Laurel Antilla, Freshmen, Women's Basketball

It was another great week at Northland. Classes are going by so fast, basketball is well under way. Each day passes faster than the day before it. We got a chance to see how we did against another team on Monday. It was a lot of fun, everyone had a great game. Each person brought something to the table. It just wasn't a one man show out there.
We got the weekend off from basketball. So I went with some friends down to the Mall of America. I have never been there, or spent that much time in the mall. I am glad a got a chance to go there and see all it has. We also did some bowling. I am not a good bowler, but I could have told you that before! Less than 2 weeks until we head out for California. I think everyone is pretty pumped about that. For me that also means, 3 weeks until I get to see my mom. I haven't had a chance to go home, and I won't go home until winter break. I think it is really cool that my mom and dad are coming up to see me in a few weeks over Thanksgiving. I am sure time is going to fly, because lately that is what time is doing. Until next time.

Laurel Anttila - Freshman, Women's Basketball

Another week at Northland has gone by. Time flies when you are having fun. My first year experience class is done, and that is going to free up sometime. More time for homework and reading. The volleyball team had some home matches this week. For the games, some of us dressed up to support the girls. It was a lot of fun, most of the basketball girls came in something. We got a day off earlier in the week. It was a nice to caught up on some reading, and caught up with some friends.
Basketball its self is going great. We are learning a lot. On Saturday we are going to have almost all the team there. Some of the volleyball girls play basketball too, so they haven't been able to be there. We get a chance to play against GCC, on Monday in a scrimmage. I can't wait, it should be nice facing off against people you don't see everyday. Should be a good chance to set some great team standards.

Brie McRae - Freshman Volleyball

Hey all, it's Brie again! The volleyball season is winding down and we just went through midterms so life is just getting back into its normal swing again. The volleyball season has had it's ups and downs, but we're starting to see where our team lies with the rest of our competitors. This year, because we're still a pretty young, but strong team, we're somewhere in the middle. We've definitely got the skill to play with the big dogs, we just need our mental game to step up. We have three big games coming up this week. Two are tomorrow and one on Friday. Hopefully we can leave this season with a bang!

Laurel Anttila - Freshman Women's Basketball

Basketball season is here. We just finished our 1st week of practice. It is so nice to have the team together with the coachs. We are learning a lot, it is a different style of basketball, that is for sure. Only 23 days until we go out to Cali. That should be a lot of fun. I have never been out west so that should be something to see. That and we get to play some basketball out there!That makes it so much better.
School is going really good. Learning more and more everyday. Mid terms went better than I thought they would. My hard work payed off. I was happy with the grades that I earned.
The team has been traveling around Lake Superior on a bike. Anna had to go out and buy a new bike for it. Everyone is doing there far share of getting around the lake. Sometimes the hills are a killer, but we are doing it. Actually, we are biking indoors but keeping track of our miles for our fundraiser, we have 1,354 miles total, nearly 600 are done!
The team has gotten together a few times. Always a good time. One day we watched a movie. That was fun. We also went to watch the vollleyball team, so we could cheer on some of the other basketball players who play both. Before the game a few of us went to DQ. Yes we love our ice cream!
It has been a really great 1st week of practice. I can't wait to see us against another team, it should be a lot of fun.

Laurel Antilla - Freshman Women's Basketball

It was another fun week at Northland. Some of my best times are in the dining hall. It is a great way to meet new people, and stay in touch with others. Sometimes being in there can make the day look a little brighter. I got a chance to watch the men's and women's soccer teams over the weekend. I think they played well. Going to the games is always a lot of fun, because you get to be around a lot of fun people. Sometimes on good nights we watch the boys play golf around the dorm. That has become one of the cool things to do. You just need to watch out for the balls. Classes are going great. The key is just taking good notes and doing the reading. The great part is there is something new to learn everyday. It is giving me a chance to grow as a person, and learn about different points of view. I am also learning what I need to do to prepare for tests, and quizes. At one point I was getting down on myself, and missing home a lot, but one of the upper classmen talked to me. She really helped me look at things from a different point of view. The team is becoming more and more like family every week. I am so happy that I have been given the chance to go to school far from home, with different types of people, and to be able to play basketball at a college level. When I get home sick I remember all the good things that I have going on around me.

