Pond Hockey Tournament raises $50,035 for Jablonski February 1, 2012 at 7:58 pm
Students and teachers swap outfits for Catholic Schools Week February 1, 2012 at 7:58 am
Catholic Schools Week kicks off with pjs and honors February 1, 2012 at 7:58 am
One Act play takes second place at sub-sections February 1, 2012 at 7:57 am
Youth In Goverment members lobby for government changes February 1, 2012 at 7:56 am
February 3, 2012
Nicole Sarquis, Staff Writer
History teachers tend to ramble off unrelatable facts about flappers, bootlegging, and the ease of life in the “Roaring 20s” during a typical U.S. History class, leaving their students with no real understanding of the subject. At the same time, English teachers’ enthusiasm over F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby” can only be understood if students reading the literary classic have a solid knowledge base of the time period the novel is set in. In an attempts to bridge the gap between literature and history studies, two teachers––Ms. Megan Kern and Ms. Anne Marie Dominguez––have paired up to teach their newly developed class, American Studies, to juniors, combining the... Continue Reading
February 3, 2012
Matt Muenzberg, Sports Editor
“Don’t miss.” That was the thought that ran through the head of senior forward Sanjay Lumpkin when he got the ball under the basket unguarded with three seconds left in the game. Lumpkin made the layup, giving the top ranked boys’ basketball team a 67-65 win over number two Spring Lake Park. “We were just trying to get a screen and roll on the top. The ball went into the corner and I just cut back door and no one was guarding me,” said Lumpkin. The Red Knights struggled to contain Spring Lake Park’s Sean Scott, who had a career night with 36 points, 13 rebounds, and six blocks in a packed, pro-Panther gymnasium. Head coach Mr. John Moore admitted that guarding Scott isn’t an exact... Continue Reading
Junior Shannon Galvin rehearses for the upcoming Les Miserables performance wither her fellow cast members. (Giulia Imholte)
January 27, 2012
Emily Kline, Staff Writer
Blue Water Theatre Company, one of the Twin Cities’ top performing arts groups for youth, is taking on “Les Misérables,” one of musical theatre’s most famous works, for their winter production. Juniors Rachel Hogen and Shannon Galvin, along with sophomore Rachel Wallace, joined the cast in late November and are currently in rehearsals for the... Continue Reading
February 1, 2012
Nick Hillson, Staff Writer
The Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) is a bill running through Congress in an attempt to curb the illegal uploading and downloading of copyrighted information and programs. Unfortunately, due to extremely vague wording and unclear definitions, the censorship proposed could extend to websites such as Facebook, various e-mails, and any other free forum. Not only is SOPA ineffective for all but the technologically impaired, but it violates our rights and benefits only a small handful of elites. SOPA works by requiring websites and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to search through sent information and to censor any infringing material. Not only does this ignore the privacy guaranteed in the Constitution... Continue Reading
The Mock Trial team had a succesful season at several competitions due to immense practice and help from professional lawyers. (Photo courtesy of Jim Vogl)
February 3, 2012
Mallory Hoch, Staff Writer
Beginning in October, the Mock Trial team has practiced every night from 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in room 121 in preparation for upcoming competitions. Coming to a close on January 31st, the season ended on a strong note, making it to subsections before loosing their last competition. The season commenced with general practices to help initiate new members.... Continue Reading
| Sport | Date | Opponent | Result | W/L | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boys Basketball | Fri, Feb 03 | Spring Lake Park | 67-65 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Tue, Jan 31 | Minneapolis Southwest | 70-38 | W | |
| Girls Hockey | Sat, Jan 28 | Hill-Murray | 1-3 | Read Story | L |
| Boys Basketball | Sat, Jan 28 | North Branch | 82-21 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Sat, Jan 28 | North Branch | 66-40 | Read Story | W |
| Dance Team | Sat, Jan 28 | Catholic Jamboree | J: 2nd/K: 3rd | ||
| Girls Hockey | Fri, Jan 27 | St. Francis/North Branch | 10-0 | Read Story | W |
| Boys Hockey | Fri, Jan 27 | Moorhead | 2-6 | Read Story | L |
| Wrestling | Fri, Jan 27 | Robbinsdale Cooper | 47-27 | W | |
| Wrestling | Fri, Jan 27 | Mahtomedi | 33-34 | L | |
