Contributed photo Former Ponies Josh Kaul, left, and Kyle Coghlan are scheduled to compete at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships on Saturday as members of the UW-La Crosse team.

Three former Ponies were involved in a double-overtime thriller on Tuesday night at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.

Led by 2005 Stillwater graduate Troy Miller, the St. Scholastica mens's basketball team opened its season with a 95-91 victory over the Falcons in two overtimes.

Miller, a senior captain, poured in a team-high 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds. The 6-foot-4 guard hit a shot with five seconds remaining in regulation to cap a furious rally and force overtime.

The Saints trailed by 18 points with just more than 11 minutes remaining in the second half. Then with the game tied 91-all in the second overtime, Miller hit another basket and sank two late free throws to seal the victory for the Saints.

River Falls, meanwhile, received 12 points from freshman Aaron Anderson and seven points from Danny Johnson - both former Stillwater starting quarterbacks in football and sharp-shooting guards in basketball. Anderson also grabbed eight rebounds and dished out four assists in his collegiate debut while Johnson added four rebounds and three steals.

Miller, who was a member of Stillwater's state tournament team in 2005, is one of the top returning players for the Saints after spending two years at Mesabi Range Community College. He averaged 7.5 points and ranked second on the team in rebounds (108), steals (40), assists (52) and made free throws (54) while starting 23 games a year ago.

The Saints finished 9-5 in the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference and 11-15 overall a year ago.

Johnson was the Most Valuable Player for Stillwater's 2006-07 team that advanced to the section finals. Anderson ranks eighth on Stillwater's all-time scoring list with 904 career points.

Former Ponies prep for NCAA Championships

A host of former Stillwater runners will be competing at nationals in cross country during the next several days.

University of Minnesota sophomore Ben Blankenship, a two-time state champion for the Ponies in the 1,600 meters, finished 12th at the NCAA Midwest Regional on Saturday in Stillwater, Okla. Blankenship completed the 10,000-meter course in 31:28.45 to earn All-Midwest honors.

The Gophers totaled 51 points to finish second behind Oklahoma (42) and earn an automatic trip to the NCAA Championships on Monday at Terre Haute, Ind.

Hassan Mead and Chris Rombough finished 1-2 to lead the Gophers at the top of the lineup.

"We knew going in that Hassan and Chris could compete at the front of the pack," Gophers coach Steve Plasencia said. "What we needed was four our other guys to push forward and they certainly came through for us. Ben ran with great confidence and was a key contributor. We have conditioned ourselves to be successful at the longer 10K distance run in the NCAAs."

Blankenship spent his freshman season at Mississippi State University before transferring to the U of M this summer.

Two of Blankenship's former teammates will run at the NCAA Division III Championships after contributing to UW-La Crosse's runner-up finish at Saturday's Midwest Regional at Saukie Golf Course in Rock Island, Ill.

Kyle Coghlan, a junior, placed 17th as the fourth finisher for the Eagles with a time of 25:16.7 on the 8,000-meter course. Josh Kaul, meanwhile, finished 56th in the 280-runner field with a time of 2:09.0.

Only Division III power North Central College with 51 points outscored the Eagles (64). UW-Stevens Point placed third at 83.

The national championships are scheduled for Saturday in Hanover, Ind.

Coghlan was a key contributor to Stillwater's state runner-up team in 2005 and Kaul helped anchor a Ponies team that placed fourth at state a year ago.

SanCartier, Bulldogs advance to nationals

Stillwater grad Michelle SanCartier will be competing at the NCAA Division II Women's Cross Country Championships on Saturday in Slippery Rock, Penn., as a member of the UM-Duluth team that placed fourth out of 23 teams at the Central Regional in Kearney, Neb.

This marks just the second time the Bulldogs have advanced to nationals, with their only previous appearance coming in 1994.

SanCartier helped the Bulldogs finish second at the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Championships on Oct. 25. SanCartier finished fourth among the UM-D runners and 26th overall with a time of 24:09.25 on the 6,000-meter course.

Another Stillwater grad, Katie Ballandby is a junior for the Bulldogs.

Grim promotes Gophers Goal Line Club for Lions

Stillwater resident Teresa Grim addressed members of the Stillwater Lions Club during its regular meeting on Tuesday at Boutwells Landing in Oak Park Heights.

Grim, who was the guest of former Stillwater football coach George Thole, discussed the University of Minnesota's Goal Line Club. Grim, a past president and current board chair for the Gopher football program's official booster club, discussed several topics, including the new Gophers stadium.

Membership in the Goal Line Club, which starts at just $50, has tripled in the past three years. Grim, who also owns Doozie Chic Boutique in downtown Stillwater, recently toured TCF Bank Stadium and raved about the new facility and its potential impact on the Gophers program.

She said the worst seat at the new stadium still provides a better view than any of the upper deck seats at the Metrodome.

According to Grim, season ticket holders will also have access to the limited available parking by the new stadium and others will be best served by hopping on a shuttle from the State Fairgrounds.

One of the attendees judged the new ticket policy with regard to expensive personal seat licenses harshly, but Grimm said the on-campus experience will hopefully trump those additional costs.

Radecke finishes third

in sprints at Grand Prix

Former Pony standout and current Gophers sophomore Meagan Radecke recorded two third-place finishes in the 50 and 100 freestyle races as part of the Grand Prix, a three-day USA Swimming event at the U of M Aquatic Center last weekend.

Representing the ninth-ranked Gophers, Radecke placed third in the 50 freestyle with a time of 23.55 on Saturday and followed with a third-place in the 100 freestyle (51.89) on Sunday.

As a freshman, Radecke finished 15th in the 50 freestyle and 24th in the 100 freestyle at the Big Ten Championships, posting career best times in both events.

For the Ponies, Radecke helped the Ponies claim MSHSL state championships in 2005 and 2006 while earning seven All-American honors and 16 all-state awards. In addition to her success in the pool, Radecke was a class valedictorian with a 4.0 grade point average.

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