Ashley Bingaman - Senior Women's Soccer

Hi again. I know it's been a long time since I've posted but that is honestly how fast things fly around here. I can't believe it but it almost October. My last season is almost half way over, and it is getting even closer to that time when I must be prepared to enter the real world. Scary, yet exciting at the same time. Even though this first month has flown by I have had a lot of fun. We had our first over night road trip this past weekend. I am excited to be home this weekend because it is Family weekend. A lot of parents will be here to cheer us on and I always love having fans. Plus Britt's mommy is bringing food!! I am even more excited that my best friend, Emily, is coming up this weekend for the games. So pay attention because hopefully it will be an awesome weekend all around.

Allen Dalke - Freshmen Men's Cross Country

Hey everyone! This past weekend we competed at the Roy Griak Invitational, hosted by the University of Minnesota. This is the largest cross-country invitational in the entire United States. The race that we ran in was actually the largest in invitational history, with over 50 teams and nearly 600 runners from NCAA divisions 2 and 3 competing. Although we didn't do the greatest in the standings, this was still an exciting race to be part of. It was a lot of fun to have the opportunity to see some of the best runners in the nation. The division 1 race was amazing to watch; there wasn't a very large difference in time between the frontrunners and everyone else. Now we have two weeks of training before our next meet, the Pine Hill Invitational. (Hosted by UM-Duluth) Classes are going well for me so far. I was fortunate enough to be able to take a CLEP exam to test out of the biology class I was in, so now I can focus more on my other classes. My first chemistry exam is this week, and I have had a lab each week, so I have plenty to work on.
Well, time for me to grab a bite to eat before meteorology. Later! :)

Laurel Anttila - Freshman Women's Basketball

I am so happy that I came to Northland. After only a few weeks it feels like home. I have had my moments of being homesick, and missing my friends. They don’t last very long, only because you are so busy. Just about everyday there is something going on. The college has something for us to be doing or the basketball team has something going on. Last week we had a team dinner with just the girls. It was really nice to just sit and have everyone together outside of basketball. Being a new student, the older basketball players really look after us. We have gone shopping, been to the beach a few times, and watched movies together. They have become my family up at school. Classes are a lot of fun. There are so many things to learn. Dorm life there is never a dull moment, I guess you could say. There are always people to hang out with. Everyone on campus is really nice. I love being a student, and being a basketball player. It makes you feel like you are part of something. I don’t think I would be as happy if I would have gone to another school.

Brie McRae - Freshman Volleyball

Hey all it's Brie again! So far the volleyball team has had two tourneys and we haven't done too badly. Last year the team only won 4 matches all season and we've already won 3. That just shows you how good we're going to do this year. We've got a game this Saturday morning against St. Kate's that should be fun to watch. I'm excited about it and I think we can kick a little butt if we focus and try hard. Well enough with volleyball. One of my favorite topics about school so far is the Outdoor Orientation (OO) trips. They're amazing! I made so many friends so quickly from it and it was a great learning experience. I've never gone backpacking before and I was a bit scared to do it, but once we got going it was terrific. Not only pushing yourself to climb new heights, but seeing the gorgeous things that this place we live in has to offer. Of course you smell after a few days, but you realise that everyone else does too and you don't have to worry about it. Anywho, I've got to jet because I've got homework and need some shut eye. Later!

Allen Dahlke - Freshmen Men's Cross Country

Hello everybody! Pre-season is over now and I have survived my first week of classes! Well, it wasn't that bad. It was definitely an adjustment going from only practicing during the day to having classes and then practicing, though. I am really looking forward to my Meteorology class, and the other classes seem like they will be interesting as well.
We are still working on our base mileage to prepare for later in the season. I could definitely feel how hard I've been working by the end of this week. It is already proving worth the effort for me, though.
Yesterday, we traveled to UMD for the Campus Quest meet. I ran 2:02 faster (my time was 33:15) than I did just a week ago. As they say in running, you only get what you put into it. Now we get the opportunity for two solid weeks of training before we head to the Twin Cities for the Roy Griak Invitational, the largest CC meet in the nation. This will be exciting! :)

