Connect with us

Rec Sports

Rennecke: Breaking down girls basketball’s future in Central Minnesota

ALBANY — Writing about the decline in participation for high school girls basketball in Central Minnesota is something I’d never thought I’d have to do. It pains me to do so. I’ve been a professional sports writer since 2003. I got to cover South Dakota’s all-time leading scorer — Mitchell Christian’s Jill Young — for […]

Published

on


ALBANY — Writing about the decline in participation for high school girls basketball in Central Minnesota is something I’d never thought I’d have to do.

It pains me to do so.

I’ve been a professional sports writer since 2003. I got to cover South Dakota’s all-time leading scorer — Mitchell Christian’s Jill Young — for four seasons, the St. Cloud State women’s basketball team for eight seasons and Central Minnesota standouts like Eden Valley-Watkins’ Hannah Linz, Sauk Centre’s Kali Peschel and Macy Weller and Albany’s big three of Alyssa Sand, Kylan Gerads and Tatum Findley. But I never thought I’d see the day where one of the sports I’ve enjoyed covering the most was suffering this much.

All the basketball die-hards in Central Minnesota have witnessed what’s happened with the formation of the

St. Cloud Crush

(Apollo and Tech) and the struggles of that program and others like

Sauk Rapids-Rice

,

ROCORI

and — to a certain degree —

St. Cloud Cathedral

.

And, yes, there are still consistently good programs like

Sartell

,

Albany

and

Holdingford

. Sartell has enjoyed consistency under longtime head coach Katie Martin, Albany has been led to great success by head coach Aaron Boyum and Holdingford is guided by a committed coach in Joel McDonough.

But the low participation numbers aren’t just a problem in Central Minnesota. That Mitchell Christian program I mentioned in South Dakota? That school hasn’t been able to field a team for the last two winters.

Think about that for a minute. The all-time leading scorer in that state’s history can’t even say her old team exists.

Sadly, this could happen anywhere — and it already is in Minnesota. The Crush co-op is not uncommon. Rush City, which has qualified for the Class 2A state volleyball tournament the past three seasons, was forced to co-op with nearby North Branch for a girls basketball co-op.

Katie Martin Sartell Girls Basketball Head Coach January 2025

Sartell head girls basketball coach Katie Martin, now in her 17th season, coaches the Sabres against the St. Cloud Crush in a Central Lakes Conference game in late November 2024 at St. Cloud Apollo High School.

Andy Rennecke / St. Cloud LIVE

And therein lies the biggest problem: sports specialization and the rise in popularity in volleyball. You can’t tell me that some of Rush City’s volleyball players, which this past season consisted of seven players who were 5-foot-8 or taller, wouldn’t make decent basketball players.

When athletes at small schools like Rush City specialize, it makes even more of an impact.

Boyum helped guide Albany to a Class 2A state championship in 2021 and state championship game appearances in 2023 and 2024. If it wasn’t for one of the best players in state basketball history — Providence Academy’s Maddyn Greenway — the Huskies most likely would’ve won three championships in four years thanks to the contributions of future college basketball players in Sand (St. Thomas), Gerads (St. Cloud State), Findley (St. Benedict) and Savanna Pelzer (Minnesota-Morris).

So how have Boyum and Albany been able to maintain so much success? Even in a rebuilding year — like with the 2024-25 season — Boyum still guided the young Huskies to a respectable 13-15 record (which included a tough 1-8 start).

“We’re fortunate to have a tradition of success, some recently and historically,” Boyum said. “The community is well aware of that success. A lot of people have great memories of those teams. And, we have a really good youth organization. The Albany Youth Basketball Association runs the boys and girls youth programs and does a nice job preparing the kids for the future. They do a good job of balancing the number of tournaments they play to help them remain competitive with a longer view of having success when they’re older.”

Despite that, Boyum said, Albany’s youth basketball association has experienced a slight dip in participation.

“We’re like many others in that we’ve seen that dip. But I’m still optimistic about the future and I stay positive about it. But I’d be lying to anyone who asked if we haven’t seen those numbers go down,” Boyum said.

