North Dakota

Jimmies men's hoops beats Dakota State 76-69 in NSAA semifinals

Published

1 year ago

March 1, 2025

Jimmies men's hoops beats Dakota State 76-69 in NSAA semifinals

JAMESTOWN — The No. 2-ranked University of Jamestown men’s basketball team did enough in the second half to get a 76-69 win over No. 6-seeded Dakota State University (South Dakota) in the North Star Athletic Association semifinals on Saturday, March 1, at Harold Newman Arena.

The first 10 minutes of the opening half were incredibly competitive with there being three ties and six lead changes. After the teams were tied at 20, there was a media timeout, the Trojans quickly took a 21-20 lead but the Jimmies (17-10) responded with a bucket to take a 23-21 lead, and they were able to stretch it out to a 28-23 lead. The Trojans trimmed the deficit 33-30 but the Jimmies responded to head into the break up 36-34.

Both teams struggled shooting from three in the first 20 minutes of the game with the hosts making five of their 13 attempts while the Trojans (12-17) made three of their 12. The two teams could not miss from the field as a whole though as the Jimmies shot 45.5% and the Trojans 53.6%. The rebounding battle headed into the break in a tie with the teams each grabbing 16 total rebounds.

University of Jamestown’s Cole Glasgow is blocked at the rim by Dakota State’s Tyler Beckwith on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at Harold Newman Arena.

John M. Steiner / The Jamestown Sun

The Trojans flew out of the gates in the second half with a quick run to take a 38-36 lead, drawing a Jimmies timeout less than 30 seconds into the half.

“We did not start off very well in the second half and we had to make sure that we had the right attention to detail and the right urgency because a team like Dakota State, they’re too good,” Jimmies head coach Casey Bruggeman said. “If you let them get on an 8-0 run that’ll probably be the difference in the game so proud of how our guys responded coming out of that timeout and they made some plays in the second half for sure.”

The Jimmies responded to take a 40-38 lead before the Trojans once again tied the game up at 40. A few possessions later, the Jimmies had a huge momentum play when Silas Bennion hit a jumper and drew the whistle to tie the game up at 44 and then they drew a charge and Bennion hit another shot to push his team in front 46-44. The teams continued to fight from there with the Trojans taking a 52-50 lead. The Jimmies responded to take a 54-52 lead and they never trailed again with one of the most exciting baskets coming from Bennion when he hit a floater while he was off balancing and falling to the floor to push the lead out to 71-64. From there the Jimmies were able to ice the game at the line to book their spot in the conference title game.

“I did not think it was going in, I know that,” Bennion said with a laugh. “I was just trying to get it up there to hit the rim but yeah, I looked up on the ground and I was like, ‘dang that was wild.’”

uj mens hoops 15 vs dakota 25 030125.jpg — University of Jamestown’s Carson Woodford takes a shot to the basket over Dakota State’s Lukas Morgan (25) on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at Harold Newman Arena.

The Jimmies are back in action on Tuesday, March 4, when they go to Dickinson State with the time still to be determined.

“They’ve gotten us three times this year, two of them were really competitive and close games and then when we went out there it was a challenge for us, they got hot from there and we didn’t respond real well,” Bruggeman said. “I think Dickinson poses challenges because of their depth and their experience. They’ve played together a long time and you can see that they’ve been the best team in the regular season so far. We’re really excited to have another chance though to compete against them and see how we do on Tuesday.”

DSU 69, UJ 76

DSU: 34 35–69

UJ: 36 40–76

Points leaders:

DSU: Lane Tietz 13, Tyler Beckwith 13, Taine Mitchell 12, Aiden Jensen 12, Colby Dillenbeck 7

UJ: Silas Bennion 24, Anthony Walters 16, Jimmy Llinas 10

Assists leaders:

DSU: Tietz 5, Brayden Pankonen 2, Mitchell 1, Jensen 1

UJ: Cole Glasgow 7, Bennion 3, Carson Woodford 3, Will Cordes 2

Leading rebounders:

DSU: Beckwith 9, Lukas Morgan 7, Pankonen 6, Mitchell 6, Jensen 4

UJ: Llinas 10, Owen Hektner 6, Cordes 4, Walters 4, Spencer Barr 2, Woodford 2, Bennion 1, Glasgow 1

Hello,
My name is Max O’Neill. I am a Sports Reporter at The Jamestown Sun. I am a native New Yorker, who graduated from Ithaca College in 2020 with a degree in Television-Radio.

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North Dakota

Today in History, 1943: 2 North Dakota men die in separate Army plane crashes

Published

11 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Today in History, 1943: 2 North Dakota men die in separate Army plane crashes

On this day in 1943, two North Dakota army officers, Second Lieut. Arthur B. Kuntz and First Lieut. Bernard A. Anderson, were killed in separate medium bomber training crashes in Florida and Georgia.

Here is the complete story as it appeared in the paper that day:

Army Plane Crashes Kill Two N. D. Men

Two North Dakota officers in the army air forces were killed Sunday in bomber crashes during training flights, Associated Press dispatches revealed Monday.

Second Lieut. Arthur B. Kuntz of Harvey (Wells county) was killed with 10 others from the Avon Park, Fla., army bomber base when two medium bombers collided during a routine formation flight. Both planes crashed and there were no survivors.

First Lieut. Bernard A. Anderson of Warwick (Benson county) was one of six killed when a medium bomber from MacDill field, Tampa, Fla., crashed near Savannah, Ga. Lieutenant Anderson was co-pilot of the plane.

None of the other victims of either accident was from the Dakotas or Minnesota.

