North Dakota
Local notebook: Grand Forks' Lee Baker to be inducted in North Dakota Track and Field Hall of Fame
GRAND FORKS — The Grand Forks throwing program for track and field has a long history of success.
In a reflection of that success, one of Grand Forks’ veteran throwing coaches will be honored next weekend.
Lee Baker will be inducted into the North Dakota Track and Field Hall of Fame in a presentation in conjunction with the state’s high school meet in Bismarck.
“Lee has a good rapport with this athletes,” said Tim Tandeski, who’s also a long-time throws coach in Grand Forks. “(Baker) works well with all levels of kids.”
Baker has coached 25 North Dakota Class A state champions in the shot put and the discus over his coaching career, and has coached 100 state place-winners in the same events.
Baker coached Bryan Bjerk, the current Class A boys state track discus record holder, overall state meet record holder and owner of the longest boys discus throw ever in the state of North Dakota.
Bjerk threw 192 feet, 8 inches at the 2012 state track meet and 198-1 at the East Region meet in 2012.
Baker also coached Shelby Frank, who was a four-time state champion in the discus and would have been an overwhelming favorite to win her fifth if it hadn’t been for COVID during the 2020 season.
Frank is now one of the top throwers in NCAA Division I with the University of Minnesota.
Baker has coached four girls who rank in the Top 10 for farthest throws of all time in the state in girls shot put and two boys in the Top 10 for farthest throws in the shot put.
Baker, who has coached since 1991, will be inducted May 24.
Former Langdon athlete Julie Dinius will also be inducted. Dinius collected 15 individual region championships and eight state titles.
Greg Kuch from Beulah and Fargo South’s McKenzie Mehlisch will also be inducted. Three athletes from pre-1980 were also voted in to the Hall of Fame by the committee: Cavalier’s Gordon Fisher (1915), Hebron’s Roger Reinbold (1961) and Bismarck’s Randy Lussenden (1968).
Choice Bank donates to GF Gladiators
Choice Bank, partnering with The Member Impact Fund, has donated more than $600,000 to support affordable housing and community development in North Dakota and that includes a donation to a Grand Forks wrestling club.
The club received a donation of $16,000 that will provide scholarships to those who can’t afford tournament fees, club practice fees or travel expenses.
“At Choice Bank, we make it a priority to invest in the communities we serve by supporting local families and businesses,” said Chris Johnson, Choice Bank Grand Forks Location President. “With this $16,000 donation to the Grand Forks Gladiators Wrestling Club, we are investing in the youth, particularly those who might not otherwise have the opportunity, by providing them with the chance to develop their wrestling skills.
“The donation will fund scholarships that cover various costs associated with the sport, ensuring that financial constraints do not impede the participation of aspiring young athletes.”
Hjelle hoping to run with pro shot
East Grand Forks’ Jake Hjelle had to cancel a fishing trip last week. The former Minnesota Crookston standout received his call to start a professional baseball career.
Hjelle has signed with the Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks.
“This year, (the UMC) season got finished, and I was sitting around a few days,” Hjelle said. “I was planning to go on a fishing trip and then (UMC coach Steve) Gust called me and said it sounds like (Redhawks coach Chris) Coste wants to sign you. That was a no-brainer in my eyes.”
HJelle said Coste has told him to take practice repititions at first base and outfield.
“As I was growing up, the biggest goal was to get paid to play this game,” Hjelle said. “I want to keep getting better and moving up. I want to take my opportunity and run with it and see how far it takes me.”
The 23-year-old Hjelle graduated the first week of May from UMC with a degree in natural resources.
Urlacher claims Big Ten title
Grand Forks Central product and University of Minnesota track and field athlete Jak Urlacher won the Big Ten Championship in the pole vault last weekend, clearing a personal-best 18 feet, 1 inch.
Urlacher’s mark tied the fourth-best in Gophers program history.
Urlacher’s mark is also the No. 6-ranked performance in the NCAA Division I West Region.
As a high school senior, Urlacher broke the North Dakota state record in the pole vault at 15-7.5 in 2021.
The college junior was fifth at the Big Ten Championships as a sophomore in 2023.