Albany GBB Practice December 2023 3

Albany girls basketball head coach Aaron Boyum (top left) talks to his team during a break in practice on Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023, at Albany High School.

Andy Rennecke / St. Cloud LIVE

But what an outsider like me first notices about Albany’s program is that the skill level has remained high. When you watch other area varsity teams play, it reminds you of a skill level you would see on a mid-2000’s C-squad or freshmen team.

“We put a high level of importance on fundamentals. Jump stops, ball fakes, pivots — those very fundamental things you teach at an early age,” Boyum said. “Doing those basic things go a long way for skill level in basketball. Having kids buy into the fundamental aspects of the game has been a real positive for us.”

I grew up in a town of less than 600 people. I attended Cosmos Schools (which had grades K-12 in it until the spring of 1993) from kindergarten through seventh grade before the state forced our school to join Atwater and Grove City.

But before that consolidation,

Cosmos

was a power in high school girls volleyball. The Royals made the state tournament in 1986 and 1991. That 1991 team had one of the best

St. Cloud State

volleyball players of all-time, Krista Hartung, on it.

But what made Cosmos special back then was that it had a slew of three-sport athletes. Even if they were great at volleyball, female athletes in my hometown still went out for basketball in the winter or softball in the spring. And most of those great volleyball players were just average to above-average at basketball and softball.

Sauk Rapids Crush GBB 013025 4

Sauk Rapids-Rice’s Alison Schreifels (20) tries to separate herself from the defense of St. Cloud’s Weslie Schuck (1) in the first half on Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025, at St. Cloud Tech High School.

Andy Rennecke / St. Cloud LIVE

But they went out for those other sports to help their school and have fun with their friends. And that’s how times are different.

Boyum just finished up his second year as the president of the Minnesota Girls Basketball Coaches Association. He recognizes that what’s happening at St. Cloud, Sauk Rapids-Rice and ROCORI is more than concerning.

“St. Cloud isn’t alone,” Boyum said. “I hope they continue to get younger kids involved at an early age. With my position with the coaches association, I’ve spoken with coaches all across the state. I think it’s a complex situation and I don’t know if any one thing can help. There just isn’t an instant solution here.”

Boyum said there is an emphasis on making sure Albany athletes go out for as many sports as possible. Boys and girls coaches work together and encourage athletes to give themselves a break from specializing in one sport.

Crush Sartell Girls Basketball 112624 4

A referee tries to avoid St. Cloud’s Sydney Shamla (21) as she loses the ball out of bounds in a Central Lakes Conference game against Sartell Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024, at St. Cloud Apollo High School.

Andy Rennecke / St. Cloud LIVE

“There aren’t as many three-sport athletes around the state. We still have a lot of them in Albany though. We place an importance on that,” Boyum said. “When basketball season rolls around, that’s when they concentrate more on it. And, if they play a different sport in the fall, they’re rejuvenated for the basketball season when we start practice. There’s definitely less chance for burnout — and injury — that way.”

And, there’s the bigger issue of trying to get volleyball players to not dedicate themselves to that sport for almost the entire year.

“Kids have more of a chance to specialize in things than ever before,” Boyum said. “Volleyball leagues are running year-round. And, basketball is a contact sport while volleyball isn’t. Not every athlete likes that aspect of basketball.”

Volleyball is a great sport to play and cover, but do athletes have to devote 10 months out of their year to it? As crazy as it sounds, that’s the biggest question facing girls basketball’s future.

Every athlete’s situation is different. But even with the rise and popularity of the WNBA and standout players like Caitlin Clark and Paige Bueckers, the future of girls basketball is a very murky one at best.





