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Huskies to test TCAC’s upper division
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With five seniors and two juniors, the North Lakes volleyball team will have plenty of seasoned players to lean on in 2017. That upperclass talent will guide the Huskies on their journey through the upper division of Twin Cities Athletic Conference volleyball.
“We bring back a ton of experience,” head coach Jeff Beimert said. “We’re way more athletic than we’ve ever been.”
Two of the seniors play up front, middle hitter Maggie Thiele and right-side hitter Emma Tiedeman.
“[Thiele] will be a pretty big presence for us, she’s hitting really well so far,” Beimert said.”
Among the defensive-minded seniors, libero Annalie Peterson and defensive specialist Marie Russ are among the TCAC’s top players at their respective positions. broadstreet.zone(50962);
“[Peterson and Russ] will anchor our back line,” Beimert said.
Thiele and Russ have been named as captains.
“I want to see a lot of growth and improvement,” Thiele said. “I want us

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Avery Jorgenson
Many veterans return for tennis
The girls tennis team was the first Forest Lake squad to get its season underway. The Rangers stood 3-2 at press time, having scored wins over Centennial, River Falls and Chisago Lakes. The win over Chisago avenges a loss from last year’s Section 7AA tournament.broadstreet.zone(48036);
The Rangers were set to meet sectional foes Elk River and Princeton in a triangular meet on Aug. 29 after press time, with the slate of Suburban East Conference matches to begin with a trip to Mounds View on Aug. 31.
“I have a lot of players who are pretty equal this year,” head coach Violet Shortly said.
The varsity roster lists 24 players competing for 10 openings in a standard varsity match.
To begin the season, most of the returning veterans were in the doubles ladder. Four seniors play in the top two pairs, with Annika Lamppa and Avery Jorgenson opening at

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The seniors, from left: Abby Bier, Maria Quigley, Lindsey Lautigar, Liz Lee, Clara Olson, Claire Lautigar, Elly Capra and Olivia Gadberry. (Photo courtesy of TLC Digital Images)
Captains dare to dream about state tournament
hen the senior captains of the 2017 squad, middle hitter Clara Olson and setter Olivia Gadberry, were asked about their goal for the season, they both gave the same answer at the same time: “state!”broadstreet.zone(48036);
“Everyone has in mind that this year is our year to be section champions,” Gadberry said. “We have an insane amount of talent on the court, we just need to bring it all together as a team.”
2015 Section 7AAA champion North Branch has dropped down to Class AA, leaving squads like Cambridge-Isanti, Princeton and 2016 champions Grand Rapids as the teams to beat on the road to state. The Rangers last made state in 2002.
“It’ll be a matter of wanting to get the job

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Taylor Ritchot (left) and Valerie Patterson
State-level divers lead Rangers
A year ago, the top Ranger performances occurred mainly above the water, rather than in it: the only Ranger athletes to advance to the state championship meet were divers.broadstreet.zone(48036);
That diving unit will be strengthened by the return of an experienced specialist coach. Meanwhile, head coach Kim Jones hopes to see improved performances from the swimming section of her team.
Kenzie Klein came the closest to earning a trip to state, finishing fourth in the 50 freestyle and fifth in the 100 backstroke at the Section 7AA meet – the top two placers move on to state.
Now a senior, Klein will try to improve her marks to reach the level needed to make state, and will also be counted on to score big points for the team.
“[Klein] broke our school record in the 100 backstroke at sections, and she’s really looking forward to breaking

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Maria Villella
Young soccer squad seeks progress
In 2016, the Forest Lake girls soccer team struggled to earn results, collecting two wins and a draw along with 12 defeats.broadstreet.zone(48036);
“It’s a young group this year, so we’re looking to see improvement,” coach Rich Elliot said. “They don’t know each other very well yet, so it’s fun watching them learn to play together.”
The 2017 roster lists four seniors, six juniors, six sophomores and two freshmen.
“We want to see them play as a team,” coach Amanda Hansen said. “They came in as 18 individuals, and now they’re starting to come together as a team.”
Elliot and Hansen share the head coaching duties. Elliot works with the goalkeepers and defenders while Hansen leads the midfielders and forwards.
Two midfielders will wear the captains’ armbands this year, senior Vanessa Weigel and junior Carly Walker. Walker will patrol the middle of the field while Weigel will work on the outside.broadstreet.zone(50962);
“[Walker]

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Photo courtesy of TLC Digital Images
Wins come early for boys soccer
Last year, the Forest Lake boys soccer team only won one game, though it came against Mounds View, which would eventually make a run to the state tournament.broadstreet.zone(48036);
“We had lots of leads late in games, but due to our youth and inexperience we couldn’t close them out,” head coach Joe Tomas said. “We’re optimistic that that was a stepping stone for this year.”
Tomas made that statement before the Rangers had played a game in 2017, but so far his optimism seems well-founded. In their first game of the season, the Rangers beat Blaine 3-1. The Bengals had been rated No. 9 in the state preseason rankings. The Rangers followed that up with a 3-2 win against Coon Rapids, surpassing their win total from 2016 already and giving them a pair of wins against potential Section 7AA playoff opponents – a

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Regan Duffy
Runners aim for state return
2016 was an outstanding season for the Forest Lake girls and boys cross-country teams. Both squads qualified for their respective state meets – the girls finished sixth and the boys placed 13th.broadstreet.zone(48036);
The girls bring back six of the seven runners who ran at state, positioning themselves as a favorite to make a return trip.
“I know that all the other teams are thinking that we’re the favorites, but we’ll see,” girls head coach John Fick said.
Junior Regan Duffy finished 15th in the state race last year and is figured to be a top-10 runner this year. The other returners are freshman Amelea Hauer (56th), senior Caroline Schoessow (60th), eighth-grader Ava Wilson (63rd), eighth-grader Annabelle Stang (163rd) and junior Jesseca Overland (166th).
The girls will open their season at St. Olaf on Aug. 31, in a meet where entries are unlimited, allowing every runner to challenge for a

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New district opponents await football squadbroadstreet.zone(48036);
Most years, the biggest change for any team is the departure of seniors and the arrival of underclassmen to take their spots in the lineup.
In 2017, Forest Lake football faces a bigger change. A little over a year ago, Forest Lake applied for and were granted the right to move into a new district, a change which goes into effect this season. With the switch, the Rangers will face an entirely new slate of opponents in 2017, with no holdovers from last season remaining on the schedule.
The Rangers are now members of the Blue subdistrict of the Suburban district alongside Hopkins, Coon Rapids and Robbinsdale Armstrong. The Rangers will host Coon Rapids in their home opener Sept. 8 and Armstrong on Sept. 22. They will play Hopkins away on Oct. 13.
The Rangers’ remaining opponents are pulled from the membership of the other Suburban subdistricts. The

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