Grabanski becomes NAIA all-time RBI leader
Former Grand Forks Central athlete Joey Grabanski, now at Concordia (Neb.), became the NAIA’s all-time home runs leader earlier this spring.
Now, he’s also the NAIA’s all-time RBI leader. Grabanski passed this mark during the NAIA National Tournament, where his team was eliminated earlier this week to halt a 42-win season.
Grabanski finishes his Concordia career with 88 home runs, 300 RBIs and program records in career batting average (.382), total bases (626) and walks (129).
Grabanski’s 88 home runs are tied for the third-most in college baseball history across all divisions: Division I, Division II, Division III and NAIA.
Labatte earns high Summit honor
After recording two All-Summit League performances at the 2024 Summit League Outdoor Championships, UND distance runner Luke Labatte was named the Men’s Most Outstanding Performer of the Championship, the conference offices announced Wednesday.
Labatte took the track in the 3,000-meter steeplechase on Friday night and claimed the title in a time of 8:50.89. His race was not close, with him winning by over 8 seconds.
With the win, Labatte successfully defended his titles from the 2022 and 2023 Summit League Outdoor Championships and became the first steeplechase runner to become a three-time steeplechase champion at the meet since Jeff Mettler of South Dakota did it from 2012-14.
On Saturday, Labatte had his second All-Summit League performance of the meet and earned the bronze medal in the 5,000 meters in 14:29.10.
UND had 11 athletes named to the All-Summit League Team, which is accomplished by finishing in the top three in respective events at the Summit League Outdoor Championships.
Those athletes include Yonca Kutluk (1,500, 5,000 and 10,000), Labatte (3,000 steeplechase, 5,000), Kenna Curry (shot put, hammer throw), Tiffanie Magnusson (heptathlon, long jump), Jadyn Keeler (3,000 steeplechase), Frida Giersdorff (3,000 steeplechase), Justice Dick (800), Jesse Middendorf (800), Malene Kollberg (heptathlon), James Weninger (high jump) and Justina Esangbedo (triple jump).
Devils Lake’s Abrahamson honored
Devils Lake’s Ashley Abrahamson was one of 25 players named to the All-USA Today HSSA Girls Hockey Team on May 9.
Abrahamson led the state of North Dakota with 69 points, while nobody else reached 50. The second-highest mark was another Firebird, Siri Olson, with 49.
Abrahamson scored 52 goals, while nobody else had more than 27 goals.
BISMARCK, ND (KXNET) — With the temperatures warming and the summer around the corner, emerald ash borers are picking up their activity.
Governor Kelly Armstrong proclaimed May 17-23 Emerald Ash Borer Awareness Week, and the North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) is giving North Dakotans advice on how to protect their trees.
Emerald ash borers (EABs) attack true ash trees. The larvae feed under the bark, which disrupts the movement of water and nutrients. This often leads to the death of the tree within several years.
According to the NDDA, EABs have killed hundreds of millions of ash trees in the United States over the past decade.
North Dakota is home to more than 90 million ash trees, which are found along streets, in city parks, rural plantings, forests, and along the edges of rivers and lakes. EABs have been found in LaMoure and Cass counties.
The NDDA says EABs can be moved in firewood, and people in North Dakota should do what they can to prevent the spread.
“EAB spreads slowly on its own, but it can be moved long distances in firewood and ash nursery stock,” State Forester Tom Claeys said. “Please buy your firewood from local sources, and if you are coming from out of the state, please don’t bring firewood with you.”
The NDDA and North Dakota Forest Service (NDFS) will be placing nearly 300 traps around the state this month to attract EABs. These are two-footlong, three-sided, and purple, and people are asked to leave them alone.
People can use a treatment to prevent EAB from establishing in an ash tree, but this is not recommended until EAB has been found within 15 miles of the tree. It is prohibited to move firewood or other things from an ash tree outside a regulated area, including LaMoure and Cass counties.
Does Poaching Really Matter?
District Game Warden Gavin Herbert
The reason I got into this profession was to protect the natural resources that we enjoy so much. It never crossed my mind as a game warden that I would have the opportunity to inspire others by writing directly to them. But there has never been a better time to inspire others and protect our way of life.