Link

Continue Reading
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Rec Sports

Bucks County Catholic teacher had hundreds of child porn images: DA

Remember these flood safety tips whether in your car or at home When flooding is in the forecast, here are a few tips to remember Authorities allege Richard Adamsky downloaded hundreds of sexually explicit images of prepubescent girls, some as recently as March. The investigation began after a tip from the National Center for Missing […]

Published

on


play

  • Authorities allege Richard Adamsky downloaded hundreds of sexually explicit images of prepubescent girls, some as recently as March.
  • The investigation began after a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, leading to a search of Adamsky’s home.

A longtime Bucks County Catholic grade school teacher and youth sports coach is accused of collecting hundreds of sexually explicit images of prepubescent girls.

Authorities allege that the images found on electronic devices belonging to Richard Adamsky,65, depicted girls in the same age group that he taught at Nativity of Our Lord parish school in Warminster.

At a press conference Wednesday, Bucks County District Attorney Jen Schorn announced her office has charged Adamsky with felony child sexual abuse material possession and criminal use of a communication facility.

“It shakes the foundation of your trust when an educator, especially when you have an elementary school educator, engaging in this type of criminal conduct,” Schorn said. “That type of deviant sexual attraction to pubescent-age or prepubescent-age children is not normal.”

There is no indication at this stage in the investigation that Adamsky inappropriately touched any children, but Schorn urged parents and guardians of children who spent time with Adamsky to talk with their children and contact police with any information.

Warminster police opened an investigation last month after the Bucks County Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force was forwarded a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children involving a possible downloading of an image depicting a prepubescent girl posing nude, according to a probable cause affidavit.

The IP address that downloaded the image was traced to the Warminster home of Adamsky, the affidavit said.

On Wednesday morning FBI agents and local authorities executed a search warrant at Adamsky’s home.  

Among the images authorities allege was found on Adamsky’s computer was a prepubescent girl exposing her genitals, which he saved on March 28.

Authorities allege that Adamsky admitted he had been searching and downloading child sexual abuse material for the last four or five years.  

He estimated he had saved “hundreds” of images depicting child pornography on his computer, the affidavit said. 

“When asked how many such images Adamsky believes he has saved, Adamsky responded, ‘too many,’” according to the affidavit. 

Most recently Adamsky taught eighth-grade, according to a staff biography that recently appeared on the school’s website.  As of Wednesday his name no longer appears as an employee on the school website.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia released a statement late Wednesday confirming that Adamsky was immediately placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the criminal case. The release did not indicate if it was a paid or unpaid leave.

“These charges are serious and disturbing. The Archdiocese is cooperating with law enforcement and remains fervently committed to preventing child abuse as well as protecting the children and young people entrusted to its care,” the press release said. “Child pornography is a scourge that must be eradicated.”

Neither the school, parish or Archdiocese was aware of any alleged wrongdoing by Adamsky before law enforcement notified the parish school Wednesday morning, according to the statement.

“Based on information provided by law enforcement, it is our understanding that these activities involved Mr. Adamsky’s personal electronic devices only, and that there were no allegations that he had physically harmed a minor,” the release said.

Adamsky had up-to-date criminal background checks and child abuse clearances on file, which is a condition of school employment, and the school has no complaints of inappropriate behavior between Adamsky and students, the release said.

According to his recently removed teacher biography, Adamsky is certified by the Philadelphia Archdiocese to teach religion. He is also a member of the Nativity parish.

Adamsky is also deeply involved in youth sports in Bucks County as a coach and a PIAA football official.  He was a finalist for the Leadership in Catholic Youth Sports Award, according to his bio.

He has coached football, softball, basketball and track & field, at Nativity as well as Archbishop Wood High School in Warminster, the Warrington Athletic Association, Lenape Middle School in Central Bucks and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Catholic Church in Doylestown.   

Adamsky was arraigned Wednesday morning before District Judge Christopher O’Neill and transferred to Bucks County Correctional Center in lieu of $500,000 bail. He has no legal representation listed as of Wednesday, according to the docket. 

To Make a Report

If you would like to report a violation of The Standards of Ministerial Behavior and Boundaries, contact the Archdiocesan Office for Investigations at 1-888-930-9010.

