Free throw finesse

Laken Baartman received her third place trophy for this year’s Knights of Columbus State Free Throw Competition, which had to be canceled due to COVID-19. Her trophy was delivered by Mark Peters, head of the Knights of Columbus in Minnesota.

Seniors left without final spring sports season

By Mark Wilmes
tributeeditor@gmail.com

Among the many disap­pointments involved in the collateral damage from the pandemic, is depriving the 2020 seniors of their final season participating in spring sports. We reached out to seniors on their feelings about the sports that they have played in their high school careers and will share here the remainder of the athletes responding to our ques­tions.
Kylea Baartman – RTR softball – pitcher
“I started playing soft­ball when I was in seventh grade,” Baartman said…

For the full story and photos, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

2020 Seniors left without final spring sports season

By Mark Wilmes
tributeeditor@gmail.com

Among the many disap­pointments involved in the collateral damage from the pandemic, is depriving the 2020 seniors of their final season participating in spring sports. We reached out to seniors on their feelings about the sports that they have played in their high school careers and will share that with our readers this week and next.
Payton Hess – RTR Baseball – shortstop/ pitcher
“I started playing competitive baseball in 3rd grade,” Payton said. “I have played varsity base­ball since freshman year and was looking forward to again this year. I was really looking forward to playing my final year of baseball. I was very proud of my success throughout the years but I knew I was not at my full potential. This year was going to be the year where I could re­ally show people what I could do…

For the full story, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

Witte signs

RTR senior volleyball player Madison Witte has signed to play for Northland Community and Technical College in Thief River Falls, according to volleyball coach Courtney Nordby. “We look forward to having her join our team.”

MSHSL cancels remainder of spring activities and sports

Spring sports were officially canceled for the remainder of the season by the Minnesota State High School League last week.

By Mark Wilmes
tributeeditor@gmail.com

In response to Execu­tive Order 20-41 issued today by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) issued a state­ment canceling all spring activities and sports for the remainder of the 2019- 2020 school year. The decision of the MSHSL is aligned with recommen­dations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Minnesota Department of Health and is in support of practices that focus on community health and safety.
“As a parent of a high school senior, I understand the tremendous impact of this pandemic,” said board president Bonnie Spohn Schmaltz of Eden Valley- Watkins. “As a speech coach, team members that I have coached since sev­enth grade won’t see their final season culminating with the opportunity at the state tournament, includ­ing my daughter. Knowing these costs, I’m proud of the sacrifices competitors and coaches throughout the state are making to keep others safe.”

For the full story, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

Marshall Independent All- Area teams for girls revealed

By Jim Kopel
Tribute Sports

Twenty different girls were honored for their basketball skills as the Marshall Independent has announced its All-Area squads for the 2019-20 season. There were 13 area teams with five girls on both the first and second teams, with 10 girls mak­ing the honorable mention list. Twelve of the 20 girls are underclassmen…
Kalleigh Carr of the RTR Lady Knights was selected as one of the honorable mention players. Kalleigh, a junior this past year for the Lady Knights, was on the leader board in five of the seven different stat categories…

For the full story, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

Marshall Independent announces all-area boys basketball squads

By Jim Kopel
Tribute Sports

The 2019-20 Marshall Independent All-Area bas­ketball teams were recent­ly revealed. There were five players on the first and sec­ond teams and 10 players on the honorable mention team. A total of 13 teams represented the area cov­ered by the Independent. Eight of the 10 players on the first and second teams were seniors this past year…
Hayden Gravley of the RTR Knights was named to the honorable men­tion squad. Hayden was a very consistent player for the Knights this past year. Only a freshman, he was the third-leading scorer, averaging a little over eight points per game. He also was one of the leading re­bounders for the team, playing a small forward spot. One area Hayden will be working on for the next season will be long-range bombing. He had games where the 3-point basket was there, but consistency from game to game needs to be perfected.

For the full story, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

Camden Conference announces All-Conference teams

By Jim Kopel
Tribute Sports

The Camden Conference has revealed its confer­ence selections for 2019-20 for both the girls and boys teams. There were 12 players selected on both the south and north squads for both the girls and boys. Number of selections from each team was based on position the team finished in the conference.
The RTR girls and boys teams each placed one player from their team. Kalleigh Carr and Payton Hess were the representa­tives for the RTR teams.

For the full story, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.

Russell-Tyler-Ruthton Academic all-stars in conference

Pictured are RTR basketball players named to the 2020 Winter Sports Camden Conference Academic All Conference team. Clockwise from top left are Maddison Wendland, Skylar Borresen, Kalleigh Carr, Allie Christianson, Hailey Muenchow, Ashley Owen, McKinley Schruers, Shawna Thomsen, Cade Jorgensen and Manager Cody Gifford.

RTR awards banquet

Photo courtesy of Tanya Thomsen
RTR Knights letter winners, pictured left to right in front, are Kalleigh Carr, Maddison Wendland, Skylar Borresen, Faith Thomsen and Lexi Schreurs; in back are Hailey Muenchow, McKinley Schreurs, Shawna Thomsen, Ashley Owen and Allie Christianson.

By Mark Wilmes
tributeeditor@gmail.com

The RTR girls’ basket­ball awards banquet was held Friday evening at the high school. The following awards were presented to Coach Steve Krause’s team—
Statisticians: Cody Gif­ford, Mason Brust and Madison Wells. Captains: Ashley Owen, Shawna Thomsen and Skylar Bor­resen…

For the full story and more photos, read this week’s Tyler Tribute.