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Sports Memories by Tom Jones

10 years

• Albert Lea softball players Haley Harms, Kassie Hardies and Megan Kortan were recognized by the Minnesota State High School Coaches Association as Academic All-State selections.
• The Albert Lea VFW baseball team defeated Owatonna 11-5. Parker Smith had three hits while Cody Ball pitched three innings, allowing one hit and striking out four to pick up the win.
• The Albert Lea Grizzlies adult amateur football team suffered their fourth straight loss when the Tri-State Buffaloes came to Grizzly Field at Frank Hall Park and defeated the locals 27-16. Jason Kuipers scored two touchdowns in the loss.

20 years

• University of Minnesota Athletic Director Joel Maturi, along with men’s basketball coach Dan Monson and women’s basketball coach Pam Borton, were speakers at the University of Minnesota golf outing held at the Albert Lea Country Club.
• The Albert Lea American Legion baseball team defeated Rochester Lourdes 5-4 at Hayek Field. A wild pitch in the bottom of the seventh inning with the bases loaded scored Ryan Truesdell to give Albert Lea the win.
• Albert Lea High School graduate Dan Breuer, a member of the Riverland Community College golf team made All-American honors while finishing eighth at the NJCAA Division III Golf Championship held in Chautauqua New York. He also received an Academic All-American award.
• Minnesota Twins pitcher Johan Santana was leading the American League in strikeouts with 114 while his teammate Joe Nathan was leading the league in saves with 14.

50 years

• The Los Angeles Dodgers held a tryout camp for boys 15-21 years of age at the Community Field in Waseca.
• The Albert Lea American Legion baseball team committed six errors that led to a 5-3 loss to Rochester John Marshall. Paul Sherman led Albert Lea with two hits and Mark Stalker added one.
• The Hartland Jaycees were sponsoring a donkey softball game with proceeds going to park improvements in the city.
• Jon Ulman hit a home run to lead Security State Bank to a 5-4 win over Shell Oil in YMCA Little League baseball play. John Keating pitched a two-hitter to pick up the win.
• Third baseman Eric Soderholm had two hits and three RBIs to lead the Minnesota Twins to a 5-4 win over the Baltimore Orioles in front of 13,40O fans at Metropolitan Stadium.
• Tom Eaton and Gay Argo tied for first place in the third flight of the Cogwell Golf Classic played at the Arrowhead Town and Country Club in Emmons.
• Albert Lea placed second of 34 teams at the Minnesota PGA pro-junior golf tournament in Edina. Mark Knutson shot a 71 to lead the Albert Lea team that also featured Jim Ihnot, Paul Peterson and Mike Edling.
• Joan Fahrmand hit two home runs and Lois Fagerquist added one to lead Polis Photo to a 28-0 win over State Bank of Clarks Grove in Women’s “A” League softball play.
• John and Cynthia Peterson were set to play Dan Mott and Liz Allen in the “A” bracket of the Albert Lea Doubles Tennis Tournament being played at the Brookside courts.
• Gary Langerud took fourth and Jeff Stadheim placed fifth in the 220-yard dash for boys in the 9-11 age group for the Albert Lea Track and Field Club at the University of Minnesota Track and Field meet.

Alumni notes

Zoe Wulff, daughter of the late 1970 Albert Lea High School graduate Allan Wulff, and his wife, Teresa, is the community impact director for the Washington Spirit in the National Women’s Soccer League. She is a 2015 graduate of Hidden Valley High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and has been employed with the Spirit since January of 2020.