If you would like to report an allegation of sexual abuse, contact your local law enforcement agency and/or the Office for Investigations at 1-888-930-9010.

If you need support or assistance, victim services are available to you through the Victim Assistance Office of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia at 1-888-800-8780 or philavac@archphila.org.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates

Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett. Reporter Michele Haddon can be reached at mhaddon@gannett.com



Link

Continue Reading

Rec Sports

WARMINSTER CATHOLIC SCHOOL TEACHER ARRESTED ON CHILD PORNOGRAPHY CHARGES

District Attorney Jennifer Schorn today announced the arrest of a longtime Catholic school teacher and youth sports coach from Warminster Township, following an investigation into the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Richard Allen Adamsky, 65, of Warminster, was taken into custody Wednesday morning after a search warrant was executed at his […]

Published

on


District Attorney Jennifer Schorn today announced the arrest of a longtime Catholic school teacher and youth sports coach from Warminster Township, following an investigation into the possession and distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

Richard Allen Adamsky, 65, of Warminster, was taken into custody Wednesday morning after a search warrant was executed at his residence. He was charged with felony counts of possession of child sexual abuse material and criminal use of a communication facility.

Adamsky was arraigned by Magisterial District Judge Christopher E. O’Neill, who set bail at $500,000, 10 percent, and remanded him to Bucks County Correctional Facility. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for August 4 at 2:45 p.m.

The investigation was led by the FBI Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force, with assistance from the Pennsylvania Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, which includes detectives from the Bensalem Township Police Department and the Warminster Township Police Department.

The investigation began on March 30, 2025, when the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) reported possible downloading or obtaining of CSAM. NCMEC’s report indicated that an image depicting a prepubescent female posing nude with her genitals exposed was uploaded using Microsoft Bing Reverse Image Search via an IP address.

Further investigation traced the IP address to Verizon, which provided subscriber information leading to Richard Adamsky at the Warminster address.

On Wednesday, June 25, 2025, federal and local law enforcement personnel executed a search warrant at Adamsky’s residence. Adamsky was the sole individual present at the home.

During questioning, Adamsky admitted to authorities that for approximately four to five years, he had been searching for, downloading, and saving hundreds of images depicting CSAM to his computer, according to a criminal complaint. When asked how many he saved, he replied “too many,” the complaint said.

One specific image discovered on Adamsky’s computer, saved on March 28, 2025, depicted a white, prepubescent female exposing her genitals to the camera.

Authorities noted that Adamsky is employed as a teacher at Nativity of Our Lord Catholic School in Warminster and also coaches youth sports at the school. The age group of the children he teaches and coaches is consistent with the age group depicted in the illicit images found on his devices.

The investigation is ongoing and anyone with information should contact Warminster Detective Stephen Wojciechowski at 215-672-1000.

This case is assigned for prosecution to Deputy District Attorney Monica W. Furber.

Media Contact: Manuel Gamiz Jr., 215.348.6298, mgamiz@buckscounty.org

Criminal charges are allegations subject to proof in court. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.



Link

Continue Reading

Rec Sports

Umpire dies after collapsing from heat during softball tournament

SUMTER, S.C. (WIS/Gray News) – A beloved youth sports umpire died over the weekend while working during a heat wave. The Sumter County Coroner’s Office said 61-year-old Mitchell Huggins died Saturday after being taken to a hospital. Officials said the heat contributed to the 61-year-old’s death. Huggins’ sister, Pamela Rufus, said her brother had passed […]

Published

on


SUMTER, S.C. (WIS/Gray News) – A beloved youth sports umpire died over the weekend while working during a heat wave.

The Sumter County Coroner’s Office said 61-year-old Mitchell Huggins died Saturday after being taken to a hospital.

Officials said the heat contributed to the 61-year-old’s death.

Huggins’ sister, Pamela Rufus, said her brother had passed out while officiating a softball tournament that afternoon at Patriot Park.

His sister said he died truly doing what he loved, being an umpire for kids on the diamond.
His sister said he died truly doing what he loved, being an umpire for kids on the diamond.(Pamela Rufus)

She said she first got word of what happened through a phone call from her son.