| Boys Hockey | Thu, Jan 26 | Irondale | 6-1 | Read Story | W |
| Girls Basketball | Thu, Jan 26 | Chisago Lakes | 58 -45 | Read Story | W |
| Sport | Date | Time | Opponent | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Girls Hockey | Sat, Feb 04 | 3:00 | Totino-Grace | Parade Ice Gardens |
| Boys Hockey | Sat, Feb 04 | 7:30 | Spring Lake Park | Blaine |
| Wrestling | Sat, Feb 04 | 9:00 | TBA | Pine Island |
| Girls Basketball | Mon, Feb 06 | 6:00 | DeLaSalle | DeLaSalle |
| Boys Hockey | Wed, Feb 08 | 7:30 | Shattuck-St. Mary's | Shattuck-St. Mary's |
| Girls Basketball | Fri, Feb 10 | 7:15 | St. Louis Park | St. Louis Park |
| Wrestling | Fri, Feb 10 | 6:00 | Chisago Lakes | Home |
| Boys Hockey | Sat, Feb 11 | 2:30 | Totino-Grace | St. Louis Park |
| Dance Team | Sat, Feb 11 | 1:00 | Sections | Austin |
| Boys Hockey | Tue, Feb 14 | 7:00 | Chisago Lakes | Chisago Lakes |
| Girls Basketball | Tue, Feb 14 | 7:15 | Columbia Heights | Home |
| Girls Basketball | Thu, Feb 16 | 7:15 | Waconia | Home |
The new athletic fields and stadium will not be built this year.
Andy Lesser
May 5, 2009
Filed under News, Top Stories
After two years of laborious planning and months of promotion by the Benilde-St. Margaret’s administration, new athletic fields will not be built this year, for many obstacles have hindered the process.
One of the school’s main problems has been with funding. “It’s challenging,” said BSM President Dr. Bob Tift, “if you talk to any school or nonprofit agency it’s difficult to make money right now. There are a lot of people who want to support this and are willing to support this, but “this is not the right time.”
Despite the nation’s dreary economic climate, the McQuinn family has offered a matching donation that could account for $2 million of the project, only if the school can find more donors to provide the other $2 million dollars needed to fund the fields.
The administration’s ambitious plan includes building a new football/soccer stadium closer to the school than the current one –– the current stadium will be left as it is, but will not be used for premier events. In addition, the current varsity baseball field will be cut down to the size of a softball field, creating room to build a new baseball field behind the theater, much closer to the school. A small practice field will be placed south of the main stadium as well.
If the plans are enacted, Benilde- St. Margaret’s will have four brand new fields and five total for games and practices, vastly increasing the size and quality of the facilities. Such is welcome news to Athletic Director Jerry Pettinger. “In 1996, 17 teams used the fields,” said Mr. Pettinger; “today, we have 36.” Along with wearing down the fields’ conditions, the influx of students cramming into the current space “makes it hard to practice and hard to schedule games,” he said.
BSM President Dr. Bob Tift echoed Mr. Pettinger’s strong wish for new facilities. “The one thing alumni and other visitors come up to me about is the fields,” he said; the new plans would presumably quell their concerns.
BSM’s neighbors have different concerns, however, for in January, the St. Louis Park City Council approved of the administration’s plans 6-1, against the neighbors’ adamant opposition. They are worried about various issues, including water purity, noise level, tree loss, light, flooding, vulgar pre-game music, law enforcement, wetland removal, and most of all, respect. Among the neighbors’ criticisms during the January 20 City Council hearing were that BSM does not listen to their concerns and that they disregard the law, prompting one neighbor to say, “BSM needs to apply to the law, and they currently don’t comply.”
Dr. Tift defended BSM in this regard; “ We’re trying to be real transparent,” he said, “we’re showing them exactly what we’re doing.” He also added, “we have concerns with them too… it’s a two-way street.”
Despite the City Council’s initial approval of the plans, BSM cannot go through with them. Since the school resides around wetlands, the administration has to worry about wetland displacement as well as water storage and drainage. The original plans called for storing water under the parking lot, but legal and financial issues caused the administration to add holding ponds to their plans in place of underground storage.
The change is drastic enough that BSM has to go through the entire process all over again. School president Dr. Bob Tift and other school advisers will go back to the St. Louis Park City Council on May 4. Therefore, according to Dr. Tift, in an ideal world, the soonest the fields can be ready is “the fall of 2010.”
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