Lieutenant Kuntz, son of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Kuntz of Harvey, was graduated from the army air force navigation school at Hondo, Texas, as a second lieutenant last October, and received his wings as a navigator.

See more history at Newspapers.com

An ad featured in The Forum on March 2, 1943. Newspapers.com

Kate Almquist is the social media manager for InForum. After working as an intern, she joined The Forum full time starting in January 2022. Readers can reach her at kalmquist@forumcomm.com.

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North Dakota

Presidential Searches at 3 North Dakota Colleges Narrowing

Published

23 hours ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

Presidential Searches at 3 North Dakota Colleges Narrowing

(Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – Two North Dakotans are semifinalists for the Bismarck State College president’s job as North Dakota State University narrows its presidential candidate list.

Valley City State University also is searching for a new president, with an application period closing this month..

Kevin Black, chair of the State Board of Higher Education and co-chair of the North Dakota State University Presidential Search Committee, said the committee reviewed over 60 applications. The committee is planning off-site interviews with candidates March 9-10 and campus visits with semifinal candidates March 23-27.

“We’re really excited about taking the next step and there’s some very quality people in there,” Black said.

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North Dakota

After falling short a year ago, West Fargo United wins ND girls hockey state title

Published

1 day ago

March 1, 2026

Press Room

After falling short a year ago, West Fargo United wins ND girls hockey state title

FARGO — One season ago, a Cinderella run for the West Fargo United girls hockey team came up just short in the state championship game.

United, the No. 7 seed, fell to Legacy/Bismarck in the 2025 final.

This time around, the team had momentum swaying in its favor, riding nine consecutive wins into Saturday’s title game against Grand Forks at Scheels Arena.

Led by goals from a pair of senior captains, United capped its redemption season with a 10th straight victory, fending off the KnightRiders 2-1 to claim the North Dakota girls hockey state tournament championship.

“It just means everything,” said United’s Payton Stocker, whose goal at the 12:31 mark of the second period gave her team a 1-0 lead. “We’ve worked so hard and throughout the season, it’s just been such a battle. Winning and coming out on top is just such a great feeling.”

West Fargo United captains react as they are presented the team’s 2026 state championship hockey trophy after defeating Grand Forks on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Scheels Arena in Fargo.

Eric Hylden / Grand Forks Herald

Stocker was followed up in scoring by United captain Rachel Spanier. The defenseman fired a slap shot from the left point that beat Grand Forks goaltender Kylie Schmaltz to make it 2-0 with 35 seconds remaining in the middle frame.

Reagan Wilson locked things down in net for United, finishing with 23 saves and picking up an all-tournament team nod.

“This is my first year of high school hockey,” the sophomore goaltender said. “I can’t believe coming in here and winning a state title with all of these girls. I just love them so much.”

While it was the senior duo of Stocker and Spanier finding the net for United on Saturday, contributions were seen across the board.

Sophomore Emma Hassler also put forth an all-tournament campaign with five goals and an assist for six points over the three-day stretch.

030226 WFGOUnited3.jpg — Grand Forks’ Dustee Balek’s shot is blocked by West Fargo United goalie Reagan Wilson in the North Dakota girls hockey state championship game on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Scheels Arena.

Freshman Kaylee Augdahl finished the tournament with four points — including

a double-overtime winner

over Fargo North/South in Friday’s semifinals — and junior Liana Williamson added three assists.

“It wasn’t just us (seniors),” said Stocker, who joined Hassler and Wilson on the all-tourney team. “It was everyone collectively. Being seniors, it feels a lot better. It was a great feeling.”

United, the No. 5 seed this year, capped its season with a record of 17-9-0.

“These girls are awesome,” first-year United head coach Kennedy Blair said. “They’ve worked super, super hard since last April. Wake up early in the mornings, go into off-ice training, on-ice training and all that.

“This group of girls is really special. They’re a really close-knit group, and they trusted our coaching staff coming in as a first-year group.”

030226 WFGOUnited2.jpg — West Fargo United players pose for the camera as they wait for the 2026 state championship hockey trophy after defeating Grand Forks on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, at Scheels Arena.

Blair knows a thing or two about winning championships. She was a North Dakota state champion goaltender with the former Bismarck Blizzard co-op and also won an NCAA Division I national title with the Wisconsin women’s program in 2021.

Yet, she never imagined ending her first year as a high school varsity coach with a state championship.

“No, I didn’t,” said Blair, who also won North Dakota High School Coaches Association Coach of the Year honors. “But I had belief in these girls that we could get to the state championship again.”

It’s the United co-op’s first-ever state title — which consists of West Fargo, West Fargo Sheyenne and West Fargo Horace high schools.

Prior to Saturday, the last time a West Fargo girls program won the state title was in 2014 when it was still a standalone program competing as the Packers.

“It’s amazing considering United hockey has never won a championship game,” Wilson said.

Grand Forks, the tournament’s No. 2 seed, ended its campaign with a 21-5-0 record.

Ella Yahna’s fourth goal of the tournament — which came on a 2-on-1 rush with the assist from teammate Reese Meagher, put the KnightRiders within one shot with 8:17 remaining in the third.

Grand Forks, however, was unable to find the equalizer as its bid for a first state championship came up just short.

“I thought we came out in the first and we had a tough time,” Grand Forks head coach Kelly Kilgore said. “I felt we battled some nerves. I really liked our second period … We carried the play and tilted the ice a little bit back in our favor. The shots kind of started to really turn in our favor.”

Stocker said she wouldn’t have wanted to win a state title as a senior with any other group of teammates.

“(They mean) everything,” Stocker said. “We’re so tight and they’re all my friends. Leaving them is going to be hard. But they mean everything to me. We’re all so close and I love them a lot.”