According to Rufus, she was able to FaceTime with her brother when he regained consciousness, but then he passed out again.

“He was just lifeless,” she said. “He didn’t even look like himself.”

Rufus added that everyone on the field tried everything to resuscitate her brother, as players and parents began praying for him. Huggins was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Parents of players in the tournament shared their concerns about why the games were being allowed to be played in such extreme weather conditions.

“We are aware of an unfortunate incident at Patriot Park during a recent softball tournament and we would ask everyone to pray for the family of Mitch Huggins,” a spokesperson with Sumter County shared.

Tournament organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the situation.

Meanwhile, Rufus said her brother died truly doing what he loved, being an umpire for kids on the diamond, something he had done for over a decade.

She said Huggins would often be called “Uncle Mitch” or “Mr. Mitch” by some of the players.

“That was his whole passion … that was his second home,” she said. “He loved those kids.”

According to Rufus, Huggins did mention that it was hot but that “he was going regardless” and was excited to umpire at another tournament.

“He just did what he did. I don’t think he looked at the temperature,” she said.

But Rufus did say his death could have been prevented.

“They said he was telling them about it being hot,” Rufus said. “It was just too hot … the heat was not good for anybody.”

Huggins was also passionate about his work with Top Gun Sports, a nonprofit focused on youth sports. Rufus said that the organization was another home for him.

Rufus added she’d like for Huggins’s death to raise awareness about extreme heat and illnesses. But she ultimately wants her brother to be remembered for loving what he did and caring for all the kids he served as an umpire for.

“He just loved the game,” she said.

A celebration of life for Huggins is being held Saturday at the former Timmonsville High School on Kemper Street.



Link

Continue Reading

Rec Sports

Montreal Coach Martin St. Louis Buys Stake in Equipment Maker CCM

Martin St. Louis, head coach of the Montreal Canadiens and Hall of Fame player with the Tampa Bay Lightning, is taking a minority stake in hockey equipment company CCM. Seven7, an investment firm founded by St. Louis, is joining Norwegian private equity fund Altor as a co-investor in CCM. Last October, Altor took a majority […]

Published

on


Martin St. Louis, head coach of the Montreal Canadiens and Hall of Fame player with the Tampa Bay Lightning, is taking a minority stake in hockey equipment company CCM.

Seven7, an investment firm founded by St. Louis, is joining Norwegian private equity fund Altor as a co-investor in CCM. Last October, Altor took a majority stake in the company, priced at $450 million. CCM was previously owned by another private equity firm, Birch Hill Equity Partners.

Financial details of Seven7’s holding were not disclosed.

St. Louis started Seven7 in 2016, a year after his retirement as a player, along with former NHLer Jeff Hamilton and Keith McCullough, who founded independent Wall Street research firm Hedgeye Risk Management. The investment fund largely focuses on sports, media and entertainment. It was an early investor in LiveBarn, a youth sports streaming service that recently hired Raymond James to facilitate a sale.

Founded as Canada Cycle & Motor Company Limited in 1899, CCM quickly pivoted from bike production to making skates and other hockey equipment. The company has a revolving door of owners in its history, including Reebok. Adidas, which bought Reebok in 2005, owned CCM until 2017 when it sold off most of its assets while retaining the apparel division that supplied the NHL. The company also supplies gear for the PWHL, the American Hockey League and several NCAA programs.

According to CCM CEO Marrouane Nabih, the company is a leader in seven of the eight categories of on-ice gear used by NHL players, including sticks, helmets and protective pads. CCM was second in skates among the 700+ players in the league.

CCM has long been endorsed by some of the league’s premier stars, including Edmonton’s Connor McDavid, Toronto’s Auston Matthews and Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby. Sarah Nurse, one of the newest members of the PWHL’s expansion team in Vancouver, is also part of CCM’s roster.



