphere at the BBF is phenomenal and the Bison are playing some great volleyball (they are now 6 – 3). They bring back a lot of depth and experience from last year and there is talent on that roster. I highly encourage you to get out to the BBF and watch the volleyball team. They are fun and good!
The golf teams, in particular the men, are off to a great start. As I write this piece, the men are about to finish in second at the K-State (Kansas) Invitational in Lawrence, Kan. The only team they could not beat was the home team on their home course. Coach Kennedy has nearly all his golfers back from the team that missed a Summit League Championship by one stroke last spring. Deziel, Adams, Johnson, Simonich are just some of the names you’ll hear about this fall and next spring.
On the ladies’ side, they too have picked up some good finishes. Just last week, at NDSU’s own Fall Invite, Catherine Monty and Elise Hoven tied for the medalist position at Oxbow Country Club in Oxbow, N.D., to lead the ladies’ team to the team title. Keep up the good work.
I hate replay. I really do. As a nearly life-long Raider fan, I will admit I am still bitter about the so-called “Immaculate Reception” in the NFL playoffs between the Oakland Raiders and the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 1972 AFC divisional playoffs. Replay, I am positive, would have reversed that touchdown. Right?! Having said that, I am tired of the time it takes and how the process still doesn’t seem to get the call correct sometimes. When I watch the NFL, I watch NFL RedZone because when a game goes to replay, the RedZone channel leaves the game. It comes back to the game when a decision has been made. It’s beautiful. I bring this up because one thing I observed was the replay process at the volleyball matches this weekend. That process is broken. It took far too long, in my opinion, to come to a decision. Then, the coach who is on the wrong end of the decision gets to argue with the game officials, taking more time. Bad for the pace of the match…bad for the student-athletes. The Summit League needs to look at that process.
My editor is going to tell me this article is too long…Go Bison!