SPORTS WRAP
Link to the past
New Medford Activities Director Tim Grayson is a 1995 Tigers’ alum.
“Oryle Davis was my junior high football coach way back in the day and my math teacher when I went to school here. I knew Mr. Davis quite well. It’s great to see these people and these teams getting some recognition out there,” he said.
“Many of those plaques that are hanging up there were my coaches and my athletic director. A lot of people who taught me. I know I wouldn’t be here without my athletic director Jerry Roberts. I would love to see his face right now if he knew that I was doing this stuff,” said Grayson.
Grayson played football, basketball, and baseball. He attended Mankato State and moved away for a while but came back to town to raise a family.
“As they grew, I started to get interested in coaching. I wanted to be a part of the young kids’ lives and develop them from the ground up. I started coaching every sport: baseball, football, basketball… basketball is my big one, my real passion that I really like.”
“That’s what really built the fuel in me, is my kids and the kids I coach. That’s really what got me into this. When this opportunity came up, being it was from my old school, it was a good fit for sure,” Grayson told Owatonna Live.
“I want to develop what we have. I think they brought me in here as new blood with a little bit of fresh ideas. I want to work with the coaches that we do have to bring on new coaches that we’ll need for the younger group.”
When you go to the Medford school, take note of the accomplishments that are highlighted on the walls outside the activity hallway. They not only recognize athletics, but fine arts, student council, FFA, trap shooting, and more.
Perfect pitch
Even though the OHS girls’ soccer team played a match at the new high school field last week, they consider their pitch at Lincoln Elementary to be top-notch.
Head coach Nate Gendron told the Owatonna Live Coaches Show that now there are two great options.
“We have a beautiful facility at Lincoln. Owatonna Parks and Recreation has done a great job maintaining that. But the fact that we have this brand-new high school is fantastic.”
He said they used the expansive fields at OHS for tryouts and to train for road games on turf.
Huskies’ boys’ soccer coach Bob Waypa said, “I love the complex we have here (at Lincoln). They’ve made some tweaks even to the complex here. The grass is shorter and faster. It’s as nice as turf, and a perfect grass field cannot be beaten. That’s why Cretin-Derham Hall decided they wanted to come down here this year to play us, because of our field. St. Paul Central, too. Both of these are top five teams in the state wanting to come down to Owatonna.”
“That says a lot about our fields and about our team as a whole because they’re not going to travel just to play anywhere. They want to play good competition, great character teams, and at a great facility. We have all those. It says a lot about a program that teams from the Twin Cities want to come down for us.”
Waypa also appreciates the chance to train on the new turf to adapt to the different flow of the game.
“At this point, we shouldn’t be surprised by anything. In the past, we struggled because we didn’t have the ability to train on turf. Now we do.”
Hall of Fame fields
Dave Furness, who just entered the OHS Athletic Hall of Fame for his contributions to soccer in Owatonna, spoke of the process of creating the soccer complex shortly after soccer became a varsity sport in town in 1998. He said the Owatonna Soccer Association (OSA) “reached out to the many great resources that we have in Owatonna to build a much-needed soccer complex.”
OSA raised over $430,000 and partnered with the school district and city to build nine fields, two pavilions, and two parking lots at Lincoln School. Lights were added several years later.
“It includes the high school varsity field that remains one of the best soccer fields in Southern Minnesota,” he said.
Tackling Cancer
Owatonna football announced a $4,000 donation to the battle against cancer from the Tackle Cancer Night during the homecoming football game.
Nancy Williams has organized the local drive for the last decade.
“We’ve seen a lot of people come out and contribute and donate to this fundraiser over the years. Whether we keep it locally, right here in Owatonna, or it’s still local in Minnesota with Randy Shaver for the Cancer Research and Community Fund, we have seen thousands of dollars being raised in our community for this cause,” said Williams.
She said the Tackle Cancer effort “is very well known throughout the state. Both high school and college teams do these fundraisers in their community.” Funds in some past years have gone to the From the Heart Run in Owatonna, which is rebranded as the Heart and Soul Run.
The Heart and Soul Run is reborn this week in conjunction with the Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener in Owatonna.
Gopher hockey debut
Zach Wiese (OHS Class of 2020) made his Golden Gophers debut Sunday night in an exhibition win over Bemidji State. He stopped 10 of the 12 shots he faced. After a stellar career for the Huskies that includes the school record for career wins as a goalie, he went on to backstop the Rochester Grizzlies to a national junior hockey championship.
Wiese was a two-time state football champion lineman for the Huskies, played baseball, and was named the Junior and Senior Athlete of the Year. He is a sophomore at the University of Minnesota.
Home-opening win
Steele County Blades junior hockey won its home opener 2-1 over the Minnesota Mullets at Four Seasons Centre Friday. Newcomer Adam Rauser (Czech Republic) and veteran Cody Vittori (Naperville, Ill.) scored for the Blades. Goalie Bence Gaspar (Hungary) stopped 19 shots for the win.
Nick Adamek has an experienced team in his 10th season as head coach.
“We’ve got 13 returning players from last season. We’re pretty veteran-laded. The new guys who have come in are a pretty good group too. You can hopefully pick up where we left off,” he said.
This is season No. 12 in Owatonna.
“We love it here. We’ve got a great relationship with youth hockey. We help run the mini-mite program here in town. Our guys are on the ice with youth hockey all the time.”
Players also donate time at local elementary schools.
The Blades have home games this Friday and Saturday.
OwatonnaLive.com play-by-play
Thursday, Oct. 12
Blooming Prairie football at Winona Cotter, 7 p.m.
OHS volleyball vs. Faribault, 7:15 p.m.
Friday, Oct. 13
OHS football vs. Rochester JM, 7 p.m. (simulcast on The FAN-Owatonna, 1170AM/106.3FM)