Ashley Bingaman - Senior Women's Soccer

Well, I am officially done with my first day of classes! All in all it went well, I am extremely excited for some of my classes, and just slightly excited for others (statistics for example) although it shouldn't be too bad! It is always a change to go from being on campus doing nothing but practice to going to class as well. It was nice to see a lot of my friends today that I haven't seen since last May.
Over the holiday weekend I was busy with soccer as our team traveled to Duluth for a tournament. We played some tough teams, and didn't come out like we would have liked to, but we did learn a lot from the experience, and that is always the most important part about the early games in the season. Coach has a saying: it is only a mistake if you don't learn from it. We are now looking ahead as we have a tough game this Saturday against St. Mary's University. I will keep you all posted and let you know how it turns out, but for now I am going to dinner ;)

Casey Frantz - Junior Men's Soccer

We finally finished our preseason on Thursday, Aug 31. Our first game was on September 1st, which was a 10 - 0 win against Finlandia University in Hancock, Michigan. We are still trying to get use to playing with each other. I have been doing a lot of goose hunting with my soccer buddies. We have been somewhat successful. Next up we have the Tommies from St. Thomas University on Sunday the 10th.

Ashley Bingaman - Senior Women's Socer

Hi everyone!! I'm Ashley Bingaman, and I am a senior on the Northland College Women's Soccer team. Currently, we are in our preseason training, including two, sometimes three practices a day!! The days are long, but this is my favorite time of year. I love preseason because the only thing I have to do all day everyday is play soccer! I don't have to worry about work, I don't have to worry about class, and I don't have any homework, it is just soccer, soccer, soccer, eating, and sleeping!!!
We have a great group of girls this year on the team, everyone has been working hard as we are preparing for our first games this weekend at a tournament in Duluth, MN. Even though we are working hard, the girls are still finding time to hang out, watch movies, and meet new friends. This week a lot of new freshman students have moved in and it is always nice to meet the new faces. If you are new to campus, or will be soon make sure you say hi!!

Allen Dalke - Freshmen Men's Cross Country

Hi! I am Allen Dalke, a freshman on the LumberJacks cross country team. During pre-season, we've been practicing twice a day, once in the morning and again in the afternoon. Morning practice has been a pool workout, a walk, or a really short jog (2.5 miles). The afternoon practice is where I put in the majority of my miles, usually about eight per day. I haven't completely adjusted to the mileage we run in college CC yet, but I'm working at it.
There are a wide variety of experiences and ability levels on our team.
Some people have been running CC since middle school, and others just ran their first miles last week. Personally, I have been a runner since my sophomore year of high school, doing both cross country and track. For all of you newer runners reading this, I have one piece of advice for you: stick with it! My first season in high school, I finished last in my conference, in the JV race! By the end of my senior season, I had improved my 5K time by over 12 minutes and was consistently in the middle of the pack in the varsity race. That is what is so great about cross-country; anybody who believes in what he/she is doing and is willing to work hard can improve.
I can't wait to get out to Mt. Valhalla on Friday for our first race to see where I am at individually and where we are as a team. We have a large group of freshmen on the team this season, so it will be interesting to see how we come together as a team. Anyway, I will keep everyone updated about how the team is doing about once a week. I will also talk a little bit about academics and life in general here at Northland College. Bye!

Brie McRae - Freshmen Volleyball Player

Hey! My name is Brie McRae and I'm a freshman here at Northland. I'm a setter on the volleyball team. We just got done with one of the two practices we have in the pre-season. The practices can be hard, but I have a lot of fun doing them. Sometimes I'm pretty sure I'm going to die from exhaustion, but usually I feel pretty good after practices. We had a scrimmage last Thursday and found out that we're going to put up a great fight this season no matter who we play. It's going to be exciting to see what we all have to bring to this team. So far we're all still getting to know how each other play and having fun while we do it. I'm sure it'll be a great season. I'll keep you updated on what's going down on the court. Later!

Welcome to the Northland College Athletics Blog

The Northland College Athletics Department is starting a blog for the 2006-07 school year!

Athletes from each team will be periodically posting about their experiences at Northland College. They will be talking about their athletic experiences as well as their academic and social experiences as they advance through the year. Each team will have one athlete who will represent them, and they will be asked to blog once or twice a week. With 12 teams at Northland, there should be plenty of new blogs to check out frequently! We hope that you can visit this page often to learn more about Northland College Athletics!