Change of plans

The following is another “Have Fun or Get Out of the Way” column by Don Leighton and Mike Granlund and their alter egos, Lance Boyle and Billy Pirkola, which runs occasionally in The Superior Telegram.

Anna Morgan is used to playing at crunch time.

In a season filled with outstanding male high school athletes, Northwestern High School’s Morgan was a standout among area female stars. She lettered 12 times in four years of high school sports. As a matter of fact, the only season she wasn’t all conference was during her sophomore season of softball, when she was sidelined with a knee injury.

In every sport Morgan was a standout; volleyball in the fall, basketball in the winter, and softball in the spring. She finished as the all time “kills” leader in Northwestern history with a career total of 1,189.

Her volleyball head coaches in high school were Charlie Hessel and Jamie Stendahl. Readers may also recall her middle school years and her Punt, Pass and Kick competition achievement when she qualified for the national finals. She finished in the top four in the competition held prior to the AFC championship football game at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.

A true student-athlete with a 3.5 grade point average, Morgan also excelled in Show Choir, and participated in Students against Drunk Driving (S.A.D.D.), DECA and the school musicals. So when her senior year was coming to a close and no athletic scholarship offers came, she opted to attend UW-Eau Claire and play basketball for the Blugolds.

All summer she worked hard on basketball, preparing herself for the rigors of the toughest Division III conference in the nation. She was ready with just a month to go before classes started.

Then came the last-second call.

Bob Eskew had just been named head volleyball coach of Chicago State University. The team that struggled last season had a number of their players leave the team for a variety of reasons. To supplement the roster, they needed to add some D-I players. That is when Anna Morgan got the call.

A Division I volleyball scholarship?

Yes!

A change of plans from the serene setting of Eau Claire, Wis., to the big lights of Chicago, Ill., and from the hardcourts of basketball to the hardcourts of volleyball. Morgan is up to the challenge and will begin practice next week. She is actually missing the first week of practice as she prepares for college life.

VOLLEYS: Morgan is the daughter of Chris and Cindy Morgan of the Town of Amnicon. Her brother, Kyle, was also a top athlete at Northwestern in football, baseball and basketball. … Chicago State University is a member of the Great Western Conference along with South Dakota, North Dakota, Houston Baptist, Texas-Pan American, Utah Valley State and NJIT (Newark, N.J.). … Also on the Cougars’ schedule are the Wisconsin Badgers on Sept. 4 and the Michigan Wolverines in Ann Arbor on Sept. 11. … Coach Eskew just completed 22 years of coaching at Bloom Township High School where his teams compiled a record of 389-109. … Chicago State is in their fifth year as a NCAA Division One school.

Boyleing in

the Pirkolater

l Lindsay Garay and Kelcee Janigo were members of the Duluth Aerials softball team that finished ninth out of 44 teams this weekend in the ASA National Fast Pitch Tournament near Detroit. The Aerials lost 3-2 in extra innings to the eventual national champion team. Garay, a 2009 Northwestern grad, just completed her freshman year at UW-Superior, playing third base for coach Roger Plachta’s Yellowjackets. Janigo, a catcher, will be a senior this fall at Northwestern. Her father, Scott Janigo, is the NHS softball coach.

l Names keep pouring into our e-mail as we try to come up with the top softball players of the past. John Ennis, Keith Tanula, Jim Mieritz, Mike Polkoski, Tony Polkoski and Pete Sorenson (manager) all have been nominated.

l Central Assembly of Superior won the A Division of the Northwoods Church Softball League tournament, defeating Bayside Baptist twice in the finals. Grace Baptist of Iron River was the regular season champion. New Beginnings won the B tournament and The River of Duluth was the B regular season champion. The Co-Rec teams will compete this weekend at 58th street fields in Superior.

l Lance and Billy have a busy week this week, being assigned to the Brewers game in Milwaukee, the PGA Golf Tournament at Whistling Straits, the Never Give Up Golf Tournament at Botten’s, the Ryan Hoff Memorial at Nemadji, and the Rally for the Cure Tournament at Northern Pines. That’s a lot of assignments for Don and Mike. (That is why we have alter egos).

Opinions and/or story ideas can be e-mailed to dleigh1273@aol.com or wgranlund@centurytel.net

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