Link

Continue Reading

Rec Sports

DI Council introduces proposals to add 2 women’s championships

Story Links The Division I Council on Wednesday voted to introduce proposals that, if also supported by Divisions II and III, would establish NCAA championships for women’s stunt and women’s acrobatics and tumbling. If the proposals are adopted by all three divisions, championships committees would begin work in stunt and acrobatics and […]

Published

on


The Division I Council on Wednesday voted to introduce proposals that, if also supported by Divisions II and III, would establish NCAA championships for women’s stunt and women’s acrobatics and tumbling.

If the proposals are adopted by all three divisions, championships committees would begin work in stunt and acrobatics and tumbling in January 2026, with the first championship for each sport expected to occur during the spring season in 2027.

Emerging Sports for Women are required to be sponsored by at least 40 schools to be considered for the creation of an NCAA championship. Stunt has been an emerging sport in Divisions I and II since 2023 and Division III since 2024, and 41 schools sponsored the sport during the 2024-25 academic year. Acrobatics and tumbling has been an emerging sport in all three NCAA divisions since 2020, and 44 schools sponsored the sport during the 2024-25 academic year.

Fencing championships

At the recommendation of the Sports Oversight Committee, the council voted to separate the scoring at the fencing championships to recognize champion teams in both men’s and women’s fencing.

Currently, men’s and women’s fencing teams compete for one title, and women’s-only teams — which are sponsored by nine schools — are statistically unable to win the national championship under the existing scoring format for the sport. By recognizing a men’s and women’s champion separately, over 150 more student-athletes would have the opportunity to win a national championship.

For this change to take effect, it must also be supported by Divisions II and III because fencing operates as a National Collegiate Championship involving teams from all three divisions. Divisions II and III are expected to consider the proposal at their meetings in July

Flag football

The council also introduced a proposal to add women’s flag football to the Emerging Sports for Women program following recommendations from the Committee on Women’s Athletics and the Strategic Vision and Planning Committee. Flag football has grown rapidly in popularity at the youth sports level — including high school — and will make its Olympic debut at the 2028 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles. The proposal will be considered in October.

FCS playing seasons

At the recommendation of the Football Championship Subdivision Oversight Committee, the council adopted expedited legislation to change the first contest date for FCS football, starting in the 2026 season. Moving forward, FCS programs will be able to compete in 12 regular-season games every year, with the regular season starting 13 weeks before the FCS championship selections date. The move provides programs greater scheduling flexibility and eliminates the first contest date exceptions.

32-game maximum contest limits in basketball

During their May meetings, the Division I Men’s and Women’s Basketball Oversight Committees adopted legislation establishing a straightforward limitation of 32 regular-season games in both men’s and women’s basketball, removing the legislated requirements for teams to participate in multiple-team events.

The oversight committees noted the Association’s focus on simplifying NCAA rules where possible and determined that the rule change provided greater scheduling flexibility for Division I programs. The new rule does not require a school to change its regular-season schedule and does not limit the opportunity for multiple team events to operate or exist.

Under the existing structure for Division I, the oversight committees’ action was subject to council review, and the council did not oppose the change. The new maximum contest limitation will begin with the 2026-27 basketball season.



Link

Continue Reading

Rec Sports

Spurs have a long history of drafting NBA players who give back

If, as widely expected, the San Antonio Spurs select Rutgers guard Dylan Harper with the second pick of the NBA draft, the team will certainly enhance its legacy of community impact. Only 19, Harper has already used his basketball platform to volunteer in soup kitchens in New Jersey and New York, tutor students in math […]

Published

on


If, as widely expected, the San Antonio Spurs select Rutgers guard Dylan Harper with the second pick of the NBA draft, the team will certainly enhance its legacy of community impact.

Only 19, Harper has already used his basketball platform to volunteer in soup kitchens in New Jersey and New York, tutor students in math and help organize a Christmas coat drive.

Should he become a Spur, Harper will join a long history of draft picks who have made their mark on San Antonio and beyond. Consider three examples:





Link

Continue Reading

Most Viewed Posts

Trending