In a recent study published by the Boone and Crocket Club as part of their Poach and Pay program, it unveiled that only 3-5% of poachers get caught nationwide, meaning around 95% of poaching incidents go undetected. These poaching incidents that go unnoticed cost the American public billions of dollars that could be better spent on conservation.
Billion is not a small number and it is a huge loss to the public for the replacement cost of illegally taken wildlife. Not to mention that hunting is on a decline across the U.S., which is where much of the funding is generated for conservation.
This is a very thought-provoking dilemma for how the North American Model of Conservation is being undermined by those who discredit our system by poaching.
Never has it been clearer to me the harm that poachers cause. Hunting is often looked through a negative lens by portions of the public, and these negatives are often confirmed by examples of poaching. Now we all know hunters and poachers are not the same but how will someone that is not a part of our hunting community see it? In a world where support for hunting is declining, do we need poachers making our way of life look bad? How do we recruit people when their examples of hunting come from bad places or at least how do we gain support?
How poaching affects public perception, along with the impact it has on conservation, has never been clearer, so why do we as the public tolerate it?
This new information has brought more meaning to my career and the importance of what I do, but I believe that the changes will start with you. Wardens make many cases off of public reports. My best case ever came from a phone call. I could never have caught the man responsible without that call. We often cannot do it alone and it is important that you see why your role is so important.
It is easy to say that an individual warden is Behind the Badge, but what is truly Behind the Badge is a community of enthusiastic conservationists, hunters and anglers who support us. We cannot do it without you.
GRAND FORKS, N.D. (Valley News Live) – Nearly two years after a deadly crash on Highway 2 near the Grand Forks Airport, Travis Bell heard from the family he forever changed and learned how long he’ll spend in prison.
Bell, 45, of Fordville, pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular homicide and injury for the June 2024 crash. Investigators say he had been drinking, was about 20 miles over the speed limit, eating and looking at his phone when he rear-ended Nicole Louthain’s SUV at a red light near the airport.
Nicole was seriously hurt. Her 6-year-old daughter, Katarina, died in the hospital. Her husband Robert serves at the Grand Forks Air Force Base.
Family shares impact of loss
“I could not help her. I could not reach her. That moment replays in my dreams and it follows me to my waking hours. It shapes how I sleep how I think how I function and how I exist in the world,” Nicole Louthain said.
“When my wife miraculously lived and held our only child with me listening to her precious heartbeat fade into silence, Mr. Bell walked free from custody and went home to reassure his family that he was ok,” Robert Louthain said.
Four victim impact statements were given, including from Robert and Nicole. Forty-six people wrote letters supporting Bell’s character and asking for leniency.
“I’ve had two years to think about all the things I could say. There’s no words of mine that will make this day or that day go away. Time heals. I’m truly sorry for the loss I have caused,” Bell said.
Judge issues maximum sentence
Judge Theodore Sandberg rejected a shorter term and gave Bell the maximum under his plea deal: six years in prison, three years supervised probation and two years in a sobriety program.
“When we were speaking about this upcoming sentencing and this plea agreement that called for the potential of 3-6 years, I remember Robert saying I hope he gets the six years so that he can see how short of a period of time that is. I thought wow that’s perspective. 6 years might seem like a lot of Mr. Bell, but it was a short period of time in the life of a child,” Sandberg said.
The Louthains say no sentence can match their loss. But they’re using this case to push for tougher DUI laws in North Dakota in Katarina’s name.
Copyright 2026 KVLY. All rights reserved.
-
Kansas6 minutes agoSheriff: Colorado couple jailed in Kansas for transporting drugs
-
Kentucky12 minutes agoTrump-endorsed Ed Gallrein unseats Rep. Thomas Massie in Kentucky GOP primary
-
Louisiana18 minutes agoLouisiana run-rules Marshall, advances to Coastal rematch
-
Maine24 minutes agoSouth Portland discusses use of Flock cameras in city
-
Maryland30 minutes agoNew York man sentenced to 40 years for injuring Maryland deputy during pursuit
-
Michigan36 minutes agoAnti-Semitism increasingly targeting Southeast Michigan communities
-
Massachusetts42 minutes agoMissing Holyoke man identified after body found in Connecticut River
-
Minnesota48 minutes agoInside James Beard Award-nominated Shigeyuki Furukawa’s Kado no Mise
